ThriceIn5Minutes
Active Member
For my next home brew project I've been thinking about doing some side by side comparisons. I have a good palate for distiguishing one beer from another and describing them qualitatively, but I'm not familiar with how individual ingridients lend character to the finished product. Though I've heard and read plenty about what each ingredient contributes, I've never really tasted it that way.
What I want to do is make several 1 gallon batches at a time and vary each brew by one ingredient. I'll start with hops, since I know the least about its flavors. I'll make a 4 gal batch and pour it evenly in 5 jugs. Then I'll boil the hops in 5 separate batches and add one to each jug. I'll finish them all off, treating them as equals; same yeast, same fermentation time, same temp, same bottles, etc.
I don't think there should be too many problems:
The small batches shouldn't affect the taste much.
I'll have to be 5x as careful about sanitation.
I'll have to buy 5 new 1-2 gal jugs, stoppers, and airlocks.
Can anyone think of a cheaper system or improve upon the setup?
What I want to do is make several 1 gallon batches at a time and vary each brew by one ingredient. I'll start with hops, since I know the least about its flavors. I'll make a 4 gal batch and pour it evenly in 5 jugs. Then I'll boil the hops in 5 separate batches and add one to each jug. I'll finish them all off, treating them as equals; same yeast, same fermentation time, same temp, same bottles, etc.
I don't think there should be too many problems:
The small batches shouldn't affect the taste much.
I'll have to be 5x as careful about sanitation.
I'll have to buy 5 new 1-2 gal jugs, stoppers, and airlocks.
Can anyone think of a cheaper system or improve upon the setup?