Three Floyd's Gumball Head Extract Clone?

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I don't have my software at work so I do not know what the gravities should be, so I through in estimates for this Dummy guide. I hope this helps...This is from an old walk through I had for a buddy of mine when he started Extract brewing, its from memory and should be fairly accurate even though I do All Grain now.

Enjoy! Cheers!!



6lb Wheat Dry Extract
1lb Pale Malt
1lb Torrified Wheat
1oz Amarillo Gold (60m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (30m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (5m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (Dry Hop)
White Labs California Ale WLP001
3/4 cup corn sugar for bottling



Sanitation is the most important process in brewing great beer. Everything that your beer comes in contact with must be clean and sanitary. The Iodophor sanitizer works well to sanitize your equipment, and does not require rinsing. Make your sanitizing solution when you start, and use it during the entire brewing process. When the color of the solution becomes clear, it no longer is useful. Hoses, carboys, strainers, funnels, and airlocks all need to be sanitized. Anything that will come in contact with your beer after you are done boiling needs to be sanitized. A 10 minute soak in the sanitizer solution will sanitize your equipment. Clean and sanitary are two different things. Clean means you have no visible residue on the surface of your equipment. Sanitary means all bacteria; mold and wild yeast are killed or neutralized. Clean your equipment after every use with PBW or Straight A. Sanitize your equipment before you use it. If you sanitize properly, you will consistently make great beer!


A special word about glass vs. plastic fermenters.

Plastic “Better Bottles” are a new type of plastic carboy that is “hydrophobic”, which means they repell liquids. This means they do not get as dirty as glass carboys. However, you CANNOT use a brush to clean the better bottles, since a brush will scratch a Better Bottle. Use a percarbonate cleaner like PBW (included) to clean them when you are done with them. Fill the bottle with about a gallon of warm water and 1 Tablespoon PBW, and put the solid bung on. Shake the bottle to get the interior coated, release any pressure, and then let set for up to an hour upside down to clean the neck area. Then rinse and sanitize. Please note that the 6 gallon glass fermenters are actually about 6 ½ gallons volume to the base of the neck, and the Better Bottles are 6 gallon volume to the base of the neck.


Brew day will take about 2 hours from start to clean up.
Fermentation will take 10 to 14 days, you may wait longer till you are ready to bottle
high temperatures (above 72º) will speed up fermentation, but is not desirable for flavor of beer
Bottling day will take about 1 1/2 hours. 7 days later you can drink your beer!


1) Start brewing. Remove the vial of White Labs yeast from the refrigerator and set out at room temperature to warm up. Fill your brewing pot with about 2 gallons of hot water. Add the 2 cracked malted grains together to the brewpot, turn the heat to low and let the malts steep for about 30 minutes. 155° is the preferred temperature, but don’t worry if you don’t have a thermometer. Avoid boiling the malts.

2) While your grain is steeping, clean the inside of one of your 6 gallon glass carboys, and then sanitize it by filling it with 1 Tablespoon Iodophor and about 6½ gallons of cold water (fill to the very top). (Tip: fill one gallon at a time, try to mark the 5½ gallon level) Let it soak for about 10 minutes and then dump all of the sanitizing solution into a sink or other container to sanitize the rest of your equipment.

3) Remove most of the malted grains from the brewpot when the 30 minute steeping is done. Use a handled strainer to scoop it out. Throw the malted grain onto the compost pile. Don’t worry if you leave a little.

4) Turn heat to high and bring the beer (the beer is actually called wort at this stage) to a boil.

5) When beer has started to boil, I like to remove the pot from the burner to avoid any chance of scorching, add DME (Dry Malt Extract) and 1 oz. of Amarillo Hops (This hop addition is where the bitterness is added to beer.) Stir the malt to completely dissolve it in the water. Return the pot to the burner and heat to a boil. Do not put the lid on your pot unless you want a boil over!! The addition of the malt will lower the temperature in the pot, and will take a few minutes to return to a boil.

6) Let boil for a total of 60 minutes. Have a glass of your favorite beer---you deserve it!!

7) With 25 minutes to go, add 1 oz. of Amarillo to the beer. This hop addition increases hop flavor (some bitterness, some unique flavors)

8) With about 15 minutes to go, fill the sanitized carboy with about 2 gallons of cold water (the colder the better). Put funnel, strainer, beer thief and a saucepan in the sanitizing solution to soak.

9) Add the last 1 ounce of Amarillo hops to your beer with 5 minutes left in the boil. (This addition of hops is for hop aroma).

10) Place your sanitized funnel on the carboy and a sanitized strainer in the funnel. Using your sanitized saucepan, ladle the beer into the carboy through the strainer. Discard the hops and any of the malted grains that may be left. Top off the carboy with cold water to the 5½ gallon mark you made when you first sanitized the carboy. . (This should leave you about 7 inches from the very top of the glass carboy, or about 2”-3” below the shoulder of the glass carboy – about 3 inches below the neck on the better bottles.)

11) Mix up the beer in the carboy thoroughly. Draw out enough beer using a sanitized beer Thief to float the hydrometer in its tube. Take a reading where the hydrometer floats at the water line. (It should be 1.000 in water on the specific gravity scale). The beer settles in just a few minutes, so take your reading immediately after mixing. Write the specific gravity down for later use. Original Specific Gravity__________________

13) Place a sanitized airlock and cork in the mouth of the carboy and fill the airlock with some of the sanitized water to create a water barrier. Let the beer cool until the temperature on the fermometer shows 78º or cooler. (This is almost immediately when you have cold tap water in the winter--in the summer it may take a few hours). You can speed up the cooling process by putting the carboy in the sink and wrapping a wet towel around it. Additional cooling can be achieved by placing ice cubes in the neck area under the towel. It is better to cool the beer to between 75º and 78º quickly so you can add the yeast.

14) When beer is 75º to 78º it is time to add the yeast. Shake the room temperature vial of yeast to suspend the sediment in the liquid. Remove the cap, and then add the yeast to the beer. Fermentation should start in about 10 to 20 hours. Ferment your beer at room temperature, about 68º-70°. Avoid temperatures above 72º and below 64º.

15) Fermentation should last about 10 to 14 days. It is possible, and quite likely, for the fermentation to be shorter or longer. Warmer temperatures cause a faster fermentation. The easiest way to tell if fermentation is done is to time how fast the bubbles come out of the airlock. When the bubbles have slowed to longer than 60 seconds between bubbles (NOT SCIENTIFIC), it is time to bottle your beer. You could also take a hydrometer reading of your beer at this time, and if it is between 1.012 and 1.016 the beer is done fermenting.

16) Clean and sanitize your second carboy, auto-siphon and hose, bottle filler. With Iodophor as in step 2. Clean your beer bottles of residue, and sanitize in the same solution that you sanitized your carboy. Soak the bottles and bottle caps in the Iodophor solution for 10 minutes, and then drain them for about 10 minutes before filling.

17) Boil 3/4 cup of corn sugar in 2 cups of water for 5 minutes. The addition of this sugar to your beer will cause fermentation to re-start in the bottle and carbonate your beer.

18) Put full carboy of beer on table, and empty sanitized carboy on the floor underneath it. Siphon the beer into the empty carboy using your sanitized siphon assembly. You are trying to separate the beer from the sediment on the bottom of the carboy, so try not to mix up the beer at this time. The sediment tip on the siphon assembly allows you to set the siphon assembly on the sediment, and suck only a small amount of sediment into your beer. Avoid splashing the beer. After you get about 1/2 a gallon siphoned into the carboy, add the corn sugar mixture to the carboy and finish siphoning the beer. Mix this sugar gently in the full carboy to get an even carbonation in all the bottles. While you are siphoning this take another hydrometer reading. The original reading you took earlier (see #12), minus the final reading, multiplied by .125 gives you an estimated alcohol content by volume. (This beer should be about 1.048 starting and 1.014 ending) 1.048 minus 1.014 = 34. 34 x .125 gives you an alcohol content of 4.25% by volume. Final Specific Gravity________________

19) Put the full carboy up on the table. Put the siphon assembly into the beer, and the bottle filler on the end of the siphon hose. Fill the bottles to the top with the bottle filler, when you remove the bottle filler from inside the bottle, the beer will be about 1½ inch from the top. Then cap the bottles.

20) Let the bottles age at room temperature (65º to 80º) for 1 week to carbonate. Temperatures below 65° will be too cool for the yeast to carbonate the beer.
 
YOU SIR ARE THE MAN!! This is awesome. I'm going to go get the ingredients today. I'm hoping this will make it hoppy wheat goodness like Gumball. Couple of quick questions...should I get Hop Pellets or whole leaf hops? And all amarillo? Also, if I get the ingredients today, how long will the stuff last in a fridge? I can always wait on the yeast...

Also..I won't be bottling, I'll be kegging. What adjustments to your instructions should I make.

Again...thanks so much for this.
 
The ingredients will last a few months with the exception if you get the grain cracked, I like to use it within a week myself. I would use all Amarillo hops in this beer as that is what we have discovered from the original.

I made a batch of this two weeks ago and will place it in a second carboy or keg for the remaining conditioning probably tomorrow.

In my opinion, hops are personal preference. Pellet hops are usually more potent in my opinion and honestly create less of a mess. I use both to be honest, but would say pellets are easier because they pretty much dissolve and fall to the bottom.

Here is my ONLY caveat, when dry hopping with Citra, I use nothing but whole hops. In my opinion, beers that are dry hopped with Citra pellets tend to have an off smell that can only be described as cat piss.

Now, in the next thread will be Kegging instructions, in case you want a cleaner "print"
 
First step: Clean and sanitize your keg

Just like everything else in home brewing, you must clean and sanitize your keg and the hoses that the beer comes in contact with. Clean with a sodium percarbonate cleaner, PBW, Straight A, One Step, Oxy Clean (UNSCENTED ONLY). Fill the keg with a solution of about 3 gallons warm water and 3 Tablespoons of one of the above cleaners.

Put the lid on the keg, hook up to your Co2, and us the pressure to run a little of the solution out through your faucet to fill your outlet lines. Shake up the keg to get some of the solution on all of the interior surfaces. Let the keg set for about 30 minutes for the cleaner to do its work. For really stubborn stains an overnight soak is even better.

(NEVER use chlorine bleach on your keg, because chlorine bleach can pit and damage stainless steel)

This is also a great time to check your keg for air leaks. Hook up your keg and your gas inlet, turn the pressure on to 10-12 lbs., and then apply soapy water to all connections, looking for soap bubbles that indicate a leaking keg. Tighten any leaking fittings, or replace worn gaskets. If you have no bubbles, your keg should work wonderfully.

After your keg is clean, empty the cleaning solution, and rinse with warm water. Now sanitize your keg by filling it with about 3 gallons of water and 2 teaspoons of Iodophor. Hook it up to your Co2 line, and again use the pressure to push some sanitizing solution out through the faucet line. Let the sanitizing solution sit in your keg for about 10 minutes to sanitize your keg and the dispensing lines. Then empty the keg and let it drip dry for a minute or 2. Siphon your beer (cider wine, or soda) into keg; refrigerate beer to less than 45 degrees. It will take about 12 hours to cool beer from 65 to 45 degrees.

I’m thirsty; I want to drink my beer now!

Here is the “quick” method (and most common) of carbonation, which allows you to carbonate your beer in around 10 minutes. Hook up your Co2 line to the inlet valve on your keg. To adjust the pressure, turn the screw in the center of the main body clockwise to increase pressure, and counter clock wise to decrease pressure. Turn your regulator up to 20 lbs. With the keg upright, fill the keg with Co2 for about 5 seconds, then bleed off excess air (oxygen) by pulling the pressure relieve valve on top to purge the oxygen out of the keg. Repeat this step 4 times to ensure all oxygen is out of keg.

Now set keg on its side, with Co2 still hooked up to 20 lbs. and the Co2 valve open into the keg. Rock the keg back and forth with the Co2 inlet on the bottom, for 7-8 minutes. (Rock for 20 seconds, rest for 5 seconds, rock for 20 seconds, etc.)

Now stand the keg upright, lower the pressure to 10-12 psi, and shake for about 30 seconds more. Pull the pressure relief valve to release any excess pressure. Hook up the fill hose, and dispense some into a glass to sample!

Your beer will be carbonated now, but it may be a bit foamy for the next 24 hours, but it will settle down as time goes on. If you rock the keg for longer than the recommended time, you may over carbonate the beer, so be sure to time yourself to avoid over carbonation.

For every glass of beer you dispense, you will need to have Co2 injected to replace the volume of beer. Keep your Co2 line hooked up at all times, and it is up to you if you want to have the valve open from the Co2 bottle or close it after each night of drinking to prevent Co2 loss. Let your carbonated beer settle with the Co2 still hooked up, for about 24 to 48 hours. Sample some as you get thirsty!

I don’t want to drink my beer right now, I am patient!

Yea, right! If you truly are not in a hurry to drink your beer, you can simply hook the beer up to your Co2 at 10-12 lbs. of pressure, bleed the head space 3 times, and then sit back and wait about a week for the beer to slowly absorb the Co2, and be ready to drink. The beer must be under 50º for this to work.

I want to “naturally” carbonate my beer.

If you want to carbonate your beer with fermenting yeast and sugar, that is also possible. For this method, you add 1/3 of a cup of corn sugar (not ¾ of a cup like filling small bottles) to the beer, seal the lid with about 20 lbs. of pressure from your tank, unhook the Co2, and then let the yeast ferment the corn sugar and also carbonate the beer at the same time. This will take approximately 1 week at 70º. Be sure that the lid is tightly sealed at the beginning of this process. You could also use about ½ cup of dry malt extract in place of the corn sugar if you want to follow the German purity laws.


Your Beer is carbonated, time to dispense!

Once your beer is carbonated, things should work pretty well. Most home dispensing situations are in a small refrigerator, with short dispensing lines. For these situations, 10 to 12 lbs. of pressure should give you adequately carbonated beer. Temperature makes a difference. Most Micro-Brew is carbonated to about 2.5 volumes of Co2. At 40º this is 10-12 psi; at 45º this is 13-15 psi. If you have longer lines, you have to increase the dispensing pressure to compensate for the pressure loss of the long hose length. The regulator can tend to “drift” the pressure up or down a few pounds over the course of a few weeks, so be sure to occasionally check the pressure.

I want to bottle a few beers out of my keg!

If you want to bottle the beer from the keg efficiently, cool your bottles to as close to 30º as possible. Sanitize them, and then put a plastic bag over the top with a rubber band prior to putting them in the fridge. To fill the bottles, turn the pressure on the regulator to about 3 to 4 psi. Bleed off the headspace Co2. Then fill you bottles trying to splash as little as possible. You could put a short hose on your dispenser to reach the bottom of the bottle. Dispensing at a low pressure on your regulator is very important here. Seal your bottles as soon as they are full to capture the maximum amount of Co2. You will lose some Co2 in the transfer process, so this is not a good way to “age” beer, as there is normally a small amount of oxidation that happens in the transfer. If you drink the beer in the next week or so, it probably will be fine.

I want to take beer to a friend’s house for a party.

It is inconvenient to take a keg and your Co2 bottle to a friend’s house for a party. Plus they may drink all of your beer! This is where the “Carbonator Cap” comes to the rescue. The cap fits on top of a 2 liter plastic soda bottle (the equivalent of a 6-pack), and then connects to your ball lock gas fitting. Here is how it works. Fill the 2 liter bottle with your beer, and let the foam subside. Then put the carbonator cap on tightly. Push down on the spring loaded center valve, and squeeze the bottle to purge the air out of the bottle. Then hook the Co2 ball lock fitting to the top of the 2 liter bottle and fill the head space with Co2. This will keep your beer properly carbonated for weeks, so it is perfect for taking beer on road trips or camping.

Kegging tips:

  • Your beer MUST be cold to absorb Co2. Under 50º will work, but cooler is better for absorbing Co2. You cannot carbonate beer above about 55º
  • Contrary to popular belief, foaming is caused by low Co2 pressure, not by high Co2 pressure. Most foaming is a result of your Co2 regulator being set under 8 lbs. of pressure. Occasionally it is also caused by a partial blockage of the outlet hose or connectors.
  • Your Co2 bottle volume is measured by weight, not by pressure gauges. The 5 lb. aluminum Co2 bottles weigh approximately 7.5 lbs. empty, and thus around 12.5 lbs. full. Steel bottles are heavier.
  • There are single gauge and double gauge regulators. The second gauge measures pressure in your Co2 bottle, not volume. Temperatures determine pressure, thus making the pressure gauge somewhat useless for you to determine Co2 volume in the tank in 5 lb. Co2 bottles. A bottle that is nearly full will show 1500 lbs. at 70º, and 500lbs at 40º, which suggests that you refill the tank when it is nearly full.
  • Gaskets need to be replaced periodically.
  • Hoses that have had Root beer or Sarsaparilla normally absorb the soda flavor, and cannot be used for beer after they have absorbed the soda flavors. Most other soda flavors do not taint the hoses nearly as much.
  • A 5 lb. Co2 bottle will normally carbonate and dispense approximately 40-50 gallons of beer (8-10 kegs). If you only get a few kegs and your bottle is empty, you probably have a leak, and need to do the soapy water trick.
  • Co2 bottles must be pressure tested every 5 years. There is a date stamped on your Co2 bottle with its last test date. It looks like 8@00 (August of 2000), or 10@03 (October of 2003) If your date is older than 5 years, the bottle cannot be refilled until it is retested and re-stamped.
 
I live in South Bend and am able to get 3 Floyds anytime. I have used the following clone extract recipe and it is really good.

6lb Wheat Dry Extract
1lb Pale Malt
1lb Torrified Wheat
1oz Amarillo Gold (60m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (30m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (5m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (Dry Hop)
White Labs California Ale WLP001

teep cracked grains in muslin bags from cold to 155 degrees. Hold at 155 degrees
for 30 to 40 minutes. Drain and remove muslin bags.
Bring to a boil. Add DME and 1 oz. of Amarillo Hops. Boil 30 minutes.
Add 1 oz. Amarillo Hops. Boil for 25 minutes. (1/2 oz. if less hoppy is desired)
Add 1 oz. Amarillo Hops. Boil for 5 minutes. (1/2 oz. if less hoppy is desired)

Ferment 68 to 70 degrees until fermentation completely ends
Re-rack and dry hop with 1oz of Amarillo hops for an additional week.

I compared them side by side an man they were close in aroma and taste.

Thanks for the recipe Nail! We just brewed this up as stated above. Can't wait to see how it turns out. More to come soon.
 
A Hoppy American Wheat? Yep.
Are you a fan of hops? Do you like a refreshing, crisp, light wheat beer on a hot summer's day? Well, this is the beer for you if you answered YES to both of those questions. Gumballhead by Three Floyds brewing in Munster Indiana is sort of a bastardization of a typical, refreshing American Wheat style mixed with a citrusy, hop-forward West Coast style pale ale or IPA.

Gumballhead is your typical wheat color and retains the expected wheat haze. The Amarillo hops impart a citrus, floral, refreshing bitterness that makes this a great beer to brew for summertime.

The Recipe
The Gumballhead homebrew recipe presented here starts with a typical Wheat/2-Row malt blend standard in American Wheat style beers. A bit of CaraVienne malt is added for some interest, sweetness, and the tiniest bit of color.
The hoppiness, and most of the interest in this beer, comes from the use of Amarillo hops with the majority used to impart flavor and especially aroma characteristics.

This recipe is a good example of the 'HopBurst' technique that balances the hop additions in such a way that the majority of the total IBU contribution comes from additions that will impart more aroma than just hop bitterness. This recipe could have just used an ounce of Amarillo at 60 minutes and some at the end - but instead it is balanced toward the last 15 minutes.

First Wort Hopping is said to impart the same bitterness as a 20-minute addition to a recipe and retain the essential oils that impart flavor and aroma characteristics. This works because the alpha acids and compounds that would normally boil off during the entire 60 minutes of boiling are isomerized and stay with the wort for the most part throughout the boil.




All Grain Recipe - Gumball Head Wheat ::: 1.052/1.012 (6 Gal)
Grain Bill (70% Efficiency assumed)
6 lbs. - Wheat Malt
5 lbs. - 2-Row Pale Malt
1 lb. - Caravienne Malt

Hop Schedule (27 IBU)
1/4 oz. - Amarillo - First Wort Hop
1/4 oz. - Amarillo - 60 min.
1/2 oz. - Amarillo - 15 min.
1.25 oz. - Amarillo - 5 min.
1 oz. - Amarillo - 1 min.
1.5 oz. - Amarillo - Dry Hop

Yeast
White Labs California Ale Yeast (WLP001) - 1800 ml starter

Mash/Sparge/Boil
Mash at 153° for 60 min.
Sparge as usual
Cool and ferment at 68° to 70°

Notes
Several people have brewed this and reported good results.
 
Just finished brewing Nail's recipe. Everything went well. What's everyone doing as far as how long in the primary secondary etc? Can't wait to drink this! I'm still very new to brewing and am finding the patience needed to wait for your beer to finish migt be the hardest par of brewing :)
 
All Grain Recipe - Gumball Head Wheat ::: 1.052/1.012 (6 Gal)
Grain Bill (70% Efficiency assumed)
6 lbs. - Wheat Malt
5 lbs. - 2-Row Pale Malt
1 lb. - Caravienne Malt

Hop Schedule (27 IBU)
1/4 oz. - Amarillo - First Wort Hop
1/4 oz. - Amarillo - 60 min.
1/2 oz. - Amarillo - 15 min.
1.25 oz. - Amarillo - 5 min.
1 oz. - Amarillo - 1 min.
1.5 oz. - Amarillo - Dry Hop

Yeast
White Labs California Ale Yeast (WLP001) - 1800 ml starter

Mash/Sparge/Boil
Mash at 153° for 60 min.
Sparge as usual
Cool and ferment at 68° to 70°

Notes
Several people have brewed this and reported good results.

I just did a partial mash adaptation of this recipe and it turned out great. I've only had the real thing once so I can't say for sure how close it is, but it sure is good.

I ended up using 6 oz. of Amarillo all told and used Wyeast 1272. I'm really starting to like that yeast.
 
I brewed mine on the 7th of August and left it in the primary until I kegged on the 23rd. More than likely I will be carbing mine this weekend and having my first sample. Will report back once I do.
 
I am waiting on my brew kit and the ingredients for this tasty sounding recipe. My questions is I think the torrified wheat isn't milled from my source. Should I put it in a blender or mash it up with a rolling pin in a plastic bag or what? Thanks in advance.
 
ZOMBIE DUST IS UPON US!
It's Gumball Heads big brother, new 3Floyds brew. Bought a case today.
 
Ok, new[ b ] question for you guys. When I plug this recipe into hopcalculus, it says it's a partial mash recipe, yet all the directions posted say to just steep the grains. Should I treat this as partial mash or just go with the instructions that have been provided in this thread? Thanks in advance.
 
Steeping = Partial Mashing. In stead of using Malt syrup you are extracting the sugars and flavors by "steeping" them, much like you do when making tea.

Once you have removed the grain, you will add everything to the steeped water.

Rather than a mash tun, you are using your boil pot and removing grain by likely scooping them out with a strainer.

I hope this helps clear things up.
 
I live in South Bend and am able to get 3 Floyds anytime. I have used the following clone extract recipe and it is really good.

6lb Wheat Dry Extract
1lb Pale Malt
1lb Torrified Wheat
1oz Amarillo Gold (60m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (30m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (5m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (Dry Hop)
White Labs California Ale WLP001

teep cracked grains in muslin bags from cold to 155 degrees. Hold at 155 degrees
for 30 to 40 minutes. Drain and remove muslin bags.
Bring to a boil. Add DME and 1 oz. of Amarillo Hops. Boil 30 minutes.
Add 1 oz. Amarillo Hops. Boil for 25 minutes. (1/2 oz. if less hoppy is desired)
Add 1 oz. Amarillo Hops. Boil for 5 minutes. (1/2 oz. if less hoppy is desired)

Ferment 68 to 70 degrees until fermentation completely ends
Re-rack and dry hop with 1oz of Amarillo hops for an additional week.

I compared them side by side an man they were close in aroma and taste.

Well, we just sampled this beauty and it's one of the best we've made in our home brewing career. Certainly one I will repeat again. Thanks Nail!
 
I brewed this on Sunday and looking forward to it. I had trouble steeping the grains right at 155 with a turkey burner (first time without a stove). I then proceeded to have a a boil over so it was an eventful day. I used Wyeast 1272 since I have read people really liking it and the fact it gives off a "fruity flavor". After one day in the primary and it shot my 3 way hooked up to a blow off tube right off. This thing is active! I replaced the clogged 3 way with a thicker blow off tube right through the bung. My first attempt at brewing (pumpkin ale) is now 4 days in the keg so things are getting close.
 
I live in South Bend and am able to get 3 Floyds anytime. I have used the following clone extract recipe and it is really good.

6lb Wheat Dry Extract
1lb Pale Malt
1lb Torrified Wheat
1oz Amarillo Gold (60m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (30m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (5m)
1oz Amarillo Gold (Dry Hop)
White Labs California Ale WLP001

teep cracked grains in muslin bags from cold to 155 degrees. Hold at 155 degrees
for 30 to 40 minutes. Drain and remove muslin bags.
Bring to a boil. Add DME and 1 oz. of Amarillo Hops. Boil 30 minutes.
Add 1 oz. Amarillo Hops. Boil for 25 minutes. (1/2 oz. if less hoppy is desired)
Add 1 oz. Amarillo Hops. Boil for 5 minutes. (1/2 oz. if less hoppy is desired)

Ferment 68 to 70 degrees until fermentation completely ends
Re-rack and dry hop with 1oz of Amarillo hops for an additional week.

I compared them side by side an man they were close in aroma and taste.


We were not overly impressed with this recipe so far. Going to let it sit in the frig for a couple more days. (big football party this Sunday) The color was a bit too dark and the hops were not jumping out at us like they do in Gumball Head. (dry hopped it for a week) One problem is that I didn't have the setup to do a full boil at the time and this may be the issue. We will see if the flavor has changed a bit on Sunday. I will remake it again and next time do the full boil now that I have the setup.
 
This thread has been dead for a bit, I think it's time to revisit this as I'm going to try an attempt and this Three Floyd's GumballHead. I'm quite the newbie, and looking for something easier, but don't want it to taste horrific so I'll put in any sort of effort I have to to make this beer taste good and similar to TF GumballHead! I have a three recipes 2 of which are converted from AG one of those was an 11 gal batch so I converted to extract and then scaled the recipe down to 5 gal (1.7-2 gal partial boil). The other I found on here. I am open to suggestions and critique as I want to learn and get a general consensus for what tastes best. Also, I'd like suggestions for yeast, as you can see in 2 of the recipes I have Wyeast 1968 and in the other I have Wyeast 1272. Hope for a few replies! Cheers guys & Gals

First one: converted from AG:
Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 1.70 gal
Post Boil Volume: 1.56 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 4.60 gal
Estimated OG: 1.054 SG
Estimated Color: 8.0 SRM
Estimated IBU: 6.0 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 0.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes
Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
4 lbs 5.8 oz Wheat Liquid Extract (8.0 SRM) Extract 1 57.6 %
3 lbs 3.3 oz Pale Liquid Extract (8.0 SRM) Extract 2 42.4 %
0.25 oz Amarillo Gold [8.90 %] - Boil 30.0 min Hop 3 2.1 IBUs
0.50 oz Amarillo Gold [8.90 %] - Boil 15.0 min Hop 4 2.8 IBUs
0.50 oz Amarillo Gold [8.90 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 5 1.1 IBUs
0.20 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 6 0.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg GF All American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1272) Yeast 7 -
2.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Dry Hop 4.0 Day Hop 8 0.0 IBUs
Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, No Mash Out
Total Grain Weight: 7 lbs 9.1 oz
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Second one, I believe this recipe I found on this thread:
Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 1.70 gal
Post Boil Volume: 1.56 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 4.60 gal
Estimated OG: 1.055 SG
Estimated Color: 7.3 SRM
Estimated IBU: 22.7 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 0.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes
Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
5.00 gal Deer Park (R), Bottled Water Water 1 -
1 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) Bel (3.0 SRM) Grain 2 12.5 %
1 lbs Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM) Grain 3 12.5 %
6 lbs Wheat Dry Extract (8.0 SRM) Dry Extract 4 75.0 %
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 5 11.5 IBUs
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Boil 30.0 min Hop 6 8.9 IBUs
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 7 2.3 IBUs
1.0 pkg London ESB Ale (Wyeast Labs #1968) [124. Yeast 8 -
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Dry Hop 7.0 Day Hop 9 0.0 IBUs
Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, No Mash Out
Total Grain Weight: 8 lbs
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Third one was the 11 gal batch converted and scaled:
Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 1.70 gal
Post Boil Volume: 1.56 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 4.60 gal
Estimated OG: 1.055 SG
Estimated Color: 7.3 SRM
Estimated IBU: 22.7 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 0.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes
Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
5.00 gal Deer Park (R), Bottled Water Water 1 -
1 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) Bel (3.0 SRM) Grain 2 12.5 %
1 lbs Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM) Grain 3 12.5 %
6 lbs Wheat Dry Extract (8.0 SRM) Dry Extract 4 75.0 %
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 5 11.5 IBUs
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Boil 30.0 min Hop 6 8.9 IBUs
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 7 2.3 IBUs
1.0 pkg London ESB Ale (Wyeast Labs #1968) [124. Yeast 8 -
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [9.30 %] - Dry Hop 7.0 Day Hop 9 0.0 IBUs
Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, No Mash Out
Total Grain Weight: 8 lbs
 
I've made a version of Gumballhead quite a few times and it's always one of my regulars. I'll try to help out although I don't have my recipes in front of me. I've made it a few different ways from extract to all grain and with a few different ingredient choices.

I'm not sure where that first recipe came from. It's only giving you 6 IBUs and that's way off. The others are low also compared to 3F's specs. Paraphrased from their web page, Gumballhead is brewed with red wheat and boatloads of Amarillo hops. It's 5.5% ABV and around 35 IBU.

There's quite a few grain bills out there. One of the ones I started with and used for several batches calls for Caravienne. I've used it as a steep for extract and in all grain batches. It's always turned out great even though Caravienne isn't supposed to be in the real Gumballhead. Brewing with Wheat claims the grain bill is red wheat, 2 row, and aromatic. On my last batch I put the aromatic in instead of Caravienne but I haven't tasted it yet. the gravity sample was great though. As for red vs. white wheat, most literature says there's no taste difference between the two. I've used white in all my batches.

For hopping I use all Amarillo. Additions at 60, 15, 5, and 0 to get to around 35 IBUs. I also use a 2 oz. dry hop. That big dry hop is the key to getting the nose similar to the real thing.

Finally, the yeast. 3F's house yeast is listed out there somewhere. I want to say it's one of the California strains. I've always used US-05 because I prefer using dry yeast, so I can't really comment on the differences the yeast may bring in. US-05 makes a tasty beer so to this point I haven't been tempted to switch it up.

Hope this helps!
 
SpacemanSpiff said:
I've made a version of Gumballhead quite a few times and it's always one of my regulars. I'll try to help out although I don't have my recipes in front of me. I've made it a few different ways from extract to all grain and with a few different ingredient choices.

I'm not sure where that first recipe came from. It's only giving you 6 IBUs and that's way off. The others are low also compared to 3F's specs. Paraphrased from their web page, Gumballhead is brewed with red wheat and boatloads of Amarillo hops. It's 5.5% ABV and around 35 IBU.

There's quite a few grain bills out there. One of the ones I started with and used for several batches calls for Caravienne. I've used it as a steep for extract and in all grain batches. It's always turned out great even though Caravienne isn't supposed to be in the real Gumballhead. Brewing with Wheat claims the grain bill is red wheat, 2 row, and aromatic. On my last batch I put the aromatic in instead of Caravienne but I haven't tasted it yet. the gravity sample was great though. As for red vs. white wheat, most literature says there's no taste difference between the two. I've used white in all my batches.

For hopping I use all Amarillo. Additions at 60, 15, 5, and 0 to get to around 35 IBUs. I also use a 2 oz. dry hop. That big dry hop is the key to getting the nose similar to the real thing.

Finally, the yeast. 3F's house yeast is listed out there somewhere. I want to say it's one of the California strains. I've always used US-05 because I prefer using dry yeast, so I can't really comment on the differences the yeast may bring in. US-05 makes a tasty beer so to this point I haven't been tempted to switch it up.

Hope this helps!

This helps out so much. So since I'm a new brewer, and don't just want to "make beer that's drinkable" could you find the recipe that you used? I prefer extract because of my experience level and lack of equipment, but will try anything! This will be my second batch ever. My first was a brewers best Oktoberfest and was decent but definitely missed the target that I was shooting for (wanted similar to the Sam Adams oktoberfest!). Thanks so much for your replay and your help!

Cheers,
Austin
 
Here's what I used for my first extract batch:

3 lbs extra light DME
3 lbs wheat DME
1 lb 2 row
1 lb white wheat
1 lb Caravienne

That gets you around 1.056 OG. The grains are for steeping, but the Caravienne is the only traditional steeping grain. I think the 2 row and wheat helped for flavor, but you won't get any conversion of them without a mash.

As I mentioned, I used all Amarillo for hopping. Additions at 60, 15, 5, and 0 to get to 35 IBU. I also use 2 oz. for a dry hop. I typically let my batches ferment for 2-3 weeks and then dry hop for around 5 days.

I'm hesitant to post my exact hopping schedule because it sets you up to make one of the mistakes I made on an early batch I made off of a recipe on here. My hops were lower AA than those used in the recipe, but I didn't catch it until it was too late. It made for a very unsatisfying, unbalanced batch. After 6 months of gutting it out I finally dumped the last 2 gallons of that batch.
I recommend using Beersmith or one of the other programs out there (there are some free ones) to tailor the hop schedule to the AA of the hops you have. Roughly speaking it'll be around 1 oz, 1/2 oz., 1/2 oz, and 1/2 oz. But that can change a lot depending on your Amarillo. I had a batch that was 6.9% AA for the first few times I made this and my most recent Amarillo is 10.1%. Big difference in how to use them and the amounts used to get the right IBUs.

For yeast, like I mentioned before, I use US-05. I don't think you can go too wrong here as long as you're using a clean fermenting strain. If you're so inclined, you can search for what 3F actually uses and I know it's available commercially if you want to be more exact.
 
I'll be brewing this tomorrow night, and just so I had something to compare stopped by 3F's today..

image-1718292074.jpg



image-1192983961.jpg
 
Just out of curiosity--have people tried the recipes in this thread? We just finished bottling a chocolate chipotle porter and are eager to get going on our next brew--a Gumballhead clone! Any direction/suggestions would be awesome.
 
Any locals have an extra darklord day ticket by chance? I have cash and some Pliny the elder for a ticket!
 
MoeIPA said:
Any locals have an extra darklord day ticket by chance? I have cash and some Pliny the elder for a ticket!

Tickets are non-transferable according to their website, double check before you buy.
 
Just brewed a 5 gallon batch of gumballhead extract clone . It's alttle hazy but not too much like the real but still veery good ! Any thoughts

image-177001453.jpg
 
I just made something similar and I hope it comes out like a gum ball head. I used all extract and no specialty grains.

6.6lbs of Wheat LME
1lb of Wheat DME
.5 oz warrior 45 minutes
1 oz amarillo 10 minutes
.5 oz warrior 1 minute.
2 oz amarillo dry hop at 2 weeks.

In the primary for 5 days now. We'll see how it comes out.
 
I just made something similar and I hope it comes out like a gum ball head. I used all extract and no specialty grains.

6.6lbs of Wheat LME
1lb of Wheat DME
.5 oz warrior 45 minutes
1 oz amarillo 10 minutes
.5 oz warrior 1 minute.
2 oz amarillo dry hop at 2 weeks.

In the primary for 5 days now. We'll see how it comes out.

Not sure Warrior fits in there at the end.
 
Just checked an SG after 2 weeks 1.021 OG was dead on my target of 1.057. This is he first batch I've kept down around 55 so around 59-60 internal and it's going slow but smells very citrusy and tastes amazing for sure best batch yet. Is it normal to take this long to get down to FG with the temps that low? I used WLP001 FYI.
 
I followed Nail's recipe to the T and ended up with a fantastic beer that's just now reaching it's prime (1 month after bottling). It's a little harsh after two weeks in the bottle but give it a few extra weeks after it carbs and it will really shine. Terrific hop aroma and flavor (love Amarillo!) and head retention is great. I think I actually prefer this to real Gumballhead (but the similarity is REALLY close). I would definitely brew this again, but maybe as a summer beer.
 
Yea it for sure needs to age about a month I've got it on tap now and everyone who has had Gumballhead says this recipe is better


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