First Attempt at a Barley Wine

GroovePuppy · May 13, 2009

Threw this together based on Stone's "Old Crustacean". I want to get something maltier than an American Barleywine but with some spicy flavor.

Code:

Recipe: "Wreck of the '99" Barleywine
Style: English Barleywine
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0) 

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.50 gal      
Boil Size: 6.50 gal
Estimated OG: 1.099 SG
Estimated Color: 23.7 SRM
Estimated IBU: 41.3 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU      
5 lbs         Light Dry Extract (8.0 SRM)               Dry Extract  29.31 %       
8 lbs 4.0 oz  Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)            Grain        48.36 %       
2 lbs 12.0 oz Munich Malt (9.0 SRM)                     Grain        16.12 %       
12.0 oz       Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L (120.0 SRM)    Grain        4.40 %        
5.0 oz        Chocolate Malt (450.0 SRM)                Grain        1.82 %        
1.25 oz       Centennial [10.00 %]  (60 min)            Hops         28.8 IBU      
1.13 oz       Cascade [6.30 %]  (20 min)                Hops         9.9 IBU       
0.87 oz       Cascade [6.30 %]  (5 min)                 Hops         2.5 IBU       
1 Pkgs        British Ale (Wyeast Labs #1098)           Yeast-Ale                  


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Full Body, No Mash Out
Total Grain Weight: 12.06 lb
----------------------------
Single Infusion, Full Body, No Mash Out
Step Time     Name               Description                         Step Temp     
60 min        Mash In            Add 18.09 qt of water at 168.4 F    158.0 F

I've been using DeathBrewers stovetop method so it becomes essentially a 12lb Partial mash. I brewed a cream stout last week and I plan to scoop a few cups of trub from that to pitch to this. I know I need to throw a blowoff tube on to be safe.

I plan to leave it in primary, probably for a few weeks, then secondary for a time. I don't know if there's an advantage to conditioning for months in secondary over doing it in bottles. I don't want to bottle early and get bottle bombs, but I don't want to secondary for so long the yeast is done, although I realize I could repitch.

Any inputs on the recipe?
Secondary or bottle condition?
Repitch same yeast or champagne?
Beatles or Stones?

scinerd3000 · May 14, 2009

do yourself a favor and bulk age this sucker for a while....and yes- deffinitly blowoff tube needed. I would go with higher IBU's. For this big of a beer i dont think its going to be ballanced and you may end up too sweet. Maybe up to atleast 60....You should still end up plenty malty and if your worried juist swap some pale malt for munich. You could also go with a longer 90 minute boil to get a bit more carmelization which will go well with the flavors here... If you mash that high temp your finaly gravity will probably finish off high. Lower mash temp will give you a bit of a drier finish depending on how you want it to end up. Just some things to think about.

Bjornbrewer · May 14, 2009

Throw the extract in during the last 15 min for better hop utilization...you may not even need to up the amount of hops to get the 60ish IBU's.

syd138 · May 14, 2009

I did a barley wine, just a 1 gallon test with leftover grain I had.

and I used (in 5 gallon equivalent) 1 lb of Chocolate as opposed to the 5oz you used.

I also used about 2.5oz of Halletauer (again this was leftover). IBUs were around 40.

Either way, I tasted some the other day and it was fantastic. Very malty.. which I like.

big supper · May 14, 2009

+1 for Mash Temps, and upping the IBU's

I am pretty sure that Old Crusty is quite high on IBU's. 60 IBU's would be better.

With the amount of malt in a barley wine, there will already be some residuals that will help this to be malty. The yeast shouldn't get you all the way down to a low FG like a pale ale or IPA. I would be tempted to mash around 152, as I would want to make something that has a bit of 'drinkability'.

On a beer such as this, if volume permits, I would do at least a 90 minute boil as well. I like that bit of kettle carmelization.

Bulk condition for sure, but to maximize this beer you will probably end up bottle conditioning for a while as well. It can take longer to carb up, and it would be ideal to let this bad boy age min. 6 months if not a year. I think that if you bulk age in secondary for a couple of months, the yeast should probably still be good enough to carb up the beer. Also, I wouldn't carb this up too highly anyway.

Saccharomyces · May 14, 2009

Yep I'd mash around 152*F and aim for 60+ IBU. The long boil produces a lot of the barleywine flavors. I'd go for at least a 90 minute boil at full gravity.

GroovePuppy · May 14, 2009

Good inputs as always.

Upping to a 90 min boil sets the IBU at 43.3 and a bitterness/OG ratio of 0.437 which doesn't sound excessively malty. An IBU of 60 would push the ratio up to almost 0.6 making it a hoppy beer. I used the Crustacean as a starting point but I was thinking an English Barleywine rather than an American one.

I'll mash at 154F since I lose a few degrees over the hour anyway with the stovetop method. I'll also leave it in secondary for a few months before carbing it around the 1.9 mark. It's going to be tough to leave a beer for months but I think it's time!

Thanks again people. :ban:

GroovePuppy · May 18, 2009

The AA on the Centennial was low from my LHBS so I upped to the full 2oz giving me around 64 IBU with the late DME addition. Upped the Chocolate to a half pound and dropped the Pale to 8lbs even.

I pitched at 72F with 2 pints of Cream Stout yeast slurry. I usually pitch at that temp then throw the bucket in my 38DD chiller cabinet which drops the temp to the mid 60s before fermentation starts. However, due to the volume of yeast I suppose, I had bubbling within 2 hours that stepped up to 4-5 bubbles per second by the middle of the night. By mid-morning the blow off had over flowed and the temp got up to 72-74F.

Got it all cleaned up, no big deal, and moved to an ice bath for now until the activity stops/slows. Still excited about such a big brew and I assume my elevated temps will still work out OK. Hopefully that rapid ferment isn't too bad either. I guess that's why it needs months to condition.

So now I plan on leaving the fermentation a few weeks before racking, then I'll give it 2 months in secondary and prime and bottle then. I don't know if any of you folks noticed but homebrewing is awesome fun! :rockin:

Saccharomyces · May 18, 2009

Congrats, it'll be well worth waiting for. :mug:

First Attempt at a Barley Wine

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First Attempt at a Barley Wine

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