First batch

[naiek]

First of all, I'd like to thank everybody for providing a wealth of quality information on this sight; any question I had I could easily find the answer to and avoided pitfalls by scouring this site prior to brew day.
Saturday was my first batch and besides everything going very smoothly, my brew partner and I had a lot of fun.

The recipe: All American grain Imperial IPA (tentatively named Ptolemy I)

6.0 lbs pale LME
3.0 lbs amber LME
1.0 lb pale American 2-row
1.0 lb Crystal 20L

2.0 oz Centennial 60 mins
1.0 oz Chinook 60 mins
0.5 oz Chinook 45 mins
0.5 oz Chinook 30 mins
0.5 oz Cascade 30 mins
0.5 oz Cascade 15 mins
1.0 oz Cascade 0 mins
2.0 oz Cascade dry hop 14 days
1 tsp Irish moss 15 mins
WPL001 Cal. Ale yeast

60 min boil, 6.5 gal with mash and sparge
O.G Target - 1.076
O.G. Measured - 1.068 @ 62 deg.
F.G Target - 1.019

Potential ABV - 7.6%
IBU - 146.7

Fermentation seems to be going great; i think I could sit and watch the airlock bubble all day long. However it turns out we had a lot of fun and already looking forward to the next batch, Oktoberfest with German ale yeast or a Pliny clone - haven't decided.
I'll update when we crack 'em open 6 weeks from now....waiting not the funnest part

 

[KevinW]

Congrats!

It looks like you are on your way to brewing good beer already in that you have the whole patience issue figure out!

Keep us updated!

 

[Strangelove]

Sounds yummy. I have the same illness: I went to glass carboys so I could look at the beer ferment several times a day. I brewed a Belgian blonde Sunday afternoon. Monday morning it hadn't started much. I looked an hour later and there was a 2" head of krausen. By afternoon, it had exploded with activity. Glad I had a blowoff!

Welcome to the addiction.

 

[Jayhem]

Looks like a nice strong IPA to me.

I've been researching hop additions for 2 days straight and from what I'm gathering it's a bit of a waste to add hops in the middle of the boil. It's better to load up on hops at the start of the boil for bittering and then put in the rest in the last 20 minutes for flavor/aroma. You can actually have the same taste and save an ounce or 2 of the green goodness.

Can't wait to try my currently dry hopping Pale Ale!

 

[Strangelove]

Looks like a nice strong IPA to me.

I've been researching hop additions for 2 days straight and from what I'm gathering it's a bit of a waste to add hops in the middle of the boil. It's better to load up on hops at the start of the boil for bittering and then put in the rest in the last 20 minutes for flavor/aroma. You can actually have the same taste and save an ounce or 2 of the green goodness.

Can't wait to try my currently dry hopping Pale Ale!

I think some may argue with you on this. After sampling Dogfishhead's 90 minute IPA I might agree with them.

 

[naiek]

Here it is fresh out of the keg. Maybe one of the best beers I've ever had though I am a bit biased. Happy St Paddy's Day

 

[jsv1204]

Fermentation seems to be going great; i think I could sit and watch the airlock bubble all day long.

Heh... Been there!!! Congrats and cheers!

 

[dfc]

Heh... Been there!!! Congrats and cheers!

I literally squealed like a little girl the first time I saw the airlock on my first batch bubbling away...

 

[DonutMuncher]

Here it is fresh out of the keg. Maybe one of the best beers I've ever had though I am a bit biased. Happy St Paddy's Day

Congrats.. you're been converted to the obsession

 

[Strangelove]

Here it is fresh out of the keg. Maybe one of the best beers I've ever had though I am a bit biased. Happy St Paddy's Day

Very Nice!

The next phase of brewing is becoming more critical. After a couple of brews you'll start to wonder how to make it better. I thought my first beer was the dog's bollocks despite leaving the pot lid on during the boil and the resulting off tastes. Now, I'm learning something with each and every beer. My mistakes taste pretty good now!