OP
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Seems there are a few HBT members enrtering and/or attending. Here's a thread about that. I'm hoping to be able to attend.
I'd be sporting some HBT stickers but I don't have any. Orange rose in my lapel will have to do.
Indoor BIAB
- Thread starter Gavin C
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Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
Seems there are a few HBT members enrtering and/or attending. Here's a thread about that. I'm hoping to be able to attend.
I'd be sporting some HBT stickers but I don't have any. Orange rose in my lapel will have to do.
OP
OP
Brewed another German Pilsner this morning with a few changes.
Single noble hop this time. No Saaz used. Tettnager
Simplified grain-bill. (~1% Melanoiden malt deleted, Pilsner and acidulated malt only)
A hybrid mash profile with a single decoction was used.
Target OG same as before, 1.047.
My whirlpool arm has shorted my cooling time by about 30%. I don't miss the dial thermometer.
Mash Profile
Whirlpool Arm and Cold-break
Preboil SG and OG
Single noble hop this time. No Saaz used. Tettnager
Simplified grain-bill. (~1% Melanoiden malt deleted, Pilsner and acidulated malt only)
A hybrid mash profile with a single decoction was used.
Target OG same as before, 1.047.
My whirlpool arm has shorted my cooling time by about 30%. I don't miss the dial thermometer.
Mash Profile
Whirlpool Arm and Cold-break
Preboil SG and OG
OP
OP
Another fun brew today. Decided to have a crack at a Märzen.
A pretty simple recipe aiming for the very lighter end of the style's color range (~7) and incorporating a step mash with a a single decoction to somewhat emulate a traditional approach.
Grain bill
Mash Profile
Brew Day Numbers were what I wanted.
Reusing some yeast (Saflager 34/70) from my last Pilsner. I harvested the yeast after racking to the keg 1 week ago.
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A pretty simple recipe aiming for the very lighter end of the style's color range (~7) and incorporating a step mash with a a single decoction to somewhat emulate a traditional approach.
Grain bill
Mash Profile
Brew Day Numbers were what I wanted.
Reusing some yeast (Saflager 34/70) from my last Pilsner. I harvested the yeast after racking to the keg 1 week ago.
Slurry Calculator
Slurry
kadozen
Well-Known Member
You were right. Nothing revolutionary here. Just rock solid process. Wonderful pictures from, start to finish.
jwalk4
Well-Known Member
Gavin,
I think in previous posts you mentioned that you lager in your kegs (I might be wrong). Do you have a separate fridge for that purpose? What temp do you lager and serve at?
I think in previous posts you mentioned that you lager in your kegs (I might be wrong). Do you have a separate fridge for that purpose? What temp do you lager and serve at?
OP
OP
Hey @Jwalk4
You're correct. Once the beer is at FG and after any planned time spent at warmer temperatures it is cold crashed in the fermentation chamber (chest freezer I showed earlier in the thread) to -0.5°C
2 weeks is about the average time from brew day to racking to the keg. The timing is however dictated entirely by the yeast aided by the fermentation profiles I employ.
I have yet to taste a need for a prolonged diacetyl rest in my lagers. So far the results have been OK.
Then the beer is racked to keg, lagered and carbonated at 1.0°C till it's ready. For this I have a second chest freezer (identical to the other one) that I use for lagering/cold conditioning.
When the pipeline is healthy it's a great way to have a keg or three full and conditioning/lagering.
Hope that helps
jwalk4
Well-Known Member
Thanks, Gavin!
Can you convince my non-drinking girlfriend to let me get another appliance strictly for brewing?
Can you convince my non-drinking girlfriend to let me get another appliance strictly for brewing?
Have her bathed and sent to his chambers... He'll see what He can do....
Bits of escaped wort stick to everything in the kitchen so I`m brewing in my veranda with a freaking industrial strength heating stick alone. The thing can get a nice roiling boil for a ten gallon batch.
OkanaganMike
Well-Known Member
That link sent me to a colander page on Amazon lol
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OP
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This was a reply to someone looking for the colander I use.
Here is the sterile syphon starter if that's what you are seeking.
Let me know if there is something else you are looking for? I'd be happy to post a different link if you are looking for anything in particular that I showed in the thread.
Which stick do you use? I'm thinking of going from stovetop to electric in the basement.... I don't think the current heat stick i use to supplement my gas stove can boil 8+ gallons by itself.
Can't seem to find the brand name on the device itself and not sure where my wife got it from (was Christmas present because my wife is awesome) sorry. But any high voltage one should be fine, a lot of the industrial ones are made for heating up 100 gallon water wants for farm animals so they won't freeze etc. so they're pretty damn powerful.
OP
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I enjoyed some success last night at a local beer competition.
The Texas Blue Bonnet Brew Off
I managed to snag a gold and a bronze.
The Texas Blue Bonnet Brew Off
I managed to snag a gold and a bronze.
pricelessbrewing
Brewer's Friend Software Manager
Congrats Gavin. I really need to get around and make a batch of your vienna.
Well deserved I'm sure, good for you Gavin! Congratulations.
Congrats Gavin!
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Thanks very much for the kind words.
@pricelessbrewing
I'll post the Vienna recipe once I get the score sheets back if the feedback is favorable.
iijakii
Well-Known Member
What about the pils?
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I'll post that one up soon. Not much to a Pils recipe really. The judges liked it.
Pilsner Feedback
The Vienna however could do with some tweaking. It scored well but could be better with some edits.
Vienna Feedback
I don't really understand how one could score 42/50 and be called flawless, then another one scores 42/50 and mentions there was one flaw to it. I'd definitely also be interested in both recipes.
I bet it was the same line of reasoning used on one of my beers in that same competition. First round a judge gave my stout a 39/50. Loved it. Second round, same judge, 32/50 and the were issues with the beer.
Interesting to note, at 32, the second round score from this judge was the outlier. Every other score sheet has it in the upper 30s and low 40s. Might have placed with that beer had he been more consistent.
Oh well. I've gotten to where I look for common themes in the comments as opposed to looking at the final score. Doing that, there are some things I can improve.
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That's a great point Tejas. The trend in the feedback is the important thing.
For example, I'm coming to the conclusion that even in styles where no notable hop aroma or presence is required, a lot of judges still want there to be something there, perhaps to subconciously satisfy their skillset.
I think I might experiment with a late hop addition to my Alt, Vienna and Dunkel going forward. Just a small one with a noble hop (Spalter in the case of the Alt) to add some more interest to the beer. Upping the intangible overall quality of the beer's presence.
My guess is that other beers in a flight with more of a hop presence will be enjoyed more and as a result score higher even if the style parameters don't require it. I'm just spit-balling. Could be miles off.
Just curious; did you use a Pils recipe based on mine from the recipe database? We had a chat about the philosophy and methods for true Pilsners in the past and I hope that has helped you. You seem to have picked up on brewing German styles quite well. Congrats on the medals!
Cheers,
TB
Cheers,
TB
orangehero
Well-Known Member
The way I'm reading it, I don't think the judge necessarily meant it as a "flaw", but rather an area that if improved would help the beer score better. Ideally good judges will provide those kinds of suggestions and feedback, although unfortunately it's rare. It clearly says "give suggestions for improvement" which the pilsner judge failed to do. If he gave it a 42 then it's not perfect.
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Hey Tiber
Reading your Pils recipe sure was useful and looking at it again very similar to my own.
The grain bill is unsurprisingly similar as you would expect in a Pils. Not a whole lot of wiggle room in what can essentially be a single malt recipe. A smidge of melanoiden and acid malt (I use some in near every recipe owing to my full volume mashing)
Same yeast too. I bought a vial of WLP833 and used it for all my lagers till it eventually crapped out on me after 5 batches. This Pilsner was the last batch I made with it. Really like that yeast.
I made another Pils with 34/70 and it's not as good I think. No Melanoiden malt on that one but did use a single decoction. Still a tasty beer.
As with all my lagers I used a step mash. (Just infusions to full volume this time followed by a direct heating to mash-out)
Not sure how that compares to your profile. I targeted pH 5.45 which is also similar (probably the same within the margin of error) to your own.
The hop bill was similar to yours but I used a mix of Hallertauer and Saaz. The Saaz really worked well which is surprising given that it's not typical of the style.
Water was built from 90% RO.
My fermentation profile was different to yours. I kegged it three weeks after brewing. Lagered at 1C till it was ready. (4 weeks lagering IIRC and it had hit its stride)
OG and FG were identical to yours. 1.047 and 1.008 respectively
In short. I learned a ton from your great recipe and the many gems of knowledge you have thrown around in HBT especially WRT brewing lagers and lighter beers. Thanks again mate.
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Looks good, Gavin. Great job on execution. These beers are almost entirely process beers, given their simplicity in the ingredients. You're keeping that aspect pretty controlled, and it's paying off. Cheers!
jwalk4
Well-Known Member
Hey Gavin,
How do you manage your mineral additions when step mashing via infusion? Do you have to acidity any of the infusion water?
Thanks, and happy Easter!
How do you manage your mineral additions when step mashing via infusion? Do you have to acidity any of the infusion water?
Thanks, and happy Easter!
OP
OP
Hey Jwalk
Happy Easter to you too mate.
I treat all the water at the outset. Infusions are not like sparge water in that they do not need to be acidified. They are mash water and treated as such.
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This is just a copy and paste from my step mashing thread which covers that in bit more detail
- The full water volume is collected in the boil-kettle.
- Minerals are added to target the desired water profile.
- Sodium metabisulfite/ Potassium metabisulfite is added to eliminate chloramines and chlorine.
- A measured volume of water is drawn off to a second pot: the HLT.
- The volume in the HLT is calculated to provide all the water needed for infusions and any planned sparge. (I typically do not incorporate a sparge step into my brewing.)
- The water in the HLT is brought to a boil and a simmer maintained with the lid on.
- Strike water is heated to target and dough-in completed as normal hitting the first rest temperature.
- Pre-calculated volumes of the collected boiling water are added to the main mash, heating it to the next planned rest temperature.
- The mash is stirred thoroughly while adding the hot water to ensure homogeneity and representative temperature readings.
Hope that helps. Let me know if there is anything you want clarified.
jwalk4
Well-Known Member
Crystal clear!
TopherM
Well-Known Member
If this was a BJCP competition, the 2nd round doesn't have scores. just general feedback and ranking among the other beers in the flight. Also, the 2nd round is typically the most experienced judges, so it's not uncommon for them to give more accurate feedback than the 1st round.
OP
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I guess you're trying to quote @Texaswine but I'll chime in as I know this not to be the case. (I am only speaking for this particular comp which is very large. I have no idea what the convention is for others)
It was a BJCP competition. Biggest one in the state of Texas. Scores were given in both 1st and 2nd rounds.
Beers received 2 scores in the first and if they advanced, 2 scores in the second round.
(4 score sheets were returned for any beers that reached the second round)
Yup, exactly. It's up to the organizers of the competition to decide if they want to do score sheets in both rounds. This one they did. That's how I knew it was the same judge who provided two wildly different scores for the exact same beer.
A few times when I've judged and then did MBOS a beer that I judged in the first time had changed radically. In one case beer was probably mishandled by the stewards. In the other one - a klosch - huge buttery diacetyl had emerged.
jwalk4
Well-Known Member
Strange that this would be the case though. I have heard of diacetyl formation happening post bottling, but only in the form of a pediococcus infection.
Gavin, sorry this is off topic.
The thing with my stout was the comments were essentially identical between the two rounds for that one judge. No flaws. He just decided it deserved a lower score.
I've got the same beer entered into the Lunar Rendezbrew and Cactus Challenge. We'll see what kind of feedback I get there as well.
OP
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Not off topic at all TW. No worries whatsoever.
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Brewed up another IPA few weeks ago. 15oz of hops in this one. A little Carafa III special to play with the color.
Some of the hops used
Cascade, Centennial and Citra hops.
Tasty IPA ~6.7% ABV
My biggest Beer Yet OG 1.065 Color 10.4 SRM ~76 IBU
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This is another recent brew.
A second effort a a German Pilsner I outlined earlier. Single decoction, Pilsner malt and some acid malt for pH adjustment. Single hop: Tettnanger.
Very enjoyable, crisp refreshing beer. great for a sunny evening in Texas
OG 1.047 FG 1.009 IBU ~36
*incorrect glassware
A second effort a a German Pilsner I outlined earlier. Single decoction, Pilsner malt and some acid malt for pH adjustment. Single hop: Tettnanger.
Very enjoyable, crisp refreshing beer. great for a sunny evening in Texas
OG 1.047 FG 1.009 IBU ~36
*incorrect glassware
Beautiful! Do you prefer Tett over Hallertau for a Pils?
