BmillaTheBrewzilla
Well-Known Member
I got an idea recently for a personal brew quest that will last me for at least the next year or so. My idea is to brew basically the same recipe over and over, changing only one or two variables each time. My hope is that this will really increase my knowledge as to how each aspect of brewing can really affect the final outcome. One time I might just change the hops. The next time I might change the yeast. Another time I might mash at a different temperature or use a different water profile... you get the idea. I'll probably brew up a new version every two weeks or so.
Obviously since I'm going to be brewing a very similar beer many times, I wanted to pick something I really enjoy drinking and has a lot of flexibility in terms of ingredients. Given my love for beers like Sierra Nevada Pale and Three Floyd's Alpha King, I'm going with an American Pale Ale. Eventually I hope to brew my own favorite beer ever.
I decided I'd post each recipe here and make notes on how each version turns out. I'm doing all grain... and I will point out that I do stove-top BIAB. I've done six batches using this method during the last several months and they've been turning out pretty well. And I live in an apartment and BIAB is just the way for me to go for now. I get about 75% efficiency every time.
So here's the first version of my pale ale. I'm going to dub it Landlord's Pale Ale because my landlord- who lives below me and the SWMBO- seems to hate the fact that we brew in his building. I brewed this up the other day and it is currently fermenting away. I'll post a picture and tasting notes once it is ready to drink. So here it is, version 1.
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Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Washed Wyeast 1098 British Ale with starter
Batch Size (Gallons): 5.25
Original Gravity: 1.051
Final Gravity: 1.011 (predicting)
IBU: 33.4
Boiling Time (Minutes): 60
Color: 5.9
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 21 days at 66
Amount Item Type % or IBU
6.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 62.18 %
3.00 lb Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 31.09 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 5.18 %
0.15 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 1.55 %
1.00 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (60 min) Hops 26.1 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (10 min) Hops 4.7 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (5 min) Hops 2.6 IBU
1.00 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops
Mash at 152 for 60 minutes.
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So as you can see, this is a pretty straightforward recipe. I decided to start with an all Cascade version so I can really play around with the hops on future versions and get a really clear idea on how they change the taste and aroma. I haven't been brewing all that long, and I'm hoping this "project" will really increase my skills. And in the very least, I'll get to drink the results of all this experimentation.
Obviously since I'm going to be brewing a very similar beer many times, I wanted to pick something I really enjoy drinking and has a lot of flexibility in terms of ingredients. Given my love for beers like Sierra Nevada Pale and Three Floyd's Alpha King, I'm going with an American Pale Ale. Eventually I hope to brew my own favorite beer ever.
I decided I'd post each recipe here and make notes on how each version turns out. I'm doing all grain... and I will point out that I do stove-top BIAB. I've done six batches using this method during the last several months and they've been turning out pretty well. And I live in an apartment and BIAB is just the way for me to go for now. I get about 75% efficiency every time.
So here's the first version of my pale ale. I'm going to dub it Landlord's Pale Ale because my landlord- who lives below me and the SWMBO- seems to hate the fact that we brew in his building. I brewed this up the other day and it is currently fermenting away. I'll post a picture and tasting notes once it is ready to drink. So here it is, version 1.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Washed Wyeast 1098 British Ale with starter
Batch Size (Gallons): 5.25
Original Gravity: 1.051
Final Gravity: 1.011 (predicting)
IBU: 33.4
Boiling Time (Minutes): 60
Color: 5.9
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 21 days at 66
Amount Item Type % or IBU
6.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 62.18 %
3.00 lb Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 31.09 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 5.18 %
0.15 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 1.55 %
1.00 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (60 min) Hops 26.1 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (10 min) Hops 4.7 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (5 min) Hops 2.6 IBU
1.00 oz Cascade [7.50 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops
Mash at 152 for 60 minutes.
--------------------------------------------------------------
So as you can see, this is a pretty straightforward recipe. I decided to start with an all Cascade version so I can really play around with the hops on future versions and get a really clear idea on how they change the taste and aroma. I haven't been brewing all that long, and I'm hoping this "project" will really increase my skills. And in the very least, I'll get to drink the results of all this experimentation.