mrmekon
Well-Known Member
I have just finished a little beer experiment, and thought it would be nice to share.
The premise of the experiment:
1) I have been wanting to try brewing a folköl (Swedish for low-ABV beer, 2.8-3.5%)
2) I have been reading about 10-minute and no-boil batches
3) I have been reading about 30-minute mashes
4) I like ignoring lessons other people learn
5) I like combining things
So I brewed a 5L all-grain "Rye NEIPA" folköl, sort of, more or less, with emphasis on the less.
A 20-minute hopped mash, no boil, 7 days dry-hopped in a plastic bottle, 5 days priming in a 5L mini-keg, then tapped.
The kitchen stove-top brewday (BIAB in a 14L stockpot) was exactly 90 minutes, including setting up, milling the grains, "brewing", and cleaning up. One hour of actual brew time.
The recipe and brewday notes are here: https://beer.trevorbentley.com/doku.php?id=recipes:fastfolk
I had no idea what to expect, so I left BrewTarget on the default 70% efficiency with a 3.4% ABV target, and actually got 60% efficiency with a 3.0% ABV. Good enough, it's in the right range.
I used what I had on hand, so 850g pale ale malt, 100g rye malt, and 50g lactose to try to add some body. 30g Citra in the mash, 20g Citra at "whirlpool" (I had no actual whirlpool), and 10g Citra/10g ancient Simcoe in a muslin bag in the fermenter. Fermented with a packet of Safale S-05 just tossed in, no rehydration. Airlock was a piece of plastic and a rubber band. Let's not get fancy.
This is also my first time using a mini-keg. It's a good idea to change as many variables as you can at the same time.
Finally, the result:
A distinctly cardboard-colored pour, so hazy that it looks like dirty mop water, with a brilliant white frothy and stable head.
Taste: well... not too darn bad. It has a lot more bitterness than I expected, and could use a bit more sweetness to balance it out. It's very thin when highly carbonated, but the mouthfeel is better after it has released some carbonation. The aroma is fantastic... that wonderful fruitiness of citra. It is so full of trub crap that it leaves a powder residue on the bottom of the glass. The flavors don't quite "come together" and it tastes quite homebrew-y... but still, we will not have any qualms about killing this little keg.
Nobody is going to drink this and say, "damn, that's a great beer!" But I don't think most people would refuse a refill.
I'll definitely try this again, but with a bit more grain to hit ~3.5% and hopefully boost the body a bit. I'm open to other suggestions, as long as they don't involve more time
The premise of the experiment:
1) I have been wanting to try brewing a folköl (Swedish for low-ABV beer, 2.8-3.5%)
2) I have been reading about 10-minute and no-boil batches
3) I have been reading about 30-minute mashes
4) I like ignoring lessons other people learn
5) I like combining things
So I brewed a 5L all-grain "Rye NEIPA" folköl, sort of, more or less, with emphasis on the less.
A 20-minute hopped mash, no boil, 7 days dry-hopped in a plastic bottle, 5 days priming in a 5L mini-keg, then tapped.
The kitchen stove-top brewday (BIAB in a 14L stockpot) was exactly 90 minutes, including setting up, milling the grains, "brewing", and cleaning up. One hour of actual brew time.
The recipe and brewday notes are here: https://beer.trevorbentley.com/doku.php?id=recipes:fastfolk
I had no idea what to expect, so I left BrewTarget on the default 70% efficiency with a 3.4% ABV target, and actually got 60% efficiency with a 3.0% ABV. Good enough, it's in the right range.
I used what I had on hand, so 850g pale ale malt, 100g rye malt, and 50g lactose to try to add some body. 30g Citra in the mash, 20g Citra at "whirlpool" (I had no actual whirlpool), and 10g Citra/10g ancient Simcoe in a muslin bag in the fermenter. Fermented with a packet of Safale S-05 just tossed in, no rehydration. Airlock was a piece of plastic and a rubber band. Let's not get fancy.
This is also my first time using a mini-keg. It's a good idea to change as many variables as you can at the same time.
Finally, the result:
A distinctly cardboard-colored pour, so hazy that it looks like dirty mop water, with a brilliant white frothy and stable head.
Taste: well... not too darn bad. It has a lot more bitterness than I expected, and could use a bit more sweetness to balance it out. It's very thin when highly carbonated, but the mouthfeel is better after it has released some carbonation. The aroma is fantastic... that wonderful fruitiness of citra. It is so full of trub crap that it leaves a powder residue on the bottom of the glass. The flavors don't quite "come together" and it tastes quite homebrew-y... but still, we will not have any qualms about killing this little keg.
Nobody is going to drink this and say, "damn, that's a great beer!" But I don't think most people would refuse a refill.
I'll definitely try this again, but with a bit more grain to hit ~3.5% and hopefully boost the body a bit. I'm open to other suggestions, as long as they don't involve more time
