12 Beers of Christmas 2013 Edition! (Need Brewers!)

[stblindtiger]

I got everything all bottled last night and I'm going to get boxes and materials for shipping tomorrow. I should get the Gruit shipped out on Tuesday at the latest, but I'm hoping to get them all out tomorrow.

Had to crack one of the Honey Ginger IPA's open tonight! I'm far from a judge, but I know a well made beer when I taste one Fermented Ted! I definitely liked it! These beers are just so different, I'm so glad I got involved in this! I know I would never have brewed all of these myself, so this is just so frieking cool!

I hope you all like different too though because the Gruit is definitely different! Lots of flavor from the sweet gale and juniper berries.

I think I'm looking forward to that bonus Rum Cake Ale the most so far though!

 

[stblindtiger]

The fruitcake ales I received were all still carbed too! Even the one that leaked. I drank what was left and thought it tasted fine. No worries!

 

[Stovetop535]

If you have not shipped yet, there is a coupon code for shipping ups through Staples. Just go to staples to ship and use the code 39117 to take 20% of the entire order.

 

[gavball6]

While watching the pathetic Eagles game yesterday, I cracked open one of the Honey Ginger IPA's to start the 12 Beers of Christmas bandwagon going...

Here some tasting notes and a pic!


Aroma: You definitely can sense the honey through the nose, with a slightly hoppy/floral background. I didn't pick up much of a ginger aroma at first, but seemed to sense it a little bit after a couple swigs. Any ginger aromas were restrained and the dominant aroma I smelled was of the honey.
Appearance: The beer poured a hazy, but deep amber & copper with a brilliant white head that lingered. A subtle lacing of the glass remained as I emptied its contents.
Flavor: As I took my first sip, honey dominated my taste buds which then gave way to a complex bitterness. It seems like the sharpness of the ginger and the spice of the hop oils combined to form a bitter quality that is hard to put into words. Not overly aggressive, particularly as it faded away with the honey sweetness granted by another sip. As the beer warmed, I felt that all of the flavors became more pronounced and the actual ginger flavor became slightly apparent.
Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation that did not end as dry as I would have thought, particularly with the fermentability of the honey and the hoppy/ginger bite that preceded the finish.
Overall Impression: A great start to the 12 Beers of Christmas (or 11 beers as it seems)! Given the complexity of the honey and ginger adjuncts, the beer still maintained a nice balance. It definitely had me scratching my head while I drank it drying to figure out exactly what I was tasting... AND THAT IS A GOOD THING!

Cheers! Looking forward to the next beer tonight!

 

[Stovetop535]

Got everything shipped off today. I left tracking numbers in the car, I will grab them here after dinner. Everything should arrive this week--either wednesday, thursday or friday.

I dont have fancy labels are anything on mine, just a simple AW on the top of the caps with a green sharpie. Basic stats on the beer since I forgot to send it with them 5.7 ABV, 12.7 IBU, 3.7 SRM.

I still need to post my recipe, I will edit my original post asking for the recipes and add it there. I would like to get all of the recipes together, and put together a 12 (in our case, 11) beers of christmas pdf. with everyones recipes. It would be cool to compare how people interpret the recipes year to year.

 

[jgourd]

This evening I received the Honey Ginger IPA and the Caramel Quads (one from 2012, one from 2013, and a Rumcake!). I put them in the fridge to start tasting tomorrow or Wednesday. There was a very slight leak to the 2013 Caramel Quad, but I don't think there's any carbonation loss. Cheers!

UPDATE: I received the Spiced Dunkel Weizenbock today along with an extra holiday ale!

 

[jgourd]

Got everything shipped off today. I left tracking numbers in the car, I will grab them here after dinner. Everything should arrive this week--either wednesday, thursday or friday.

I dont have fancy labels are anything on mine, just a simple AW on the top of the caps with a green sharpie. Basic stats on the beer since I forgot to send it with them 5.7 ABV, 12.7 IBU, 3.7 SRM.

I still need to post my recipe, I will edit my original post asking for the recipes and add it there. I would like to get all of the recipes together, and put together a 12 (in our case, 11) beers of christmas pdf. with everyones recipes. It would be cool to compare how people interpret the recipes year to year.

Here's mine.

I realize that you probably don't want to wade through my brewsheet. So a summary (for an 11 gal batch):

Fruitcake Old Ale
8.5% ABV (before calculating in the dried fruit which may add ~1.5% ABV)
1.076 OG
1.012 FG
35 IBUs
31 SRM
0.46 IBU/SG ratio
70% brewhouse efficiency

24.23# Munich (~74%)
6.5# Home Toasted Golden Promise (2-row would work) (~19.5%)
1.6# Special B (~5%)
0.5# Carafa II (~1.5%)

Toast the 6.5# of base grains on a cookie sheet at 350F for about 30 min.

Mash at 154F. I would actually change that and mash at 158F the next time. I would also add about 2# of flaked oats. I think both would help the mouthfeel. Adding the dried fruit adds more sugar and also rouses the yeast, so more long chain sugars will help with the mouthfeel, because it dried the hell out of my brew.

2 oz Hallertauer Mittelfruh (4.3% AA) @ 90 min (~11 IBUs)
4 oz Saaz (3% AA) @ 90 min (~17 IBUs)
1.5 oz Hallertauer Mittelfruh (4.3% AA) @ 15 min (~4 IBUs)
1.25 oz Saaz (3% AA) @ 15 min (~2.5 IBUs)

Boil for 90 min. At the end of the boil, add 0.5 teaspoon nutmeg, 0.5 teaspoon allspice, 4 teaspoons Ceylon cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ginger, and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract.

Fermented with White Labs WLP028 (Edinburgh Scottish Ale) via two 3500mL starters. After primary fermentation, I rehydrated some dried fruit in a bit of boiling water: 30 oz green raisins (would use regular ones too the next time), 14 oz blueberries, 18 oz cranberries (would use less the next time), 10 oz cherries (would use more the next time), 24 oz apricot (would never use again). To this, I added 4 whole cloves, and the zest of 4 oranges. I think I would most likely only add green and brown raisins, cherries, cranberries, and blueberries the next time. Maybe even some dates and figs.

I racked off the fruit after almost three weeks and cold crashed for a week. Kegged and force carbonated to about 2.5 vol CO2. I conditioned at 38F (and sampled) for about 2.5 months and then bottled from the keg.

 

[jgourd]

Just received an email from UPS about the package shipped to Stafford, TX (danbrewtan's). It was evidently damaged. The message is:

"The package was damaged in transit. UPS will attempt to notify the sender with the details / All merchandise discarded. UPS will attempt to notify the sender with details of the damage."

And:

"Damage reported. / Damage claim under investigation."

And:

"Your package encountered a delay. A revised delivery date will be available once it reaches the next UPS facility."

And (oddly enough):

"Out For Delivery."

 

[danbrewtan]

LOL!

Well that sucks. Maybe it will arrive? In pieces?

 

[jgourd]

LOL!

Well that sucks. Maybe it will arrive? In pieces?

It is evidently out for delivery today. So if you hear anything between now and maybe tomorrow, let me know. If you don't get anything by Wednesday, let me know that too so that I can send out another box on Thursday. I am headed out of town on Friday, so I won't be able to send it out before Christmas by then.

 

[stblindtiger]

If you have not shipped yet, there is a coupon code for shipping ups through Staples. Just go to staples to ship and use the code 39117 to take 20% of the entire order.

THANK YOU!!!! This saved me $32!!!!

I just got back from Staples, so I'm emailing out the tracking numbers now... Everyone should get them before Christmas... Only Jjeffrey's said it would be there on Christmas Eve, but there was an asterisk???? So hopefully that makes it there on time as well.

I forgot to put a slip in the box with some info, inc ABV, name, etc... But the green caps have CG (Christmas Gruit) written on them. The ABV is about 9%. It started out at about 1.061, and ended at 1.004, but I added 2 lbs of honey in secondary prior to pitching the Brett B, so I'm thinking it added about 2%.

I hope they make it out to you all safely!

 

[Stovetop535]

Here is my recipe.

BeerSmith 2 Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Abbey Weizen
Brewer: Stover
Asst Brewer:
Style: Weizen/Weissbier
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 8.00 gal
Post Boil Volume: 6.50 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.054 SG
Estimated Color: 3.8 SRM
Estimated IBU: 12.7 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 79.5 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
8.0 oz Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM) Adjunct 1 4.3 %
7 lbs White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM) Grain 2 60.9 %
4 lbs Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 3 34.8 %
0.75 oz Hallertauer [4.80 %] - Boil 45.0 min Hop 4 10.8 IBUs
1.10 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 5 -
0.25 oz Hallertauer [4.80 %] - Boil 15.0 min Hop 6 1.9 IBUs
0.25 oz Chamomile (Boil 0.0 mins) Spice 7 -
0.25 oz Coriander Seed (Boil 0.0 mins) Spice 8 -
1.0 pkg Belgian Abbey II (Wyeast Labs #1762) [12 Yeast 9 -


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 11 lbs 8.0 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 15.18 qt of water at 158.5 F 148.0 F 75 min

Sparge: Batch sparge with 2 steps (1.69gal, 4.10gal) of 168.0 F water
Notes:
------
Recipe Inspiration (from book):

2. ABBEY WEIZEN - This one's easy. Take a classic Bavarian Weizen recipe and ferment it with a Belgian abbey
yeast. For a little more zip, add a little citris peel-try a tangelo or a handful of kumquats for a fairly
close approximation of the Seville/curacao orange. Coriander and chamomile (0.25 oz of each) added at the
end of the voil provide even more depth. You could brew this same recipe at much higher gravities if desired.
Gravity: 1.045 (11*P). Color: hazy deep gold.


Brew Day Notes:

2 Liter Starter on Stirplate

Added zest from 2 Cutie oragnes and 2 lime at flameout.

Chamomile came in the form of tea packets from walmart. Used 3 packets total, added at flameout and allowed to steep until transfering to primary.

Corriander was also added at flameout-corriander, orange and lime were added in a hop bag for easy removal-added bag last 5 min of boil to make sure it was clean.

2 week primary followed by 1 week cold crash, no finings besides whirfloc in boil.

Fermentation was fast even on lower end of temp range for yeast. Fermented at 65*, allowed to warm to 70* last few days. Hazy, semi transparent. Could probably due without the whirfloc and cold crash, but I wanted to drop out as much yeast as possible since I was going to be shipping the beers.



Created with BeerSmith 2 - http://www.beersmith.com

 

[gavball6]

I also dropped off all of my Cherry Dubbel packages to UPS last night. I think you should have (or will be) receiving emails from them with tracking info. Looks like everyone should receive them by Friday except for the 2 California guys perhaps.

 

[danbrewtan]

I received the honey ginger IPA and Bob's Dunkel last night all intact. Didn't get the fruitcake ale, will let you know if I get it tonight.

 

[FermentedTed]

My recipe:


Recipe: Honey Ginger IPA
Brewer: Fermented Ted Brewing Co.
Asst Brewer:
Style: English IPA
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 7.89 gal
Post Boil Volume: 6.76 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Bottling Volume: 4.75 gal
Estimated OG: 1.068 SG
Estimated Color: 6.7 SRM
Estimated IBU: 53.9 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 85.1 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
9 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (Thomas Fawcett) Grain 1 67.9 %
1 lbs 4.0 oz Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 2 9.4 %
1 lbs Honey Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 3 7.5 %
1.75 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - First Wor Hop 4 29.2 IBUs
0.75 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 30.0 Hop 5 8.7 IBUs
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 15.0 Hop 6 7.5 IBUs
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 10.0 Hop 7 5.5 IBUs
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 5.0 Hop 8 3.0 IBUs
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 0.0 Hop 9 0.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg British Cask Ale (Wyeast Labs #1026) [12 Yeast 10 -
2 lbs Honey (1.0 SRM) Sugar 11 15.1 %
2.00 oz Candied Ginger (Secondary 7.0 days) Herb 12 -
2.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Dry Hop 0 Hop 13 0.0 IBUs


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 13 lbs 4.0 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 17.82 qt of water at 165.7 F 156.0 F 60 min

Sparge: Batch sparge with 2 steps (1.24gal, 4.35gal) of 168.0 F water

The honey was added to the primary just after fermentation seemed to have peaked. Made a 2L starter with the 1026.

 

[jgourd]

Sampled the Honey Ginger IPA this evening. Tasting notes later. Also picked up a 6-pack of Abita Grapefruit Harvest IPA.

 

[danbrewtan]

Never got any fruitcake ales . They must have been throwing/punting around packages. No seriously I've seen them punt packages when I was a ups helper back in college...

 

[pheboglobi]

I got the Rumcake/quadrupels yesterday and the Honey Ginger IPAs. The IPAs had leaked a little, but otherwise, seemed fine.

 

[stblindtiger]

Got the Spiced Cherry Dubbels today.... Definitely impressed with the labels! Nicest labeled Homebrew I've ever seen!

 

[stblindtiger]

Sorry the above picture is sideways!!! Sucks not having the mobile app working anymore...

 

[jgourd]

Tasting notes on the Honey Ginger IPA. Note that I am not an expert by any means, but I know what I like, I think I know good beer, and I've been brewing since 2008. So take it for what's it worth...

Aroma: Hints of ginger way, way in the back, some date, and a bit of a floral note. Nice maltiness present. Some honey but not prominent to me. Slight diacetyl present after letting this one warm for about 45 minutes.

Appearance: Copper color, quite hazy (although it cleared a bit as it warmed), with very little head. When I popped the cap, there was very little hiss.

Flavor: Initially sweet with a stiff bitterness that counters it well. Some spice quickly fades to honey and strong bread notes. There's ginger in the back again. It's a bit under-carbonated, but that doesn't take anything away from it for me. Slight diacetyl present after letting this one warm for about 45 minutes.

Mouthfeel: Good body, definitely not dry for a beer with honey, low carbonation.

Overall: Good beer. I would drink another had I not had so many other beers to try for the first time. For my taste, if I were to rate it out of 10 (10 being orgasmic and 1 being puke inducing), I'd go with 7.5 for this one.

 

[jgourd]

Tasting notes on the Dunkel Buck (great name). Note that I am not an expert by any means, but I know what I like, I think I know good beer, and I've been brewing since 2008. So take it for what's it worth...

Aroma: Awesome caramel with a hint of fruit. Very clean and appealing, slightly sweet with a hint of spice in the background. Makes my mouth water. As it warms I somehow get a hint of Kentucky Straight Bourbon!

Appearance: Quite hazy, very little head, beautiful amber color. It cleared slightly as it warmed.

Flavor: Initially sweet with a strong hint of ginger and cinnamon. This reminds me of fall. A great maltiness that lasts a long time after the spices dissipate and leaves a wonderful aftertaste with a thick feeling on the tongue. there's also a good amount of bread and biscuit in there, and even a hint of a sweet syrup (like maple syrup). The bitterness is perfect and balances the malt well. There were hints of alcohol and an alcohol warmth that was not present until the beer warmed (after 45 minutes or so).

Mouthfeel: Great body, definitely not dry, but it did get thinner as it warmed. Carbonation was OK (I would have liked a bit more).

Overall: Great beer. I could drink this all day, but I'm already feeling its effects after one bottle. For my taste, if I were to rate it out of 10 (10 being orgasmic and 1 being puke inducing), I'd go with 9.5 for this one.

 

[jgourd]

Tasting notes on the Rumcake (An older version of the Caramel Quad, I take it?). Note that I am not an expert by any means, but I know what I like, I think I know good beer, and I've been brewing since 2008. So take it for what's it worth...

Aroma: Definitely Belgian. Loads of dark fruit like fig, date, and brown raisins. Huge malt and syrup notes. Sweet but not too cloying. Refreshing like when going out to get the paper on a cold, snowy, winter day in your jammies.

Appearance: A tad hazy, but beautiful amber color with a hint of cherry sunburst thrown in.

Flavor: Spicy at first that quickly fades to a delicious malt spine. I don't know what the IBUs are, but it seems low and perfect to me which lets the malt linger on and on and on... I have to interject and say that the flavor last a long time. Like 2 minutes long time. I get an aftertaste of syrup with a second-long whisp of clove.

Mouthfeel: Dry but not too dry. Carbonation is spot on for my tastes. Bitterness finishes the beer well, and I think it's what allows the malt to linger forever. Well, not really forever...

Overall: Delicious. For my taste, if I were to rate it out of 10 (10 being orgasmic and 1 being puke inducing), I'd go with 9.55 for this one.

 

[gavball6]

Got the Spiced Cherry Dubbels today.... Definitely impressed with the labels! Nicest labeled Homebrew I've ever seen!

Awesome... Looks like they all made it in good shape! I received your Gruits today as well all in pristine condition!

 

[jgourd]

Tasting notes on the Christmas Bliss Holiday Ale (an extra bottle in one of the shipments). Note that I am not an expert by any means, but I know what I like, I think I know good beer, and I've been brewing since 2008. So take it for what's it worth...

Aroma: Reminds me so much of a quintessential Old Enlish ale. Malty, thick, dense, with fig, raisin, and caramelized pear. I also get sweet syrup with a hint of gingerbread cookie and an enticing nuttiness.

Appearance: Dark brown with a small head that sticks around near the edges for a while.

Flavor: Quite malty and complex. A brief hint of chocolate reveals a combination of flavors. I get raisin, caramel as if I'm drinking first runnings that have been boiled down to a syrupy consistency (which is delicious), ripe plum, and rum cake (yeah, I know I've already rated a beer called this, but I picture myself eating rum cake when drinking this one). All of this is backed by a pretty profound bitterness that manages to blend well with everything else.

Mouthfeel: Pretty dry, yet still manages to feel somewhat heavy on the tongue (although it goes away quickly). Nice carbonation.

Overall: A very complex beer. I would have liked to save it for 5 years from now, because this is one that could age for a long time. I think it's like a song that's been mostly normalized in that there aren't too many weird highs and lows, but maybe just a few peaks here and there. And that makes it interesting. For my taste, if I were to rate it out of 10 (10 being orgasmic and 1 being puke inducing), I'd go with 9.56213 for this one.

 

[NuclearRich]

Tasting notes on the Rumcake (An older version of the Caramel Quad, I take it?).

Oak aged version of the current year. Med toast cubes soaked with spiced rum, and also lightly spiced with some gingerbread spices. The other 2013 is the base beer. Unspiced unoaked.

Don't forget to checkin on untappd!

So happy you dig it. Also, received three boxes today! The gruit I believe (green cg cap), juniper stout, spixed cherry dubbel.

 

[bobdozer]

Just received caramel quad and spiced stout tonight. All intact and put in the chest freezer for safe keeping.

 

[jgourd]

All I'm missing now is the Gingerbread Ale (on its way), the Christmas Gruit (on its way), the Saffron Tripel (on its way), the Spiced Cherry Dubbel (on its way), and the Crabapple Lambicky Ale.

 

[stblindtiger]

I received the Abby Weizen and Uncle Buck (plus extra Christmas Bliss!) packages today, all in perfect condition!

 

[jgourd]

Tasting notes on the Juniper Berry Stout. Note that I am not an expert by any means, but I know what I like, I think I know good beer, and I've been brewing since 2008. So take it for what's it worth...

Aroma: Nice and roasty with prominent dried fruit. Slight vanilla and a tad alcohol-y. The vanilla gets stronger as the beer warms.

Appearance: Dark and thick with a little head that dissipated quickly leaving a persistent touch of foam around the edges.

Flavor: A hint of sweetness and a floral quality (which I assume is the juniper?) followed by a pleasant roastiness that comes through at the end. The bitterness is perfect. There's a touch of vanilla that comes through too, and it gets quite strong as the beer warms. The aftertaste leaves the mouth somewhat dry which I attribute to a bit of pepper that sits on the tongue until the next sip. There is also a slight alcohol warmth that comes through as the beer warms a little.

Mouthfeel: Nicely carbonated. Thick and chewy at first which diminishes and dries up slightly near the end.

Overall: Quite nice! I prefer the flavor to the aroma, and I think that this one probably could age a lot longer to mellow out a little. It also reminds me a bit of my Fruitcake Old Ale. For my taste, if I were to rate it out of 10 (10 being orgasmic and 1 being puke inducing), I'd go with 7.5 for this one.