AHS Apocalypso Opinions

[Zixxer10R]

I had a pint of this again today and I think the fruitiness comes out even more now. It's very clean and the pear flavor is faint and the bitterness has mellowed out a lot.

Crisp to the very end Jaynik. Even my keg-kicking foam was crisp and earthy.

 

[cincybrewer]

I just brewed this kit on Saturday. I pitched 1 quart of slurry (Safale-05) from a wheat summer ale that I had just bottled. I am fermenting in a 6.5 gallon bucket at 68 degrees and it has blown through the airlock three times since yesterday, although it finally seems to be slowing down. I have never had a blowout prior to this in my previous 10 batches. Anyone else had a similar issue? Could it be the malto dextrin (which I have never used before)?

I rehydrated my nottingham and didn't have any issues. Was 68 the ambient or the actual temp? Because from what I've read if it is too warm it will cause a more vigorous fermentation. Could also be because you pitched from a slurry, I've never done that but I would assume a more rapid fermentation.

 

[gleytch]

Apocalypso is one of my favorites. In my short brewing career (~40 batches), I've brewed more of it than any single kit. Part of the reason is the price, but the main reason is the flavor. I like APA's and this is a great example of the style. It's simple to brew since it has no steeping grains, but still has plenty of bitterness and flavor for my taste. Mine have had a pretty distinct but not excessive pear flavor. Two batches have been through the "pipeline" (double entendre not an accident ) and I currently have one batch aging in a keg, two batches fermenting and another one in kit form waiting to be brewed.

 

[jaynik]

Do the kits store well? I would consider buying a few to have on hand if I knew that they would still be "fresh".

 

[cincybrewer]

Do the kits store well? I would consider buying a few to have on hand if I knew that they would still be "fresh".

if you are talking about the extract version, it comes with liquid extract so that wouldn't store very well. I'm sure AHS could work something out so you could get it with DME to make it store better. Or just build it yourself. The only other ingredients in it are hops, yeast, and malto dextin, which all those should store easily.

 

[KubelkaMonk]

I will be brewing the mini-mash version of Apocalypto in a few days. This will be my fourth batch of homebrew and first kit from AHS.

I only have a 20qt brew pot, so I will be doing a partial boil. I am unsure if I should follow the directions as written and add all of the fermentables at the start of the boil, or should I hold off on adding some of the LME until the end of the boil to maximize hop utilization?

I expect that the fine people at AHS have developed the recipe to produce the desired result when the written instructions are followed. However, I am interested to learn what others have done with the Apocalypto kit and what they might suggest.

 

[Zixxer10R]

It's literally one malt and one hop. Just follow the instructions. You can experiment on something a little more complex that actually has substance to the recipe.

 

[cincybrewer]

It's literally one malt and one hop. Just follow the instructions. You can experiment on something a little more complex that actually has substance to the recipe.

fyi - it's two hops.

 

[Zixxer10R]

Well whatever. It's been weeks since i finished that keg, i forgot.

 

[cincybrewer]

Just wanted to make sure he didn't get confused.

Mine is going on four weeks in the fermenter...just waiting to clear some room in the kegerator.

 

[slogger]

Two weeks in primary fermentor and then force carbed it! It is pretty friggin good! I don't know that it will last long enough to mature, it tastes great as is! Definitely buying this again!

 

[KubelkaMonk]

I went ahead and just stuck to the directions. This will be my first batch with active fermentation temperature control. I have high hopes for this one.

 

[cincybrewer]

Two weeks in primary fermentor and then force carbed it! It is pretty friggin good! I don't know that it will last long enough to mature, it tastes great as is! Definitely buying this again!

I hope I like it as much as you did because recipes really don't get any simpler than this one.

 

[Elweydoloco]

Oddly enough, I'm brewing it right now and am doing a mini mash as well. I'm just gonna stick to the directions. Austin home brew knows what they're doing and I've yet to have a bad lot from them. I've also got their double chocolate stout in a primary right now. The best place to start for recipe modifications on one of their kits is on their website.

 

[KubelkaMonk]

Oddly enough, I'm brewing it right now and am doing a mini mash as well. I'm just gonna stick to the directions. Austin home brew knows what they're doing and I've yet to have a bad lot from them. I've also got their double chocolate stout in a primary right now. The best place to start for recipe modifications on one of their kits is on their website.

I appreciate the second opinion. I had my eye on the AHS Coffee Malt Stout as my next brew. Where would I find info about recipe modifications on the AHS website. Would it be in the comments left for the individual recipe? -Or- Would I have to e-mail or call AHS for Advise? -Or- Is there another place on the site for this inforamtion? - Thanks.

 

[slogger]

I hope I like it as much as you did because recipes really don't get any simpler than this one.

Yeah! It's hard to believe that this beer comes out as good as it does with such a simple recipe. I was tempted to dry hop but stuck to the recipe and I'm glad I didn't pull the trigger. It tastes great as is!

 

[Elweydoloco]

I appreciate the second opinion. I had my eye on the AHS Coffee Malt Stout as my next brew. Where would I find info about recipe modifications on the AHS website. Would it be in the comments left for the individual recipe? -Or- Would I have to e-mail or call AHS for Advise? -Or- Is there another place on the site for this inforamtion? - Thanks.

I'm sorry I just now am replying. However if you read the reviews on the beer kits they offer, 90% of them will have people speaking of the recipe and what they felt it lacked or if it was spot on for them. Like the double chocolate I now have in it's first round of secondary, everyone said add more chocolate. So I added double the chocolate about 15 minutes left in the boil. When there is a consensus it's normally right so I'll listen to it.

 

[Elweydoloco]

Honestly the only thing I did was add some Irish moss to it as I'm trying to clear it up. I'm sure I'll secondary and try to cold crash too but we will see. Judging from how it came out of the brew kettle it looked hazy already.

Anyone try cold crashing this one yet or did secondary clear it up enough or you minis the chill haze maybe?

 

[cincybrewer]

just kegged this last week. as of last night it was pretty darn good. still hasn't completely cleared yet and was a little harsh from the bitterness but i expect that to mellow a little.

 

[rhamilton]

I'll be moving this to secondary sometime this week. My first brew -- but it at least smells and looks good so far.....

 

[cincybrewer]

I'll be moving this to secondary sometime this week. My first brew -- but it at least smells and looks good so far.....

nm

 

[cincybrewer]

I'll be moving this to secondary sometime this week. My first brew -- but it at least smells and looks good so far.....

Definitely a good one for a first brew, doesn't get much easier.

That being said, and I won't debate the whole primary vs. secondary issue, but you sure you want to bother transferring to secondary? IMO, for a first timer it just adds an extra step of possible infection/oxidation/other mishaps and doesn't add too much benefit. Just my opinion.

 

[rhamilton]

but you sure you want to bother transferring to secondary?

The directions that came with the kit use a secondary but from what I've learned about brewing so far, it is probably optional.

From the kit:

5-7 days in primary
5-7 days in secondary
Best taste 3 weeks in the bottle

 

[cincybrewer]

Definitely optional. In my humble opinion, it's better to just primary for 3-4 weeks (takes gravity test to ensure it's complete - which it more than likely will be), and then bottle.

Again, not to get into the argument, but this recipe is very basic, doesn't have dry hopping, no spices, etc...a primary for a few weeks should be good enough.

 

[Paulgs3]

I have two carboys almost done fermenting, one with 1272 and the other with notty. I'm at two weeks now and my yeast is still at Krausen and no where near giving up.

My OG before boil was ~1.045, with my after boil OG at 1.060 with 84%eff... not sure where you all are getting the 1.048 from.. Also BS list the IBU at
52, could be because I did a 10 gal batch tho?

I'm looking forward to this! I wanted greenbelt yeast but that strain doesn't ship well as I've had three slow starts with it. I was too lazy to harvest it...


edit: OOPS! just realized this is in extract forums..... Sorry, had a few.....

 

[pattycakes888]

I appreciate the second opinion. I had my eye on the AHS Coffee Malt Stout as my next brew. Where would I find info about recipe modifications on the AHS website. Would it be in the comments left for the individual recipe? -Or- Would I have to e-mail or call AHS for Advise? -Or- Is there another place on the site for this inforamtion? - Thanks.

If you want a really good coffee stout (not that ive tried the one from AHS) but midwest's Peace Coffee Java Stout was one of my favorites, Easy and Quick and it went well with a scoop of vanilla ice cream in the glass

 

[pattycakes888]

Any feelings on dry hopping? my friend just found some wild hops in his back yard that he dried and gave me for free so I've been anxious to use them in a beer. I figured this one is cheap so if i mess it up not too much collateral damage. I don't know exactly what kind of hops he's giving me though

 

[Elweydoloco]

I have two carboys almost done fermenting, one with 1272 and the other with notty. I'm at two weeks now and my yeast is still at Krausen and no where near giving up.

My OG before boil was ~1.045, with my after boil OG at 1.060 with 84%eff... not sure where you all are getting the 1.048 from.. Also BS list the IBU at
52, could be because I did a 10 gal batch tho?

I'm looking forward to this! I wanted greenbelt yeast but that strain doesn't ship well as I've had three slow starts with it. I was too lazy to harvest it...

edit: OOPS! just realized this is in extract forums..... Sorry, had a few.....

I isn't realize it was extract either :-(. I did a mini mash which I'm never doing again from AHS not that it was hard or anything just that the amount of grain used might as well do all grain.

Anyway I think you're right on my OG was 1.059 on a full 5 gallon mini mash. It's been in primary for about a week and a half now.

 

[Elweydoloco]

The directions that came with the kit use a secondary but from what I've learned about brewing so far, it is probably optional.

From the kit:

5-7 days in primary
5-7 days in secondary
Best taste 3 weeks in the bottle

Tell you what I you want to keep it primary I'll go secondary with it if you want to take pics and compare. The only benefit is going to be clarity but I already added Irish moss anyway.

 

[cincybrewer]

Tell you what I you want to keep it primary I'll go secondary with it if you want to take pics and compare. The only benefit is going to be clarity but I already added Irish moss anyway.

And if you are really worried about clarity you can use gelatin. I've been using that on my last few brews and they have been crystal clear.