oregonNate
Active Member
I have been thinking about brewing a really big 1.1+ barleywine, using all-grain of course. I have a few different ideas and would like to bounce them off everyone.
I have a 70 quart coleman extreme that can hold a lot of grain, but I only have a 8 gallon kettle for boiling. I also have an 0xygen tank and stone, so aeration shouldn't be a problem. Those are my equipment limitations.
Another given is that I have a batch of WLP013 London Ale Yeast IPA in primary right now. It will be giving up its yeast cake for this barleywine.
First option:
Load the cooler up with 25lbs of grain and do a first runnings beer. ProMash says that 25lbs of grain at 60%, producing 7 gallons of wort, boiling for 90 minutes and ending up with 5 gallons of 1.104 wort.
Second option:
Do a doble-doble batch, two 10lb mashes, using the wort from the first mash as the "water" for the second mash. I have a friend who did this and ended up with 1.115 wort. Problem is that it is currently stuck at around 1.04.
Third option:
1. Brew a 3 gallon batch of 1.08 wort and get the fermentation going into full gear.
2. On the same day, brew another tiny 2 gallon batch of super high gravity wort. Start with 5+ gallons and boil it for 3 hours until it is 1.150 or so. Put this in a carboy and in a fridge right away.
3. On the 3rd day of fermentation on the 3 gallon batch, take 2/3 a gallon of the super strong wort, heat it up to boiling, chill and aerate. Then "feed" it to the 3 gallon batch.
4. Repeat step 3 every few days until you run out of the 2 gallon batch. It should be enough for three feedings.
The first option sounds easiest... and I could do a second runnings batch. The gravity wouldn't be much over 1.1 and I may have problems with a stuck fermentation.
The second option isn't very difficult, but I'm afraid I would get the gravity too high and it wouldn't attenuate very well. I suppose I could add the high-gravity yeasts after the primary ale yeast finishes.
I think the third option would be a real pain, but it would probably be best for the yeast. Not sure if the yeast I have chosen for this batch will handle all of this anyway.
Thanks for any comments, suggestions, tips or any other help you can offer me.
I have a 70 quart coleman extreme that can hold a lot of grain, but I only have a 8 gallon kettle for boiling. I also have an 0xygen tank and stone, so aeration shouldn't be a problem. Those are my equipment limitations.
Another given is that I have a batch of WLP013 London Ale Yeast IPA in primary right now. It will be giving up its yeast cake for this barleywine.
First option:
Load the cooler up with 25lbs of grain and do a first runnings beer. ProMash says that 25lbs of grain at 60%, producing 7 gallons of wort, boiling for 90 minutes and ending up with 5 gallons of 1.104 wort.
Second option:
Do a doble-doble batch, two 10lb mashes, using the wort from the first mash as the "water" for the second mash. I have a friend who did this and ended up with 1.115 wort. Problem is that it is currently stuck at around 1.04.
Third option:
1. Brew a 3 gallon batch of 1.08 wort and get the fermentation going into full gear.
2. On the same day, brew another tiny 2 gallon batch of super high gravity wort. Start with 5+ gallons and boil it for 3 hours until it is 1.150 or so. Put this in a carboy and in a fridge right away.
3. On the 3rd day of fermentation on the 3 gallon batch, take 2/3 a gallon of the super strong wort, heat it up to boiling, chill and aerate. Then "feed" it to the 3 gallon batch.
4. Repeat step 3 every few days until you run out of the 2 gallon batch. It should be enough for three feedings.
The first option sounds easiest... and I could do a second runnings batch. The gravity wouldn't be much over 1.1 and I may have problems with a stuck fermentation.
The second option isn't very difficult, but I'm afraid I would get the gravity too high and it wouldn't attenuate very well. I suppose I could add the high-gravity yeasts after the primary ale yeast finishes.
I think the third option would be a real pain, but it would probably be best for the yeast. Not sure if the yeast I have chosen for this batch will handle all of this anyway.
Thanks for any comments, suggestions, tips or any other help you can offer me.