Salukibrew
Member
Hey brew friends,
I have just a few questions for all of you knowledgeable brew enthusiasts out there. I have been brewing a little over a year now and have been having a blast. I have my process down pat and am just now beginning to formulate my own recopies and ideas as this is the artistically fun part of brewing. I am very interested in utilizing some of Southern Illinois' local native ingredients in my beer. Recently I made my first recipe and really went over the top. I was interested in using wood in beer and developed a recipe I call "Hickory Dickory Bock", after devising two versions both with generous malt bills and varying hopping schedules I sacrificed my keggorator these past 4 weeks to make sure I controlled the fermentation of the Lager yeast perfectly. After a long fermentation it was time to roast up some fresh SO ILL hickory for some fermentation love. Last night I tried a sample from the first batch after the "slightly browned" wood had been sitting onto of the beer for about a week and a half. There was a woody character but it wasn't really as woody as I might like. For the second batch I charred the wood till it was very dark and put it on top of the beer last night.
My question to you all is when you are brewing a beer with wood in the secondary what characteristics are you looking for. Do you like your woody beers prominent and smokey? Light and subtle but still small wood notes on the finish? Also what do you guys think about throwing wood into the primary for a more prominent woody flavor and helping for surface area for yeast? Finally I am new to this whole layering process but tasting a few sips last night i found it was worth the wait. Is it true that a beer is not "truly" lagered until it has been dropped down to almost freezing temps for about a week or two? If so what does this exactly do for the beer and what temps and length of time do you recommend?
Thanks so much guys and happy brewing!
Salukibrew
Primary: Wheat Dopplebock (Aventinus style)
Secondary (1): Hickory Dickory Bock (Light)
Secondary (2): Hickory Dickory Bock (Dark)
Bottle (1): Belgian Dubbel
Bottle (2): Saison de Noel
I have just a few questions for all of you knowledgeable brew enthusiasts out there. I have been brewing a little over a year now and have been having a blast. I have my process down pat and am just now beginning to formulate my own recopies and ideas as this is the artistically fun part of brewing. I am very interested in utilizing some of Southern Illinois' local native ingredients in my beer. Recently I made my first recipe and really went over the top. I was interested in using wood in beer and developed a recipe I call "Hickory Dickory Bock", after devising two versions both with generous malt bills and varying hopping schedules I sacrificed my keggorator these past 4 weeks to make sure I controlled the fermentation of the Lager yeast perfectly. After a long fermentation it was time to roast up some fresh SO ILL hickory for some fermentation love. Last night I tried a sample from the first batch after the "slightly browned" wood had been sitting onto of the beer for about a week and a half. There was a woody character but it wasn't really as woody as I might like. For the second batch I charred the wood till it was very dark and put it on top of the beer last night.
My question to you all is when you are brewing a beer with wood in the secondary what characteristics are you looking for. Do you like your woody beers prominent and smokey? Light and subtle but still small wood notes on the finish? Also what do you guys think about throwing wood into the primary for a more prominent woody flavor and helping for surface area for yeast? Finally I am new to this whole layering process but tasting a few sips last night i found it was worth the wait. Is it true that a beer is not "truly" lagered until it has been dropped down to almost freezing temps for about a week or two? If so what does this exactly do for the beer and what temps and length of time do you recommend?
Thanks so much guys and happy brewing!
Salukibrew
Primary: Wheat Dopplebock (Aventinus style)
Secondary (1): Hickory Dickory Bock (Light)
Secondary (2): Hickory Dickory Bock (Dark)
Bottle (1): Belgian Dubbel
Bottle (2): Saison de Noel
