Blonde Ale Centennial Blonde (Simple 4% All Grain, 5 & 10 Gall)

[Paramecium]

Entered this int he Pacific Brewers Cup and it being my first all grain i am pretty pleased. Got two score cards and scored 31 and 36. Both felt it had a bit to much hop bitterness for the style and could use more malt flavor but overall I am happy. No bad marks for off flavors or anything so it seems I am doing something right. Next batch I may cut back on the early hops or maybe use Maris Otter for some or all of the 2 row.

 

[EricT]

Just brewed my 3rd batch of this last weekend. Should be yummy

 

[pkincaid]

Wound up purchasing 50# of 2 row at the LHBS, but if this brew comes out the way everyone has been raving it will..... then I am most certainly not worried about the 43# I have left lol!

I put it into the fermenter over the weekend and the wort was SOOOOO YUMMY! It was a beautiful goldenrod color. I had to use Munich instead of cara-pils because my LHBS didn't have any. Next batch i'll make with cara-pils, but I'm sure it will still be delicious. I can't wait to get this puppy kegged and carbed. I'm gunna go with 30psi for 48 hours, and 12psi for 24, then 10 to condition and serve. What do you think?

P.S. Thanks for sharing this recipe! Made my house smell amazing!

 

[johnodon]

I will preface this post by saying that I am a dark/bitter beer drinker.

That being said...this beer is pure awesomeness!!! I just had my first full pint after 2.5 weeks in the fermenter and 3 days on force carb. I am in LOVE!!! So smooth...such a creamy head...so drinkable. The perfect summer ale. I especially love the hint of lemon.

Thank you BM for posting this recipe. I have already scheduled a 10 gallon batch of this in the very near future so I can be sure to keep this in the rotation.

Anyone who is on the fence...brew this beer!!!

John

 

[EricT]

So this has been in primary for 8 days and is at .004 now. Looks like its done but a bit cloudy still. Since I don't Secondary I was thinking about just kegging it and let it settle out in the keg. The cold crash in the keg should take care of the cloudiness.

UPDATE Decided to RDWHAHB. it's still in primary

 

[yoshiie]

Just brewed this last Saturday as my first AG. I had a hard time getting the mash temperature high enough (was down around 136F) so following the advice of a different thread, I drained some wort of and threw it on the stove to get it back up to temperature before adding it back and mashing 30mins longer... then found out that the temp. was fine, the themometer I was using was just crap. Magically, somehow I was able to hit the O.G on the nose at 1.040. Now it's fermenting away and smells great so far!

To pkincaid: I'm interested to hear your results with subbing Munich for the Cara-Pils. My HBS doesn't carry it either, so I subbed Pilsen myself.

 

[JonW]

Brewed this yesterday. 1.043 OG. Pitched at 9:00 PM last night and already having activity this morning.

This was a test brew for my new single tier Brutus style build. I had a few temp swings up/down, but overall I think it will turn out just fine.

Another great BierMuncher recipe!

 

[pkincaid]

fter todays bottle bomb accident, I am waiting for my kegs to put the blonde in. Do you think letting it sit in secondary for another week will be alright? It's already been in there for a week. :\

 

[Reno_eNVy]

fter todays bottle bomb accident, I am waiting for my kegs to put the blonde in. Do you think letting it sit in secondary for another week will be alright? It's already been in there for a week. :\

Most definitely okay, even encouraged to a certain level. You'd be safe leaving it in secondary for a looooot longer.

In all actuality though, you don't need a secondary for this kind of beer (most beers, really.) From what I can gather you only had it in primary for 3-5 days... that is not nearly long enough. Myself (and many on here) leave every beer in the primary for a minimum of three weeks. This allows the yeast to "clean up" after themselves, if you will. There are many byproducts of fermentation that can create off-flavors... yeast can clean it up but the effects are seriously amplified if you let the beer sit on the yeast cake.

Don't believe all the myths and hype of autolysis. I've left a barleywine in primary for 3 months with no ill-effects.

 

[pkincaid]

I left it in Primary for a week and a half and then moved it when my secondary was available. I was following BM's directions, but 4 days and it hadn't reached FG yet, so I left it. Thanks for answering though! Headed off to the LHBS in the rain.

Most definitely okay, even encouraged to a certain level. You'd be safe leaving it in secondary for a looooot longer.

In all actuality though, you don't need a secondary for this kind of beer (most beers, really.) From what I can gather you only had it in primary for 3-5 days... that is not nearly long enough. Myself (and many on here) leave every beer in the primary for a minimum of three weeks. This allows the yeast to "clean up" after themselves, if you will. There are many byproducts of fermentation that can create off-flavors... yeast can clean it up but the effects are seriously amplified if you let the beer sit on the yeast cake.

Don't believe all the myths and hype of autolysis. I've left a barleywine in primary for 3 months with no ill-effects.

 

[HopsMcMalty]

Has anyone tried this recipe with Kolsch yeast? I was originally planning to do a Kolsch so I ordered the Wyeast version but then I came across this recipe and decided to do the blonde instead since it sounds so good. I don't have Nottingham on hand though and I'm afraid to mess up the recipe if I choose a poor substitute.

So here are my yeast options:
A) use the new pack of kolsch yeast (WY2565),
B) wash and repitch some Pacman yeast I'm using for a Ranger IPA clone (I'm concerned about starting with a hoppy beer and dropping down to a smoother beer with the same yeast, although the IPA is the 1st generation),
C) use a new pack of Denny's Favorite 50 yeast,
D) try to revive and wash some WY1056 I used about 6 months ago that was harvested by just pouring some of the unwashed yeast cake into a sanitized White Labs vial and then sticking it in the fridge, or
E) Making the (somewhat long) drive to my LHBS and just picking up some Nottingham or S-05.

Thoughts?

Edit: I didn't want to leave anything to chance so I opted for E), driving to my LHBS. However, just as I arrived I was told they got an email 5 min earlier saying there was a Notty recall. Darn the luck. So I bought a pack of US-05 and did a split batch--half the standard Centennial Blonde recipe and half the same malt bill with a 60 min and 10 min Hallertau Mittelfruh hop schedule just to see the difference. What can I say, even though I'm a history teacher I have a tiny bit of science buff that bubbles up when I'm brewing. Both are bubbling away nicely at 62F. I'll post tasting notes when they're finished.

If you have a suggestion for something amazing to do with that Kolsch yeast still in my fridge, PM me!

 

[Verloc5150]

Started this recipe yesterday. Cheap, nice easy boil, and it's going bonkers in primary as I speak. Threw in a little sweet orange peel just cause it seems like it'd go well with citrus. Definitely looking forward to the results. Thanks for the recipe BM!

 

[JonW]

Brewed this last weekend and fermentation stopped a couple days ago. I'll let it sit for a few more days and then crash cool by Wed/Thur and keg Sat/Sun.

I won't taste it until I take the FG reading next weekend. If I'm lucky, all these issues with Notty won't affect me. My fermentation took off within 12 hours and went fine, so hopefully no off flavors.

 

[johnodon]

Enjoying this today (as I have for the past 2 weeks or so). Man this beer just keeps clearing and clearing!

FYI...there was a LOT more head. By the time I poured this downstairs, ran it upstairs, and quited my 8 month old son, I was able to finally snap a pic.

 

[johnodon]

...and so my buddy came over to watch some football. He was commenting how much he loved this beer. Then he asked "do you know how much you have left? Have you lifted the keg?". I said "No...have no idea.". I went to pour my next beer and poof..kicked!

Definitely doing an 11 gallong batch next week.

John

 

[pkincaid]

Kegging this on Tuesday, hit the FG for sometime now, but didn't have a keg to put it in, just tasted it again this afternoon. AMAZING. Thank you BierMuncher... This is the Haus Brew for sure!

EDIT: Kegged yesterday. 30 psi overnight, and just dropped it to 12 today to finish carbing for the rest of the week. Tasted a bit of it cold and boy howdy it's darn good! Anybody know if Munich will affect clarity? It's cloudy. *Looks up johnodons* Not nearly as clear as that.

 

[ralphie]

Don't know why but it took 2 full days before I got any action out of the fermenter but after that it looked as if it was working to make up for those days lost. I transfered to secondary and bottled. I know it was mentioned this one finished fast but I just let it sit a little longer at each stage and wow. I've only brewed a few batches at this point but this is one of my favorites for sure. What's great is I can share this with my friends that refuse to drink anything but a bud light and they are impressed. It's with beers like this that little by little we can save the people who know nothing more than a watery beer.

 

[Dgonza9]

Yeah, I brewed this last weekend and it hit final gravity in 2 days! I was fermenting under pressure, though. Need a fermenting chamber to crash cool.

 

[NuclearRich]

I brewed this close to a month ago. A few minor changes, but I am excited for how it turns out. That pic above is amazing and makes me thirsty.
I replaced the carapils with a lb of wheat and accidentally added a whole lb instead of a half of vienna. Shouldnt be a big deal. Where I expect the biggest diff is in the yeast, I used Wyeast1010 American Wheat (erroneously shipped to me, so gave it a whirl). Still should keep in like with the excellent summer profile as a crisp clean light beer. This is my first primary only. Will be an approximately 4week ferment once its done.

Also... It was fermenting in my stairwell which is not insulated, and temps were making their way down towards 40F. Took a gravity reading: 1.010. Moved it up to my kitchen (which stays around 62F). and a day later, its bubbling. lol... dunno how much is the CO2 in suspension being agitated out, but I think it will finish even drier in a week when I bottle.
Review to come in a week or two.

PS... maybe I can lager in my stairwell this fall/winter!

 

[Captain_Bigelow]

Took this recipe exactly and added:

2 Hot Red Chili's & 4 Med Red Chili's Secondary 1 week.

5 Anaheim Green Chili's from Walmart *Roasted on the grill & Split down the middle* added to secondary for 7 days.

Kegged and Carbed.

BOS in the 2010 NM Stair Fair Amateur!

I took 1 gallon of my batch and added chili's to it (divided above by a fifth due to batch size). It was really good. I gave out samples at my recent party and everyone loved it. It is unusual and not too hot at all. Just a nice bell pepper taste to the beer with a tingly aftertaste.

 

[Verloc5150]

Tapped my batch this weekend for a UFC party, was a big hit with everybody that tried it. I did a late addition of sweet orange peel to my boil, and then served with a slice of lime floating in the beer. This stuff loooooves citrus and the flavor came out great. Looks like I'm going to have to add another tap to the keezer dedicated to this, since it's going to be the new house beer I think.

Edit, now with beer porn pics:

 

[HackInBlack]

I decided to make this my first all-grain brew. Since I don't have the equipment, I decided to do BIAB. As the water came up to temp, I dropped the grain in per BIAB instructions and let the mash come up to 158. At 158 I flamed out and stirred up and then lidded it. 10 minutes later, as I opened it up to stir some more, imagine my surprise to find the mash at 175. I got it down with cold water, but the damage was done. Low OG, high FG, and a bitter bread taste after 7 days in the primary.

SO, lesson learned. Next time I'm going to just hit it with strike water per Beersmith and mash it in that way, sort of a modified BIAB. Just ordered the ingredients and look forward to brewing it AGAIN in the next few days.

 

[elproducto]

Brewed this last night, experimented with a late extract addition.

Woke up this morning expecting some action, but nothing. Pitched with dry notty, didn't rehydrate. I'm so used my US-05 which is usually off and running within hours.

 

[bkov]

i know the secret to this recipe in the centennial hops but i dont have centennial and am brewing this saturday. So i was going to replace the centennial 55 and 35min additions with cascade. any opinions on if i should use simcoe or mt hood as the 20min and 5 addition? im also using 34/70 lager yeast for 5g, german ale/kolsch for the other 5g

 

[DavidSteel]

i know the secret to this recipe in the centennial hops but i dont have centennial and am brewing this saturday. So i was going to replace the centennial 55 and 35min additions with cascade. any opinions on if i should use simcoe or mt hood as the 20min and 5 addition? im also using 34/70 lager yeast for 5g, german ale/kolsch for the other 5g

Haha, if that's the case, just brainstorm your own hop schedule. Do what you think would taste good.

 

[DavidSteel]

Brewed this last night, experimented with a late extract addition.

Woke up this morning expecting some action, but nothing. Pitched with dry notty, didn't rehydrate. I'm so used my US-05 which is usually off and running within hours.

Just give it a little time, it'll bubble away.

 

[ftlstrings]

It would probably lend itself very well to adding some bitter orange peel. I’ve added orange peel to light blondes before and they’re been well received.

I've given blonds oranges before with success, but never just the peel! I could have had my orange and eaten it too!


~M~

 

[Brewfat]

Drinking my first all grain of this recipe as I type. I did a partial mash before and the all grain seems better.

It has only been 16 days since I brewed it and it is delicious. 12 day ferment, rack into keg with gelatin and force carb at 30 psig. Another 2 days at 12 psig in the fridge and it's good to go.

This is a great, easy beer for when you want a quick turnaround.

 

[elproducto]

Just give it a little time, it'll bubble away.

After 72 hours it blew up.. I had to throw on a blowoff tube. Finished out in less than 48 hours.. wow! I thought my US-05 was vigorous.

 

[elucify]

I brewed up a 5-gal extract batch of this Saturday (the extract version posted on home page). I think I forgot to measure OG, but being the extract version I'll go with 1.044. 2x 0.5oz doesn't seem like enough hops, but I'll avoid the temptation to mess with success.

I pitched a single packet of reconstituted (0.25l H2O @ 82F; 15 min) Nottingham's Ale Yeast at 68F, after titrating with cool wort every 5 minutes to avoid temp shock.

As the Chinese say, Ho Lee Fook. Fermentation lock was bubbling almost constantly after 12 hrs, temp up to 72F. Put it in a 60F water bath to cool it down; stabilized at 68F. But still it attenuated to 1.010 in under 72 hrs. I guess the yeast like this recipe as much as everyone else does. Now the bubbler is all but silent. Tasted (OK, drank) the hydro sample last night: clean and dry. I was expecting Tooty Frooty after the high-temp fermentation, but no esters to speak of. Wort was cloudy and very carbonated. Looking forward to seeing what happens over the next couple of days.

Pretty exciting and FAST results, though. Thanks BM. I'll add my 5 gallons to the "how much brewed" thread once it's in bottles.

Cheers

--Mark Johnson
Silver Spring, MD