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

[r8rphan]

I have brewed this beer and gone from grain to glass in (I think) 12 days!! I did pitch a MONSTER starter and fermented it in 70* temps.. I think (it has been a while) it fermented out to terminal gravity in 3-4 days...
Good beer!!
it was a house fav for quite awhile..

Jay.. Thanx for the tip on the 5.2.. That stuff definitely made a difference...

 

[jmf143]

I've got my system dialed in for 75 minute boils. I haven't brewed a beer this light in color yet. Will a 75 minute boil noticably darken it?

 

[brettwasbtd]

I've got my system dialed in for 75 minute boils. I haven't brewed a beer this light in color yet. Will a 75 minute boil noticably darken it?

I think you would only get a darker colored beer if using extracts

 

[M3Shark]

Brewed this on Saturday as my first all grain. Was bubbling away yesterday in the fermenter and has since calmed down a little bit. Is racking to a secondary necessary? What is the advantage? I'm not really understanding that concept yet. I'm still new to this...

Do some searching on the to secondary or not question, this seems to be one of the current hot topics/debates going on. There is a lot of good information/opinions out there from some very experience people. I'm new too, so I had the same questions, so i know the answers are out there with a search.

For what it is worth(again from a very new brewer), I did not secondary...

 

[RugenBrau]

Mine has been kegged but needs a couple more days to bring it up a little/ I like it! Hops seem a little stronger than I expected but I was a little short. I didn't get the 5.5 gallons but ended up with 4.75 instead. This is my first time using cascade hops. Interesting....I like them. Party for the superbowl so I'll post some reviews then. Sterling Gold is on the docket for Saturday

 

[BierMuncher]

Mine has been kegged but needs a couple more days to bring it up a little/ I like it! Hops seem a little stronger than I expected but I was a little short. I didn't get the 5.5 gallons but ended up with 4.75 instead. This is my first time using cascade hops. Interesting....I like them. Party for the superbowl so I'll post some reviews then. Sterling Gold is on the docket for Saturday

Any early hop "bite" will mellow pretty quickly.

 

[RugenBrau]

There really isn't a hop bite. It s the flavor from the cascade hops. Its the first I've ever used them. I really like this beer. It is not as dry as I thought. Maybe I mashed a little higher than I thought or could it be the Cascade hops that make it seem a little sweet. I don't even know if sweet is the right word to use. Maybe fruity would be a better discriptor. I'll make this one again. Great Recipe

 

[jmf143]

I'm brewing a 5.5 gallon batch tomorrow. My LHBS didn't have any Crystal 10 so I subbed .25 lbs Crystal 20 and .25 lbs Munich. Noticable flavor difference, or not worth worrying about?

 

[RugenBrau]

I wouldn't worry about it. It may be a little darker

 

[Didje]

What would be a good replacement yeast from White Labs, aside from Nottingham which my LHBS doesn't carry?

 

[EricT]

What would be a good replacement yeast from White Labs, aside from Nottingham which my LHBS doesn't carry?

Safale 04?

 

[Hawaiianbrewer]

Here are my results, I posted earlier that I pitched S-04 (by mistake) in 5 gal and Notty in 5gal. Biermuncher was correct in that the s-04 was maltier, it also didnt seem to flocculate near as well, actually it never really cleared up. None the less, we drank the s-04 first grain to glass in 2 weeks (kegging), emptied the keg in 2 weeks. S-04 was quite a bit sweater up front finishing with a slight dry taste at the end. Everybody enjoyed it. Tapped notty keg 30 days after brewing, Just enjoying it now. Crystal clear, much drier, very refreshing, still needs a few more days on the gas. Summary: both were very good, infact probably one of the best beers i've brewed. We are entering the Nottingham version into the Konabrew fest next month, wish it luck, good preliminary feedback from lhbc-thanks biermuncher

 

[RugenBrau]

What would be a good replacement yeast from White Labs, aside from Nottingham which my LHBS doesn't carry?

I used the US 05...turned out great. I'll use it with the next batch.

 

[Didje]

Actually they don't have US 05, they only carry White Labs yeast.

 

[EricT]

Actually they don't have US 05, they only carry White Labs yeast.

I dont think you can go wrong with WL002 or even 001. I always keep 002 on hand. Heres a link to their website in case you want to try to match one of their other yeast with Notty.
http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/homebrew_strains.html

 

[EricT]

Also this link has a styles page so you can see what yeast strains fit best with the style of beer your making. I have a big chart that is similar my LHBS gave me.

http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/styles.html

 

[Didje]

Also this link has a styles page so you can see what yeast strains fit best with the style of beer your making. I have a big chart that is similar my LHBS gave me.

http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/styles.html

Thanks a bunch, much appreciated! I will go with 001

 

[brettwasbtd]

What would be a good replacement yeast from White Labs, aside from Nottingham which my LHBS doesn't carry?

Can't Go wrong with California Ale yeast WLP001. If you want to change things up you could try their Kolsch WLP029 or the Cream Ale yeast blend WLP080: This is a blend of ale and lager yeast strains. The strains work together to create a clean, crisp, light American lager style ale. A pleasing estery aroma may be perceived from the ale yeast contribution. Hop flavors and bitterness are slightly subdued. Slight sulfur will be produced during fermentation, from the lager yeast.

 

[r8rphan]

thanks for the heads up about the 080... I'm looking for ways to create the basic beers I want without getting into lagers.. and two of the three are lagers...

Will conditioning or long ferments clean up the sulfer? How noticeable is it?

Is there an ale yeast out there that mimics the light euro lager styles?

 

[brettwasbtd]

thanks for the heads up about the 080... I'm looking for ways to create the basic beers I want without getting into lagers.. and two of the three are lagers...

Will conditioning or long ferments clean up the sulfer? How noticeable is it?

I actually haven't used it! I was just looking at the white labs site. As I re-read the description it sounds like steam ale yeast, but the ferm range is normal for ales (where the steam ale yeast is at like 60 i believe). I would think that cold conditioning would diminish the flavors, or it might just be alluding to the smells coming out of your fermentor during fermentation. So I guess I was asking you to experiment! haha

 

[r8rphan]

I need to get a couple 3G carboys, so I can try stuff like this without wasting a whole batch if it's a disaster...

The reason I'm asking all this, is that I recently brewed EdWrots HPA recipe.. my mash efficiency was about 5pts low, and I fermented it near the bottom of the ale range..

I came out tasting like what I remember Fosters Special Bitter (oil can) to taste like... but it's been a few years.. Fosters Draught was one of the clones I wanted to make when I started brewing... But I'm not set up for lagers, and I really don't want to be if I don't have to..

So I was surprised that this simple and inexpensive Ale reminded me of the Fosters... Seeing as I also wanted to do a clone of the Euro beers some day (ie heineken draft/can, grolsh, becks, etc.)... I've been wondering if this is possible with an ale yeast... maybe by fermenting at the bottom end of the temp range, or using a hybrid yeast like you mentioned..

I could then be able (have the capability) to brew an ale that would please friends in every category of drinker...

 

[brettwasbtd]

Ya, half batches can be great for experimenting! I like to keep some dry malt extract around in case something happens and I am off with the gravity, I just do a little math and add some DME or water to bring it up to the right amount. This is much easier with a refractometer!

I would do this with the WLP001 and see what your friends thing, it is really good and tame in my opinion. Nothing a BMC drinker wouldn't enjoy! You can get some "lager like" qualities with certain ale yeast and certain temps, but don't think it will taste exactly like a lager.

 

[r8rphan]

First and foremost, it's gotta please 'me'... LOL

I actually like heiny and fosters (on occasion) as long as it's not the bottled versions.. I know my brother would like both of them if I got reasonably similar ales to them.. Friends can be all over the map...

If not, there's always Tequila!

 

[Fourtytwo]

I make this with safale 05 all the time, no complaints ever.

 

[EricT]

I need to get a couple 3G carboys, so I can try stuff like this without wasting a whole batch if it's a disaster...

The reason I'm asking all this, is that I recently brewed EdWrots HPA recipe.. my mash efficiency was about 5pts low, and I fermented it near the bottom of the ale range..

I came out tasting like what I remember Fosters Special Bitter (oil can) to taste like... but it's been a few years.. Fosters Draught was one of the clones I wanted to make when I started brewing... But I'm not set up for lagers, and I really don't want to be if I don't have to..

So I was surprised that this simple and inexpensive Ale reminded me of the Fosters... Seeing as I also wanted to do a clone of the Euro beers some day (ie heineken draft/can, grolsh, becks, etc.)... I've been wondering if this is possible with an ale yeast... maybe by fermenting at the bottom end of the temp range, or using a hybrid yeast like you mentioned..

I could then be able (have the capability) to brew an ale that would please friends in every category of drinker...

White Labs has a yeast called Cry Havoc that is a Lager yeast that ferments at ale temps. It was developed by Charlie Papazan. I have been wanting to experiment with it buthavent goten around to it.

 

[r8rphan]

White Labs has a yeast called Cry Havoc that is a Lager yeast that ferments at ale temps. It was developed by Charlie Papazan. I have been wanting to experiment with it buthavent goten around to it.

Thanks! That's something I can look into... I really need to get some small fermenters for experimenting...

 

[zeitgeistbrewing]

Brewed a partial mash 5 gallon of this 10 days ago and finally finished fermenting. I had a starting gravity of 1.050 and finished at 1.011. However when i racked into the secondary it was very cloudy. I have never had a cloudy batch at the end of fermenting.... wondering if anyone else experienced this and if chilling while force carbonating would help clear this or if pectic enzyme might help.

 

[RugenBrau]

mine was a little cloudy also. I stuck it in the fridge for a quick cold crash before filling the keg. It'll be fine

 

[RugenBrau]

just back from a super bowl party. They wiped me out of this beer. Everybody loved it!

 

[M3Shark]

just back from a super bowl party. They wiped me out of this beer. Everybody loved it!

Same reaction that I got at my super bowl party. They were great and went very quick.