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

[NitrogenWidget]

Thanks. The gravity was more of a happy accident (to me). I'm still dialing in my efficiency and will *have* to suffer through a bit of extra alcohol. Oh the horror

As for the yeast: I was offered the opportunity to brew a large amount for an upcoming work function. Due to my fermentation chamber limits I can only brew 11gal at a time. I was "pretty sure" that I would have no problems with Notty but since I absolutely HAVE to have my fermentation chamber empty by next Saturday I decided to go with my a yeast that is similar and that I know will perform. When I'm not under a tight timeline I will do this again with Notty because... oh man the wort looked and smelled so good. I really want a batch of this for me done to the letter of the recipe. :rockin:

I poured mine on the notty cake from an ipa. Was going in hrs and am drinking now less than 2 weeks later from a keg.
Decided to secondary in the keg.

 

[NitrogenWidget]

I did a search .. and couldn't find an exact answer.

What style is this for BJCP? I am guessing 10A (American Pale Ale)?

Unfortunately I entered as a 6B (Blonde - Light Hybrid) and didn't win a medal in two competitions .. BUT I got some fantastic feedback from the two comps. All 4 judges loved the beer and even though my entry was out of style, I got an average of 38 and 35. I think it would have medaled in the appropriate category. Sadly I only bottled 4 bottles, the rest went in a keg. I will definitely be brewing this one up again. Any other hop recommendations? Citra, Mosaic, Amarillo?

Here is a pic of my beer .. it was clearer than it appears in the pic. I used NO finings.

Cheers!

View attachment 316855

How long in the keg? Mine is 2 weeks and a little cloudy but still tasty

 

[BBQB]

Somehow I screwed the pooch on this. Kegged a week ago. It is terrible. The worst beer I’ve made in my 5 years of brewing. It tastes thin and watery ...just bad. I’m hoping it might improve over time

 

[00Seven]

Racked into keg yesterday. 4 days in primary, 4 in secondary. Will take off carb this afternoon and let it settle to serving pressure to be tapped Sunday afternoon at a party. Beer was brilliantly clear going into keg and the sample I grabbed wasn’t too bad for a gravity sample. Carbed to 2.56

 

[LJvermonster]

All centennial version, came out really well!

 

[NitrogenWidget]

I forgot to add irish moss so it isn't very clear.
next batch will have it.

 

[00Seven]

Turned out great. Blondes aren’t my favorite but for the style it’s great. Will be a crowd pleaser tomorrow

 

[NitrogenWidget]

Turned out great. Blondes aren’t my favorite but for the style it’s great. Will be a crowd pleaser tomorrow

It's tasty but not my favorite.
Probably because it tastes like a lite beer that wants to be more. lol.
it needs less hops or more hops to me.
Could also be my OG was 1.046 and FG was 1.010 so closer to 5% than 4% might of thrown things off.

 

[Chituma]

Good evening, greets from Argentina. I'm going to use Cargill Pale, I Will assume that Is the same as 2 Row pale. The first post Is the ultimate recipe ir Is the first version?

Regards

 

[CavAv8tr]

Yepper...

Decided to go to the trouble of freezing the bottles this time around when bottling and made a huge difference.

Next time you're in town...I'll give the beer I serve you the same consideration...

Curious to know what freezing the bottles before bottling does.

 

[NitrogenWidget]

Curious to know what freezing the bottles before bottling does.

Less foam.

 

[Chituma]

Helps in reducing foam during filling of bottles... Leds bubbles moving...

Curious to know what freezing the bottles before bottling does.

 

[dandw12786]

Got this kegged earlier this week, and wanted it ready by Friday. Didn't quite achieve that goal, as it was still way undercarbed, but still gave out some samples over the weekend. Everyone seemed to think it was pretty good, and I pulled a pretty big glass tonight and while it still needs probably a couple more days, I'm so happy with this. Tastes great, and for my first brew in over two years, I really don't think I could've done any better. This was always a great go-to recipe for me (I used it years ago for a friend's wedding when he asked me to brew a keg for his reception, and it was the first one gone out of four homebrewed kegs), and it didn't disappoint. I'm damn glad to be back into this little hobby.

 

[00Seven]

This was a huge hit this weekend. 6 adults floated my keg and it was full to the brim. Did 4 days in primary and 4 in secondary. Carbed for about 3/4 of a day then brought to serving pressure and let it settle. Drank almost all 5 gallons on day 10 and it was perfect. 2.56 volumes of CO2 was perfect for it. Just ordered batch two since this one disappeared so fast. FYI Austin Homebrew doing free shipping thru tomorrow on orders over 49

 

[Michael_Calgary]

Picked up the ingredients for this at my local HomeBrewStore. I've never used Centennial Hops. The smell when I dropped in that first Centennial hop addition was FANTASTIC! I like to taste the unfermented wort sample I pull off when measuring the gravity after crash cooling. It was also fantastic. I think this is going to be a great beer. I am on day 5 in the primary now. I typically give a couple days in a secondary to let it settle out a bit before I add my gelatin. Also, this brew, I used a hop spider for the first time. Gotta say, I am big fan. It was so weird how clear the wort was after crash cooling and being able to see the break that formed and was sinking just before I whirl pooled. My SG sample was SO CLEAR. It kind of freaked me out. lol. Anyway, looking forward to getting this thing kegged and carbed!

 

[NitrogenWidget]

I ended up with a higher abv% and its throwing the balance off (malty). I think I know the answer but thought I'd ask. In the future if I come in too high on the OG would dry hopping help balance things out? Maybe an oz total of cascade and centennial?

 

[andrewmaixner]

I ended up with a higher abv% and its throwing the balance off (malty). I think I know the answer but thought I'd ask. In the future if I come in too high on the OG would dry hopping help balance things out? Maybe an oz total of cascade and centennial?

Yes. Even less might work.

 

[NitrogenWidget]

Yes. Even less might work.

Think I’ll toss in .5 oz of cascade for the remaining 3 gallons in the kegerator and give it a few days and drink something else.

Thanks

 

[GoeHaarden]

Mash is sitting pretty at 150F as I type. Thanks for the recipe and contribution to HBT community @BierMuncher - if only you had a dollar for every view of this thread!

 

[JLeuck64]

I ended up with a higher abv% and its throwing the balance off (malty). I think I know the answer but thought I'd ask. In the future if I come in too high on the OG would dry hopping help balance things out? Maybe an oz total of cascade and centennial?

My experience was exactly the same as yours, what has worked well for my taste buds was to move the 60 minute hop additions to a FWH addition. The extra contact time made the bitterness spot on and I love it!

 

[NitrogenWidget]

My experience was exactly the same as yours, what has worked well for my taste buds was to move the 60 minute hop additions to a FWH addition. The extra contact time made the bitterness spot on and I love it!

I may be getting a handle on this brewing thing.
I went with .25oz of cascade in the keg since there is roughly 3 gals left.
If it isn't enough I can add more.

 

[HogFan07]

Just brewed my first 5 gal batch ever this weekend. Been doing 1 gal before that. Getting everything dialed in so I was a little off. I did BIAB method and must have figured my water wrong or lost count. Anyway ended up with 7 gallons. OG was 1.032. Also I started my mash at the right temp 152-153 but accidentally left the burner on low and it got to 160.

Anyway despite all the learning curves this first go round when I sampled (since I had sooo much extra) it tasted great and sweet so I’m hoping I didn’t get too high on my temp otherwise I’m really excited for this one.

Also, I didn’t have any Nottingham just Safale S-04. Will this be close or have I just changed the flavor profile?

 

[brewgar]

It will be beer. It will be good. And, it's yours. Brew on.

 

[Jayjay1976]

My first batch of this turned out great, after bottle conditioning it tasted really good but after spending about a month in the fridge the flavor, clarity, and head-retention are really outstanding. Getting ready to brew this again soon before I run out!

 

[aclarke3]

Thanks for the recipe BM. I brewed a couple of weeks ago and followed the recipe pretty closely. Used centennial pellets and some of my home grown cascade. I upped the cascade additions due to the leaf and unknown alpha. It tastes and looks good but I went ahead and put it in secondary and will bottle next weekend. OG of about 1.048 and FG after primary 1.01. A bit high but should come in just over 5% abv or so.

 

[Michael_Calgary]

So here is my finished product from this recipe. So awesome!!!

Thx for the recipe!

 

[aclarke3]

So here is my finished product from this recipe. So awesome!!!

Thx for the recipe!

Very nice.

 

[00Seven]

Second attempt at this, switched target profile and used RO water for my source. Wow, what a huge difference RO water makes. First attempt was good, but this is light years better. I knew it would be better, but didn't know it would be THAT much better. Bringing a keg to a customer event tomorrow night. I hope it's good enough they drain it, but I also want to drink on it for a while. Guess that's means I get to brew it again.

 

[NinjaMedic]

Second attempt at this, switched target profile and used RO water for my source. Wow, what a huge difference RO water makes. First attempt was good, but this is light years better. I knew it would be better, but didn't know it would be THAT much better. Bringing a keg to a customer event tomorrow night. I hope it's good enough they drain it, but I also want to drink on it for a while. Guess that's means I get to brew it again.

What, if any, addititves did you use with the RO water? A local brewer I know has had success with using RO water and adding ACCUmash packets. I haven't tried this yet, but if you're tasting that big of a difference with this brew maybe I should...

 

[613Brew]

First time brewing this, used Nottingham, went 1.037 to 1.008 (4.6% ABV), bottle conditioned and wow, this is great! Brewed with RO with some adjustments (Light and hoppy profile in Brewer's Friend). Easy drinking, nothing complicated. I will definitely have this on hand at all times, crowd pleaser for sure... Thanks BierMuncher!