Early Morning Brews

CornyKegs 728
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Getting all of my gear ready for a brew in the morning. Gonna get off work at 4 and hopefully mash in by 445..
 
Had everything ready last night lit the fire at 0430 and I'm about 50 min left my mash of my Irish Red. Freaking roosters and a couple hawks in the distance.
 
I brewed an oatmeal stout yesterday since the South shut down for Snowmageddan (2014 v2.0-2.1). I didnt start until after lunch, since I knew the kids would want to play in the slush.

Turned into a complete wacky brew day. Below are some of the details:

-I left the kettle soaking on oxyclean solution from Saturday. Kettle froze. So did drain valve. Took drain valve apart and cleaned it inside.

-Lost seal to the valve, it kept leaking water. Eventually found it in pile of snow (it was white) where I rinsed the pot.

-Strike water of 160 to mash at 154. Mash temp: 158.

-Plan to top crop Yorkshire square yeast from brown ale from Saturday. Of course it finished and dropped clear in 5 days. Had to rack that beer and secondary to a keg in order to have yeast for new batch.

-Time to cool down (yeah!). Garden hose froze solid. Load up 6 Gallons of boiling wort onto a rickety wagon to pull it around the yard (in slush) so the short hose will reach.

-Freezing rain starts to fall while cooling down uncovered.

-Freezing rain turns into thunder snow.

Morale of the story: Brew early!

(p.s. No wort was harmed during the making of this whack ass brew day)
 
Wow, nice story. Thunder snow is a really weird experience.

I got started around 8am this morning, about 16 minutes left in the boil on the Brewing Classic Styles Dirty Water brown ale recipe. Using Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire yeast. Looking forward to it.
 
Mornin', early birds! Started heating the strike water on the kitchen stove about 30 mins ago for a patersbier. Gotta shovel the walks before heading out the garage.
 
beersk said:
Wow, nice story. Thunder snow is a really weird experience.

I got started around 8am this morning, about 16 minutes left in the boil on the Brewing Classic Styles Dirty Water brown ale recipe. Using Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire yeast. Looking forward to it.
Click to expand...

I just kicked a keg of this, you will like it! Amarillo gives it a very unique taste. Also, make sure you top crop that west yorkshire! It is some weird stuff, but really good (fruity, get some apricot). I just pitched it for the fourth time (one pack). I am getting really good attenuation out of it.
 
LabRatBrewer said:
Going to brew an APA tomorrow at 5:30 a.m. Here the problem is that its like summer temps. What is thunder snow?
Click to expand...

That would be just what it sounds like. Snow is silently falling and out of nowhere there's a huge crack of thunder.

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5:45 start today. No thunder snow. Just 4 ft sitting on top of my yard. I'm ready for spring! I almost heard a bird chirping during the mash in...


Roed Haus Brewery
 
brokebucket said:
I just kicked a keg of this, you will like it! Amarillo gives it a very unique taste. Also, make sure you top crop that west yorkshire! It is some weird stuff, but really good (fruity, get some apricot). I just pitched it for the fourth time (one pack). I am getting really good attenuation out of it.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I haven't been getting very good attenuation with mine. One beer came down to 1.012, the others are stopping around 1.018. I think it may be because I haven't been able to keep the temps up around 68 after fermentation slows, it just drops down to the low 60's again, which I think means the yeast is flocculating a little early. That or there's too many specialty grains causing the slight under attenuation.
 
beersk said:
Thanks for the info. I haven't been getting very good attenuation with mine. One beer came down to 1.012, the others are stopping around 1.018. I think it may be because I haven't been able to keep the temps up around 68 after fermentation slows, it just drops down to the low 60's again, which I think means the yeast is flocculating a little early. That or there's too many specialty grains causing the slight under attenuation.
Click to expand...

My experience with west yorkshire is it is done fermenting in just a couple to three days, but it hangs on top for another few days to a week. Cold crashing seems to drop it like a rock.
Other people have had problems with it not dropping out. If you run into this, you might try gently moving the carboy. I took my brown ale in the house to make room in the fermenter, and the beer was clear and sitting at 1.009 after 5 days. Sounds great, but I was planning on top cropping it for the batch I was brewing. I racked it in the keg anyways....otherwise I wouldnt have had any yeast.
 
Wow, 1.009 on that yeast? That's crazy. My BCS Dirty Water brown (with the wy1469) finished at 1.016, which is a good gravity for a brown. Kegged it today. Can''t wait!
Brewed a helles this morning. Got started around 7:45am. Forgot to post about it on here. I drank a bit too much last night at a wine gala, but managed to get my a$$ up at 7:30 this morning to brew. I really love morning brewing. But I love evening brewing too and tossing back beers during the brew session.
 
About to mash in a hoppy red ale with Columbus and Mosaic. Coffee is delicious and it looks like it'll be a nice day.
 
Almost at strike temp on a Northern English Brown! Coffee is almost ready, wood stove is cranking, and it's the first morning in the last week where the morning temps have not been in the single digits (on either side of zero)! Once the mash has started, I'll suit up and feed the goats and start the wood furnace.

You are right, Nath, it looks like it will be a good day!
 
50 minutes into a 90 minute boil of a Hop Ranch clone attempt. Wife and daughter just woke up. Should I tell her about the 45 minute hopstand or just hope she doesn't notice me just putzing around? :)

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I love and hate morning brews. I always brew on Saturdays or Sundays and both days I start my mornings with a bad hangover from the night before....
 
brokebucket said:
I just kicked a keg of this, you will like it! Amarillo gives it a very unique taste. Also, make sure you top crop that west yorkshire! It is some weird stuff, but really good (fruity, get some apricot). I just pitched it for the fourth time (one pack). I am getting really good attenuation out of it.
Click to expand...

Kegged this on Saturday and tried a sample yesterday. Finished at 1.016, which is perfect for a brown I think. It's still flat, but it definitely is unique, you're right. It doesn't taste much like a brown ale, it's too hoppy. Have to see what it tastes like when it carbonates. But I think it'll be a good beer either way, just not what I was expecting. I guess I should've known, since there's a decent amount of Amarillo in the last 15 minutes.
 
Going to load up the wood stove and measure water out Friday night. Turning on the burner at 5am Saturday :)
 
I am also planning to brew a Mild sometime this weekend, either Saturday or Sunday morning. Making the starter of Wyeast 1084 tonight. Last couple brew sessions I've gotten started around 7 or 7:30. I want to try for a 6am start time again. Maybe walk and get some Starf*cks coffee during the mash if it's nice out. It's only a couple blocks away at the supermarket.
 
I'd rather be brewing this morning... It's beautiful out. My fermenters and kegs are full. I am, however, doing a Munich and NB in a bag later today. :rockin:
 
Just mashed in, and it's beautiful out! I barely made it to strike temp when the flame started sputtering....I have an hour to get a couple tanks filled.

"Steelhead" IPA going down today (Bells Two Hearted clone).

Good morning all!
 
Love the early morning brew too! Before my son was born (now 2yrs old) I would always brew late night, which was easy and fun before kids. Now, if I'm not well into my brew day by 8am, then I'm not brewing. I've grown to love it though. Even on the freezing cold winter days here in South Jersey. Today is gorgeous out. Suppose to hit the low 50's which should feel like the low 70's with the winter we've had. Sadly, not brewing today, but I really, really, wish I was.

Enjoy early morning brewers!
 
Ever since my daughter has been born I have moved to early morning brewing. I setup before bed the night before and measure out my strike water. 5 am the flame is lit and I am usually done and cleaned up as everyone is finishing breakfast. I am excited for the warm weather as this method is a bit tough when the garage is 20f at 5am.


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I usually set up the night before right before we all head to bed, but i usually brew when my son wakes me up (between 6-8 usually, we co-sleep with him, so i usually get punched a few times as he is waking up... he just turned 4 months haha) and let the wifey sleep for a few more hours... as i'm electric i just brew in the dining room during the winter, so it's easy to head out to the dining room/kitchen and flip a switch.
 
I finished up at 10:15 this morning. Got started at 6:15. Was a nice brew session.
 
Darn time change..and almost empty cylinder, took awhile to get to my strike temp, doughed in at 6am. But I have my coffee and transferred my dunkelweisen to a secondary which is already tasting amazingly refreshing. Now after I wssh the yeast and clean, my 6.5 gal carboy will be ready to accept this Belgian Blondie
 
Midway through the boil of my Martzen. Time change has me behind schedule. I hate DST and having to explain it to my goats who are out there thinking "I don't give a fig leaf what the clock says, it has been 12 hours and it's time to get milked!"
 
I started heating my strike water around 7 this morning. Love brewing early

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Think I may be gettin' up early tomorrow to brew a Czech dark lager. Who else is planning to brew it up tomorrow morning?
 
Up at 5 am this morning to begin an amarillo pale ale. Just waiting for my mash to finish before I stoke it up for the boil (BIAB).


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So, I wussed out and decided to brew tomorrow morning instead. So I'll be posting, hopefully bright and early, tomorrow morning! I need to buy some coffee...been out for a few days.
 
I've got to get an early start tomorrow as well. Taking my daughter back to school around 11-ish. Luckily, I'm brewing my Summer Ale at the request of SWMBO, so I'll have some leeway if I'm running a little late.
 
Was planning on an early brew, but woke up at one and could not go back to sleep till 5. Still got started at 930. Just transfered to the carboy, just cleanup lefr
 
I didn't brew after all. I may take a couple days off at the end of this week and brew a Czech dark lager and a Czech pilsner in the mornings.
 

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