Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer Hella Vanilla Cream Ale

[jbeerman]

I took this recipe to my LHBS and he suggested that I should add 1/2# lactose sugar with 15 minutes left in the boil. I am hesitant to try this. Especially after seeing the one case where the guy brewed a sour batch and he added lactose. Any opinions. Also neither lhbs around here has the WLP cream ale yeast in the recipe. One recommended sa-05 while the other a smack pack of Kolsh. Any advice before I start on this brew would be appreciated.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

I took this recipe to my LHBS and he suggested that I should add 1/2# lactose sugar with 15 minutes left in the boil. I am hesitant to try this. Especially after seeing the one case where the guy brewed a sour batch and he added lactose. Any opinions. Also neither lhbs around here has the WLP cream ale yeast in the recipe. One recommended sa-05 while the other a smack pack of Kolsh. Any advice before I start on this brew would be appreciated.

I didn't think the recipe needed the lactose. But it would add to the mouthfeel of the beer. But again I didn't think it was lacking. Not sure if that was the cause of the sourness or not. If they didn't have the WLP cream ale yeast. I'm assuming they also didn't have the wyeast 1007 cream ale either. If my choices were kolsch or the us05 I think I'd go with the kolsch yeast. I think the attenuative properties of the us05 would eat through any residual sugars and leave a thinner albeit higher ABV beer than desired. Let me know what you think if you wind up giving this a shot. I'm always looking for feedback good or otherwise. :cheers:


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[jbeerman]

Thank you very much Gil for the recipe and the advice. I will post back when I start drinking this.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Thank you very much Gil for the recipe and the advice. I will post back when I start drinking this.

Nice. Glad to hear it. Hope yours turns out as good as mine did for me. Looking forward to hearing your reviews good and/or otherwise.


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[jbeerman]

So I used the 2565 Kolsh and skipped the lactose. Ended up with a nice Creamy Ale. OG 1.050 FG 1.010. Tastes delicious hint of Vanilla is nice and not too sweet.

Thanks again Gill. Letting it clear up a bit in the keg right now. Should be ready for the weekend!

:rockin:

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Good deal. Sounds tasty. Might be time to throw this one back in my to brew list.


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[brewer20D]

okay guys this will be my second all grain batch, got everything for this weekend and I can't wait !!!!! Thanks for the recipe.....

P.S. my first batch was a five gallon Yuengling Porter clone that I added pumpkin spice to the secondary.... Kegged 1 week later and now keg is empty 3 weeks out!!!! This batch will be 10 gallons !!!!
Have a great weekend.......

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Yeah this one goes fast around here as well. Be sure to post back with impressions once you have tried some.
Happy Brewing.
Cheers.


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[jbeerman]

My Keg of this was kicked in less than a week. Many people really liked it.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Yeah I always found it a crowd pleaser.


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[Man-O-Leisure]

Gil, I am keen to try this recipe of yours, can you please give me a description of the beer? Flavor profile when you drank it? Aroma? Head? Dont suppose you have a photo of a glass of it? In my mind when i hear "Cream Ale" i imagine something like a Caffreys or Kilkenny, which i love so am definately interested in how this comes out. thanks!

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Gil, I am keen to try this recipe of yours, can you please give me a description of the beer? Flavor profile when you drank it? Aroma? Head? Dont suppose you have a photo of a glass of it? In my mind when i hear "Cream Ale" i imagine something like a Caffreys or Kilkenny, which i love so am definately interested in how this comes out. thanks!

It has an almost imperceptible aroma. At least to me. My sense of smell sucks. It has very subdued hop flavor with a good forefront flavor of vanilla. This bottle wasn't carbed all that great as I bottled from keg a little over a year but for photo sake here is a pic of the bottle I just opened and drank half of getting tasting notes.

I haven't had kilkennys or caffereys so I can't comment on how close they are. But I do know anyone who tries it has not complained. It goes done very smooth. Medium body doesn't taste watery and there is almost no perception of alcohol present. And wow looking at my records this bottle was from the batch I brewed 11/24/2012 !!!! Looks like I need to put this back on the to brew list. The mrs has been hassling me for some more. I was holding out the few bottles I have but wow. I am even surprising myself that the vanilla flavor is still prevalent OVER a year in the bottle.


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[GilSwillBasementBrews]

It definitely had more head out of the keg.
edit:**** and more vanilla aroma.
/end edit
Give it a shot. You will not be disappointed in the results.


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[GilSwillBasementBrews]

On a side note in the 3-4yrs I've been brewing this is the recipe I get asked to rebrew the most. Might have to cave and give the masses what they want. Forgot how good it was. Between trying to clone other beers and just trying new styles I seem to have let this one slip by for awhile. As a matter of fact thing I'm heading to the LHBS tomorrow and picking up the next batch of ingredients and brewing this up. That ms for the thread update and asking for tasting notes which I knew I didn't have available which caused me to crack a bottle from the back of the fridge. And it's a good beer even over a year old. Wish I'd of had more experience bottling with the bmbf but it is still a good vanilla cream ale mostly flat and over a year old. Still get good vanilla flavor which is what I hear is the hardest to retain long term storage.


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[mdh384]

made a version of this, although I was very loose with the recipe:

8lb 2 row
2lb crystal 20
2lb flaked corn
152F mash
OG was low at about 1.58, apparently corn may not mash well, or my process got screwed up. Not sure on FG because I am using a refractometer.

14g 60min citra
7g 30min cascade
7g 0min cascade

1.5l starter of wlp080 at 63-65. fermentation was complete after 3 days, after a week i racked to secondary one 1 lone vanilla bean for ****s and giggles, and then cold crashed it for 48 hours. after racking to the keg i noticed that the yeast which fell out in secondary were all dyed a slight brown, must have been from the vanilla bean? there was no perceptible vanilla from the sample i pulled.

for the vanilla extract i split, scraped, and chopped 3 comoros (similar to madagascar) beans into ~6oz of makers mark and shook the jar once a day. this extract sat for only about a week before going to the keg, i have since made a second batch of extract to use in the future which should give better flavor and aroma since the extract will have more time to develop.

The wife loves it... hell, I love it. If you take a potato peeler and put a bit of orange zest in your glass before you pour, it tastes like an orange creamsicle.

next time i'm going to cut the corn down to 1lb (it smells too much like butwiper), sub honey malt for the crystal 20, and add some carapils. i may add hops because this has almost no hop character and i'd like to get more citrus from it. i would like to try comparing mexican vanilla as well since it's supposed to be a more aggressive vanilla.

pics or it didn't happen:

not as clear as i would have liked, i probably shouldn't have rushed it to the keg like i did.

 

[brewer20D]

Update on my Hella vanilla cream ale, went in the keg last weekend and what a beer !!!! This is a awesome beer and thanks for the recipe

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Update on my Hella vanilla cream ale, went in the keg last weekend and what a beer !!!! This is a awesome beer and thanks for the recipe

Awesome. Thanks for posting back. Yeah I really enjoy it too. It goes fast around here. Hope yours last a little longer.


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[clairecunn83]

Started out a little sharp as previously said, but has mellowed beautifully. Thanks for the recipe! Easy drinker, for sure. View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1421003533.805582.jpg

 

[zekekurcab]

Hi!
So I tried this recipe and somehow it didn't turn out well. It was my first all grain brew and I'm not heartbroken or surprised but I would love to know what I did wrong so at least I learned something!
I followed your recipe as closely as I could but it ended up with a distinctly "corny" flavor. I used vanilla extract instead of beans (because I didn't want to spend all the money for beans in case it didn't work) and the vanilla flavor didn't come through at all. I only mentioned that to ask if somehow that messed the flavor up?

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Hi!

So I tried this recipe and somehow it didn't turn out well. It was my first all grain brew and I'm not heartbroken or surprised but I would love to know what I did wrong so at least I learned something!

I followed your recipe as closely as I could but it ended up with a distinctly "corny" flavor. I used vanilla extract instead of beans (because I didn't want to spend all the money for beans in case it didn't work) and the vanilla flavor didn't come through at all. I only mentioned that to ask if somehow that messed the flavor up?

I wouldn't think the extract was responsible for the corny flavor. When I used extract it just wasn't a very vanilla forward flavor. When I hear corny flavor my first thought was perhaps DMS. Which usually occurs from either not boiling very vigorously, or having a lid on during the boil process. That is usually the culprit I read about most when having "corn" flavor issues. I Know DMS is usually discussed when using Pilsner grain but I suppose it could be a concern of plain 2row also. Wish I had more to offer you, but I don't believe the corny flavor is due to the vanilla extract I would think the only issue from that would be the lack of vanilla flavor in the end product. What was your grain bill just in case someone else can spot anything I could've overlooked.

 

[funkadelicturkey]

brewed 11/25/14, kegged 12/13/14...coming into its primer now. too bad i've drank half the keg already. Thanks for the awesome recipe, i'll def. brew again

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Yeah, when I have this on tap it always goes fast. Glad you enjoyed it and posted back with results. Makes me wish I wasn't at work. Pic looks tasty.

 

[brewer20D]

Yes this recipe is a keeper!!!! I brew 10 gal in August in hopes it would get me at least to Thanksgiving but that didn't happen...... lol Looks great !!!!! :rockin:

 

[gtc352]

This was my first AG brew. I just built a version of Kal's electric brewery and I'm still learning my system. Some lessons and things I noted:
1. My efficiency was only 61.3% according to BeerSmith. I believe my grain crush wasn't fine enough and I am still perfecting my sparge techniques. I use the Ultimate Sparge Arm so I am going to look at improvements/techniques.
2. I didn't hit my OG target of 1.061. My OG was 1.053 and my FG was 1.014.
3. The fermentation seemed to be slow (3 days before I saw activity). I fermented in a conical for 8 days and then pulled the trub off (3 qt.) and let it sit for another 8 days before kegging (10psi).
4. After 2 days in the keg, the beer has a vanilla aroma and taste. It is easy drinking but has low ABV (5.12).
5. It has a sharp taste after about 18 days but not bad.

I plan on using a yeast starter next time and improving my sparging. Anyone have any advice that they learned on this recipe. I want to try it again and I want to see if the beer gets better with age. Had fun doing this and can't wait to try it again to perfect it. Here is a pic of the beer I pulled off the keg tonight.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Congrats on the brew. I mill my own grains and get a pretty consistent 85%mash efficiency so other than crush it sounds like your process is pretty good. I think a closer milling of the grains would've put you where you wanted to be. I do know this beer ages pretty good found a few bottles that were over a year old and they were very smooth with a slight aftertaste of vanilla. Good luck on hitting your next batch's numbers closer. But either way the lower gravity just puts it closer to style guidelines if you worry about things. Either way I think you have yourself a tasty easy drinker that will disappear quicker than you thought it would.
Cheers.

Beer looks good. Makes me wish I wasn't at work on my lunchbreak.

 

[dustinboyd]

Funkadelicturkey, can you explain how you went from grain to keg in just over two weeks? Didn't you lager it to clear it up by slowly raising the fermentation temp over several days, letting it rest several days, then slowly lowering the temp over several days to 30ish, letting it rest several days and then finally keg? The fastest I figure I can do grain to keg is one month, however I'd love to do it faster if you have a good technique.

Thanks for the info!

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Funkadelicturkey, can you explain how you went from grain to keg in just over two weeks? Didn't you lager it to clear it up by slowly raising the fermentation temp over several days, letting it rest several days, then slowly lowering the temp over several days to 30ish, letting it rest several days and then finally keg? The fastest I figure I can do grain to keg is one month, however I'd love to do it faster if you have a good technique.

Thanks for the info!

Unless you are making a lager you really don't have to do the whole. Chill to near freezing and letting rest several days before putting it to keg. I usually just let mine finish primary. Cold crash for 24hrs then rack to keg and let it set 1.5-2weeks to reach carb level desired. Usually pretty clear and mostly carbed at the end of week one. But just that much more well rounded by end of week 2.
So you could quite feasibly ferment 10days(or until FG is reached) cold crash a day. Then keg and carb 7-10days. So you could get cold,carbed, drinkable beer in 3 weeks but I'm not that much in a rush for the beer. Pipeline's been pretty good lately so give the beers plenty of time to get where they're going on their own.

But again since it is an ale and not a lager there really isn't necessity to lager for clarity. And after a few of these your not really concerned with the clarity as much as the taste and enjoyment.

Hope that clears it up some for you...... Or at least doesn't totally confuse you anyway.
Cheers.

 

[dustinboyd]

That makes sense, I will follow that - I'm excited to try this one out. Thanks a lot!

 

[bkirsch]

How much vodka are people using for soaking the vanilla bean?

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

How much vodka are people using for soaking the vanilla bean?

I use just enough to cover the vanilla beans. Maybe a couple of shots worth.