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Amber Christmas Ale
2.5 gal
OG - 1.o49
FG - 1.009
IBU 16-17
30 min boil

3.15 lbs. LME - Amber
4.30 oz. Briess - Caramel Malt - 40L (I had .30 oz left in the bag so I just tossed it in)
2 oz. Briess - Caramel Malt - 120L
2 oz. Briess - Chocolate - 350L
6 oz. Roll Oats
1/2 oz. Cluster Hops 6.2% AA- at first wort
1/2 tsp Pumpkin pie spice - flame-out
1 oz. Orange Peel - after initial fermentation (4-7 days)
3 oz. Vanilla or plain vodka - for soaking orange peels
1.5 oz. Pure vanilla extract when you add the orange peels and vodka
?? oz. Pure Vanilla extract - to taste at bottling
11 g. SafAle US-05

- Soak orange peels in vodka for about 4-7 days before adding to fermenter.
- Steep the malts and oats for 30-45 min at about 160-170 degrees.
- Add Amber LME and hops and bring to a boil for 30 min
- At flame-out add the pumpkin spice
- After high krausen add the orange peels, 1.5 oz. vanilla and vodka
- Add any extra vanilla at bottling
 
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I brewed a favorite recipe today. Today I brewed "Schwarzer Ritter Bitter" which is based on Charlie Papazian's "Limp Richdard's Schwarzbier."
That recipe used 5 lbs.of Bierkeller dark malt extract and a lager yeast. I've always used an ale yeast and can't get Bierkeller anymore. I usually go with some version of "Black Knight Bitter" when I brew it, but I really enjoyed serving it as "Eclipse Dark Ale" at the eclipse gathering in my back yard 2017.

5 1/2 gal. water
4 1/2 lb. Munton's dark DME
1/2 lb. black malt (you could consider Carafa II here)
2 tsp. gypsum
1 1/2 oz Perle (BOIL) 11.1 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. Tettanger (FLAVOR)
1/4 oz. Cascade and 3/4 oz. Tettanger (AROMA)
1 Nottingham ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/4 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/4 lbs. DME in 1 gal. water for boil, begin heating
Add 2 tsp. gypsum to heating boil water
Steep grains in 1/2 gal. water for 30 min at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops
Cover and move to sink for water bath cool down
Pour into fermenter and top to 5 gal. with chilled water

HBU 10.1 - 10% for 30 min. boil + 20% for late addition

288 blackKnight.png
 
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I brewed a favorite recipe today. Today I brewed "Schwarzer Ritter Bitter" which is based on Charlie Papazian's "Limp Richdard's Schwarzbier."
That recipe used 5 lbs.of Bierkeller dark malt extract and a lager yeast. I've always used an ale yeast and can't get Bierkeller anymore. I usually go with some version of "Black Knight Bitter" when I brew it, but I really enjoyed serving it as "Eclipse Dark Ale" at the eclipse gathering in my back yard 2017.

5 1/2 gal. water
4 1/2 lb. Munton's dark DME
1/2 lb. black malt (you could consider Carafa II here)
2 tsp. gypsum
1 1/2 oz Perle (BOIL) 11.1 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. Tettanger (FLAVOR)
1/4 oz. Cascade and 3/4 oz. Tettanger (AROMA)
1 Nottingham ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/4 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/4 lbs. DME in 1 gal. water for boil, begin heating
Add 2 tsp. gypsum to heating boil water
Steep grains in 1/2 gal. water for 30 min at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops
Cover and move to sink for water bath cool down
Pour into fermenter and top to 5 gal. with chilled water

HBU 10.1 - 10% for 30 min. boil + 20% for late addition

View attachment 752723
Recipe looks great. First thing I thought of when you said you use an ale yeast for, traditionally, a lager recipe was "Nottingham at 60 degrees F." That might be a happy medium.
 
First thing I thought of when you said you use an ale yeast . . . was "Nottingham at 60 degrees F."

Or, in my fermentation chamber, more like about 66 F ambient.

fermentation chamber.png

As you can see, I do the primary fermentation on the floor, where it's cooler, and the secondary up on a work bench where it's warmer. :p
 
Got to try my latest brew this weekend and couldn't be happier. By far my best batch yet and by far the simplest brew I've ever done.

This looks like a nice one. Simple and a lighter beer. Everything I have right now is a dark beer and I need one that is not so heavy
 
I brewed a favorite recipe today. I brewed "Edmond's," the brew at post #1 from about a year ago adjusted to my now standard 30 minute boil and late addition of half of the extract. I am also taking the recommendation of @duncan_disorderly to try Verdant yeast which I have never used before. Verdant was also praised by @Miraculix elsewhere.

5 1/2 gal. water
5 lbs. Briess pale DME (I usually use Munton's light DME for this)
1/2 lb. 40L and 1/4 lb 60L crystal malt (I usually use just 40L for this)
1Tbsp gypsum
1/4 tsp. Irish moss
1 oz. Fuggles alpha 4.7 and 1/2 oz East Kent Goldings alpha 4.4 (BOIL) 7.6 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. East Kent Goldings (FLAVOR)
1 oz. East Kent Goldings (AROMA)
1 Verdant ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/2 lb. DME in 1/2 gal. of water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/2 lb. DME in 1 gal. water for the boil, add gypsum, begin heating
Steep grains in 1/2 gal. water for 30 min. at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
5 min. Irish moss
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops
Cool in sink bath before pouring into fermenter
Top to 5 gal. with chilled water, pitch at 70 F

6.9 HBUs are adjusted -10% for 30 min. boil and +20% for late addition

290 Edmond's.png
 
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I brewed a favorite recipe today. I brewed "Edmond's," the brew at post #1 from about a year ago adjusted to my now standard 30 minute boil and late addition of half of the extract. I am also taking the recommendation of @duncan_disorderly to try Verdant yeast which I have never used before Verdant was also praised by @Miraculix elsewhere.

5 1/2 gal. water
5 lbs. Briess pale DME (I usually used Munton's light DME for this)
1/2 lb. 40L and 1/4 lb 60L crystal malt (I usually use just 40L for this)
1Tbsp gypsum
1/4 tsp. Irish moss
1 oz. Fuggles alpha 4.7 and 1/2 oz East Kent Goldings alpha 4.4 (BOIL) 7.6 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. East Kent Goldings (FLAVOR)
1 oz. East Kent Goldings (AROMA)
1 Verdant ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/2 lb. DME in 1/2 gal. of water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/2 gal. DME in 1 gal. waterer boil, add gypsum, begin heating
Steep grains in 1/2 gal. water for 30 min. at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
5 min. Irish moss
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops
Cool in sink bath before pouring into fermenter
Top to 5 gal. with chilled water, pitch at 70 F

6.9 HBUs are adjusted -10% for 30 min. boil and +20% for late addition

View attachment 755069
I hope it works out for you.

Prepare yourself for a big creamy krausen. Easily cropped and stored in the fridge, if you are that way inclined.
 
That seems like a lot of gypsum. How did you arrive at that amount - trial and error, or software? And what affect do you think you get from it?
The recipe is based on Charlie Papazian's "Jack Union's Classic Pale Ale," an all grain recipe that called for 2 tablespoons of gypsum. I first brewed my version in 1996 using 2 teaspoons instead of tablespoons, but over the years about half my batches of this have used 1 tablespoon. The gypsum seems to help bring out the hops.
I learned to brew with Charlie Papazian's books The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing and The Home Brewer's Companion. He seems to have been a fan of gypsum. It may have influenced my tastes.
I do not know my water chemistry. I filter my tap water to get rid of chlorine, but it removes other stuff as well. This may effect my preferences.
So the answer is trial and error. I use no software in my brewing.
 
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The recipe is based on Charlie Papazian's "Jack Union's Classic Pale Ale," an all grain recipe that called for 2 tablespoons of gypsum. I first brewed my version in 1996 using 2 teaspoons instead of tablespoons, but over the years about half my batches of this have used 1 tablespoon. The gypsum seems to help bring out the hops.
I learned to brew with Charlie Papazian's books The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing and The Home Brewer's Companion. He seems to have been a fan of gypsum It may have been influenced my tastes.
I do not know my water chemistry. I filter my tap water to get rid of chlorine, but it removes other stuff as well. This may effect my preferences.

If your water is anything like mine (we're a few miles apart) it's got practically nothing in it for the filter to strip. For the beer I just brewed I added 6g gypsum plus some CaCl and NaCl. For a British style, it's still rather light in minerals.
 
I brewed a favorite recipe today. Today I brewed "Edme Bock" which is based on a recipe I assume was written by Edme to sell malt extract and yeast. First they quit making malt extract, and then they gave up the yeast. Fermentis picked up the yeast and at first marketed S33 as the Edme strain. I still use S33 yeast on this dark ale, which, if course, isn't really a bock. About half the time I label this beer "Old Goat Bock" as I will this time:

5 1/2 gal. water
3 lbs. Briess amber DME and 3 lbs. Munton's dark DME (I usually use light instead of amber, and I usually match the extract producers.)
1/2 lb. 60L crystal malt
3 1/2 oz. Tettnang alpha 2.3 (BOIL) 8.9 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. Hallertau Mittelfruh (FLAVOR)
1/2 oz. Hallertau Mittelfruh (AROMA)
1 S33 ale yeast

Dissolve 3 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 3 lbs. DME in 1 gal. water for boil, begin heating
Steep grains in 1/2 gal. water for 30 min. at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
10 min. add flavor hops
0 mon. add late addition and aroma hops
Cool in sink bath before pouring into fermenter
Top to 5 gal. with chilled water, pitch at 70 F

8.1 HBUs are adjusted -10% for 30 min. boil and +20% for the late addition

291 Old Goat.png
 
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Bottling a "Moose Drool" inspired Brown Ale that I brewed a couple of weeks ago. I went back to the CYBI related information to "reset" the recipe. Then I made a couple of changes :).

1.5 gal batch.
24 oz Muntons Light DME, 4 oz sugar, 4 oz English Crystal 75, 1.5 oz Chocolate.
7 g Chinook (12.7) @ 30, 7 g Golding (6.2) @ 15, 4 g Willamette @ 0, 4 g Liberty @ 0
Notthingham yeast.

Added DME at flame-on; took photos for color samples (eta: color sample was before steeping); heated to 150F-ish, then steeped for 30 minutes in wort. Watched for "hot break" on the way to the start of the boil (which I see with Briess DME), but didn't see it this time (with Muntons DME).

Hydrometer sample had good color and flavor. 1st bottle in a couple of weeks.
 
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I went back to the CYBI related information to "reset" the recipe.
took photos for color samples
What does "CYBI related information" mean? Just a couple of changes indeed! :)
I can't relate to concern about color in beer because I'm pretty much color blind, but isn't this supposed to be brown?

Please let us know how it turns out relative to the previous Moose Drool you posted. I may have to do another Droll Moose.
 
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"These go to eleven." I again brewed "Spinale" whose HBUs are at 11. Every time I brew this I wish I kegged my beer, because then I could point and say "This is Spinale tap." Today's batch has been adjusted to my now standard 30 minute boil and late addition of half the extract.

5 1/2 gal. water
5 Munton's light DME
2 1/4 oz. East Kent Goldings, alpha 4.4 (BOIL) 11 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. East Kent Goldings (FLAVOR)
3/4oz. East Kent Goldings (AROMA)
1 Nottingham ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs. DME in 1 1/2 gal. water for the boil
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops, cover kettle
Cool in sink bath before pouring onto fermenter
Top to 5 gal., pitch at 70 F

HBUs are adjusted -10% for a 30 min. boil and + 20% for the late addition.

292 spinale.png
 
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"These go to eleven." I again brewed "Spinale" whose HBUs are at 11. Every time I brew this I wish I kegged my beer, because then I could point and say "This is Spinale tap." Today's batch has been adjusted to my now standard 30 minute boil and late addition of half the extract.

5 1/2 gal. water
5 Munton's light DME
2 1/4 oz. East Kent Goldings, alpha 4.4 (BOIL) 11 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. East Kent Goldings (FLAVOR)
3/4oz. East Kent Goldings (AROMA)
1 Nottingham ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs. DME in 1 1/2 gal. water for the boil
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops, cover kettle
Cool in sink bath before pouring onto fermenter
Top to 5 gal., pitch at 70 F

HBUs are adjusted -10% for a 30 min. boil and + 20% for the late addition.

View attachment 760857
“I’m sure I’d feel much worse if I weren’t under such heavy sedation.”
😎
 
British Bitter

Batch Size: 2.5 gallons (fermenter volume)

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.061
Final Gravity: 1.018
ABV (standard): 5.59%
IBU (tinseth): 43
SRM (morey): 9.72

FERMENTABLES:
1.5 lb - DME Pilsen Light (39.3%)
1.5 lb - LME Golden Light - (late boil kettle addition) (39.3%)
0.5 lb - Corn Sugar - Dextrose - (late boil kettle addition) (13.1%)

STEEPING GRAINS:
1.5 oz - Medium Crystal (2.5%)
1.5 oz - Pale Chocolate (2.5%)
2.0 oz - Biscuit (3.3%)

HOPS:
0.5 oz - Styrian Goldings, Type: Pellet, AA: 4.5, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 22.4
0.5 oz - Styrian Goldings, Type: Pellet, AA: 4.5, Use: Boil for 30 min, IBU: 17.21
0.5 oz - Styrian Goldings, Type: Pellet, AA: 4.5, Use: Hop Stand for 15 min, IBU: 3.37

YEAST:
CellarScience - English

I did a 60 min boil this time but usually only do a 30 minute. I got a great deal on Styrian Goldings so I tried one hop for all the additions. Next one I brew will be a lower OG since the weather is getting nicer, maybe about 1.045 bring the ABV down a bit. I was pretty happy with this batch. I might add a smidge more biscuit next time and bump up the IBU's. There is very little lingering flavors after each swallow.
 
I brewed two beers this weekend. the second was a Belgian Tripel. This is one of my favorites. I did not have any pilsner malt but had tons of distillers malt. If you want to do extract only just dump in some Pilsen LME or DME or Pilsen malt and a bit more biscuit malt and steep it.

Belgian Tripel v.3
Brew Method: Partial Mash
Boil Time: 30 min

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.087
Final Gravity: 1.011
ABV (standard): 9.841%
IBU (tinseth): 88
SRM (morey): 6.59

FERMENTABLES:
2.0 lb - Cane Sugar - (late boil kettle addition)
2.0 lb - Pale Malt (Golden) DME - (late boil kettle addition)
1.5 lb - Pale Malt (Golden) LME
8.0 oz - Distillers Malt
4.0 oz - Biscuit

HOPS:
2.0 oz - Styrian Goldings, Type: Pellet, AA: 4.3, Use: First Wort, IBU: 58.54
0.8 oz - Tettnanger, Type: Pellet, AA: 3.9, Use: Boil for 30 min, IBU: 19.31
0.8 oz - Saaz (Czech), Type: Pellet, AA: 4.1, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 9.58

OTHER:
.5 tsp Irish Moss

MASH GUIDELINES:
1) Strike, Temp: 158 F, Time: 30 min, Amount: 3 gal

YEAST:
Safbrew - General/Belgian Yeast S-33
Safbrew - Specialty Ale Yeast T-58

My mash instructions don't seem right at all. Not sure what I was trying to do at the time. I am sure it made sense at the time I wrote it down. I must have mashed it right because the OG and ABV% were much higher than I normally hit.
 
@duncan_disorderly and @Miraculix, I want you to know that my "Edmond's" with Verdant yeast from post #66 is beautiful and tasty. I may have to put Verdant yeast into regular rotation.
I took this picture the other day. You can see the screen through the ale:

View attachment 762252
I'm glad you like it! I overdid it a bit with it and now I've had a bit too much of its fruitiness :D
 
About a month ago, I brewed my "Citra Hop Sampler" recipe:
  • 24 oz Muntons Extra Light DME; 4 oz sugar
  • 1 oz Citra (12.8 AA)
  • 5.0 g Lallemand Verdant
  • Irish Moss & Yeast Nutrient
  • OG 62; FG 13; color: SRM 4-ish
BBR Hop Sampler process: add DME; bring to boil; add hops; turn off heat; let sit for 'a while', then chill.

For this recipe, I added the DME at 140F. Kettle was insulated, so temperature dropped from 209F (boiling) to 182F in 30 minutes.

I also have a "Citra Hop Steep" recipe where I hold the wort temperature in the 175-ish range for 20-30 minutes. Same ingredients, two different beers.

eta: I also brewed an 'experimental' Red IPA (hop sampler style) on the same day. It is described over in "Advanced Extract Brewing (link)".
 
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I brewed a favorite recipe today. Today brewed "Tri-Carb Classic," a brew that features barley, wheat, and rye. This time I used steeped crystal rye for the rye part. In the past I have steeped flaked rye or I have used used Briess Rye LME, so I don't really know if a full pound of crystal rye is what I'll want going forward.

51/2 Gal. water
6 lbs. Briess wheat DME (wheat & barley)
1 lb. crystal rye malt
2 3/4 oz. Tettnang alpha 2.3 (BOIL) 7 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. Tettnang (AROMA)
1 Mutons ale yeast

Dissolve 3 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 3 lbs. DME in 1 gal. water for boil, begin heating
Steep grains in 1/2 gal. water for 30 min at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops
Cool in sink bath before pouring into fermenter
Top to 5 gal., pitch at 70F

6.325 HBUs adjusted -10% for 30 min. boil and +20% for late addition of 1/2 of extract

293 TRI CARB.png


Update 4/25: First tastings yeaterday and today at two week in the bottle suggest that 1 lb. of crystal rye is too much for my mild tettnang hops/hopping. I will test again at three weeks, but I think this would be better with less rye or more assertive hops and/or hopping.
 
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Today I brewed "Toad Hall Stout," a recipe based on Charlie Papazian's "Toad Spit Stout." This is the first time I've brewed it using only East Kent Goldings hops.

5 1/2 gal. water
6 lbs. Munton's dark DME
1/3 lb. roasted barley
1/3 lb black malt,
3/4 lb 42-28L crystal malt
2 Tbsp. gypsum
3 oz. East kent Goldings alpha 4.4 (BOIL) 14.5 HBU adjusted
1/2 oz. East Kent Goldings (FLAVOR)
1 S33 ale yeast

Dissolve 3 lbs. DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 3 lbs. DME in 3/4 gal. water for boil, begin heating
Steep grains in 3/4 gal. water for 30 min. at 150-160 F
Strain into boil kettle, add gypsum, bring to boil, add boil hops
30 min. boil
10 min. flavor hops
0 min. add late addition
Cool on sink bath before pouring into fermenter
Top to 5 gal., pitch at 70 F

HBU adjusted 13.2 -10% for 30 min. boil and +20% for late addition

294 Toad Hall.png
 
Today I brewed my "Summer Ale." It is a favorite recipe: this is the 21st time I've brewed it since 1996, sometimes, like this time, with slight variations.

5 1/2 gal. water
4 1/2 lbs. Briess amber and 1/2 lb. Briess pale ale DME (This is usually all amber.)
1 oz. Centennial alpha 10.7 (BOIL) 11.8 HBU adjusted
3/4 oz Cascade (AROMA) (This is usually 1/2 oz.)
1 US05 ale yeast

Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs. DME in 1 1/2 gal. water for boil
Bring to boil and add boil hops
30 min. boil
0 min. add late addition and aroma hops
Cool in sink bath before pouring into fermenter
Top to 5 gal., pitch at 70 F

10.7 HBUs adjusted -10% for the 30 min. boil and +20% for the late addition of half the extract.

295 Summer Ale.png
 
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Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs DME in 1/2 gal. water for late addition
Dissolve 2 1/2 lbs. DME in 1 1/2 gal. water for boil

Just curious - what was your rationale in using only 1.5 gal of water in the boil? Kettle size limitations? When I brewed with extract, I tried to keep it proportional, so I’d boil 1/2 the DME in 1/2 the water … 2.75 gal in this example. Again, just curious. Cheers.
 
Just curious - what was your rationale in using only 1.5 gal of water in the boil? Kettle size limitations? When I brewed with extract, I tried to keep it proportional, so I’d boil 1/2 the DME in 1/2 the water … 2.75 gal in this example. Again, just curious. Cheers.
I do a partial boil. I learned to brew that way back in 1994. The recipes I use were designed to account for this. Cooling the wort is easily done by topping off with chilled water. It does allow me to brew in a smaller kettle, but, more importantly, I wind up with only two gallons in my fermenter in the kitchen, so I'm only carrying 2 gallons down the basement stairs where I top it off. I'm 79 now. A long time ago I moved to a fermenter with a handle and a few years ago I quit topping off in the kitchen. I also moved my bottling to the basement. My kettle could do a much bigger boil if i wanted to do one.

Adding the other half of the extract witn 1/2 gal. water at flame out brings the wort down to about 170-175. This allows me to add my aroma hops in a sort of hop stand while it cools in the sink to about 100-110. I generally wait a few minutes before I start adding water for the sink bath. The whole thing takes about 20 minutes, and I don't actually take temperatures or time it; I just feel the side of the kettle. When I top off I have both chilled and unchilled water available, so it doesn't get too cold. I do measure temperature for pitching.
 
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