Primitive/Improvised Methods Beer

[WillieP]

Very cool thread, hope this turns out wonderful for you!!

 

[November]

One week into fermentation, I pulled a tiny sample just to see how things were progressing.

It smells like week old cigarette smoke and tastes like breathing in a lung full of thick white mesquite smoke. It actually burns the back of my throat a little.

It probably not the worst thing I've ever put in my mouth, but that may be more a result of poor choices in my youth than positive qualities of the beverage.

They say things get better with age. Here's to that hope. I will taste it again in two weeks. I put too much work in it to dump it. Its going in bottles no matter what.

 

[1977Brewer]

Well darn. Hope it levels off at some point.

 

[Curtis2010]

...

Glowing hot rocks might cause quite a bit of caramelization (scorching?) of the wort, just something to consider.

Like Stein Bier:

http://byo.com/stories/beer-styles/item/857-hot-rocks-making-a-stein-beer

 

[thekraken]

Oh man I'm sorry to hear that.

Sounds like Culinarytracker and Curtis2010 are on to something.

Did you taste the wort before pitching? If it was scorching that would be something you could have known right away right? Maybe the ash taste literally is ash brought over on the bricks.

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

There's a couple silver linings to this. You probably made a good cooking beer. I almost would think it could act like alcoholic liquid smoke.

1. Would make fantastic BBQ sauce I bet (unless BBQ sauce is sacriledge to Arizonians, I can't remember who hates BBQ sauce)
2. Brine a whole chicken or chicken thighs in it (super yum) then grill them
3. Mesquite malt vinegar (just pour a bottle in an open container really vigourously and leave it for a couple weeks until it turns vinegary)
4. Chili deglazing liquid
5. This is making me hungry so I am going to stop

It could've been far worse, it could taste like a 5lb dirty baby diaper. It could still age out, in 6 months a lot of the particulate matter floating around in the beer may settle out and the smoke flavor will mellow a bunch. At least it didn't turn into my Cherrywood Smoked IPA that was meant to be a cherrywood smoked scotch ale, in all my wisdom split the recipe for multiple attempts but forgot to split the cherrywood smoked malt and the hop additions and quadrupled my sulfate instead of upping my chloride, I basically only use this beer for cooking now.

 

[lowtones84]

Yeah, I'm sure the smoke flavor will fade considerably. Either way, awesome experiment and now you have some direction for next time!

 

[November]

It is definitely starting to mellow. The smell is more subdued and the taste is still smokey but a lot less sharp. Another week at least.

Fingers crossed.

 

[b-boy]

Anyone reading this thread would probably enjoy this website. It might give you some ideas for streamlining this process.

http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/

 

[drchris83]

You know, decoction is superb for brewing without thermometers. The temperature of well water is a given, as is the boiling point at your altitude. In temperate climate zones, using 1/3 of your mash for each decoction step is a reliable rule of thumb. Great experiment! If you want to get authentically brewed Steinbier try to get Granitbock by Hofstetten, as far as I know they export to the states.

 

[balauru_327]

I didn`t read all the posts,maybe you did this but you coulded wash your yeast with some chloride.
So sorry, if i have done a mistake.
Anyway great job with your ideea.

 

[November]

Pulled a sample. it sure has come around. Just a bit of smoke. There's a new flavor helping out too. It's Brett. It looks like the infection is just starting. I'm going to let it run its course. It's either from the open air it was exposed to instead of an airlock or my idea of sanitizing the fermenter by dumping in boiling wort and doing no chill didn't work.

Always an adventure. To be honest though the brett flavor is actually rounding out the smoke.

 

[lowtones84]

Awesome! Glad to hear that the smoke is mellowing, and the news about the Brett. Now you just may have your house yeast for primitive beer

 

[khawk95]

Cool! Lucky it was Brett and not acetobacter

 

[November]

Smoke is very much diminished. It has a gorgeous pellicle, if your in to that kind of thing. I'm going to Ft. Bliss for 5 weeks for work so I will check on it after that.

 

[FatDragon]

Smoke is very much diminished. It has a gorgeous pellicle, if your in to that kind of thing. I'm going to Ft. Bliss for 5 weeks for work so I will check on it after that.

Dang. Five weeks is a long time to leave something like this. It could be amazing or need even more time, or the bugs could end up going too far and ruining the whole thing. Best of luck, I'll be looking forward to seeing the next update at the end of April.

 

[ghohn]

November, I like your style.

 

[ImNoExpert]

Gotta see how this turns out!

 

[cmschlatt]

Any update?

 

[November]

Just got back a couple of days ago, so it has been sitting for five weeks.

The pellicle has not dropped yet but I was able to draw a sample. The smoke taste is almost gone. Just a wisp of smoke and a bit of a woody taste otherwise the beer is pretty simple. It feels very thin and even a bit boozy. The Brett flavor is pretty subtle at the moment.

I guess I will give it a bit longer for the Brett to chew its way through.

 

[ThomasPaine]

I love this thread. I have used open pit w/ mesquite, and never got smoke into the beer. I would try dipping whatever local fruit is available into the wort for a wild yeast. +1 on harvesting yeast from a commercial beer if that doesn't break the rules. I don't like the use of plastic, but I'm sure you feel the same and were just using what you had. Why not chill overnight in kettle, then transfer to glass? Also I would think your false bottom would be more primitive than the bucket. I think we should all chip in a buy you a couple oak barrels for writing such a great thread. We are all inspired.

 

[November]

I love this thread. I have used open pit w/ mesquite, and never got smoke into the beer. I would try dipping whatever local fruit is available into the wort for a wild yeast. +1 on harvesting yeast from a commercial beer if that doesn't break the rules. I don't like the use of plastic, but I'm sure you feel the same and were just using what you had. Why not chill overnight in kettle, then transfer to glass? Also I would think your false bottom would be more primitive than the bucket. I think we should all chip in a buy you a couple oak barrels for writing such a great thread. We are all inspired.

Good points. I got rid of my glass carboys after one tried to kill me a few years back. I've been toying with the idea of a clay water pot for my second attempt.

The bucket was just at hand and wasn't a big investment if it failed. As well as the buffalo grass filter bed worked I could have used anything. I will probably use a wood frame with buffalo grass next time.

I can't make barrels but I was thinking about making some kind of wood vessel for fermenting. Infection seems a foregone conclusion so maybe open top?

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

Good points. I got rid of my glass carboys after one tried to kill me a few years back. I've been toying with the idea of a clay water pot for my second attempt.

The bucket was just at hand and wasn't a big investment if it failed. As well as the buffalo grass filter bed worked I could have used anything. I will probably use a wood frame with buffalo grass next time.

I can't make barrels but I was thinking about making some kind of wood vessel for fermenting. Infection seems a foregone conclusion so maybe open top?

You could hollow out a relatively thick well dried oak log (well any hardwood really). Then take a blow torch and give it a light toasting. Before you do the hollowing out of the log you could cut a cap piece off so you have a wood lid you can lay on top should presumably lay pretty flat on top. Pick a tall, relativel thick log and you should be able to get a 5 gallon "barrel" pretty easily.

If you have some huge spade bits you could just drill out as deep as you can into the log, then make a octagon/circular pattern drilling a bunch of holes into the log. Take a chisel and knock those out and smooth out the edges, then keep going until you have sufficient volume vessel. It's probably a lot of work, but its probably easier than making your actual barrel (probably cheaper than buying a barrel as well).

 

[ThomasPaine]

I would think about something like this: http://www.acehardware.com/product/...042&KPID=6696083&kpid=6696083&pla=pla_6696083

Pretty primitive I think

 

[November]

It is still going. Looks like the Brett is chewing its way through.

It tastes, well... very bretty. I don't think that's a word. Anyways the smoke is almost entirely gone or completely masked by the Brett. It should be interesting when its carved and cooled.

I've had my hands full with a bunch of other projects but once I get those tied up I am going to start building up for version 2.

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

I wonder if maybe the smokiness was entirely just ash and burnt oil from the wood stuck to the stones when you placed them in the wort. Does anyone else have experience with Brett rauchbiers? This is a fascinating experiment to follow.

 

[amcclai7]

Subscribed

 

[November]

I pulled a few soil samples from a few placeson the property. I'm testing them today to see if I can make adobe bricks out of it. If that works that may be the start of version 2.

Results to follow.

 

[November]

It is still alive. The pellicile has dropped about 80%. Another couple weeks and I can probably consider bottling it. I didn't expect this to take this long, but we have come this far...

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

More pictures are always welcome, still interested in final product. Has a smoked ale at a little 4-H fair that was interesting so this thread has relevance (wish my palate hadn't been shot by a summer cold).