Autumn Seasonal Beer Punkin' Ale

[Waterboy42]

This! Brewed this with a friend and it was overspiced. I said give it time, he said, "I give it to you." Change his mind in a month, more for me!

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Yup. Just had my first full pint yesterday. It's about 2 weeks from perfection.

 

[rewski]

Well just made my second batch of this great brew. I bought the grain from an online shop because of a great deal. They shipped what was labeled at two bags of 5# of 2-row but there was an extra bag that just said 2-row. I assumed they just gave me extra grain. Well I learned an important lesson...always weight your ingredients unless you weight and bag yourself! I realized the grain bill was low during the fly sparge but obviously I was already a bit late, so I just finished it up.

OG as 1.053 (my last batch came in at 1.081) but I neglected 3-4 lbs of base malt. The final wort smelled awesome so I'm just going to call this one Drunkin Punkin Lite!

Well fermentation is going great!

 

[Waterboy42]

Second batch this year, five weeks primary. Bottling

 

[Medevac_Chief]

turned out great! Been in the bottles now for 3 weeks. You can tell the pumpkin is there, but its not overpowering. Love it!

+1

 

[Doed]

I brewed this again Saturday (3rd time) and had an interesting brew session. First, I wasn't paying attention to how much pre-boil volume I had in my pot and sparged a little (even though I BIAB) extra water through the grain. I noticed I had about 8¼ gallons of wort. No biggie, I decided to boil an extra 30 minutes to bring the wort volume down. Let the wort boil 30 minutes then started my 60 minute hop addition and brown sugar and continued on. Boil complete, cooled to pitching temp, checked volume, only 5 gallons in my pot and the OG was 1.082, yikes. Siphoned into the fermenter only 4½ gallons of wort. I didn't panic just went inside and boiled another gallon of water. I needed some anyway to rehydrate the yeast. I added ¾ gallon of water to the fermentor to give me 5¼ gallons and I took another hydrometer reading. Now the OG is 1.074, much better, poured in the yeast and let it rip.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Oh nice! Sounds like an adventure. I'm sure it'll be great

 

[grssmnperez]

Going to do second batch this weekend.

 

[ChrisL_]

Thanks alot Reno_Envy you #*(&$#(*^($&#(&$!
Thanks to you I am taking up home brewing
All joking aside. I have never brewed an ounce of beer. But a good friend made your recipe (some minor change I believe due to ingredients on hand) and I thought it was the best Pumpkin beer I have had (tried about 5 different commercial varieties). So I have spent the past 5 or 6 weeks weeks reading all about making home brew and have decided to take the plunge. I will be doing all grain with the BIAB (beer in a bag) method and your recipe will be my first attempt.:rockin:
It will take another week or 2 to gather everything I need and then it is brew time! I just hope I can wait long enough for the beer to mature before I start drinking it all

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Thanks alot Reno_Envy you #*(&$#(*^($&#(&$!
Thanks to you I am taking up home brewing
All joking aside. I have never brewed an ounce of beer. But a good friend made your recipe (some minor change I believe due to ingredients on hand) and I thought it was the best Pumpkin beer I have had (tried about 5 different commercial varieties). So I have spent the past 5 or 6 weeks weeks reading all about making home brew and have decided to take the plunge. I will be doing all grain with the BIAB (beer in a bag) method and your recipe will be my first attempt.:rockin:
It will take another week or 2 to gather everything I need and then it is brew time! I just hope I can wait long enough for the beer to mature before I start drinking it all

Ha! I'm sorry and you're welcome at the same time, then. I wish you luck. If you have any questions about the beer that isn't covered in this thread or any general brewing questions please ask.

 

[ChrisL_]

Ha! I'm sorry and you're welcome at the same time, then. I wish you luck. If you have any questions about the beer that isn't covered in this thread or any general brewing questions please ask.

Thanks! But I am not sure what has not yet been covered in the ~112 pages of this thread that I have already read.
I should have all my equipment and be ready to brew on Sunday:rockin:

 

[ChrisL_]

Thanks! But I am not sure what has not yet been covered in the ~112 pages of this thread that I have already read.
I should have all my equipment and be ready to brew on Sunday:rockin:

I stand corrected! I have not even started and am already in trouble Not sure if it a big deal or not. I took a trip out to our LHBS to pick up all of my supplies. I was looking for the Hallataur and saw New Zealand Hallataur instead of a North American variety. The Alpha is 6.7%. I see the Alpha on your recipe used 4.8%. I am uncertain if I will be able to get to the LHBS to get the correct one before my planned weekend brew. Can I scale down the amount and still be ok, or could the NZ variety cause a undesired change in my beer?
Also, it is in a foil vaccum wrap, but appears to be leaves instead of pellets.


Any advice?

 

[Brewskii]

I stand corrected! I have not even started and am already in trouble Not sure if it a big deal or not. I took a trip out to our LHBS to pick up all of my supplies. I was looking for the Hallataur and saw New Zealand Hallataur instead of a North American variety. The Alpha is 6.7%. I see the Alpha on your recipe used 4.8%. I am uncertain if I will be able to get to the LHBS to get the correct one before my planned weekend brew. Can I scale down the amount and still be ok, or could the NZ variety cause a undesired change in my beer?
Also, it is in a foil vaccum wrap, but appears to be leaves instead of pellets.

Any advice?

This is not an issue on both counts ( not sure how you got New Zealand Hallertau though, it's one of the most common hops from one of the more obscure growing regions).
Variety trumps growing region in what makes hops taste different. You can multiply the AA number with the weight in ounces. Then divide that number by the AA of the hops you have and that should tell you how many Ounces of the hops to add.
Additionally, whole hops will bitter, weight for weight, with pellets -there is no conversion ( the exception being fresh, not dried, hops where it's about 7 to 1 due to water weight).
Also, the earlier in the boil, the less the variety matters. Up to about the 30 min mark you really are getting bittering from the AA and not character like flavor or aroma with most hop varieties (there are some exceptions to this from what I understand).

 

[ChrisL_]

This is not an issue on both counts ( not sure how you got New Zealand Hallertau though, it's one of the most common hops from one of the more obscure growing regions).
Variety trumps growing region in what makes hops taste different. You can multiply the AA number with the weight in ounces. Then divide that number by the AA of the hops you have and that should tell you how many Ounces of the hops to add.
Additionally, whole hops will bitter, weight for weight, with pellets -there is no conversion ( the exception being fresh, not dried, hops where it's about 7 to 1 due to water weight).
Also, the earlier in the boil, the less the variety matters. Up to about the 30 min mark you really are getting bittering from the AA and not character like flavor or aroma with most hop varieties (there are some exceptions to this from what I understand).

Thanks Brewsksi that makes me feel a bit better. If I don't get to brew this weekend it will be a couple of more weeks before I have time ( I love my kids but they sure soak up a lot of time).

As for pellets vs leaves, I am guessing leaves as I am under the impression the pellets are bigger ( just based on pics from the inter webs). Could this just be a pile of smaller pellets?

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Those almost certainly look like pellets. A one ounce bag of leaves is usually bigger (unless the photo makes it bigger than it is.)

Also, Brewskii is spot-on

 

[Brewskii]

Those almost certainly look like pellets. A one ounce bag of leaves is usually bigger (unless the photo makes it bigger than it is.)

Also, Brewskii is spot-on

+1. -(about the pellets I mean).

 

[Matteo57]

I have chech saaz and no hallertau, think it will be a LOT different of a beer if I use saaz instead? Any other suggestions as I cannot go to the brew store for awhile again and would like to brew this again. Brewed it before and it is fantastic for sure!!

 

[Matteo57]

Oh, I can always bitter with something else as I hear saaz isn't very good for that.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Oh, I can always bitter with something else as I hear saaz isn't very good for that.

Where did you hear that? It just has a low alpha acid % so you use a little more.

And I'm pretty sure hallertauer and saaz have similar aa%

 

[Matteo57]

I read it actually last night right after I posted it. Something about a flavor that saaz imparts to the beer when bittering with it? I wish I would have saved the link or I wish I remembered where I read it... I don't know I have never heard that before but never bittered with it so not sure? I could always use warrior as it's a really clean bittering hop and I have that and I could then use the saaz in the later addition.
Just stick with all saaz or warrior/saaz? Thoughts?

 

[Reno_eNVy]

I read it actually last night right after I posted it. Something about a flavor that saaz imparts to the beer when bittering with it? I wish I would have saved the link or I wish I remembered where I read it... I don't know I have never heard that before but never bittered with it so not sure? I could always use warrior as it's a really clean bittering hop and I have that and I could then use the saaz in the later addition.
Just stick with all saaz or warrior/saaz? Thoughts?

It's up to you.... but after 60 minutes there is negligible flavor left, just hop bitterness.

 

[Matteo57]

Thanks for thoughts. Might try warrior just because I have it on hand.... we'll see.
every try subbing out a bit of the base malt with munich?

 

[ChrisL_]

Well I have not been as excited to start a hobby/project in a long while, as I have been since Homebrew and Punkin Ale came along. So I finally got all my stuff together and brewed my firs batch on Sunday. That is the good news. The bad news it did not take me long to make my first rookie error.

I totally misread Reno_Envys recipe. Where it said "24QT of 163*F water (step temp of 156)" I read that as doing a mash at 2 temps, first 156 and then 163. Being my first ever batch and doing BIAB in an effort to keep it simple I decided to just do the entire thing at 163 (on the bright side it explained the 1.080 SG that I did not understand at first).

So I have read to understand that my beer may end up pretty sweet as I may have some unfermentable sugars in there. I guess how sweet only time will tell. On the bright side I have been known to like my sugary treats


I did learn one other thing as well. I have read on these forums over and over again to RDWHAHB. This advise stinks when it is your first batch and you don't have a home brew to relax with! Luckily I am still well stocked with many comercials beers, so I stilled chilled out with a frosty beverage.

 

[ChrisL_]

Well I have not been as excited to start a hobby/project in a long while, as I have been since Homebrew and Punkin Ale came along. So I finally got all my stuff together and brewed my firs batch on Sunday. That is the good news. The bad news it did not take me long to make my first rookie error.

I totally misread Reno_Envys recipe. Where it said "24QT of 163*F water (step temp of 156)" I read that as doing a mash at 2 temps, first 156 and then 163. Being my first ever batch and doing BIAB in an effort to keep it simple I decided to just do the entire thing at 163 (on the bright side it explained the 1.080 SG that I did not understand at first).

So I have read to understand that my beer may end up pretty sweet as I may have some unfermentable sugars in there. I guess how sweet only time will tell. On the bright side I have been known to like my sugary treats

I did learn one other thing as well. I have read on these forums over and over again to RDWHAHB. This advise stinks when it is your first batch and you don't have a home brew to relax with! Luckily I am still well stocked with many comercials beers, so I stilled chilled out with a frosty beverage.

OK, I am looking for some advice/feedback. I know I need to be patient with my beers but am curious about something. I thought most fermentation was done in the first few days? My SG was 1.080 and I checked today and it was still at 1.040. Should it have gone down more by now, or do I just need to wait?
Some additional details:
1. Including fowl ups listed above I also think my boil was too vigorous and I boiled off too much. I ended up with 2.4 gal in the fermenter when my target was 3.
2. I did a 2.5G batch and pitched an entire package of SF05. Ambient temp was mostly around 60-63F in my basement.
3. Fermentation looked vigorous for a couple of days and then slowed right down.
4. It was my first ever taste of freshly fermented beer, so I am not totally sure about the taste, but it seemed ok other then pretty sweet and having what I think is the "green" flavor of a young beer.

Any thoughts? I am correct that the gravity should have been lower by this point?

Thanks,

Chris

 

[tre9er]

OK, I am looking for some advice/feedback. I know I need to be patient with my beers but am curious about something. I thought most fermentation was done in the first few days? My SG was 1.080 and I checked today and it was still at 1.040. Should it have gone down more by now, or do I just need to wait?
Some additional details:
1. Including fowl ups listed above I also think my boil was too vigorous and I boiled off too much. I ended up with 2.4 gal in the fermenter when my target was 3.
2. I did a 2.5G batch and pitched an entire package of SF05. Ambient temp was mostly around 60-63F in my basement.
3. Fermentation looked vigorous for a couple of days and then slowed right down.
4. It was my first ever taste of freshly fermented beer, so I am not totally sure about the taste, but it seemed ok other then pretty sweet and having what I think is the "green" flavor of a young beer.

Any thoughts? I am correct that the gravity should have been lower by this point?

Thanks,

Chris

How long total since you pitched yeast? That's a big beer. Give it at least three weeks

 

[ChrisL_]

How long total since you pitched yeast? That's a big beer. Give it at least three weeks

Sorry, I thought I typed that. The yeast was pitched 2 weeks ago.

 

[tre9er]

Sorry, I thought I typed that. The yeast was pitched 2 weeks ago.

What yeast? It's in the presence of higher alcohol now which can affect it, too depending on strain

 

[Dukeman9988]

OK, I am looking for some advice/feedback. I know I need to be patient with my beers but am curious about something. I thought most fermentation was done in the first few days? My SG was 1.080 and I checked today and it was still at 1.040. Should it have gone down more by now, or do I just need to wait?
Some additional details:
1. Including fowl ups listed above I also think my boil was too vigorous and I boiled off too much. I ended up with 2.4 gal in the fermenter when my target was 3.
2. I did a 2.5G batch and pitched an entire package of SF05. Ambient temp was mostly around 60-63F in my basement.
3. Fermentation looked vigorous for a couple of days and then slowed right down.
4. It was my first ever taste of freshly fermented beer, so I am not totally sure about the taste, but it seemed ok other then pretty sweet and having what I think is the "green" flavor of a young beer.

Any thoughts? I am correct that the gravity should have been lower by this point?

Thanks,

Chris

What did you use to check the gravity?

 

[ChrisL_]

What yeast? It's in the presence of higher alcohol now which can affect it, too depending on strain

It was a full pack of SF05 on a 2.5 gallon batch, pitched dry.

What did you use to check the gravity?

I used a Hydrometer for both SG and current Gravity.

My concern is that I totally blew the mash temp (rookie first batch error) and had it at 162F. A brewing friend told me I would end up with many unfermentables in my wort. So I wonder if the 1.040 could end up being my FG (I'll know in a day or 2 when I do another reading).

 

[tre9er]

You can also try adding a few drops of amylase enzyme which your local shop should have