Spring Brews

[okiedog]

Good news - it's not a lager, just a hefeweizen!

In fact, it's bottled just 3 days after pitching the yeast, but if you are kegging, I'd suggest sticking to your normal schedule.

If you'd like it, send a PM ~ or check out this link:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=585203

Cheers ~

Ron

[EDIT]Whoops, just saw your other reply. disregard this post. Let me know how your weissbier goes! [/EDIT]

Sounds great! When I get ready to brew my next hefe, I'll get back toi you. But for now, I'm waiting for my current hefe to finish keg conditioning before starting the chill down for serving.

 

[okiedog]

What I have been considering is a Better'n Bud Ale. I had previously worked up a recipe for a lager version. But since I currently can't lager, I converted it to Ale. My beer line is calling for an Amber though. That gives me 2 choices: My Cal Common, or My Pacific Amber. Eventually, I may end up brewing most of the brews you guys have suggested.

Isn't it fun being a home brewer? I can spend an hour or two on the computer, and it perplexes my wife that I've spent all that time researching, formulating and setting up just one brew. I have to admit though, she's very supportive, and loves my beers.

 

[Revvy]

For some strange reason this style of beer has been linked to winter (I think because of New Belgium's Accumulation) but one of my favorite styles for this time of year is a "White IPA" which basically is an ipa hopped belgian witbier... Here's the recipe I've been brewing for years.

It's light and crisp, and kind of fruity like a wit, but packs a nice hoppy bite.


5 lbs Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 1
2 lbs Wheat, Flaked (1.6 SRM) Grain 2
2 lbs White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM) Grain 3
1 lbs Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 4
0.51 oz Target [11.0%] - First Wort Hops 5
0.26 oz Centennial [10.0%] - First Wort Hops 6
8.96 oz Cane (Beet) Sugar (0.0 SRM) Sugar 7
0.51 oz Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 60 min Hops 8
0.51 oz Target [11.0%] - Boil 60 min Hops 9
0.26 oz Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 30 min Hops 10
0.26 oz Target [11.0%] - Boil 30 min Hops 11
0.26 oz Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 5 min Hops 12
0.26 oz Target [11.0%] - Boil 5 min Hops 13
1 pkgs Belgian Ale (White Labs #WLP550) Yeast 14
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.5%] - Dry Hop 7 days Hops 15

Mash at 156.0 F


Notes add ounce of mosaic or sub along with amarillo for dry hopping.

 

[Weezy]

^^^ Accumulation is a great bear. The crispness goes with winter.

I brew a variation of Blueflint's dark cream ale every spring (well ok! Maybe some other times too during the summer and maybe fall!)

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=6600695&postcount=227

 

[johnwpowell]

Good idea, but I have a Kolsch cold conditioning in the serving fridge. It should be ready in a bout 2 weeks.

Could you share the recipe?

 

[FatDragon]

Fatdragon, thanks for the recs for Gose (Gueuze). I've seen Otra Vez (one more time) on the store shelves. Anderson Valley should be available here in california.

Just a note: Gose and Gueuze are different things:

https://drewsbrewsreviews.com/2014/07/22/beer-style-explanation-gose-vs-gueuze/

Basically, one's a light, salty, somewhat citrusy sour wheat beer, often quickly made with a kettle sour and normal fermentation. The other is a type of lambic, so also a light, sour wheat beer but made very differently. Gueuzes are delicious, but if you're making one as a spring beer, starting now you should be able to have it ready to drink in Spring 2019. You could have a Gose ready in a couple weeks or less.

 

[okiedog]

Revvy, that looks like a tasty brew. I did brew a White IPA about a year ago. It was good. My son really like it, but it was a bit hoppy for my wife.

 

[okiedog]

Could you share the recipe?

This is really a very simple recipe:

Scatter Brain Kolsch - All Grain
Brewhouse efficiency: 85%
SG: 1.047
FG: 1.010
IBU: 23.5
BU/GU ratio .500

Grist
7.0 lbs Pilsner malt
1.0 lbs White Wheat malt
0.1875 lbs Acidulated malt

Mash @ 152F

Boil
.75 oz. AA% 5.87 Tradition FWH 90 min. (20.1 IBU)
.5 oz. AA% 3.75 Hersbrucker Boil 15 min. (3.3 IBU)
.5 oz. AA% 5.87 Tradition Flame Out (0.0 IBU) I assume .5 IBU

Finings: Irish moss/whirlfloc boil 15 min/10 min.
Yeast Nutrient boil 5-15 min.

Yeast: Wyeast 2565

Ferment @ 60F, Keg or bottle condition, then cold condition for at least 4 weeks.

 

[okiedog]

Fatdragon, thanks! I just assumed they were variations of the same beer. After taking another look though, Gose sounds kind of interesting. I'll have to put one on my "to brew" list.

 

[okiedog]

For expediency, and because I have all the ingredients, I have decided to brew a Better'n Bud Ale tomorrow. I am not a fan of BMCC, a couple of people I know are. I'm hoping this will broaden their beer perspective a bit.

There are lots of brew days left though, so keep'em coming if you have'em. Thanks!

 

[okiedog]

Just a note: Gose and Gueuze are different things:

https://drewsbrewsreviews.com/2014/07/22/beer-style-explanation-gose-vs-gueuze/

Basically, one's a light, salty, somewhat citrusy sour wheat beer, often quickly made with a kettle sour and normal fermentation. The other is a type of lambic, so also a light, sour wheat beer but made very differently. Gueuzes are delicious, but if you're making one as a spring beer, starting now you should be able to have it ready to drink in Spring 2019. You could have a Gose ready in a couple weeks or less.

Do you determine sourness of Gose by taste or pH?

 

[FatDragon]

Do you determine sourness of Gose by taste or pH?

My personally, or people in general? Personally, I try to take some pH readings, but in the end it's mostly a taste thing for me, largely because I'm using inaccurate pH strips and a cheap pH meter that can give wildly different results on the same sample within the course of a minute or two, so I have no idea what the actual pH is.

 

[okiedog]

That sounds good to me. I have no pH meter, just the beer pH test strips. The final test of course is going to be how the beer tastes. I'm just wondering how the sour and salt flavor balance of the wort relates to the finished beer.

 

[FatDragon]

That sounds good to me. I have no pH meter, just the beer pH test strips. The final test of course is going to be how the beer tastes. I'm just wondering how the sour and salt flavor balance of the wort relates to the finished beer.

It's an interesting balance. I've only made two so far; my first one was lighter on the salt and I couldn't taste it at all so I upped it a bit in the second one, going half on taste and half on measurement. I ended up just north of one gram per liter of packaged beer (25g : 22.5L) - Himalayan pink salt if it makes a difference - and found that it's a bit much for my liking. Not that the beer is outright salty, but the salt is apparent to the taste buds and makes the beer linger a bit too long after each sip. Next time I'll probably try about 0.7-0.8 grams per liter - I think the key is to have salt in there at a level where it's influencing the beer's flavor profile, but you don't necessarily notice it.

Oh, and iodized salt is not recommended. I believe it messes with your yeast, which could then mess with your fermentation and flavor profile.

 

[okiedog]

Right. Iodine is supposedly poisonous to yeast. As for taste, some salts have a more pronounced flavor than others. Pink salts usually get their color from a small amount of iron content. It may taste good on food, but iron is usually not desirable in beer. Here is a Gose recipe in BYO that uses 21g of sea salt in 5 gallons: https://byo.com/hops/item/2349-gose But they also call for 2 pounds of Acidulated malt! I don't believe I would want to use that much Acid malt, at least not in my first attempt. According to Brun Water, that would take the pH down to about 3.5.

 

[okiedog]

For a long over due update to this post, I want to thank all who contributed recipes and suggestions. Some of those suggestions may end up on my future brew schedule.
I especially want to thank TasunkaWitko for suggesting Edelweiss, and FatDragon for suggesting (and educating me on) Gose. I did brew Edelweiss, but alas, it was tainted with an infection. I'll have to give it another try it sometime. FatDragon, I am currently drinking a Passion fruit Gose. Why Passion fruit? Because my wife requested it. This Gose is light and refreshing, with some saltiness and soft round sourness that is more of an interesting background flavor. Oh, and there is a great up front aroma of passion fruit, supporting a mild passion fruit flavor. At 4.2% Abv. (apparent), it is a real thirst quencher! Cheers! :rockin:

 

[FatDragon]

For a long over due update to this post, I want to thank all who contributed recipes and suggestions. Some of those suggestions may end up on my future brew schedule.
I especially want to thank TasunkaWitko for suggesting Edelweiss, and FatDragon for suggesting (and educating me on) Gose. I did brew Edelweiss, but alas, it was tainted with an infection. I'll have to give it another try it sometime. FatDragon, I am currently drinking a Passion fruit Gose. Why Passion fruit? Because my wife requested it. This Gose is light and refreshing, with some saltiness and soft round sourness that is more of an interesting background flavor. Oh, and there is a great up front aroma of passion fruit, supporting a mild passion fruit flavor. At 4.2% Abv. (apparent), it is a real thirst quencher! Cheers! :rockin:

I've got a few more bottles of my passion fruit gose, which landed right around that same ABV. There's still a tropical fruit vibe to it, but it doesn't specifically taste of passion fruit anymore. I think I overdid the salt a bit too - not terribly but enough to drop it a couple points. If I were in the States I would suggest shipping a couple bottles back and forth, but shipping to and from China would be a bit much...

 

[okiedog]

That is a long way. I'd love to visit though. How is their Brussels Beer Garden? I used to travel quite a bit, but never made it there. If I ever do though, it'd like to look you up. I think it would be great meet up with a home brewer from across the pond. Right now, My wife and I are enjoying my latest Saison. It's only 6 months old. I like my Saisons in the 6.5 - 7% abv range, and 6 - 12 months old. It smooths out the phenolics a bit. As for Gose, that yeast is amazing! I pitched it at 80F, and let it go. The fermometer stayed right at 78F, which means that at peak it was probably up to 83 -85F internally. It fermented like crazy, and I can detect absolutely no fusels or other unwanted flavors. I'm going to try that yeast again with a different recipe.

 

[FatDragon]

That is a long way. I'd love to visit though. How is their Brussels Beer Garden? I used to travel quite a bit, but never made it there. If I ever do though, it'd like to look you up. I think it would be great meet up with a home brewer from across the pond. Right now, My wife and I are enjoying my latest Saison. It's only 6 months old. I like my Saisons in the 6.5 - 7% abv range, and 6 - 12 months old. It smooths out the phenolics a bit. As for Gose, that yeast is amazing! I pitched it at 80F, and let it go. The fermometer stayed right at 78F, which means that at peak it was probably up to 83 -85F internally. It fermented like crazy, and I can detect absolutely no fusels or other unwanted flavors. I'm going to try that yeast again with a different recipe.

Name-dropping Wuhan beer establishments. Color me impressed! I know a lot of people like Brussels, but I live far across the river and haven't been there in years. When I've been there, it's been pretty much your standard China beer bar - a bunch of German and Belgian stuff and not much else. I'm sure that's changed as craft beer is taking a stronger hold in China and more craft beer is imported and brewed domestically. On my rare evenings off from husbanding and dadding, I usually wend my way to Devil's Brewery, a newer place (opened mid-late 2016) with an American brewer. If you ever do come this way, I'm sure I could make time to meet up for a beer or two.

For the gose, what yeast did you use? I've had an odd aftertaste on my two goses so far and I'm definitely interested in trying something different.

 

[okiedog]

Wild yeast from spent grain. I had planned on stopping fermentation to limit lactic acid, but it was fermenting so well I just left it. As it turned out, it was not too acidic. It was just right and I like the fruity yeast character it leaves.

Oh, those establishments you mentioned sound interesting.

 

[okiedog]

I forgot to mention the high fermentation temp. The fermometer read 78F thru most of the fermentation. The internal temp was probably 80-85F. The days were warm, and I just let it ride. There were no heat stress related issues that I could detect. When I pick up some more Wheat and Pilsner malt, I'll brew this again.