Ok im gonna do this!
Belgian Dark Strong Ale Westvleteren 12 Clone - Multiple Award Winner
- Thread starter CSI - CandiSyrup
- Start date
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jturman35
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My keg that been in the keezer since July 2019 (16 months) is still not ready! I bottled 20 bottles using a beer gun in March and threw those in the closet at house temp to speed up the aging process. When i popped open the first bottle in June if this year, way better then the keg version, the syrup taste finally converted and now you get some raison. Reminds me more of Chimay Blue, which i think is better than the real Westy12 when you consider it's mass produced. It takes time for the syrup to do it's thing. The warmer the temp the faster the age process!
I even went as far to pull the keg out of the keezer for a month, but even at 16 months it's still not ready. I'm not certain the bottle plays a role in making this beer even better. I can't get my keg version as good as the bottle, so if you have the capability to bottle condition i would do it.
I even went as far to pull the keg out of the keezer for a month, but even at 16 months it's still not ready. I'm not certain the bottle plays a role in making this beer even better. I can't get my keg version as good as the bottle, so if you have the capability to bottle condition i would do it.
I just brewed the CSI version yesterday as a 10 gallon batch. I pitched a 5L decanted starter at 64 degrees. It's been 24 hours and I first have a little airlock activity. Could it be just a slow start? I do have another packet of the Wyeast 3787 yeast that I used for the original starter. Should I think of possibly pitching that or make another starter to pitch? From what I've read, it seems this yeast normally takes off much more than I am getting at this point.
An update to my last reply....
Not long after I posted, the fermentation really started to get going. After 6 days, the gravity went from 1.088 to 1.018. Unfortunately, my basement is a little cool and the temp is down to 69 from a peak of 77 on Tuesday. Would it help any if I racked to a secondary tomorrow and then place in a warmer location for a few more days?
Not long after I posted, the fermentation really started to get going. After 6 days, the gravity went from 1.088 to 1.018. Unfortunately, my basement is a little cool and the temp is down to 69 from a peak of 77 on Tuesday. Would it help any if I racked to a secondary tomorrow and then place in a warmer location for a few more days?
Warming it up is a good plan. If the yeast has already stalled and dropped clear, getting it going again can be hit or miss, but I'd probably give it a try.
Sorry for the late response. The beer ended up finishing nicely right at 1.013. It is now resting comfortably at 50 degrees. I plan on bottling it in 2 weeks after 4 weeks at that temperature.
I brewed a 5 gallons batch on March 17, 2019, bottled May 27, 2019, then put the cases in the basement, and forgot about them until Thanksgiving 2020. So that's about 1.5 years of bottle aging.
I cooled down a bottle the day before and poured it on Thanksgiving. OMG, it was really enjoyable. Light carbonation. Flavors of burnt sugar, dark fruit, some chocolate & coffee. The alcohol is blended into the other flavors - it's there but not dominant. I am really happy the finish is dry and not cloying, which made me want to keep sipping this big beer.
I need to pull out a few more bottles to be ready for the rest of the holiday season.
I cooled down a bottle the day before and poured it on Thanksgiving. OMG, it was really enjoyable. Light carbonation. Flavors of burnt sugar, dark fruit, some chocolate & coffee. The alcohol is blended into the other flavors - it's there but not dominant. I am really happy the finish is dry and not cloying, which made me want to keep sipping this big beer.
I need to pull out a few more bottles to be ready for the rest of the holiday season.
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Getting the bug again but will bottle about half (2.5gal) this time to age so your experience is encouraging. Copied the exact hop profile (which gives IBU 29 on BeerSmith) from post 1 but changing the candi syrup to 1-D90 and 1-D180 in attempt to match the color better. BS says it's about 24 currently. In addition, as other suggested will bump up the fermentation temperature in attempt to get those fruity esters I tasted in the original. I always brew a Dubbel first to build yeast cake so won't be till January some time. But @Yeroc , love to see a pic if you don't mind!
Edit:
After reading @jturman35 comments...maybe just bottle and age all of it. Waiting is not my thing tho!
Edit2:
I'm also adding 8oz Melanoidin which supposedly gives the final product that decoction mash character.
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My last batch (about 4 gallons) I used 1 lb. D180, 1 lb. D90, and at least at the moment, prefer the flavor profile to the original recipe. I bottled one gallon, kegged the rest and may end up wishing I'd bottled more. I'm giving the keg 7 weeks of aging at room temperature, the bottles (except for the two I've already drunk) I hope to set aside for at least a few months, if not longer.
Yeah, I was thinking along those lines. I cold crash everything to clean it up. Makes sense to simply keg and store at room temp then to add/mix yeast back in to bottle condition. Beer gunning is a possibility once carbed but again, trying to make life easy here. Gives an excuse to buy yet another keg! Did the color come out more equivalent to the authentic Westy12? If you haven't had it, I have a pic a few posts up, #1394.
Guess I missed this. Well true that! I've actually had to start working out again to carry around 40lbs of wort or kegged beer all over the place! ha!
I have a Fermzilla and it is a PIA. Went back to buckets. Fermzilla tube would get clogged. Attempting to dump the yeast/trub was a mess. Pressure transfers used 1/2 my CO2 tank. I made a collar out of 12in board to get the thing to fully fit in the chest freezer also.
Yes, the color is much closer to the original substituting 1 lb. of D90. A few months ago was the first time I had the real thing, and was surprised by how much darker the clone is, using 2 lbs. of D180.
This time I'll probably just hook up the keg to CO2, maybe next time "bottle" condition in the keg or set aside more for bottling. The thing I like about bottling is that you can open a bottle periodically to see how it's aging. I never like to assume that a batch will peak in X number of months. I'm sure it varies depending on process, recipe, etc.
I've done three generations of 3787 with no perceivable issues. I'll probably brew a 2nd batch, like I did last time and bottle (or part) of each batch. After brewing 10gals of Westy12 one would think one could could put a few away for aging! Ha!
How did it go?
here’s a photo per your request.Getting the bug again but will bottle about half (2.5gal) this time to age so your experience is encouraging. Copied the exact hop profile (which gives IBU 29 on BeerSmith) from post 1 but changing the candi syrup to 1-D90 and 1-D180 in attempt to match the color better. BS says it's about 24 currently. In addition, as other suggested will bump up the fermentation temperature in attempt to get those fruity esters I tasted in the original. I always brew a Dubbel first to build yeast cake so won't be till January some time. But @Yeroc , love to see a pic if you don't mind!
Edit:
After reading @jturman35 comments...maybe just bottle and age all of it. Waiting is not my thing tho!
Edit2:
I'm also adding 8oz Melanoidin which supposedly gives the final product that decoction mash character.
I'm having a little issue with my batch. I bottled the beer about 2.5 weeks ago. I've kept the bottles in an area that is about 75 degrees. Unfortunately, there is still very little carbonation in the beer. When I bottled, I added a pouch of Wyeast 3787 and 175 grams of corn sugar to 10 gallons. Might I need to add a small amount of sugar again? Should I continue to be patient and wait? I have 96 bottles of this quad and even with little carbonation, they taste pretty darn good. I can just imagine if I could get the right amount of co2 in there.
Oldskewl
Well-Known Member
175 grams is pretty light for 10 gal. True-to-style you should have added almost double the priming sugar that you did, but most regular bottles are not able to hold that kind of pressure(3.0 vol max). You could have easily added another 75-100 grams of corn sugar. Here is a calculator to play with. I'm sure with a couple more weeks they may carb slightly more. To uncap and add more sugar would be a tedious undertaking that may to more harm than good. I would enjoy them the way they are.
www.northernbrewer.com
Homebrew Priming Sugar Calculator
You've made it to bottling day. Congrats! Use this simple calculator to add the correct quantity of sugar to perfectly carbonate your beer.
www.northernbrewer.com
Here she goes into the keg. Fermented warmer and believe it paid off. Definitely some fruity character. Alcoholic though, needs to mellow. Should be around 10.2%. Need to look up numbers and compare color with authentic Westy.
