XX-Ale comments

11-May-09 Observations

~ 7:00 am. No blow-off yet. Replaced thawed out gallon jug with a fresh frozen one. Broke the floating thermometer last night (Damn!), so I couldn't measure the fermentation temperature.

Evening. Still no blow-off. Took out the thawed out gallon jug. Temp was ~ if forget. DID NO REPLACE with a new frozen jug. Thought maybe lag phase was stalled by cold startup temperature.

12May09 Observations

~7:00 a.m. Still no blow-off. Then I noticed what might be floated-out dark brown particulates aglomerated onto the top inside of the plastic fermentor jug. Hooked up a light, popped off the blow-off tube and low and behold, there was krausen. Put in a fermentation lock into the hole and it started bubbling away. Apparently the blow-off tube had a loose fit in the hole and, thus, no gas was making it into the blow-off receiving bucket!

Eventually put the blow-off tube back in because I thought that, if it really got going like other recent startups, then I'd have a mess around the fermentation lock. I also put a fresh gallon jug of frozen water into the chiller, to cool the incubation temperature to around 68 oF, hopefully.

After exercise, ~ 20:00. Temperature ~ 72 - 73. Replaced ice jug. Bubbling at once per 8 - 10 seconds. Nice long gurgles.

13,14-May-09 Observations

Temperature measurements ~ 72 oF, at the end of the ice jug thaw period, both morning and evening observation times. Each time I replaced the ice jug with a nice frozen one.
In the evening on Wed 13-May, water had intruded into the Ziploc baggie and the thermometer wouldn't work. It had gotten wet and is an electronic cheapo marvel of technical wizardry. D'oH. I'd forgotten to cover the switch with the little soft plastic coverpiece. The thermometer was meant for outdoor use, after all.

Busily planning the fermentation schedule over the summer. See the group calendar for these updates. A wheat beer, a fruit wheat beer, a saison. Plus starting a Flanders Oud Bruin de Table and Flanders Red Ale in late May and late June might be fit in. These will take 12 - 18 months in secondary - tertiary phase.

04-Jun-09 Observations
This sucker won't ferment fast enough.

Stopped fermenting after the first week. S.G. was 1.030. Roused the yeast on the bottom by gently stirring it up with a sanitized long-handled plastic spoon. It barely increased bubbling for a couple of days.

Since I had an Activator 'slap'pack' of Wyeast #1768, ESB yeast that I wasn't going to use, I smacked it good one morning. By that night it was very well swollen, almost bursting the seams, so I used it to inoculate a starter (5 oz. DME / 2 cups H2O, boiled for 15 min then cooled to nearly room temp.). After growing for a day, I used this to pitch the XX Ale primary plus I again roused the bottom-dwelling sediment while mixing in the newly ptiched #1768.

Fermentation started again, but only low to moderate activity. This has slowed, but the fermentation lock still gurgles once in a while (minutes between gurgles). Last weekend the S.G. was only 1.022 or so. I will wait until this weekend, then either bottle & keg, or rack to a secondary fermenter and add some Wyeast Roesalare blend (2nd transfer of starter used to pitch Oud Bruin de Table secondary fermentation).

I'm tired of waiting I'm really perturbed because it was supposed to have been ready to put into bottles 2 weeks ago. NOw my brewing, i.e., drinking, schedule is WAY off. Next week after the Innkeeper Party Pig runs dry, I'll have to switch to commercial beers until I get back from Montana on July 15th (5 weeks from now). I'm starting a wheat beer, as scheduled, this weekend so it will be ready by then. If the SG of the XX Ale is low enough, I'll bottle it now and maybe start drinking it after 2 weeks of conditioning instead of of my usual 3 weeks.

Wyeast 1768 PC English Special Bitter
A great yeast for malt predominate ales. Produces light fruit and ethanol aromas along with soft, nutty flavors. Exhibits a mild malt profile with a neutral finish. Bright beers are easily achieved without any filtration. It is similar to our 1968 London ESB Ale but slightly less flocculent.
Attenuation 78-72%
Alc. Tolerance 9%
Flocculation high
Temperature Range 64-72°F (18-22°C)

Waldo Lake Amber Ale - my first all-grain homebrew experience

Saturday, 26 Sep 2009. 8:00 am until ~ 4:00 pm, including cleanup.

I'll have to get back to you on this one. The Notes from the Northern Brewer website descriptions for this brew.

v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} Normal.dotm 0 0 1 454 2589 LM ES&S 21 5 3179 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} Waldo Lake Amber Limited Edition All-Grain Kit

Quick Overview Developed for NB by Mr. Denny Conn, this American Amber Ale is brewed with a classic combo of northwest hops offset by a dense, chewy, caramelly sweetness and a big finish.

Product Description Waldo
Lake, 5,400-odd feet up in the Cascade Mountains, is the second-largest non-alkali lake in Oregon. Waldo Lake Amber, developed for NB by Mr. Denny Conn, is the number one largest American Amber Ale in our kit lineup! Weighing in at just a titch above the BJCP's stated gravity
range, this A3 shows off a brilliant russet-amber with a cap of white and draws you in with a nose of citrus, lemongrass, and malt. A classic combo of northwest hops offsets a dense, chewy, caramelly sweetness and gets you ready for a big finish. This kit uses Denny's own house strain, available July-September 2009 as Wyeast 1450, Denny's Favorite 50.

Denny's Notes
I know some crazy people, but one of the craziest is my good friend Mel Lemay. Every year, she runs the Where's Waldo 100K Ultramarathon around Waldo Lake in the Oregon Cascade Mountain Range. The race starts at an elevation of 5120 feet, and goes to over 7800 feet at points. There's a total of over 11,000 feet of elevation change over the course of the race. You have to be crazy to do that! Several of us go camping at the lake to give moral support when she runs and I developed this recipe to her tastes so shed have something to look forward to at the end of the
race. Its a smooth amber ale... not too hoppy, but with enough bitterness and hop flavor that the rest of us enjoy it too. The Magnum hops give it a smooth, mellow bitterness, with flavor from the first wort hop Cascades and a wonderful nose from the Centennial. The Carared gives it a nice malt flavor Ive never gotten any other way. And the Wyeast 1450 Dennys Favorite 50 smooths out the mouthfeel to complement the flavor. You certainly dont have to be crazy to enjoy this beer, but it sure doesnt hurt!

Waldo Lake Amber All Grain Kit O.G: 1063 / Ready: 6 weeks
Waldo Lake, 5,400-odd feet up in the Cascade Mountains, is the second-largest non-alkali lake in Oregon. Waldo Lake Amber, developed for NB by Mr. Denny Conn and our own Heyward Gualandi, is the number one largest American Amber Ale in our kit lineup! Weighing in at just a titch above the BJCP's stated gravity range, this A3 shows off a brilliant russet-amber with a cap of white and draws you in with a nose of citrus, lemongrass, and malt. A classic combo of northwest hops offsets a dense, chewy, caramelly sweetness and gets you ready for a big finish. This kit uses Denny's own house strain, available July-September 2009 as Wyeast 1450, Denny's Favorite 50.

Kit Inventory
Fermentables
7.75 lbs. Rahr 2-row

4 lbs. Munich

2 lbs. Carared

0.5 lbs. Melanoidin

Boil Additions
1 oz. Cascade (First Wort min)

0.75 oz. Magnum (60 min)

1 oz. Centennial (0 min)

Liquid yeast
Wyeast #1450 Denny's Favorite 50 VSS July-September 2009. Optimum temperature: 60-70° F. Mash Schedule

153° F for 60 minutes

168° F for 5 minutes

Brew day notes / itinerary.

Normal.dotm 0 0 1 194 1108 LM ES&S 9 2 1360 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} Saturday

1. Go to ice dispenser near Ace Hardware and fill up ice chest. OR do this during the 60 min fermentables mash rest (can't, must not leave propane burner heating up the sparge water.
2. Buy ¼ inch OD copper tubing and plastic tubing to fit.
3. Turn on the freezer – fermentation temperature control unit to 68 °F.
4. Boil 2 gallons water, add to mash tun to pre-warm.

   Comments: After getting home I read the instructions for the propane burner -Bayou. They specifically said to NOT use this under a covered roof, i.e., like my patio. I was bummed. Thought about putting outside on the sidewalk, but I didn't want to leave it there for hours while water heated up. Did this step on my stove top, with the smaller 5 gallon stainless steel pot.

5. Heat 5.4 gallons to 163 °F, add to mash tun along with grist. Mix well. Comments: On my stovetop, in the new 10 gallon stainless brewpot, with cover.
   
6. Mash / rest 60 min while
   Comments: Sorta went ok. It took quite a while to add the water and grist, back and forth while mixing. Temperature seemed to be alright near 153, but the wireless thermometer gave a lower reading than the floating analog one.
7. Heat 2.25 gallons water to 210 °F to bring 153 water to sparge temperature of 168 °F
   Comments: Did this in the smaller brewpot on the stovetop large back burner
8. Heat ~7+ gallons of water to the sparge temperature of 168 °F.
   Comments: Did this on the stovetop in the larger brewpot on the large front burner. Had to pause here on updating, because I needed to get back to work.
9. After 1 hr fermentables rest, add 210 °F water to bring temp to 168 °F and rest 5 min. Don't get over 170 °F or you'll start extracting tannins, which isn't a good flavor in beer!
   Comments: worked ok. almost spilled boiling water on myself. As I was brewing naked, this could have had dire consequences.
10. Begin sparge, vorlauf
    Comments:
    
11. Complete sparge into boiling kettle. Stop sparge when S.G. ~ 1.008 or volume is reached (6.5 gal)
    Comments:
    
12. Boil wort for 60 min. according to instructions for Waldo Lake Amber. Add wort chiller coil at 15 min. Sanitize fermenter vessel and racking equipment.
    Comments: Took quite a long time to bring the temperature from 138 °F, which it had cooled down to while sparging, to boiling. Added Cascade hops when I put it on the stove, added the Yakima Challenger hops when the boil started. Forgot to add the final hops at tzero, but added them while the work was chilling - at a slightly cooler temperature than at the end of the boil.
13. Chill the wort
    Comments: My two stage wort chiller idea did not work well. The tap water flowing out of the ice chest was not nearly as cold as I wanted it to be. The 1/4" copper coil was probably way too short, but it was all that Ace Hardware had when I went to buy some this morning. I need to significantly increase the amount of copper coil in the ice chest. Like, maybe 3 fold - to 30 ft.
14. Rack chilled wort into fermenter, aerate, pitch yeast, and place it into the temp. controlled freezer
    Comments: It was really hard to aerate the entire batch in the open trash can style while plastic food bucket!
15. Have more homebrew / or any craft beer at this juncture!. (Oh, my aching back. Improper lifting technique, I guess, repeated numerous times!). Have more beer period, it doesn't have to be homebrew - I'm running a bit low due to inactivity on the homebrew front for the past 2 months, or so.

Comments: All went well. 'Kegged' half of it in the Party Pig and bottled the other half. It tastes pretty good to me, but is very near my upper limit for hops.

XX Ale (Northern Brewer Extract Kit) Started 10-May-09

Date Started: 10-May-2009 from 7:00 - 10:30 pm. Yeast taken from fridge
and slapped / activated at ~ 9:00 am. Very well swollen by pitching
time (~ 10:30 pm)

Recipe:
Source: Northern Brewer.
XX Ale Extract Kit
O.G: 1061 / Ready: 4 weeks

Crowded, polluted, foggy, and dangerous: these were the streets of Victorian London. Porter was the everyday drink of the working man who would, on rare occasion, order a pint of something more special. Stock ales, what we now call Old ales, were different in the fact they had been aged and blended to produce a much more flavorful beer. This 'aged' character was sought after and cherished so much so that these beers were nearly double the price of the regular offerings. This beer, with its dried dark fruit character exemplifies the base of these stock ales. Additionally, a small amount of Brettanomyces is used in combination with yeast to give that unique aged flavor. Drink this young for a rich fruity libation or let it age and you'll get notes of leather and dark
cherry pie. If you ever wanted to know what a traditional stock ale tasted like, this is your chance.

Kit Inventory
Specialty Grains

• 1 lbs. Special B
• 0.5 lbs. Black Malt

Fermentables

• 6 lbs. Amber Malt Syrup
• 1 lbs. Black Treacle
• 1 lbs. Priming Sugar
• 1 lbs. Maltodextrin

Boil Additions

• 1 oz. Fuggle (60 min)

Yeast

• Wyeast #9097 Old Ale Blend - Private Collection.
  

Optimum temperature: 68-75° F.

All kits also contain a muslin mesh bag for steeping the grains (if required).
Copyright © 2008 Northern Brewer, Ltd. All rights reserved.

Yeast: Wyeast #9097 Old Ale Blend (limited edition).

Date on the slap-pack was: xx-xxx-2009.

Extraction:

• 30 min in 3.0 (possible 3.5) gallons filtered (Britta) Titusville, FL tap water for Special B and Black Malt at 160 ^oF, range temp off, so it declined to ~ 152 ^oF by the end of the 30 min.
  

According to the Northern Brewer instructions for Extract brewing, raised the temp. to boiling, took the kettle off the heat, added Fermentables, with
stirring, and placed back on the burner

Boil: 60 minutes. Stirred at 45 min, 15 min, end. Added wort chiller coil at 15 min.

Cool: Wort chiller. Due to the heat spell, tap water temperature was not very cold. It took over 30 min to chill to 80 ^oF.

Transfered to sanitized fermenter with 1 gallon filtered water already in it. After transfer, added 1.0 gallon more of filtered water, to mark on fermenter vessel (5 gallon plastic fermenter #1). Mixed well to aerate for 45 sec. Withdrew sample for O.G. and temperature. It was 1.052 at 80 ^oF.

Pitched the yeast.

Put sanitized blow-off tube in. Placed in 32 gallon waste can with water up to the fermentor's 5 gallon mark. Added a frozen gallon jug of water.

(This system of fermentation temperature control basically sucked.)

11-May-09 Observations

~ 7:00 am. No blow-off yet. Replaced thawed out gallon jug with a fresh frozen one. Broke the floating thermometer last night (Damn!), so I couldn't measure the fermentation temperature.

Evening. Still no blow-off. Took out the thawed out gallon jug. Temp was ~ if forget. DID NO REPLACE with a new frozen jug. Thought maybe lag phase was stalled by cold startup temperature.

12May09 Observations

~7:00 a.m. Still no blow-off. Then I noticed what might be floated-out dark brown particulates aglomerated onto the top inside of the plastic fermentor jug. Hooked up a light, popped off the blow-off tube and low and behold, there was krausen. Put in a fermentation lock into the hole and it started bubbling away. Apparently the blow-off tube had a loose fit in the hole and, thus, no gas was making it into the blow-off receiving bucket!

Eventually put the blow-off tube back in because I thought that, if it really got going like other recent startups, then I'd have a mess around the fermentation lock. I also put a fresh gallon jug of frozen water into the chiller, to cool the incubation temperature to around 68 oF, hopefully.

After exercise, ~ 20:00. Temperature ~ 72 - 73. Replaced ice jug. Bubbling at once per 8 - 10 seconds. Nice long gurgles.

13,14-May-09 Observations

Temperature measurements ~ 72 oF, at the end of the ice jug thaw period, both morning and evening observation times. Each time I replaced the ice jug with a nice frozen one.
In the evening on Wed 13-May, water had intruded into the Ziploc baggie and the thermometer wouldn't work. It had gotten wet and is an electronic cheapo marvel of technical wizardry. D'oH. I'd forgotten to cover the switch with the little soft plastic coverpiece. The thermometer was meant for outdoor use, after all.

Busily planning the fermentation schedule over the summer. See the group calendar for these updates. A wheat beer, a fruit wheat beer, a saison. Plus starting a Flanders Oud Bruin de Table and Flanders Red Ale in late May and late June might be fit in. These will take 12 - 18 months in secondary - tertiary phase.

04-Jun-09 Observations
This sucker won't ferment fast enough.

Stopped fermenting after the first week. S.G. was 1.030. Roused the yeast on the bottom by gently stirring it up with a sanitized long-handled plastic spoon. It barely increased bubbling for a couple of days.

Since I had an Activator 'slap'pack' of Wyeast #1768, ESB yeast that I wasn't going to use, I smacked it good one morning. By that night it was very well swollen, almost bursting the seams, so I used it to inoculate a starter (5 oz. DME / 2 cups H2O, boiled for 15 min then cooled to nearly room temp.). After growing for a day, I used this to pitch the XX Ale primary plus I again roused the bottom-dwelling sediment while mixing in the newly ptiched #1768.

Fermentation started again, but only low to moderate activity. This has slowed, but the fermentation lock still gurgles once in a while (minutes between gurgles). Last weekend the S.G. was only 1.022 or so. I will wait until this weekend, then either bottle & keg, or rack to a secondary fermenter and add some Wyeast Roesalare blend (2nd transfer of starter used to pitch Oud Bruin de Table secondary fermentation).

I'm tired of waiting I'm really perturbed because it was supposed to have been ready to put into bottles 2 weeks ago. NOw my brewing, i.e., drinking, schedule is WAY off. Next week after the Innkeeper Party Pig runs dry, I'll have to switch to commercial beers until I get back from Montana on July 15th (5 weeks from now). I'm starting a wheat beer, as scheduled, this weekend so it will be ready by then. If the SG of the XX Ale is low enough, I'll bottle it now and maybe start drinking it after 2 weeks of conditioning instead of of my usual 3 weeks.

Wyeast 1768 PC English Special Bitter
A great yeast for malt predominate ales. Produces light fruit and ethanol aromas along with soft, nutty flavors. Exhibits a mild malt profile with a neutral finish. Bright beers are easily achieved without any filtration. It is similar to our 1968 London ESB Ale but slightly less flocculent.
Attenuation 78-72%
Alc. Tolerance 9%
Flocculation high
Temperature Range 64-72°F (18-22°C)

Yeasts used so far

Wyeast 3763-PC Roeselare Ale Blend
Beer Styles: Lambics, Gueuze, Fruit Lambic, Flanders Red Ale

My Beers: Oud Bruin de Table, Flanders Red Ale, maybe XX Ale, which is a sloth of a fermentation right now.

Profile: Wyeast's blend of lambic cultures produces beer with a complex, earthy profile and a distinctive pie cherry sourness. Aging for up to 18 months is required for full flavor profile and acidity to develop. Will produce a very dry profile due to super-attenuative nature of the mixed cultures.

Alc. Tolerance 11% ABV
Flocculation variable
Attenuation 80%+
Temperature Range 65-85°F (18-30°C)



Wyeast 9097-PC Old Ale Blend
Beer Styles: English Barleywine, English Strong Ale, Old Ale

My Beers: XX Ale, which is a sloth of a fermentation right now.

Profile: To bring you a bit of English brewing heritage we developed the “Old Ale” blend, including an attenuative ale strain and a Brettanomyces strain, which will ferment well in dark worts and produce beers with nice fruitiness. Complex estery characters will emerge with age. Pie cherry and sourness will evolve from the Brettanomyces along with distinct horsey characteristics.

Alc. Tolerance 12%
Flocculation medium
Attenuation 75-80%
Temperature Range 68-75°F(20-24°C)

Current bottle inventory

Red Ale:
Bottled 22 Feb 09.
2 bottles. Reserved for 3 or 6 month tasting.
Party Pig, equiv. to 24 bottles, has been consumed

Palace Bitter:
Bottled 10-Mar-09.
4 bottles. Reserved for tasting at 3 and 6 months, or more.
Party Pig, equiv. to 24 bottles, has been consumed

Cumbrian Double Brown Ale:
Bottled 10-Apr-09
11 bottles. Reserved 4 bottles for tasting at 3 and 6 months.
Party Pig, equiv. to 24 bottles, has been consumed

The Inn Keeper:
Bottled: 30-April-09.
18 bottles. Must reserve 4 for 3 and 6 mo. tasting
Party Pig in the fridge, ~ 8 bottle equiv. remaining

XX Ale:
Primary fermentation since Sunday, 10-May-09.

Oud Bruin de Table:
Primary fermentation: started Wednesday, 27-May-09. Inoculated, I mean pitched, with a starter culture from Wyeast Activator of #1028, London Ale Yeast?.
Secondary fermentation: rack tonight, 05-Jun-09 and pitch with starter culture of Wyeast #3763, Roesalare blend.

3763 Roeselare Ale Blend VSS Apr-June 2009. A blend of lambic cultures including lactic bacteria. Produces beers with a complex, earthy profile and distinct pie cherry sourness from a Brettanomyces culture. Aging for up to 18 months is required for full flavor profile and acidity to develop. Will produce a very dry profile due to super-attenuative nature of mixed cultures Apparent attenuation: 80-plus%. Flocculation: variable. Optimum temp: 65°-85° F

Rodenbach Flanders sour ale

I bought some of this at the only local beer-seller that carries a significant number of Belgian ales -- Sunseed Coop (a 'health-food' coop). It was a wonderful drink for my sour-taste loving palate. As one of the textbook descriptions of Belgian sour ales mentions, they are not so much sour as they are refreshingly tart, quenchingly drinkable (or was the term 'quaffable' used instead?).
Because the 22 oz. brew cost in the neighborhood of $8.00 USD, I've decided to try to brew some of my own at home. But this stuff apparently takes a long time to mature, as much as 12 - 18 months. It can be drunk earlier, but it isn't as sour / tart as one that is conditioned longer.

References - Wild Yeast.
Lambic website
Rodenbach website

Experiment to replace Roseleare yeast from Wyeast, as it is a Limited Edition that is only available now, from Apr - Jun, 2009! Write to them to ask how often it might be available, as I would like to blend different ages, i.e., three year old (and/or two year old and/or 1 year old ) with 'freshly brewed or young Oud Bruin or Flanders sour brown ale.

Identify Real Ale - wikiHow

What? You really don't know what a REAL ALE is? Better surf on over and read this at wikihow. Identify Real Ale