Batch 55 tasting notes

Side by side with fat tire
Pours darker, slightly cloudier than ft
Head the same color and size, ft laces more, less even, mine is fine bubbles only
Aroma nearly identical, malty, my hops are earthier, ft is more fruity
Mouth feel, mine is more chunky, ft is almost watery, filtered?
Flavor, both malty with light hops, mine is yeasty-pepper banana, ft is fruity-pears
Finish ft is clean, fruity ester, hops not really apparent.  All malt, clean.  Mine finishes with slight earthy hops, malt bitterness, yeast.

To get closer, mash lower temp, up Vienna drop Munich, american hops (cascades) early in boil.  Need us-05, fresh, at about 65-70 df.

Mine is better, stop trying to copy ft.

Next weekend

Dubbel.

Complex malt blend with chocolate, munich, amber, caramel, vienna.  Particularly munich.  Pils base.

Shoot for 6.75% abv.

Hops at 60 and 30 mins, go light on them.  Goldings and Northdown?

Northdown seems to be my new favorite hop.

Batch 59 Baltic Porter

3 lbs gwm Vienna
2.75 lbs muntons Maris otter
1 lb German dark Munich
8 oz MFB caramel 120
8 oz flaked wheat
4 oz Belgian chocolate
2 oz UK roasted barley, steeped whole at room temp about 2 hrs, strained tea added to boil pot at first wort
1/4 tsp soda in mash
SRM 31

Mash 154 1 hr. pH 5.2.

TOG 1.077 (80% eff)

OG into boil 1.073 (76% eff)

60 mins boil
60 mins10 gr challenger 8.9% 17 IBU
15 mins 12 gr German northern brewer 9.6% 11 IBU
15 mins 9 gr mt hood 5.1% 4 IBU
15 mins 1/2 tsp Irish moss
32 IBU

OG into fermenter 1.068. 70% overall eff

Pitch with fresh packet us-05 at 72 df
Move to 67 df with blanket.  Full krausen at 72 df 17 hrs, remove blanket.

Abv 6.4% est

Rack to secondary 1/4/14, leave at 66 df.

Bottle 1/17/14 with 110 gr table sugar.

Batch 58 Vienna

2.75 lbs gwm Vienna
2.5 lbs TFS golden promise
4 oz mfb caramel 120
2 oz German dark Munich
1/2 tsp CaCl

SRM 10

Mash 10 mins 130
60 mins 150
15 mins 154
pH 5.0

TOG 1.054
OG into boil 1.049 73% eff?

75 min boil
75 mins 6 gr rogers cascades 5%? 6 IBU
15 mins 1/2 tsp Irish moss
10 mins 10 gr northdown 9.4% 7 IBU

13 IBU

OG into fermenter 1.052 (78% eff)

Abv 5.0% est

Pitch with us-05v in 1/2 qt starter at 72df, move to 60 df for primary, full krausen at 24 hrs.

Rack to secondary 12/28, move to 67 df.

Bottle 1/10/14, 120 gr table sugar.  Yield 30@12oz, 360 oz.

Mexico batch

Beer made at La Colmena, Mexico City.  Brewed 12/13/13 as a beer making workshop.

3 gallons

3 lbs muntons light DME
8 oz mfb caramel 120
8 oz German dark Munich

SRM 15

Steep grains in muslin sack 30 mins at 150 df
Add DME, start boil at 3 gallons

Boil 60 mins
60 mins add 1/2 oz saaz 2.9%. 8 IBU
15 mins add 1/2 tsp Irish moss
10 mins add 1/2 oz northdown 8.6%. 8 IBU

Boil kind of weak, split between 4 pots

Chill in ice bath.

Add 1 gallon rinse water

Pitch with packet of fermentis safeale us-05

Leave in primary 2 weeks

Left instructions to bottle with 100 grams sugar.

Abv est 5.0.  No Og readings.

Batch 57 Sweet Cascade

5 lbs cmc 2-row
1.75 lbs golden promise
12 oz mfb caramel 120
1/2 tsp CaCl
1/2 tsp gypsum

SRM 17

Mash 130 df 10 mins
152 df 60 mins. Normal thickness (1.5 qt/lb)
pH 5.0

TOG 1.072
OG 1.062 into boil 69%?

90 min boil
90 mins 8 gr nicks centennials 5%? 9 IBU
90 mins 28 gr rogers cascades 5%?  30 IBU
45 mins 28 gr rogers cascades 5%? 26 IBU
15 mins 1/2 tsp Irish moss
15 mins 28 gr rogers cascades 5%? 14 IBU
Flameout 14 gr cascades 6.7%

79 IBU?

OG into fermenter 1.066 (73% eff)

Abv est 6.5%

Pitch with house s-04 in 1/2 qt starter at 72 df, move to 62 df.  12/9 am - minor activity, 20 secs, 1/2 inch foam. Cap flew off overnight.

12/9 pm 10 secs, flurries, weird billowy foam.  Move upstairs, but stays at 61 df overnight.
12/10 am move upstairs to 68 df. 12/11 midday 71 df going strong (5 secs).  Move to 66 df.

Rack to secondary 12/19.  Leave at 67 df+/-.

Bottle 12/28 w 100 gr table sugar.  Yield 25@12oz, 2@500ml, 334 oz.

Going to Mexico

Leaving for Mexico next week.  Alizarin asked me to teach her peeps how to brew.  She asked for a list of equipment/supplies.  I sent one, and she replied that it sounds complicated.  She indicated, however, that they have friends who brew, so I figure that's a start.

I scoured the internet for brewing supplies in Mexico City, and found a single grain wholesaler.  I'm hoping the friends who brew know of a shop.

Here's my plan:  I plan to get a 3 gallon batch of some sort of amber ale into a fermenter and leave bottling instructions.  I noticed a nice water carboy in the background while skyping, and figure they have a kitchen and probably an aggregate of 4 gallons of cooking pots, and access to bags of ice and bleach.

So the things I plan to bring are yeast, a 3 lb bag of dme, a pound of specialty malt (maybe 50/50 crystal120 and munich), and a couple ounces of hops.  I hope they can locate a thermometer, some sort of clean cloth sack so I can steep the specialty malt at a reasonable temperature, and a hose to siphon with.

Sounds like a worthy way to spend time in Mexico City.

Batch 51 vienna tasting notes

Brewed 10/12/13

Pours nice blonde golden, a little haze, smallish tan head that stays for a while.

Smells vanilla malt, slight fruit.

Mouth feel, pleasant crisp feel, a little cling but carbonation cleans it right up.

Flavor, hops start to come out, cutting through vanilla maltiness.  Hops are a little grassy, but pleasant spiciness overall.

Finish hop spice and hop bitterness, too much bitterness.

Overall impression, nice beer, sweet pleasant beverage.  Could reduce bitterness, but northdown is nice flavor.  Try without oats, add 1 oz Munich.

Roast malt choices

Try chocolate.  Next porter.

Batch 52 baltic porter tasting notes

Pours clear, black with brown hues, deep red, moderate tan head, lacing is slight.

Smells dirty, earthy hops, earthy roast malt, something is mediciny.  Licorice? Hops or yeast?  Maybe the roast barley and the s04 together.

Mouth feel, thick but balanced with pleasant carbonation.  A little clingy/coats a bit, not as hearty as hoped.  Skip Irish moss next time?

Flavor, again strong medicinal semi licorice tang, sweet underneath, roast is there with slight annoying astringency, no malt flavor to speak of. Or is that medicine the Willamette?  

Finish, medicine again, almost plastic. 

Overall, there's something not quite right here, either hops are too earthy or added too late, or yeast needs to be changed.  Also, needs more maltiness, either Vienna or Munich.  pH seems low.  Needs time in the bottle.

Next time, reduce amber, increase Munich, new pack of cleaner yeast (us05), hops at 60 and 30 only, go with nobles, no more English style, try a little soda.  Try cold steeping roast barley, use some chocolate instead?