re: Homebrewing Thread: Volume II

quote:

---

Made an easy pale ale. Always like to have something hoppy on tap. Helps that I already had a ton of hops, all the grains, and US-05 on hand.

---

I kegged my pale ale yesterday. Used river land malts from Colorado. Mostly a cascade west coast pale ale. I try to keep a lager, sour, and hoppy beer on tap at all times during the summer.

quote:

---

Loving my Italian pils. I didn't think I would notice too much of a difference between this and the German pils, but I love the hops in this one. Might be a new favorite of mine.

---

I don’t care for the one I made. I’ve made a helles and an Italian pils with the same Weyermann barke Pilsner malt and both of them taste too malty. I think the s barke malt has a heavy grain/flavor which is too much for these beer styles. I’m going back to regular weyermann pils malt or bestmalz next time.

quote:

---

have to go back and look, but I think I used the weyermann barke in mine. I

---

What yeast did you use? I used Saflager 34/70.

THinking back, i also used the hoshkurz decoction mash, which is basically a mini-decoction, on both beers. I wonder if that is giving me that heavy sweet flavor.

The italian pils, IMO, tastes like a little like cough medicine. I looked up what could cause that and it says if chlorine is in the water, it could taste like that, however i used distilled water from Rouse's. Wonder if their distilled isn't really distilled.

Do any of y'all order bulk grain? Trying to convince myself to get back in to brewing. I used to pick up sacks at LAHomebrew but that is not longer an option. Can't find any place to order from that doesn't rape with shipping.

Thanks, I'll check it out. Forgot about the Redstick mule program.

Moved my mostly Cascade West Coast Pale Ale over to the kegerator yesterday and had a glass. This keg will go quickly. This beer is incredibly drinkable. It's got some bitterness up front, with a little fruitiness, but the mouthfeel is amazing. It's soft, but not haze minerally soft. It needs a couple days to settle and clear out, but i can drink multiple of these. I wish it had a little more hop character up front, but that could also have been the glass i was using. I think i'm going to enter this one into Clash of the Carboys along with 3 others.

Plan to enter:

18B - American Pale Ale - Cascade Pale
28B - Mixed Ferm - Biere de Garde
28C - Wild Specialty Ale - Blackberry mixed ferm sour
34C - Experimental Beer - Aged hop mixed ferm sour

quote:

---

GeauxPack81

---

I love the clarity of your italian pils. Did you use single malt? My italian pils is a little darker. I tried to follow Tipopils recipe, which gave it similar color, though a tad lighter, than a czech pale lager.

quote:

---

I love the clarity of your italian pils. Did you use single malt?

---

Yep, IIRC all weyermann german pilsner malt.

I ended up entering it into clash of the carboys as well. The clarity really was cool to see in the bottle, it looked like I had bottled water. Should gave taken a pic... I used gelatin to clarify, and it's been in tap a month now.

quote:

---

First batch of hops picked.

---

I'm going to be harvesting Saturday. I am brewing up a german pils, but may add some fresh hops at flameout/whirlpool. I have a good bit of cascade and a handful of chinook.

ETA: Actually, doing a double brew day. Going to brew a brett saison for blending with a sour, and the fresh hop Pilsner. Rather than going the partial decoction, i'm going to try a step infusion mash.

Cascade



Chinook

Ordering ingredients for a couple more beers today.

Next beer planned is an Oatmeal stout. Hoping to enter this on in a competition if i can ever get my counterpressure filler figured out.

Beer after that will be a Czech Amber Lager. Thanks to an article in zymurgy and i think Craft beer magazine, i really want to try this out. No known major commercial examples so i'm flying blind with knowing how the style tastes. I'll be doing another half decoction (hochkurz) mash. Using floor malted pilsner and some mecca grade brand vienna and munich malt which is mechanically floor malted. And rather than a couple backs of 34/70, going to use a couple packages of czech lager yeast.

Should be 2 nice beers to have on tap for this fall.

The German Pils with fresh homegrown hops is on the diacetyl rest stage. Should be beginning my lagering next week for about 6 weeks. Should be kegged by October.

quote:

---

How'd you do?

---

Pale ale was a 30. I’m having trouble with bottling from the keg. Carb issues among others and comments stated astringency, which I can see. I think I’ve been brushing aside sparse temps and not giving sniugh attention at that step when I fly sparge.

Biere de garde mixed ferm got a 37 - dings against it were giving the beer a base style. Next mixed ferm I may avoid it if the base style isn’t strong enough. It’s more a sour ale than Biere de garde.

Blackberry sour got a 41 and advanced to a mini BOS in the table but didn’t place.
Aged hop beer got a 44 or 45. Got a bronze for category. Must have had some good beers in that category. That tied my highest score on a beer.

Overall got some really good feedback. I’m liking the digital score sheets. Much easier to read the comments.

quote:

---

My Italian Pils scored a 45, by far the best I've ever done... And it didn't place. Which seems odd. Guess there were just alot of beers in the light lager category

---

They combined a lot of categories so a lot of judging tables had 15-20 beers in them. From what they said at the ceremony, there were a lot of good beers made and very few bad scores given. Tough comp with some really good brewers. Great job with a 45 by the way. That’s an excellent score!

Do you bottle from the keg? I need some help in that area.