Late Mash Additions

Wait a minute did I mean late hop additions?  Nope, some grains can put off a bit of a sharp flavor when going through a mash that can really show up in the finished beer.  My tastes in particular pick something up I can only describe as acrid when using black patent malt to ad a bit of roast/color.  Looking for ways to counteract this I thought about steeping the black patent separately but thought that my be a bit of a hassle to execute on brew day.  Wait, how about adding it right before the end of the mash so it's just in for the sparge?  It works out pretty well although I'm not 100% committed to doing this all the time (sometimes roast with a little bite is just what you need) it can help you get the flavor/color you want without going overboard.

This is during the brew process for the  Cascadian Dark Ale that was posted the other day.

Process:

1.  Mill the Black Patent Separately, Obviously you Can't Add Later if You Don't

2.  Sprinkle on the Top of the Mash Before the Vorlauf

Huge Barley Wine The Begining

We've got a problem, some of the grain stock is getting a little up there in age due to a busy portion of last year.  That coupled with a recent order to spruce up the options has left quite a surplus that needs a use sooner than later.  The logical option? Create a huge barley wine.  I'm hoping to detail the process here as it's developed over the next month or two with periodic updates during the aging process that's expected to take nearly a year.

This first step (although completely out of sequence) was mainly to get the process kicked off and make me commit to the idea.  Yesterday I crafted 4 lbs of Belgian candy sugar to add in steps during the fermentation.  Belgian candy sugar is commonly used in dubbles and triples to help get that lighter body in a high gravity beer while adding some great unique flavors.  It's available at most home brew shops and usually costs a pretty penny.  You can however  make your own at home since it's simply invert sugar.

Step 1 - Gather Ingredients/Equipment

Table sugar - use how ever many pounds of candy sugar you want to produce
Creme of Tartar - 1/8 tsp per pound of sugar
Water - just enough to cover the sugar, I used 1/2 a cup per pound
Candy Thermometer (got mine at a grocery store for <$6)

Homebruin Cup II Update

Rye Ale - Bronze Metal Winner for the American Beers Category

You may remember that we posted that a few beers would be entered in the the Homebruin Cup II club competition.  Judging took place yesterday and we are thrilled to have placed with one of the two entries that we supplied.  A simple American Rye Ale that we put together took the bronze metal in the American Beers category. I'll post an abbreviated version of the recipe below if anyone wants to give it a go. 

This was a tough competition with tons of great beers for every category.  I had the privilege to serve as a steward for the Amber Beers category that the eventual best of show came out of and can tell you that while I did not get the opportunity to sample all of the gold metal winners the Scottish 80 that won the flight was truly spectacular.


Ryevalry - Named for the combination of English and American Ingredients

Amt Name Type # %/IBU 11 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 1 52.4 % 8 lbs Rye Malt (4.7 SRM) Grain 2 38.1 % 2 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L (120.0 SRM) Grain 3 9.5 % 1.25 oz Magnum [12.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 4 29.1 IBUs 1.25 oz Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 5 2.1 IBUs 1.0 pkg East Coast Ale (White Labs #WLP008) [35.49 ml] Yeast 6 -
Est Original Gravity: 1.052 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.011 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.3 %
Bitterness: 31.2 IBUs
Est Color: 15.2 SRM
Single infusion Mash @150°F for 60 minutes
Edit - The Yeast listed above was grown up in a 2 liter starter from the original tube for the 10 gallon batch
	Many more posts to come!

Duchess - IPA

This India Pale Ale is definately not your traditioanly American version. It was designed to have distinct american hop aroma with a gentle bitterness that is present but not overwhelming. This a very pleasant and delicate beer with a deep orange color and sweet floral aroma. It's also "untraditional" in the fact that it calls for a whopping 38% of vienna malt in the grain bill. This supplies the deep orange color and the sweet malty aroma.

Appearance- Deep burnt orange with a two finger off-white head. Hazy and unfiltered.
Aroma - A subtle balance of sweet/floral/citrus.
Taste - Up-front, smooth, resiny bitterness quickly followed by a mild caramel sweetness.
Mouthfeel - A little thicker than your normal IPA. Lacks the traditional crispness.

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Duchess
Brewer: Christopher Vaught
Asst Brewer: Andrew Campbell
Style: American IPA
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (50.0) Pleasant aroma of slight floral and citrus. Up front bitterness but very delicate. Mild maltiness. All around good IPA. On the soft side of the IPA spectrum.

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.00 gal    
Boil Size: 6.19 gal
Estimated OG: 1.071 SG
Estimated Color: 12.1 SRM
Estimated IBU: 46.1 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU    
6 lbs         Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM)          Grain        46.15 %    
5 lbs         Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM)                     Grain        38.46 %    
2 lbs         Carastan (35.0 SRM)                       Grain        15.38 %    
0.50 oz       Pearle [7.00 %]  (60 min)                 Hops         11.1 IBU    
1.00 oz       Saaz [5.50 %]  (60 min)                   Hops         17.5 IBU    
1.00 oz       Cascade [5.40 %]  (30 min)                Hops         13.2 IBU    
1.25 oz       Cascade [5.40 %]  (5 min)                 Hops         4.3 IBU    
1 Pkgs        Safale American  (DCL Yeast #US-05)       Yeast-Ale                


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 13.00 lb
----------------------------
Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Step Time     Name               Description                         Step Temp  
60 min        Mash In            Add 13.00 qt of water at 168.9 F    154.0 F    


Notes:
------
Mash has been calculated at 1:1 grist to water ratio for a maltier wort that will compensate for a high hop rate thus giving more balance.

Sparge volume is a little conservative for our system. A minimum of 4.51gal for sparge volume has been calculated for our system.

Bitttering hops for a delicate and clean bitterness.

Flavor and aroma hops have been selected for their floral and citrusy characteristics.




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