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)

First Year Grape Vines

Earlier this year we was able to plant muscadine and scuppernong grape vines. Both species are native to the southeastern United States and do very well warm and humid climates. The plan is to brew both grapes separately and to have a small blend. Usually first year grapes have a very small berry yield but all the vines are doing well and have lots of clusters of grapes already growing. They look like they are doing so well, that we've already planned another row to go in for next year.

Muscadine and Scuppernong Row

Muscadine Cluster

Scuppernong Cluster

Vine Trellis

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!

Making Pinot Noir

We recently purchased Selection Estate Series Sonoma Valley Pinot Noir. This will be the second time we've brewed this and am excited to brew this again. This kit comes from Winexpert, the largest manufacturer of award winning wine making products. Brewing these kits are about the easiest brewing I've experienced. But they produce some of the best tasting wine I've had. Here is the setp by step process.

Pinot Noir Kit

Contents of the kit include...

Huge Bag 'O Grape Juice

• Instuctions
• Juice
• Bentonite
• Metabisulfate
• Sorbate
• Isinglass
• Yeast
• Oak Powder - I do not use this ingredient. I filter my wine and it clogs up the filter and makes it nearly impossible for the wine to flow through because the powder is too fine. I use my own oak stick or shavings.

Kit Contents

First Step is to clean and sanitize all all of your equipment. StarSan is my preferred sanitizer because it's no-rinse. I don't have to sanitized then rinse all of it out thoroughly be for I brew.

I added a half gallon of spring water to my fermenter to stir in the bentonite. I'm using a oak stick to stir. I also let the oak stick stay in the wine throughout the entire fermentation process.

Note: Wood harbors bacteria and other microbes that you don't want in your wine. Steam any  wood for 15 minutes before  using it in your brews. I also soak it in sanitizer before but that's totally unnecessary if you steam it.

After this I pour in the grape juice. Then I will top off the fermenter with spring water to get the desired volume or initial gravity. Stir Thoroughly to mix all liquid.

When I have my desired volume, I get a wine thief and hydrometer to get the original gravity reading. This wine in particular had a reading of 1.092 OG. A full fermentation should get this wine to around 12% ABV.

Hydrometer In Wine Thief

Now we pitch the yeast. These kits include a packet of dry yeast or you could substitue with liduid wine yeast. The dry yeast suits me just fine for now. This means I don't have to make starters or aerate more than shaking because dry yeast is designed for oxygen deprived musts. Your juice should be around 70 to 75 degrees fahrenheit for fermentation. Temperature is one of the most important factors for good fermentation.

Note: Yeast manufacturers suggest that you re-hydrate the yeast before pitching. I have never done this and still had excellent results. Also, the instructions of these kits to sprinkle contents in and it will activate itself.

Now I'm ready to place the lid and airlock on and wait for primary fermentation to end. I will periodically check it for signs of fermentation and get sample readings with the hydrometer after the next five days. The hydrometer should read around 1.002. 

Fermenting Wine

I will update this post in the next several days to finish the entire process. Stay tuned...

First Year Hops

Well it's been nearly a month since I planted hop rhizomes and they are looking pretty good. I've had almost two feet of growth on the Nugget and a foot on the Cascade. I was concerned about the Cascade when I received them in the mail. The rhizome had been broken in the mail and looked pretty rough. I went ahead and planted them and I'm glad I did. They are a little behind the Nugget but they still look nice and healthy. Can't wait to see the yield in the fall. I know they won't produce mush being first year plants, but things are looking good. I'll keep posting updates on their progress throughout the year.

Cascade - 4 weeks

Nugget - 4 weeks

Beer Citadel Update

Beer Citadel is planning on expanding this blog to more topics than just brewing beer. Don't worry, this site will be mostly about the brewing of beer. But, I will be posting some updates on my first year hop vines very soon. And my grape vines for wine. What's that? Wine making? Yes! I will be brewing two batches of wine this weekend and will document the entire process. We also have some more brewery builds and even some beer based recipes on the way. Thank you for following.

Home Brew Talk

HomeBrewTalk.com is one of my favorite website for homebrewing. It is one of the best forums I've ever been a part of and continues to give beer makers a wealth of knowledge and resources. If you are a beginner or and old hat at the hobby and you haven't been to HBT, you are missing out. They have topics on beginning brewing all the way up to advanced all-grain electric brewing. Many home brewers there have been brewing mead, wine, and beer for many years even some have been professional brewers. If you are just joining or are a veteran member, please don't hesitate to say hello to HelperMonkey, that's me.

The have also launched a new website to where you can talk about everything beer. Whether it's your favorite pub or the best commercial brew you've ever put to your lips. Check out Beer Forum.