Beer Name: Green Bottle Lager See the Chop & Brew page about this beer.
Grains: 9.5 lbs Weyermann Eraclea Pils
.25 lbs Carahell
Hops: 1 oz Adeena 5.4% AA 60m
1 oz Hallertau 3.8% AA 15m
1 oz Saaz 2.9% AA 0m
Yeast: Imperial Hygee L25 Lager yeast. Starter made night before.
Misc:
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 02/04/23 02/19/23
Gravity: 1.050 1.008
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 12 qts 165 > 155 > ice > 149. After 1 hour > 148. Add 2 gallons boiling > 163. Got 3.7 gallons 14 brix. Added 3 gallons 180 > 168. 6.8 brix. Had 6.8 gallons of 10 brix. Boiled some in one pot on stove for about an hour. Had 5 gallons after adding starter. Aerated with pure O2. Was fermenting later that night. First couple days it's around 50F.
02/07 7:00 pm gravity check. 1.030. In ~ three days of fermenting it dropped 20 points. Maybe check Thurs am.
02/09/23 Thurs am. 1.015. Maybe it dropped at a slightly higher rate the last 1.5 days. But hopefully it is not totally done yet and if there is any diacetyl it can be eliminated. I don't know if I'm tasting any. Mostly I'm tasting yeast with maybe a little bit of hop flavor.
02/19/23 Added gelatin. Somewhat clear already. Hmm. Tastes good to me. Some hop flavor but idk how much aroma. Maybe a little spice. Danish lager yeast character? It's clean, flavorful, young at this point and no off flavors. Should be pretty tasty.
04/05/23 Came out very nice and somewhat close to a Carlsberg lager. It's not super diff than a German Pils but perhaps slightly.
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Beer Name: None More Black India Black Lager
Grains: 11.5 lbs Rahr Pils
.5 lbs chocolate
.5 lbs Crystal 30-37L
1 lb Carafa II
1.5 lbs Munich
1 lb wheat malt
Hops: 1 oz YQH -1320 fwh
.5 oz YQH -1320 60m
1 oz YQH -1320 45m
.5 oz YQH -1320 30m
19g YQH -1320 0 min. 15m hop stand. Was down to 187 then added...
19g YQH -1320. Held another 15m.
Yeast: Imperial Hygee. Starter made from washed yeast above.
Misc: 2 cups white sugar
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 03/11/23 03/29/23
Gravity: 1.085 1.014
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 20 qts 166 > 154 > ice > 152. After 90m > 149 (was at Chip's house and didn't turn on burners). Add 8 qts boiling > 161. Collected 5 gallons 17 brix. Add 2.75 gallons 180 > 168. 11.5 brix. Had 7.5 gallons of 14 brix. Ended with 5 gallons. Boiled some in 2 pots on stove for a while. Aerated with pure O2. Was fermenting that night. Is going now around 52F.
03/15 1.048 Been fermenting at 52. Dropped almost 20 points but still has prob almost 30 more to go? Might start swirling daily and maybe raise the temp slightly.
03/29/23 Looks like it fermented well. Chocolate in nose, maybe some alc. Hops? Flavor is strong. Some hop bitterness but not as much as I remember from last time. Hopefully enough. Hint of alc too. Might need to mellow a little. 9.3%, geesh. Not bad. Hopefully carbonation will perk it up a bit. Maybe more like a hoppy stout than a true India Black Lager. Kind of a roasty dryness in finish. Will be interesting if I can pick out some of the unique hop flavors that are supposed to be there.
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Beer Name: Maibock (bigger version of my Helles)
Grains: 12 lbs Pils (7 lbs Rahr, 5 lbs Weyermann Eraclea)
1 lb Carapils
1 lb Munich
Hops: 1 oz German Tradition 5.1% AA 60m
1 oz Hallertau 3.4% 60m
1 oz Hallertau 3.4% 0m
Yeast: Imperial Hygee, starter made from washed yeast above.
Misc:
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 04/01/23 04/12/23
Gravity: 1.063 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 17.5 qts 165 > 152. After 1 hour > 151. Add 8 qts 190 > 159. 15.5 brix 4.2 gallons. Add 3 gallons 180 > 164. 8.5 brix. Had 7.4 gallons of 12 brix. Boiled some in two pots for a while. Had little over 5 gallons before adding yeast. Aerated with pure O2. Is now in upper 40s and waiting for it to get going (24 hours later).
04/05/23 Peculiar start to this one. I had it pretty cold at first around 46F. I noticed some airlock activity but no real krausen for over 48 hours. Then on the 3rd day it finally had a decent krausen. Now on the 4th day since brewing I took a reading and it's only down to about 1.056. It is warmer now and more actively bubbling, around 52. I hope it will continue to ferment down all the way. I wonder if this jar of washed yeast was different than the one I used for None More Black. Maybe it had less or less viable yeast in it.
04/12/23 Sure didn't like how this started so slowly but it finished OK. It was nerve wracking for a couple days. I think it was just the coldness of it being around 46. Tastes clean and decent. I did not add gelatin mostly because I kind of forgot and wanted to keep kegging but also to see if it gets pretty clear in time anyway.
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Beer Name: Smoked Helles Stalljen Kveik
Grains: 6 lbs Rahr Pils (found that I still had some left so used it up)
1 lb Weyermann Eraclea Pils
3 lbs Weyermann Rauchmalt
.5 lb Carapils
.5 lb Munich
Hops: 1 oz German Tradition 5.7% AA 60m
Yeast: Stalljen K.22 Kveik Yeastery
Misc:
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 05/06/23 05/17/23
Gravity: 1.053 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
-13.75 qts 166 > 152. After 1 hr > 151. Add 8 qts boil > 163. 3.5 gallons of 14 brix.
Add 3 gallons 176 > 168. 6.2 brix. Had 6.7 gallons of 10 brix. Boiled some in 1 pot on stove for quite a while. Ended up with barefly 5 gallons in fermenter. No yeast starter. Pitched dried yeast packet at about 75F. Was fermenting a few hours later. After 24 hours it was up to 85-87. Used electric blanket but then turned it off. Peaked at temp of 88. On May 8 it is slowing down and temp is down to 81.
05/17/23 Has gotten clearer. Added gelatin too. Some smoke in flavor and taste. Kveik yeast? Not overly noticeable TBH. Fairly clean beer maybe with some ripe orange flavor. No off flavors which is remarkable for an 88F fermentation. Seems like it is similar to the Smoked Helles's I've made in the past with maybe a little more yeast flavor than the lager yeasts.
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Grains: 4 lbs white wheat
4 lbs Eraclea Pils
Hops: .5 oz Hallertau 10 min
Yeast: Lallemand Wildbrew Philly Sour
Misc: 5 oz corn sugar added at flame out. (also some rice hulls in the mash tun)
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 06/03/23 06/17/23
Gravity: 1.041 1.006
% Alcohol:
Notes:
-10 qts 165 > 152. After 1 hr > 151. Add 6 qts boiling > 166. Added in some rice hulls. Did only 6 qts cause gain bill was lower but ended with like 4.75 gallons in the end (6 gallons pre boil) so should have just done the usual 8. 14 brix, 3 gallons. Added 3 gallons 175 > 169. 5.5 brix. Had 6 gallons of 8.5 brix. Ended with 4.75 gallons so added 1 qt of water and decreased OG by .05 to be about 1.041. Is now about 77-78F 24 hours later. No active visible signs yet which I am told is to be expected. Did not overly aerate or rehydrate yeast.
06/17 / Fermented right around 80 for the majority of the main ferment. Going into keg it's a little hazy. Not to be unexpected. Earthy, lemon in aroma. Flavor is interesting. Definitely some noticeable acidic edge (reminds me I was maybe going to try to take a pH reading). Huh, not as cleanly tart as maybe a kettle sour or Berliner weisse. Not unenjoyable. I think with carbonation and coolness it could be rather refreshing.
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06/04/23
Got propane tank filled at U-Haul and might have been slightly cheaper.
took 4.1 gallons. Think it was roughly 11 batches since last fill.
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Beer Name: Allagash White clone (got from Paul Fowler?)
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Grains: 5.5 lbs Rahr pale malt
2 lbs red wheat
2 lbs raw white wheat
.5 lbs Carapils
.5 lbs flaked oats
Hops: .3 oz Nugget 60m
1 oz Crystal 10m
1 oz Saaz 0m
Yeast: Imperial B44 Whiteout. No starter, no extra aeration.
Misc: some rice hulls
14g orange peel, 0m (recipe calls for 7g)
14g crushed coriander 0m
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 06/17/23 6/30/23
Gravity: 1.042 1.006
% Alcohol:
Notes:
.06/17/23 12.5 qts 164 > 151. After 1 hr > 149. Add 8 qts boiling > 165. Add in rice hulls > 164. Collected 3.5 gallons 13 brix. Add 3 gallons 175 > 165. 5.5 brix. Had 6.5 gallons o f9 brix. Boiled some on stove for a while but then had to add a quart of water at end (and adjust gravity down from 1.044) to get to 5 gallons. Was fermenting that night. Stayed at 70 whole time. Had blow off in airlock in the morning. Should use blow off tube for this yeast.
06/30/23 Was going to keg a week ago but it was still actively bubbling which I thought was odd. Nice aroma, orange peel, coriander, etc. Taste is kind of dry which is what I was afraid of when I saw I did not get near the target gravity of the upper 1.040s and when I sampled the wort sample on brew day. I hope it will be drinkable, maybe just not like the typical Wit flavor I like. I even wondered if I should add more malt in. Guess I should trust my instincts but I was also trying to follow the recipe. Might be ok but just take expectation adjustment. Wonder how it will compare to the real Allagash. At least it is not overly coriandery, which I worried about.
8/01/23 I would not make this again the same way, if ever. It's too much coriander and I also don't know about the raw wheat. I think I missed out on gravity because they did not suggest doing extra steps for the unmalted grain. We do a side by side in the video so check that for our notes. It's drinkable, at least, but does not contain all the characteristics I like in a wheat. There is not the plush, pillowy malt character and softness, along with the spice.
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Grains: 6 lbs pale
6 lbs white wheat
Hops: .5 oz Hallertau 60m
1 oz Adeena 5.4% AA 60m
Yeast: ~ 2.5 tbsp Slurry from above Stalljen kveik
Misc: some rice hulls stirred into mash after 1 hour of mashing.
~ 7 lbs frozen garden raspberries
~ 2.25 lbs frozen garden plums
~ few cups of fresh cherries
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 7/29/23 08/13/23
Gravity: 1.058 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 15 qts 166 > 154. After 1 hour > 153. Stir in rice hulls > 149. Add 8 qts boiling > 164. 3.8 gallons of 15 brix. Add 3 gallons of (?) > 165. 7.5 brix. Had 6.9 gallons of 11 brix. Boiled some in two pots on stove. No extra aeration. Was fermenting hours later. Got as high as about 77 but otherwise in the low to mid 70s. Was not trying to get it overly warm. By 3rd day was slowing down dramatically.
- 8/02 add fruit, about 7 lbs raspberries, 2.25 lbs plums, and maybe 3-4 cups (loose) of fresh, sweet cherries. Punched down cap and fruit a couple days later, then again a few more days after that. Initial taste is mostly raspberry juice.
- i took the reading of the beer before I added the fruit but I didn't write it down. Maybe it is in a video.
- 08/13 pretty tart and a strong raspberry flavor. Not much plum or cherry but I figured. It's not bad but might work blended with antoher beer. Been putting some in with the Wit. Also brewed the next beer to blend in the glass.
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Grains: 10 lbs Eraclea Pils
Hops: .5 oz Belma 10.3% AA (kind of old)
1.5 oz Belma 0m hopstand for 15m.
1 oz Glacier 0m hopstand for 15m.
Yeast: some Stalljen slurry from above, couple tbsp
Misc:
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 08/18/23 08/25/23
Gravity: 1.050 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 12.5 qts 165 > 154 > stir > 152. after 1 hour > 151. Add 8 qts boiling > 165. 14.5 brix. Collect 3.2 gallons. Add 3 gallons 175 > 167. 6 brix. Had 6.7-6.8 gallons of 10 brix. Boiled some on stove for a while. Ended up boiling off too much. Had to add back 2 qts water at end. Adjusted gravity down to 1.050 with calculations (was about 1.055). Fermented out in a few days and was about 70 the whole time with ice jugs.
08/25 added gelatin. don't know if it will do much good w/o it being already cold. Taste is somewhat bitter, orange peel. Grassy. Will have to look up with hop contributes. Too bitter? Hope not.
09/06 Will give it more time before official tasting but already getting better. Changing into some hop flavor. Also works well with blending in Rasp Wheat and Philly Sour.
10/30 Beer ran out a week ago but was really drinking nice down the stretch. Goes to show you can make a simple beer and have it be yummy.
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Grains: 12 lbs Eraclea Pils
1 oz (28g) chocolate rye
Hops: .5 oz Mighty Axe (defunct hop farm) Arctic hops 11% AA 60m
1.5 oz Mighty Axe (defunct hop farm) Arctic hops 11% AA 0m held 15 m, then add.... (was around 190 I think)
1 oz Mighty Axe (defunct hop farm) Arctic hops 11% AA held for 15 m, so 30m hop stand total.
Yeast: Imperial Mangosteeni I10 Kveik strain, pitched packet straight into wort.
Misc:
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 09/02/23 09/08/23
Gravity: 1.061 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 15 qts 165 > 154 > stir > 153. After 1 hour > 152. Add 8 qts boil > 165. 16 brix. Collect 3.8 gallons. Add 3 gallons 174 > 166. 8 brix. Had 7.3 gallons 11 brix. Boiled some on two pots on stove for 45m. Ended with about 5 gallons even. Fermented at 80 with a peak of 84. Ramping down on fermentation about about 2 days.
09/08 Hop aroma? Bitter, green grass, alc note. Think it should be OK. Some interesting hop flavors. Have to check video for what Artic is supposed to give.
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Grains: 12 lbs Rahr pale
1 lb Brown malt
.25 lbs Dark Crystal
.25 lbs Extra Dark Crystal
Hops: 1 oz Columbus 15.1% AA (80m. had to boil longer to reduce volume)
1 oz Columbus 15.1% AA (50m)
1 oz Willamette 4.0% AA 0m
Yeast: Imperial Dieter, starter made night before
Misc: 1 lb Dark Candi Syrup D-90
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 10/08/23 10/21/23
Gravity: 1.067 1.011
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- got 5.25 gallons. had 7.25 gallons so boiled some on 2 pots on stove for a while but still wasn't enough to reduce volume so extended overall boil. 17 qts 164 > 152. After 1 hour > 150. Add 8 qts boil > 164. 15.5 brix. 4 gallons. Add 3 gallons 177 > 167. 8 brix. Had 7.25 gallons of 11.5 brix. Used pure O2. Fermenting hours later. Was at about 66 the next morning. Swapping out ice jugs. Big krausen has formed.
10/11 Not super dark? Not as dark as before, from .25 lb less brown malt maybe? Little alc in nose. Taste is ok. Brown malt huskiness, lightly burnt toast. Hops? Not overly so. Seems like it can use a couple weeks to mature and I feel like that is how this recipe usually goes.
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Grains: 12 lbs Barke Pils
.5 lbs Carastan 30-40L
.5 lbs Carahell 11L
Hops: 1 oz Waimea 17.4 AA 60 min
.5 oz Wakatu 7.4% AA 45 min
.5 oz Wakatu 7.4% AA 30 min
.5 oz Motueka 7.7% AA 15 min
.5 oz Motueka 7.7% AA 0 min
wait for 15m then add
1 oz Wakatu 7.4% AA
1 oz Motueka 7.7 % AA
Yeast: Imperial Global Lager. Starter made night before.
Misc: 1 lb white sugar
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 10/28/23 11/11/23
Gravity: 1.076 1.009
% Alcohol:
Notes:
.-16 qts 165 > 153. After 1 hour > 151. Add 8 qts boil > 163. Collect 4.1 gallons of 15 brix. Add 3 gallons 178 >168. 9 brix. Had 7.4 gallons of 11 brix. Boiled some in 2 pots on stove. Boiled big pot for 10m before adding hops. This allowed me to end with exactly 5 gallons before adding yeast starter and I got a pretty good gravity out of it. Was fermenting that night. Pressue built up to around 13. Was about 61F. Brought it into slightly warmer area so it can warm up and might even bring it upstairs as it slows down.
11/11 Overall fermentation was in the 12-14 psi range mostly. Temp was in the low to mid 60's. Never really higher than that. Did not add gelatin. Alc in aroma, also orange or tangerine. Kind of like my normal IPL's. Initial impression is of sweet, malt body but then get hit with some bitterness. Piney, grapefruit, finishes slighlty dry. At this early stage I think it is quite promising. Sort of dropped the plastic pressurized fermenter when cleaning it. I don't think it cracked but it was exactly what I was worried about.
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Fermentables: 5 gallons apple juice from club buy
Yeast: 2 packets 71B
Misc: 2 cups white sugar
2 cups brown sugar
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 11/04/23 11/25/23
Gravity: 1.052 > 1.066 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
-11/15/23 Fermented probalby in mid 60s in kitchen. No air lock activity but think there was a leak in the bucket lid. Took lid off and saw big krausen. Will rack to secondary maybe 2-3 weeks after first brew day. Still haven't kegged cider made in Nov 2022 yet but probably soon.
11/25 A little surprised it was not lower but that's fine. Most likely it will continue to drop. Hazy. Taste was just about perfect as is. Would prob not back sweet but it will probably go lower. If not too low or much below 0 maybe I won't need 3 full cans of concentrate.
07/29/24 .994 Racked onto 8.5 lbs raspberries. Not clear. Taste is ok. Thin, tart, dry. Going to need a lot of back sweetening esp with all the tartness from the raspberries. Will probably try to find raspberry apple juice concentrate.
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Beer Name: Experimental Blonde
Grains: 12 lbs Eraclea Pils
Hops: .5 oz HBC 586 C.V. 11.8% AA 60m
1 oz USDA ARS 2000010-008 11.1% 0m
.5 oz HBC 586 C.V. 11.8% AA 0m held 15 min. down to 182. then....
1 oz USDA ARS 2000010-008 11.1%
1 oz HBC 586 C.V. 11.8% AA 0m
Yeast: Lallemand | LalBrew® BRY-97 West Coast Ale Yeast
Misc:
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 11/24/23 12/02/23
Gravity: 1.061 1.010
% Alcohol:
Notes:
-15 qts 166 > 156 > ice > 152. After 1 hour > 151. Add 8 qts boil > 162. 15.5 brix, 3.7 gallons. Add 3 gallons 174 > 166. 7.5 brix. Hadd little over 7 gallons. Boiled some in 2 pots. Ended with just under 5 gallons. Took a full day to get going after just dumping in yeast (expired 10/23). But then took off. Was in low 60s for first couple days then brought upstairs where it got up to about 70. Brought downstairs as it was winding down.
11/30 gravity check. 1.010. moved to cold room. Hazy. Strong aroma. Lime cantelope? Strawberry, pine. Taste is full of hop flavor but kind of different. Finsihes bitter. Maybe a little yeast bite. What do they say about those hops... green apple, grassy, stone fruit, herbal, mango, guava, citrus with sligh sulfur and herbal notes. I guess yeah, all of that is probably there. Hopefully it will clear a bit and get more defined but not bad.
01/01/24 Thuis beer has been on a roller coaster. Had Dawson and Chip over and we tried it and it was NOT good. Strong diacetyl like aroma. Then in time that started to go away and it was not terrible. Chip and I did a video tasting. Now after that, I think that aroma is coming back. It is most likely something to do with the yeast but it could be related to the hops too. IDK. I am doing dry January so I'll see how it is in a month and maybe just dump it if it is still that way.
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Beer Name: Mexican Agave Lager (Northern Brewer kit)
Click on pic for larger version.
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VIDEO on this beer.
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Grains: 8 lbs Rahr Prem Pils (I think I had more like 8.5 lbs)
.5 lbs Carapils
Hops: 1 oz Tettnang 3.3% 60m
1 oz Tettnang 3.3% 10m
Yeast: Omega Yeast OYL -113 Mexican Lager (2 packets pitched directly)
Misc: 1.5 lbs Agave syrup. 10m
Brew Date:
Rack to Secondary:
Keg Date:
Date: 12/29/23 02/03/24
Gravity: 1.055 1.008
% Alcohol:
Notes:
- 11.25 qts 169 > 154. NB said to mash at that temp. After 1 hour > 152. Add 8 qts boiling > 164. Collected 3.2 gallons 13.1 brix. Add 3 gallons 178 > 166. 6 brix. Had 6.5 gallons of 10.5 brix. Boiled 10 min before adding first hops (NB said to do 30m but didn't think I had enough wort). Ended with little over 5 gallons. Aerated with pure O2. Been fermenting in low 50s. Will do gravity check maybe tomorrow.
01/02/24 1.039. Was at 50F. Might try to bring to a slightly warmer spot.
02/03/24 Dry January meant some lagering time for this beer. Quite clear. Skipped gelatin. Honey and alc in aroma? Taste is clean, tasty Pils malt, maybe a hint of alc note in taste? No real hop flavor or bitterness to speak of. Wonder if the honey ferments out and boosts the alc. Should be perfectly fine.
03/15/24 Still drinking fine. Got fairly clear with time. It is balanced towards the sweet side, almost even more than the regular Helles. The agave does give it somewhat of a hard to describe character. Almost like an extra essence of booze or maybe tequila. It doesn't make it undrinkable but I would probably not use it again or at least not a full 1.5 lbs of it.
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© 2023 Don Osborn