Category Archives: tastings

Otter-Squatch Wheat Ale

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A light wheat ale is an American homebrew classic, but it has been awhile since I last made this style. I threw together a simple recipe, which is upside-down from my usual blend of 60/40 wheat/2-row. There was no particular reason for this, other than it just seemed like the thing to do. I had a hop variety on-hand called Sasquatch, and decided to use those up here. My preference on American wheat ales is a little fruity/citrusy yeast character, rather than super clean or super phenolic. Lutra kveik seemed like a perfect yeast choice along those lines; clean-ish, but not overly clean, and potential for some interesting flavors. “Lutra” is also the scientific name for a genus of otters; along with Sasquatch hops, I ended up calling this batch “Otter-Squatch Wheat Ale.”

Otter-Squatch Wheat Ale

  • 6 lb. 2-row malt (Great Western)
  • 4 lb. white wheat malt (Briess)
  • 4 oz. rice hulls
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1 oz. Sasquatch hop pellets (7.5% alpha), 20 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Sasquatch hop pellets (7.5% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Lutra kveik (Omega OYL-071), dry

Target Parameters

  • 1.046 s.g., 1.009 f.g., 23 IBU, 4 SRM, 4.9% abv
  • Full volume mash, 60 minute mash at 152°, 10 minute mash-out at 168°
  • RO water with added minerals to hit target of 78 ppm Ca, 86 ppm SO4, 74 ppm Cl, -55 ppm RA

Procedure

  • I started with 7.3 gallons of RO water, adding 4.25 g of calcium chloride and 4.25 g of gypsum to hit my target water profile. Then, I heated the water to 157° before adding the grains, to hit a mash temperature of 152°.
  • I held the mash with recirculation at 152° for 60 minutes, before raising the mash to 168° for 10 minutes.
  • At the end of the mash, I removed the grains and heated to a boil. In total, I collected 6.6 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.039, for 69% mash efficiency.
  • I heated the runnings to a boil, boiling for 60 minutes and adding hops per the recipe. After 60 minutes, I turned off the heat and chilled 85° before transferring the beer to the fermenter and pitching the yeast.
  • Starting gravity was 1.044, and I brewed the beer on 28 February 2025. I fermented the beer at room temperature ambient, between 60 and 65°.
  • I kegged the beer on 24 March 2025. Final gravity was 1.009, for 4.6% abv. I added 3.25 oz. of corn sugar to get some natural carbonation and scrub any oxygen from the transfer process. At the time of kegging, the beer had a very mild flavor and was quite drinkable! I finished up things with a bit of force carbonation, after the beer sat for a few weeks.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Lightly hazy, light yellow beer, which pours with a creamy and long-lasting white head.
  • Aroma
    • Doughy and tart, lemony aroma, at a moderate level of each.
  • Flavor
    • Moderate doughy malt character, light tartness to yeast and a very slight phenolic note (peppery, perhaps?). The latter is almost imperceptible; I can’t quite describe it. Medium-low bitterness.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Light bodied, moderately high carbonation, slightly dry finish. Crisp!
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is a tasty beer! It defies styles a little bit; it’s probably closest to an American wheat ale, but not quite on target. It’s very drinkable! The kveik flavors probably aren’t for everyone, but work well in this particular batch.
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Snowdrop Kölsch 2025

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This kölsch recipe is one of my favorites, and I have brewed it annually since 2023. The recipe is pretty dialed in, except for the fact that on this brew I misread it and added a half pound of Munich II when assembling my grain bill. Oops! I anticipated it would up the maltiness a bit in a way that’s outside the norm for this beer (and style), which was indeed the case.

My supply of Edelweiss hop blend (business closed) and Köln Kölsch-style yeast (discontinued by manufacturer) is dwindling. I need to start thinking about my next iteration of the recipe. The hops are manageable, but it still is a bummer that I don’t yet know of a good dry yeast alternative! K-97 takes waaaay too long to clear and has a vinous character I don’t quite care for in some cases.

Snowdrop Kölsch

  • 9.5 lb. pilsner malt (Rahr)
  • 0.5 lb. Munich I malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 lb. Munich II malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB (mash)
  • 1 oz. Edelweiss hop pellets (5.8% alpha), 45 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 2 oz. Edelweiss hop pellets (5.8% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Köln Kölsch-style yeast (Lallemand)
  • 1 oz. Biofine Clear (added to keg)

Target Parameters

  • 1.048 s.g., 1.011 f.g., 25 IBU, 4 SRM, 4.9% abv
  • Full volume mash, 60 minute mash at 152°, 10 minute mash-out at 168°
  • RO water with added minerals to hit target of 50 ppm Ca, 5 ppm Mg, 6 ppm Na, 54 ppm SO4, 72 ppm Cl, 0 ppm HCO3, -38 ppm RA

Procedure

  • Starting with 7.25 gallons of RO water, I added 0.4 g of sea salt, 1.4 g of epsom salt, 1.7 g of gypsum, and 3.6 g of calcium chloride, in order to reach my target water parameters.
  • I heated the strike water to 158° before adding the BrewTanB, grains, and 1 tbs. of 10% phosphoric acid (for pH adjustment).
  • I held the mash at 152° (with recirculation) for 60 minutes, and then heated the mash to 168° for a 10 minute mash-out, before pulling the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.6 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.041, for 68% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, adding hops and finings per the recipe. After 60 minutes, I chilled the wort to 66° and transferred to the fermenter. I pitched the yeast during the transfer.
  • During fermentation, I held the temperature at 62°.
  • I brewed this beer on 17 February 2025. Starting gravity was 1.049.
  • I kegged the beer on 9 March 2025, using a closed transfer. It was pretty hazy at this point in the sample glass and will likely take awhile to drop clear.
  • Final gravity was 1.011, for 5.0% abv.
  • I added BioFine Clear on 24 March 2025, and put the beer on tap on 26 March 2025. It was brilliantly clear by this point! I had overshot the carbonation a bit, so it took some time to work things down. I used the pressure release valve on the keg and also served without the gas line connected, which over the course of a few days got it closer to “pouring without a massive dose of foam.”

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Pours with a low yet very persistent white head. The beer itself is brilliantly clear and light yellow. This is probably the best looking kölsch I have ever made! The Biofine Clear definitely came through.
  • Aroma
    • Lightly fruity yeast character with a red apple quality. Low hop and malt character; slightly floral hops.
  • Flavor
    • Moderate level of maltiness and medium bitterness. Slightly fruity yeast character. The malt flavor is not quite as grainy as I personally would like in a kölsch–it’s more of a down-the-middle malty quality–but still nice. It’s a very drinkable beer!
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium-light body, medium-high carbonation, smooth finish, crisp.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is a great recipe! The malt flavor is not quite as delicate as I would prefer (hence the 9/10 instead of 10/10), but that’s my fault for messing up the grist. I overcarbonated the beer just a little too, but that will amp down over time.
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Stygimoloch Bock 2025

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One of my favorite recipes has been Stygimoloch Bock, which looms large in my mind for its rich maltiness and drinkability. Somewhat surprisingly, then, my records show that I brewed this only twice before, in 2019 and 2020. Time for another batch!

The recipe is pretty well locked in, so I made only the smallest of adjustments. I swapped out the Caramel Munich 60L by Briess for CaraMunich by Weyermann, to get a 100% German malt bill. I also used Perle for the bittering hops (versus Magnum or Mt. Hood in previous versions) and swapped in Diamond lager yeast. So, I suppose that means it’s a very different recipe in some ways across versions, but the malt is the core here, and the proportions on that are fairly unchanged.

Stygimoloch Bock 2025

  • 9 lbs. Munich II malt (Weyermann)
  • 5 lbs. Munich I malt (Weyermann)
  • 8 oz. CaraMunich II (Weyermann)
  • 4 oz. melanoidin malt (Weyermann)
  • 1 oz. Carfa Special III malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1.15 oz. Perle hop pellets (6.3% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 3 pkg. Diamond lager dry yeast (Lallemand)

Target Parameters

  • 60 minute infusion mash, 152°, full volume mash
  • 1.068 o.g., 1.017 f.g., 6.8% abv, 23 IBU, 16 SRM
  • Claremont tap water, with carbonates knocked back by addition of 6.5 mL 88% lactic acid, to hit target parameters of 44 ppm Ca, 8 ppm Mg, 89 ppm Na, 50 ppm sulfate, 110 ppm Cl, 20 ppm bicarbonate.

Procedure

  • I neutralized the carbonates in the tap water with 6.5 mL of 88% lactic acid in 7.65 gallons of water, along with a half of a Campden tablet to take care of chloramines.
  • I heated the water to 159° and added the grains, holding at a mash temperature of 152° for 60 minutes, with recirculation.
  • After 60 minutes, I raised the mash to 168°, held it there for 10 minutes, and then removed the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.4 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.055, for 64% mash efficiency.
  • In order to raise the gravity a bit, I brought the runnings to a boil and boiled hard for 15 minutes before adding the hops.
  • Once the hops were added, I proceeded with 60 more minutes of the boil, adding finings per the recipe.
  • After boiling for a total of 75 minutes, I turned off the heat, and chilled down to 72° before transferring into the fermenter and cooling down to 50°. It took around 3 hours before I pitched the yeast.
  • I brewed this beer on 18 January 2025. Starting gravity was 1.067.
  • Starting fermentation temperature was 50°; I raised it to 51° on 21 January, and then to 60° on 10 February 2025. I cold crashed to 34° on 13 February 2025.
  • I pulled the beer to room temperature on 17 February 2025 to make room in the fermentation chamber, and then kegged it on 18 February 2025, with a non-closed transfer.
  • Final gravity was 1.020, for 6.3% abv.
  • I cold conditioned the beer until 26 March 2025, when I put it on tap. The beer was brilliantly clear at this point.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Brilliantly clear, deep amber beer, which pours with an ivory head of moderate persistence. It’s simply gorgeous!
  • Aroma
    • Toasty dark bread crust and dark fruit aroma in addition to rich maltiness. Clean yeast profile, hops perceptible.
  • Flavor
    • Rich maltiness with bread crust quality alongside that. Moderate bitterness, but the malt is definitely the center of attention.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium-full body, moderate carbonation, smooth finish, with only a slight lingering bitterness. Slightly dry, but not cloying.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This recipe is a winner! It’s a perfect beer to close out the winter months and welcome cool spring afternoons and evenings. I wouldn’t change a thing about it at this point.
  • Overall
    • 10/10

Let There Be Rauch!

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Smoked beers can be nice as an occasional treat (especially in the winter), and I have made a few over the years. One classic style that has escaped my brew log to date, however, is rauchbier. I remember trying one years ago, from a fellow homebrewing paleontologist, and it is still one of the most memorable beers I have ever sampled! The combination of smoke and maltiness was unlike anything I had tried previously, and the beer lives on in my memory, well over a decade later (and probably closer to 15 or 20 years now).

After years of thinking about rauchbier but never making one, I was spurred into action by Dan Jablow’s article (“Making Friends With Smoked Beer”) in the November/December 2024 issue of Zymurgy. He included a 1 gallon recipe called “Let There Be Rauch!”, and the approach seemed simple enough. So, I scaled it up to 5.5 gallons and adjusted the hops slightly to move the bitterness level into the higher end of the style’s range in the BJCP guidelines.

Let There Be Rauch!

  • 5 lb. beechwood smoked malt (Weyermann)
  • 3 lb. Munich light malt (BESTMALZ)
  • 3 lb. pilsner malt (Rahr)
  • 1 lb. Caramunich II malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1 oz. Hallertauer Mittelfrueh (5.5% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Hallertauer Mittelfrueh (5.5% alpha), 15 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 WhirlFloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 3 pkg. SafLager West European Lager dry yeast (Fermentis S-23)

Target Parameters

  • 1.054 s.g., 1.015 f.g., 29 IBU, 11 SRM, 5.2% abv
  • Full volume mash with 60 minutes at 154° and 10 minutes at 168°; 60 minute boil
  • Water built from RO and tap water to hit target water parameters of 59 ppm Ca, 4 ppm Mg, 29 ppm Na, 56 ppm SO4, 88 ppm Cl, 52 ppm CaCO3, RA=-2

Procedure

  • I collected 2.5 gallons of tap water (with Campden tablet) and 5 gallons of RO water, with 3 g CaCl and 2 g gypsum, to hit the target water parameters.
  • I heated the strike water to 161° and added the grains to hit a mash temperature of 154°. I added 2 mL of 88% lactic acid, to adjust the pH. I held the mash at 154° for 60 minutes, with recirculation, before I raised the temperature to 168° for 10 minutes.
  • Upon removing the grains, I had a total of 6.6 gallons at a gravity of 1.045, for 68% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil and added finings and hops per the schedule.
  • After 60 minute boil, I turned off the heat, did an initial chill to ~70°, and then transferred the beer to the fermenter. I chilled it further to 52° before pitching the yeast.
  • I brewed the beer on 24 November 2024, with a starting gravity of 1.055. I fermented the beer at 54°, and let it free rise to 60° on 3 December 2024.
  • I cold crashed to 35° on 5 December 2024, and kegged the beer with a closed transfer on 8 December 2024. The beer had a very nice and subtle smoke flavor/aroma.
  • Final gravity was 1.018; this works out to 4.9% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Beautiful! It is a brilliantly clear light amber beer, with a creamy and persistent off-white head
  • Aroma
    • Bready malt with a touch of toastiness at a moderate level, a medium level of smoke–almost lightly bacony, Very pleasant balance.
  • Flavor
    • Bread crust and malty flavor at a moderate level; smoky flavor, somewhat bacon-like, at a medium level. Moderate hop bitterness with a slightly spicy quality. The smoke balance is perfect against the malt; not overwhelming at all, but pleasantly alongside each other!
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium carbonation, medium body, only slightly dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • It’s not often I nail something on the first batch, but this is just a great recipe! It dodges the peaty phenolics of some versions, and is both interesting and drinkable. I am pleased!
  • Overall
    • 10/10

Denny Kong-ish West Coast IPA

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I made my first version of this new-style West Coast IPA last year, and learned some lessons about hopping techniques in the process. During that previous batch, I used a hop bag that was too small for the dry hopping addition, and as a result the hop flavor/aroma were pretty underwhelming. This time around, I opted to let the hops float free in the fermenter. I use a BrewBucket 7.5, which has a rotating pickup arm, so I could do a closed transfer into the keg without excessive hop particles clogging things. The hop choices on this version used up some of my hop stash–three-quarters of a pound of hops went into the final recipe!

Denny Kongish West Coast IPA

  • 12 lb. 5 oz. pilsner malt (Rahr)
  • 1 lb. Vienna malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 4 oz. dextrose, added to boil
  • 0.85 oz. Enigma hop pellets (17.9% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 2 oz. LUPMOMAX Cashmere hop pellets (13.5% alpha), 30 minute whirlpool
  • 1 pkg. California ale dry yeast (WLP001, White Labs)
  • 4 oz. Idaho #7 hop hash (31.4% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter
  • 2 oz. Azacca hop pellets (12.2% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter
  • 2 oz. LUPOMAX Sabro HBC 438 hop pellets (19.0% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter
  • 1.15 oz. Enigma hop pellets (17.9% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter

Target Parameters

  • 1.063 s.g., 1.010 f.g., 7.0% abv, 64 IBU, 5 SRM
  • Full volume infusion mash, held at 149° for 120 minutes and 168° for 10 minutes
  • Neutralized Claremont tap water with Campden tablet, RO water, and mineral salts added to mash to achieve 51 ppm Ca, 8 ppm Mg, 33 ppm Na, 104 ppm SO4, 53 ppm Cl, 8 ppm CO3.

Procedure

  • Starting with 3 gallons of tap water, I added 2.5 mL of 88% lactic acid as well as a Campden tablet, along with 5 gallons of RO water, 0.75 CaCl, 1.5 g epsom salt, and 3.5 g gypsum to hit the target water parameters.
  • I heated the water to 155° and added the grains, along with 17.2 mL of 10% phosphoric acid for pH adjustment, to hit an estimated pH of 5.35.
  • I held the mash at 149° for 120 minutes, with recirculation, and then raised the mash to 168° for 10 minutes before pulling the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.9 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.050, for 69% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, with a 90 minute total boil. After 30 minutes, I added the first round of hops, and then proceeded following the recipe.
  • After the 90 minute boil, I chilled to 170° before adding the whirlpool hops and letting them sit for 30 minutes while whirlpooling.
  • Next, I chilled to 68°, transferred to the fermenter, and chilled down to 64° before pitching the yeast.
  • I brewed the beer on 1 January 2025, and it had a starting gravity of 1.066.
  • I added the dry hops on 11 January 2025, loose into the fermenter.
  • I cold crashed the beer on 15 January 2025.
  • I kegged the beer on 18 January 2025, into a CO2 purged keg. Final gravity was 1.007–that’s wonderfully dry and works out to 7.8% abv. I had a similar experience last batch, so this mash regime works wonders!

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Light gold beer, slight haze, which pours with an exceptionally persistent and creamy white head–it’s like a meringue! This head leaves beautiful lacing down the side of the glass. The beer is surprisingly clear. As a result, I am feeling good about my decision not to use post-fermentation finings; this likely helped with oxidation reduction.
  • Aroma
    • Citrus and dank hop aroma at a high level, neutral yeast profile, and no malt character to speak of in the aroma.
  • Flavor
    • Very bitter, citrus pith and dank hop character, with a bit of grapefruit along the way, and a long-lingering hop aftertaste. The hop flavor is a bit one-note; it has the usual issue with Azacca to my tastebuds, which is an orange pith quality on the edge of rotten orange. I’ve never understood the appeal of that hop! Low level of maltiness, but it is there. Clean fermentation character.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium-high carbonation, medium-light body, very dry finish.
  • Overall
    • 7.5/10
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • I really like this recipe as a template for a double IPA; it is a clean background to let the hops shine. This is the first time in awhile that I have let the hops float free for dry hopping, and with the Brew Bucket’s rotating pickup arm, things worked well. Thanks to the closed transfer (and perhaps the BrewTanB?), the hop character has held up well. The beer is clear enough without finings, so I think there is no need to use Biofine Clear as the original recipe stipulates. Azacca, as usual for my experience, gives a harshness in the citrus note that I don’t care for. This formulation is a bit one-note on the hops. But, it’s okay overall! In a beer like this, a different hop combo would be the ticket to hoppiness.
      • Interesting note: when I tasted this again last night, after a rauchbier, I got more tropical notes, and the unpleasant orange wasn’t as apparent. I would rate the beer higher in that case – perhaps a 8.5/10.