Tag Archives: tastings

Thanksgiving Transatlantic Barleywine

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Every year, I make a beer for our Thanksgiving celebration with friends (or at least in honor of Thanksgiving, during years when we couldn’t travel). Previous batches have included Stygimoloch Bock, Ill Tempered Gnome Clone, and Thanksgiving IPA 2017. In general, I like a Thanksgiving beer that is a bit fuller-bodied and maltier, versus an easy sipper like a blonde ale.

For 2023, I wanted to turn the dials to the max, and so I honed in on English barleywine for my style. This is a style that rewards a loooong conditioning time, so I knew I had to work on it sooner than later. The November 2022 BYO magazine came to the rescue, with a recipe called Winter’s Barleywine. My version was modified rather heavily from the BYO version, to accommodate ingredients on-hand; thus I had a combination of American, German, and English ingredients and a naming idea for this batch. The beer was brewed at the end of January, allowing a full nine months of fermentation and conditioning.

I targeted a 2.5 gallon batch, because I really don’t need 5 gallons of a 10% abv beer.

Thanksgiving Transatlantic Barleywine

  • 8 lb. Golden Promise pale ale malt (Simpsons)
  • 0.75 lb. Mela malt (Great Western)
  • 0.5 lb. Caramel 60 malt (Briess)
  • 0.25 lb. Caramunich II malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.25 lb. Caravienne malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.65 oz. Magnum hop pellets (16.5% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Fuggles hop pellets (4.6% alpha), 10 minute boil
  • 0.75 lb. brown sugar, light, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Cascade whole hops (5.5% est. alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 1.25 g. WLN1000 yeast nutrient (White Labs), 5 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Willamette hop pellets (5.0% alpha), 10 minute whirlpool
  • 2 pkg. English ale dry yeast (CellarScience)
  • 1 oz. Willamette hop pellets (5.0% alpha), dry hop for 1 week in primary

Target Parameters

  • 60 minute infusion mash, held at 149° for 60 minutes, with 10 minutes at 168°, sparge
  • 1.105 o.g., 1.015 f.g., 12.3% abv, 74 IBU, 17 SRM
  • Claremont tap water, with Campden tablet

Procedure

  • I mashed in with ~5 gallons of water at 157°, to hit a strike temperature of 149°. Upon adding the grains, I also added 2.5 mL of 88% lactic acid to adjust the pH.
  • Following 60 minutes of recirculation at 149°, I raised the temperature to 168° and held it there for 10 minutes. Then, I removed the grain basket, let it drain, and sparged with 0.5 gallons of water.
  • I collected around 4.25 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.058, for 70% mash efficiency. Because this was a bit below my target of 1.070, I decided to boil for awhile before adding the hops.
  • After 30 minutes, my gravity was down to 1.065. I decided to continue boiling for another 30 minutes. before adding the first charge of hops.
  • Following the initial 60 minute boil, I added the hops and finings per the recipe, and then turned off the heat following the full 120 minutes.
  • I chilled to 66°, transferred to the fermenter, and pitched the two packets of yeast. Starting gravity was 1.093.
  • I brewed this beer on 21 January 2023, fermenting at 66°. On 26 January 2023, I pulled it to ambient and let it free-ride for the rest of fermentation.
  • I added the dry hops in a baggie on 21 February 2023.
  • I kegged the beer on 25 February 2023, removing the hops and adding 1.5 oz. of corn sugar boiled in 0.75 cups of water. Final gravity was 1.023, for 9.4% abv.
  • Sealing the beer under pressure, I let it sit at ambient until late October, when I pulled it into my keezer and applied some carbon dioxide to increase the carbonation.
  • The beer still had a fair bit of haze when I sampled it in early November, so on 14 November 2023, I added ~1/4 tsp. of gelatin boiled in ~1/4 cup of water, to clarify the beer further.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • The barleywine pours with a tall, thick ivory head that subsides over time to pretty much nothing by the end of the glass (over an hour or two). The beer itself is deep amber in color and red highlights, with some chill haze.
  • Aroma
    • The aroma changes a fair bit as the beer warms up. Caramel and malty notes are prominent. There is a moderate earthy note hop note when cooler, and alcohol notes become more prominent as the beer warms up (almost too much at around 56°).
  • Flavor
    • A big and rich maltiness with caramel is dominant, with some subtle honey at the back end as well as some dark fruit qualities. Hop bitterness is medium-high, with resin and earthy qualities, but it definitely takes a back seat to the malt. The beer is best described as “chewy,” like a cookie.
  • Mouthfeel
    • The beer has a full mouthfeel, with moderate carbonation. It has a smooth finish, with some sweetness on the back end.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • Yes! Next time, though, I would let it age out for awhile, but this batch is already on its last legs. Aging would help to mellow the alcohol character; interestingly, I don’t pick that up in the flavor so much as the aroma in the current state of the beer.
  • Overall
    • 6.5/10

Oktoberfest 2023

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It’s nice to brew a festbier from time to time; I most recently made one nearly four years ago! They are a perfect style for fall and winter, given their malt complexity as well as their high drinkability.

For this version, I followed Gordon Strong’s Modern Oktoberfest recipe from Modern Homebrew Recipes. My main adjustment was to swap in some Bohemian floor-malted malts that I had on-hand from the recent Czech dark lager project.

Oktoberfest 2023

  • 9 lb. Pilsner Zero malt (Viking)
  • 4 oz. Floor-Malted Bohemian Pilsner malt (Weyermann)
  • 1 lb. 10 oz. Floor-Malted Bohemian Dark malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 lb. Munich I malt (Weyermann)
  • 1 lb. Vienna malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1 oz. Hallertauer Mittelfrueh hop pellets (5.2% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 0.5 oz. Hallertauer Mittelfrueh hop pellets (5.2% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 2 pkg. Novalager dry yeast (Lallemand)

Target Parameters

  • 1.056 s.g., 1.005 f.g., 6.7% abv, 21 IBU, 5 SRM
  • Full-volume infusion mash, held at 146° for 40 minutes, 158° for 20 minutes, and 168° for 10 minutes
  • Claremont tap water, adjusted with lactic acid and minerals to hit target parameters of 59 ppm Ca, 12 ppm Mg, 54 ppm Na, 50 ppm SO4, 107 ppm Cl, 10 ppm HCO3, 8 ppm alkalinity, -41 ppm RA

Procedure

  • I collected 8.1 gallons of water, adding 5.7 mL of 88% lactic acid in order to knock out the carbonates. Next, I added 3 g of CaCl to achieve my target water profile.
  • I heated the strike water to 151° and added the grains along with 0.5 mL of 88% lactic acid, to hit a calculated pH target of 5.4 and a mash temperature of 146°.
  • After holding the mash at 146° for 40 minutes, I raised the temperature to 158° for 20 minutes, before finally raising it to 168° for a 10 minute mash-out.
  • I removed the grains, collecting in total 7.25 gallons of runnings at a gravity of 1.044, for 69% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, adding hops and finings per the recipe. After 60 minutes, I turned off the heat and chilled down to 79° before transferring to the fermenter.
  • I chilled the wort to 49° before pitching the yeast. I brewed this beer on 16 September 2023. Starting gravity was 1.053.
  • Fermentation temperature was held at 52° for the first 10 days, and then raised to 54° on 26 September 2023. I raised it to 58° on 28 September, 60° on 1 October, and cold crashed to 34° on 4 October 2023.
  • I kegged the beer on 14 October 2023, using a closed transfer.
  • Final gravity was 1.010, for 5.7% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • This festbier pours with a tall white head that subsides rapidly; it’s a bit disappointing in that regard. The beer is a medium gold color and very clear, but not brilliant.
  • Aroma
    • Clean and malty aroma, with a slight doughy quality.
  • Flavor
    • Soft but forward maltiness, with lightly toasty and doughy qualities. Medium-low bitterness.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium body, medium carbonation, and a smooth, soft finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is an incredibly drinkable beer! The flavor is spot on, although the head and head retention are not at all what I want. For this reason, I would probably try a different malt combination next time.
  • Overall
    • 7/10

The Weekend IPA

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It’s a bad pun of a name, but it also reflects the fact that the strength of this beer is best suited for “The Weekend” (rather than a weeknight).

The recipe used here generally follows my “Spring Classic IPA,” with adjustments to use up grains and hops on-hand. Thus, the mix of pilsner and 2-row malt. My goal with the hops was to create something that had a classic “West Coast IPA” feel to it.

The Weekend IPA

  • 9.5 lb. Lamonta pale American barley malt (Mecca Grade)
  • 5 lb. pilsner zero malt (Viking)
  • 0.5 lb. crystal 40 malt (Great Western)
  • 0.25 lb. biscuit malt (Dingeman)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1 oz. Warrior hop pellets (13.4% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Lupomax Chinook hop pellets (17.0% alpha), 15 minute whirlpool
  • 1 oz. McKenzie hop pellets (13.0% alpha), 15 minute whirlpool
  • 2 pkg. BRY-97 American ale yeast (Lallemand)
  • 2 oz. Lupmax Amarillo hop pellets (14.0% alpha), dry hop in keg
  • 1 oz. McKenzie hop pellets (13.0% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.064 s.g., 1.011 f.g., 7.0% abv, 70 IBU, 8 SRM
  • 60 minute infusion mash, full volume, 149°
  • Claremont tap water treated with Campden tablet

Procedure

  • I heated 7.625 gallons of water to 156°, and mashed in with the grains for a target temperature of 149°. I also added 8.8 mL of 88% lactic acid at this time, to hit an estimated mash pH of 5.2. I recirculated for 60 minutes, holding at 149°.
  • Next, I raised the mash to 168°, holding it there for 10 minutes before removing the grains.
  • In total, I collected 7 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.051, for 64% mash efficiency. This was low, so I’m guessing I messed up one of the volume measurements, or perhaps could have mashed a bit longer.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, and added hops and finings per the schedule, for a 60 minute boil.
  • After the whirlpool, I chilled the wort to 75° and transferred to the fermenter, before chilling the rest of the way down to 65°.
  • I brewed this beer on 1 October 2023, and fermented at 66°. Starting gravity was 1.064.
  • I kegged the beer on 15 October 2023, with hops added loose to the keg. Final gravity was 1.011, for 7.0% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • This beer pours with a persistent white head and a moderate gold color with some haze.
  • Aroma
    • Fresh orange peel aroma, very prominent. It’s nice!
  • Flavor
    • Fairly bitter (but not over the top), with a sweet orange character to the hops–almost like candied orange peel. The malt is definitely in the background, with a light caramel quality. The hop and malt combination give a slightly sweet profile.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium-light body, moderate carbonation, very slightly dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is a very drinkable American IPA, and it hits many of the flavor notes I like in a beer of this style. It’s very citrus-forward, and is surprisingly smooth for its strength! I also really like the persistent head on this one. The haze detracts slightly, but other than that it’s an excellent beer. I’m a bit surprised I don’t get more pine/grapefruit on this one, given the hop combination, but I’m guessing it’s the Amarillo that’s really driving orange flavor here.
  • Overall
    • 8/10

Tmavý Ležák (Czech Dark Lager)

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With the fall months bringing cooler evenings, I’m hankering for darker beers. In the past, that’s often meant porters and stouts. This year, I’ve been on a big lager roll. In fact, seven out of 20 beers for this year–more than a third!–have been lagers. German pils are of course a regular favorite, but in the dark realm I wanted to try a Czech-style dark lager. This past summer, I had an enjoyable sampling of the Czech Budvar tmavý ležák, and it was delicious! Inspired by that, I tracked down a Czech dark lager recipe in the Dark Lagers book by Kraus-Weyermann and Dornbusch.

This particular recipe, called Tmavý Ležák, promised a classic version of this classic style. To aim for maximum authenticity, I went through the effort of tracking down all of the exact grains. This meant some special orders, to get the floor-malted Bohemian dark malt from Weyermann, for instance. Hopefully the effort and expense would be worth it! I also elected to do a decoction mash as part of this, to experiment a little bit and up the malt character (presumably).

Tmavý Ležák

  • 5 lb. 12 oz. floor-malted Bohemian pilsner malt (Weyermann)
  • 3 lb. 6 oz. floor-malted Bohemian dark malt (Weyermann)
  • 1 lb. Carabohemian malt (Weyermann)
  • 6 oz. Carafa Special I malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB (add to mash)
  • 1 oz. Saaz hop pellets (3.25% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 2 oz. Saaz hop pellets (3.25% alpha), 15 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 10 minute boil
  • 2 oz. Saaz hop pellets (3.25% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 2 pkg. Novalager dry yeast (Lallemand)

Target Parameters

  • 1.047 s.g., 1.012 f.g., 4.6% abv, 29 IBU
  • Full-volume infusion mash, with 75 minute rest at 144°, 45 minute rest at 160°, 10 minute rest at 168°. I also did a decoction mash during the first rest.
  • Claremont water, neutralized to remove carbonates, with final target of 32 ppm Ca, 12 ppm Mg, 54 ppm Na, 50 ppm SO4, 60 ppm Cl, 10 ppm HCO3, RA=-22

Procedure

  • First, I heated the strike water to 148°, and added the grains to hit a target mash rest of 144°.
  • After 15 minutes with recirculation at 144°, I grabbed approximately a gallon of thick mash, heated it to 160°, and let it sit there for 15 minutes. Then, I brought it to a boil, and boiled for 30 minutes with frequent stirring before adding it into the main mash. The primary mash was held at 144° for this entire time, which means the 144° mash rest was around 75 minutes.
  • Next, I raised the mash temperature to 160° and held it there for 45 minutes.
  • Finally, I raised the mash to 168°, and held it there for 10 minutes.
  • Next, I removed the grains and brought the mash to a boil. I collected 6.75 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.039, for 68% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, adding hops and finings per the recipe. After 60 minutes, I turned off the heat and chilled to 80° before transferring to the fermenter. Then, I moved the fermenter to the fermentation chamber, where I chilled it the rest of the way (down to 50°).
  • I realized that I forgot the CaraBohemian malt in the mash, so had to improvise. I used 1.5 quarts of water with the milled grains, steeped it at 150° to 170° for 30 minutes, filtered, boiled for 10 minutes, and added this directly to the fermenter prior to pitching the yeast. Oops!
  • Starting gravity was 1.045. I brewed the beer on 9 September 2023.
  • After pitching the yeast, I did the initial fermentation at 52°, before raising to 54° on 26 September. Then, I raised to 58° on 28 September, and 60° on 1 October.
  • I cold crashed the beer to 34° on 4 October 2023.
  • I kegged the beer on 14 October 2023. Final gravity was 1.010, for 4.7% abv. All told, I hit my numbers pretty well!

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • A very clear (but not brilliant), deep brown beer with garnet highlights on its edges. It’s almost chestnut in color when against a light source. The beer pours with a rich, fluffy, and persistent off-tan head, which leaves bits of lacing down the side of the glass.
  • Aroma
    • Malty and bread crust aroma, with a bit of cracker. There is a light hop spice, as well as a touch of dried dark fruit as the beer warms.
  • Flavor
    • Malt-forward, malty and bread crust flavor, with a medium level of spicy hop bitterness. There is a moderate coffee note and a slight hint of roastiness.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium-light body, with a dry finish. Moderate carbonation. Very drinkable!
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This recipe was a ton of effort in terms of ingredients and the decoction, but is also quite tasty and exceptionally easy to drink. The body is a touch thin for what I expected; it might benefit from backing off the hops just a touch, and perhaps ditching the decoction to reduce the length of time that the main mash was held at a low temperature. I suspect that may have dried out this beer a little more than desirable. That said, the overall drinkability tips the scales in favor of this beer!
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Alstadt Alt 2.1

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Alstadt Alt is one of my all-time favorite recipes, and I’ve brewed it annually since 2020. I’ve finally realized that altbier is basically the German version of amber ale, which squarely puts it into my favorite flavor wheelhouse. The original recipe was by Horst Dornbusch, and is just superb.

The grain bill on this version is nearly identical to the 2022 version, only with Viking’s Pilsner Zero instead of plain-old Viking Pilsner malt. I used Magnum hops for bittering, with a generous dose of Spalt Spalter. Finally, I used Köln Kölsch Style Ale Yeast — my go-to dry German ale yeast. I recently learned that Lallemand is discontinuing the strain, which is a major bummer. I can only guess that my personal homebrew demand wasn’t enough to float the line for the long-term. Ah well. I stocked up recently, so I’ll be set for the next year or two before having to find an alternative. K-97 is okay, but just not the same…although I note from past notes that it worked well in an alt. I might have to try it again.

Alstadt Alt 2.1

  • 6.5 lb. Viking Pilsner Zero malt
  • 1.5 lb. Munich I malt (Weyermann)
  • 1.5 lb. Vienna malt (Weyermann)
  • 1 lb. Caramunich I malt (Weyermann)
  • 2 oz. Carafa Special I malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.75 oz. Magnum hop pellets (10.1% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 oz. Spalt Spalter hop pellets (3.9% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 1.5 oz. Spalt Spalter hop pellets (3.9% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Köln Kölsch Style Ale Yeast (Lallemand)

Target Parameters

  • 1.048 s.g., 1.011 f.g., 4.9% abv, 38 IBU, 12 SRM
  • 60 minute infusion mash, full volume, 152°
  • Claremont tap water treated with Campden tablet

Procedure

  • I mashed in with 7 gallons of water at 158°, to hit a mash temperature of 152°. I added 5 mL of 88% lactic acid and held the mash here (with recirculation) for 60 minutes, before raising to 168° for the 10 minute mash-out.
  • After removing the grain basket, I had 6.3 gallons of wort with a gravity of 1.040, for an efficiency of 63%.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, adding malt and finings per the recipe. After the 60 minute boil, I chilled to 78° and transferred to the fermenter. I let it chill a bit down to 60° in the fermentation chamber, before pitching the yeast and setting the fermentation temperature to 62°.
  • I brewed the beer on 2 September 2023, and it had a starting gravity of 1.048.
  • I let the beer free-rise to 66° on 11 September 2023.
  • I kegged the beer on 16 September 2023, and it had a final gravity of 1.012. This works out to 4.7% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • The altbier pours with a persistent ivory head; the beer itself is a deep amber and brilliantly clear. It’s gorgeous!
  • Aroma
    • A malty bread crust character predominates, especially as the beer warms in the glass. There is perhaps a hint of fruitiness from the yeast. I don’t get much hop aroma.
  • Flavor
    • I get a rich, somewhat bready and toasty malt character, against a fairly prominent bitterness. This batch feels a bit more bitter than past versions, with a bit of herbal character.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium body, moderate carbonation, extended dryness on the finish.
  • Would I brew this again?
    • This remains one of my favorite recipes, but I think I would adjust the hops for my next batch. Magnum ended up just too bitter, taking this just over the edge into what works well for the recipe. For my next version, I think I’ll go back to Sterling for the bittering hops. I might also go back to Briess’s Caramel Munich 60L, to see how that works out.
  • Overall
    • 8/10