Tag Archives: What’s Brewing?

What’s Brewing? April/May 2024

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Because this is an incredibly busy time of year in the non-beer part of my life, April slid past and now we’re a good chunk of the way into May. So, I’ve got a combined post this time around.

Beer Batch Updates

  • I have kegged my Belgian pale ale, and it won both the brew club competition as well as the Southern California Homebrew Festival bragging rights competition! My personal assessment was that it was a decent beer, but not fantastic. But, I guess I was wrong.
  • I brewed and kegged a version of my orange wheat ale, to go to the SoCal Homebrew Festival. It’s not my best iteration, but it will do. Because my Anvil Foundry was down for a month or so (see below), I went back to a standard mash with batch sparge. Something went sideways–mismeasure of grain mass, maybe?–and I only got 50% mash efficiency.
  • I brewed and kegged an American IPA, focusing on a more traditional piney/citrusy profile. I used Centennial, Cascade, and Amarillo hops to reach this goal.
  • I brewed the 2022 iteration of Alta California Lager on 24 April, and it is now in the final stages of fermentation before cold crashing.
  • I brewed a Scottish 70/- Heavy on 7 May, in order to have a flavorful but lower alcohol beer on-hand. I’m letting it ferment out at ambient temperature (around 66 to 68° in the garage), which is perhaps taking a small chance but I also think it’s a recipe that will benefit from a fruitier yeast character. I used US-05, so any fruitiness will probably be fairly restrained.
Photo by Lukas on Pexels.com

What’s On Tap?

  • My Pre-Prohibition Lager is on tap, and wow is it delicious. It’s exactly the beer I wanted to bridge into the warm days of spring! I’m going to be sad when it’s finished.
  • My American IPA is on tap, and it’s a bit young yet but will come into its own as it settles out. The flavor is awesome (a classic late 1990s West Coast IPA), but the yeast haven’t dropped completely clear yet, so it’s a bit on the hazy side. It’s got a great flavor of citrus and resin and pine.
  • I am moving my orange wheat ale on-tap soon, to fill the vacancy left after my altbier keg kicked.

What’s Coming Up?

  • I’m thinking about another IPA, something to highlight the tropical-type hops that I’ve been getting in my HOPBOXes. The draft version I’ve got uses Azacca, HBC 586, and Idaho Gem…I’m not sure if I’ll stay in that space, but it seems like a start.
  • I’m also looking at a German pils, using 100% Barke Pilsner malt, and Saphir+Hallertauer Mittelfrueh for the hops.
  • It feels like another beer should happen before some big events this summer (fieldwork, travel, and a house move), but I haven’t figured it out yet. Maybe a dark or amber lager?

Other News

  • Back in March, I had some issues with my (otherwise beloved) Anvil Foundry. It turned out to be a bum power switch…after a bit of back-and-forth with their tech support and a new switch+wire, I am back in business! Even though I am past warranty, I really appreciate that they covered this replacement.
  • After about five months of fermentation, my beer vinegar (made from my weissbier) was ready to go. It had some amazing vinegar mother action (see image below). The flavor is exceptional, just like malt vinegar that you would put on fish and chips. I used it to spritz a pork shoulder during an extended smoke, and the flavors blended really nicely. I can’t wait to try another batch!

What’s Brewing? March 2022 Edition

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The past few weeks have transitioned from brewing to kegging…my weekends are filling up again and my supply is pretty good, so I haven’t been making a ton of beer lately.

“The Simple Monk”

Beer Batch Updates

  • I kegged “The Simple Monk,” and even got it reviewed! That’s some fast turnaround.
  • My pre-Prohibition lager is getting close to the point of kegging.
  • I kegged my kolsch-style ale on March 4, using a closed transfer, and hit my numbers pretty much on the nose. The Edelweiss hop blend comes through as a pleasant floral aroma and flavor, and I feel like I have a really good understanding of that blend after a few brews under my belt. The beer is already fairly clear, and I’m feeling that it will be enjoyable once carbonated and conditioned. It just went on tap yesterday.
  • The altbier is kegged, conditioning, and now on tap.
  • I kegged my HOPBOX pale ale…it’s really delicious in preliminary samples, with a subtle strawberry character from the Strata hops.
  • My brew club is doing a Belgian pale ale competition in April, and I started one last weekend. The grist is fairly complex–pilsner, Munich, Cara 20, aromatic Munich, caramel Munich, and dextrin malt, but the hopping is just Magnum and Saaz. I let it ferment at garage-ambient (~64° external) for a few days, and then brought it indoors to finish out. I used Omega’s Belgian Ale A yeast.

What’s On Tap?

  • The Simple Monk went on tap two weeks ago, and it’s pretty much exactly what I had hoped for.
  • The latest version of Alstadt Alt just went on tap a few days ago…it’s also pretty excellent!
  • As mentioned above, the kolsch recently went on tap.

What’s Coming Up?

  • I will probably do an American IPA sometime soon. I’m not sure which direction I’ll take it in, though. I have some Yakima Valley hop extract to use; it’s primarily CTZ, so would likely be a good base for a traditional West Coast IPA. The recipe I have sketched out is fairly similar to the 2021 IPA in terms of grain bill, with the hop extract, Centennial, Amarillo, and Cascade as the hops.

Other News

  • I packaged the miso paste after two months of fermentation, and same for my sauerkraut.

What’s Brewing? February 2022 Edition

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I’ve continued to plug away at brewing projects over the past few weeks, and am enjoying the opportunity for a bit of creativity.

Beer Batch Updates

  • I kegged my altbier on Valentine’s Day, and it is now cold conditioning.
  • I transferred the Pliny the Elder clone into a serving keg; it went fairly well, although there was probably a gallon of beer sludge left in the bottom of the dry hop keg.
  • I brewed my HOPBOX pale ale on 29 January, and it is pretty much done with fermentation. I’m going to keg it in the next few days.
  • I brewed “The Simple Monk” on February 5, and the beer is pretty much finished with fermentation. I’ll probably keg it later this week. The beer was…well, dead simple–100% pilsner malt, 1 oz. Cascade whole hops, 1 package of Belgian ale dry yeast.
  • On 14 February, I brewed a new pre-Prohibition lager recipe.

What’s On Tap?

  • Eagle Face Oatmeal Stout is still on tap; I’m not going through it terribly quickly. It’s not a bad beer, just not in my “sweet spot” of flavor interest at the moment. It is popular with some friends, so I’ve been able to pass it along for them!
  • My Pliny clone is drinking super deliciously! It’s a nice beer, although definitely a few abv points above my usual preferences.
  • I just rotated my German pils into the keezer, after about 6 weeks of lagering. It is delicious, although it has a tiny bit of haze that just hasn’t dropped out yet. I wonder if it’s a result of the Viking pilsner malt?

What’s Coming Up?

  • I plan to do a Scottish 70/- heavy, for something new. It’s another low-abv style, and my recipe should clock in at 3.1%.
  • I have ingredients to do my Alta California lager, but I’m not sure when it will go into the rotation.

Other Notes

  • I got another HOPBOX recently, with six more varieties to play with. The “standard” varieties of Chinook, Amarillo, Citra, and Mosaic were in the box, along with some Azacca, Eclipse, Idaho Gem, and Triumph. I used the Triumph hops for my pre-Prohibition pilsner, for something a little different in there. I suspect an IPA or two is in my future!

What’s Brewing? January 2022 Edition

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January has blown by, and I’ve been able to get back into a rhythm of regular brewing!

Beer Batch Updates

  • MoreBeer had a sale on Pliny the Elder kits, so I picked one up and began the brewing process on December 27, 2021. I made a self-built recipe last year, and it turned out okay, but not great. For this time around, I’m adjusting the hop techniques a bit, to see if I can get some improvement. After initial fermentation, I did a closed transfer into a purged keg (on 15 January 2022), and then (quickly) added hops to the keg. This keg had a floating dip tube with a mesh screen, so that I could do a closed transfer off the hops and into the serving keg. The goal is to avoid hopping in the serving keg, so that the beer clears up nicely; the closed transfer is intended to preserve the hop aroma a bit longer. The beer is now transferred and carbonated–while it drops clear for a few days, I’ve started some tastes. It’s pretty nice, although quite a bit of hop haze.
  • I started a kolsch-style ale on January 8. The plan is to close-transfer and then let it condition for a few weeks to drop clear. Although I’ve previously used K-97 as my primary kolsch dry yeast, I’m trying Lallemand’s version this time around.
  • I brewed my Alstadt Alt recipe again on 22 January. It’s pretty much the same as before, because I love this beer so much!
  • I kegged my German pils on 26 December 2021, and the beer is now lagering in the serving keg.

What’s on Tap?

  • Eagle Face Oatmeal Stout is drinking pretty nicely. I’ll do a tasting soon.
  • The dark mild has been really delightful, and I think I’ll be sad when it’s gone. For serving, I’ll often let it warm up to around 50 degrees, and the dark malts shine through beautifully.
  • Dimorphos Kellerbier has cleared to brilliant, and tastes amazing. It has been really enjoyable to follow a beer through from young-and-fresh to mature-and-lagered. This recipe has weathered really well, and just keeps getting better.

What’s Coming Up?

  • I’m brewing a pale ale this weekend, using some HOPBOX hops–El Dorado and Strata will be front and center.
  • In preparation for Lent, I’m doing a Belgian SMaSH that I’m calling “The Simple Monk.” It will be pilsner malt, whole Cascade hops, and Abbaye Belgian yeast. The beer is intended to be no muss, no fuss, no temperature control, just let the ingredients play out for a flavorful low-abv beer.

Other Notes

  • A few weeks ago, I cracked the final bottle of the Gingerbread Winter Warmer, brewed way back in late 2016. It was delicious–but I’m also glad I didn’t save it any longer.
  • During the holidays, I started a ton of fermentation projects.
    • A new batch of sauerkraut is going.
    • I started a new batch of miso paste, because my previous batch is just about gone.
    • For something new, I am making malt vinegar! I put a bit of unpasteurized cider vinegar into a pint of a recent weissbier–it created a gorgeous vinegar mother, and I think the vinegar is just about ready to use.

What’s Brewing? December 2021 Edition

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As we head into the end of the year, I find that I’m having to pace my brewing a bit. I want to brew more frequently, but either don’t have time or (more pragmatically) have a bunch of beer on-hand already. In any case, I’m planning out the brewing schedule for the next few weeks, and have some fun stuff “on tap.” My current tap selection is pretty darned good, which makes for enjoyable sampling.

Beer Batch Updates

  • Eagle Face Oatmeal Stout is now kegged, and conditioning. I’ve noted that this recipe tends to attenuate fairly poorly (finishing north of 1.020), which is actually a good thing in terms of body and lower alcohol.
  • I kegged the amber kellerbier / zwickel, and it is now carbonating. The plan is to have it on-tap very soon, so that it can be available for pairing with our traditional pretzel night during the holidays.
  • I brewed a dark mild last weekend, and it is now fermenting. In a bit of experimental laziness, I transferred the beer directly onto the yeast cake from the oatmeal stout. In part, I wanted to try this technique. But mostly I just didn’t want to clean the fermenter. As a side effect, I saved a few bucks (unless the beer is bad, in which case I didn’t save anything).
  • My newer German pils is lagering, and I plan to keg it soon.

What’s On Tap?

  • I’m on the home stretch for the kegs of Farke’s Best Pils and Humboldt’s Lesser Hefeweizen. Once those are done, I can rotate in the kellerbier!
  • I just put the American IPA on-tap (made with 2021 hops), and it is drinking beautifully.

What’s Coming Up?

  • I plan to brew a pale ale with a few more of the hops from the HOPBOX, specifically Strata and El Dorado.
  • I’m also going to run a clone recipe of Pliny the Elder again, this time with slight modification. Kits were on sale at MoreBeer, so I picked one up just to give it a try.
  • I am thinking about another pilsner soon, once I evaluate the most recent German pils.
  • A Scottish 70/- heavy is on my list, so I can have another lower alcohol beer on hand.