Tasting the Jalapeño Saison

2 weeks and 1 day... Time to break open a Jumpin' Jalapeño!

Here's how it went down:

A - light blonde/yellow color. Slightly hazy; head disappears quickly. Good carbonation, small bubbles. No lacing.

S - Sweet, subtle. Light jalapeno essence.

T - Slight Malt, balanced well with the light bittering hops. Jalapeno nice, not overbearing at all; restrained. Finishes with some spice, but only very lightly.

M - very thin. Drinkable.

O - WILL BREW AGAIN!!!!

This one was pretty tasty - I may make it again without the jalapeño; it would make a great farmhouse ale. I can't wait to see how it tastes in another week.

Ol' Ben CMP (Chocolate Maple Porter)

Why not name a beer after my old friend Ben. He's sweet, and friendly, and lots of fun, with a touch of mischief. Here's hoping this beer will be the same.

Brew Name: Ol' Ben CMP (Chocolate Maple Porter)
Date: 9/4/12
Style: Porter
Batch #: 4
Batch Size: 1 gal
Brewer's Friend Session Link

Grain Bill / Extract / Adjuncts
1.2 lb Pale 2-Row malt
0.3 lb Chocolate malt
0.2 lb Caramel / Crystal malt 15L
0.15 lb Black Patent malt
0.51 lb (3/4 cup) Maple Syrup

Mash:
Rest Temp: 152-144 Time: 60 min Vol: 2 quarts
Strike Water Temp: 175' Vol: 1 gal

Sparge time: 60 min Temp: 152-144

Efficiency: 62%
Preboil Volume: 1.25 gal
Preboil Gravity: 1.042

Boil Time: 60 minutes
Anticipated IBUs: 33.81
Hop Schedule:
60 min 0.3 oz Fuggles Pellet
15 min 0.1 oz Fuggles Pellet
post boil: Add 3/4 cup maple syrup
Original Gravity: 1.056

Yeast: Munton's Brewer's Yeast (came with kit)
Starter Size: n/a
Bottling Date:
Final Gravity:
ABV:

Batch #3, Bruxom Blonde

Brew Name: Bruxom Blonde
Date: 8/23/2012
Style: Belgian Blonde Ale
Batch #: 3
Batch Size: 1 gal
Brewer's Friend session link


Grain Bill / Extract / Adjuncts:
1.7 lb Pilsner
0.4 lb Carapils (Dextrine Malt)
0.1 lb Aromatic Malt

Mash:
Rest Temp: 152-144 Time: 60 min Vol: 2 quarts

Strike Water Temp: 175' Vol: 1 gal

Sparge time: 60 min Temp: 152-144

Efficiency: 46% (expected 70)
Preboil Volume: 1.25 gal
Preboil Gravity: 1.033

Boil Time: 60 minutes
Anticipated IBUs: 20.63
Hop Schedule:
60 min 0.083 oz Styrian Goldings Pellet
30 min 0.083 oz Styrian Goldings Pellet
15 min 0.083 oz Styrian Goldings Pellet

post boil: n/a
Original Gravity: 1.037 (expected 1.056)

Yeast: Fermentis / Safale - Safbrew - General/Belgian Yeast S-33
Starter Size: n/a
Bottling Date:
Final Gravity:
ABV:

Notes: I don't know why this one was so inefficient - unless it was because I followed the instructions for sparging and only ran the wort through the grain once....

8/30/12 - SG @ 1.025
9/02/12 - SG @ 1.020

Happy International Beer Day! (Batch #2, Jalapeno Saison)

Hey, it's International Beer Day, so why not brew up a batch of beer?

Today I brewed up a batch of Brooklyn Brew Shop's Jalapeno Saison.

Brew Name: Jumpin' Jalapeno
Date: 8/5/2012
Style: Saison
Batch #: 2
Batch Size: 1 gal
Brewer's Friend Session Link

Grain Bill / Extract / Adjuncts
1.6 pounds Belgian Pilsner malt
0.1 pound Aromatic malt
0.02 pound Munich malt
1 chopped jalapeno
.2 pound clear Belgian Candi Sugar

⅓ cup agave nectar (priming)
Mash:
Rest Temp: 152-144 Time: 60 min Vol: 2 quarts

Strike Water Temp: 175' Vol: 1 gal

Sparge time: 60 min Temp: 152-144

Efficiency: 42% :-(

Preboil Volume: 1.25 gal
Preboil Gravity: 1.027 / 6.8 (sg / brix)

Boil Time: 60 minutes
Anticipated IBUs: 30.28
Hop Schedule:
 0 .04 oz Pacific Jade hops
30 .04 oz Pacific Jade hops
45 .04 oz Sorachi hops
50  chopped jalapenos
55 .04 oz Sorachi hops
60 .04 oz Sorachi hops
post boil 1/3 cup Agave, belgian candi sugar
Original Gravity: 1.048 / 11.8

Yeast: Belgian Saison 3724 (or equiv)
Starter Size: n/a
Bottling Date:
Final Gravity:
ABV:

Note: Forgot to mash out after resting. We'll see what happens with that...

Yeast pitched, ready for the fermentation closet...

Bonus: drying the spent grain for later use...

New Toy (Refractometer in the house)

First batch was done without taking any specific gravity measurements, mainly because I didn't have a hydrometer, but also because taking 4-5 4oz measurements from a 1 gallon batch is upwards to 12% of that precious beer. So before I start on Batch #2, I bought:

I bought the refractometer from this company, but the same company sells them on Ebay, for about $4 cheaper. It shipped to me FAST, and seems a fairly sturdy device, given the cost ($25.40).

Here's an interesting podcast from Basic Brewing Radio, about Hydrometers and Refractometers, in case you're curious.

Now I feel like brewing something and involving JigaWatt in the name...

Tasting the Grapefruit Honey Ale (Batch #1)

As a reward for completing the Tahoe Rim Trail Endurance 50 Mile Race, I allowed myself to crack open a homebrew, and enjoy it in my new hard earned pint glass. Here are the results...

Appearance: Golden, and fairly clouded. Head had big, coarse bubbles, with little retention, and almost no lacing.

Smell: Just a hint of hops, and lacking any citrus notes. Would have hoped for more of both. Malt was present, but not over pronounced.

Taste: Tastes like beer! Again, the hop flavors and grapefruit presence seemed non-existent. There were hardly any hints of honey, and while there were no off flavors, I'm wondering if I should have made a better effort to cool the fermentation temperature.

Drinkability: I wouldn't drive across town to drink this, but since I made it, I want to make it again, and make it better.

Mouthfeel: The carbonation was good, but the bubbles big. Not over-carbonated, but just a bit coarse. Definitely not thin, rather I felt it was well balanced.

Notes: Take Gravities! Ferment in a more controlled environment, and check yeast temp recommendations. Maybe rack to a secondary, and let it settle another week or two at cooler temps. DON'T FORGET TO PUT THE HONEY IN THE WORT. Maybe bump up the flavor & aroma hops.

Bottling Time (Batch #1)

Time to bottle! It's been in the fermenter for 3 weeks, and probably could have been bottled a week ago, but I wanted to try and clarify it a bit more. Here it is, with some nice trub in the bottom:

Emptied:

Probably a bunch of B vitamins in there...

In the bottles it went (thanks for the capper, Tod!):

Now I just have to wait two weeks...

Honey Ale for my Honey! - A Grapefruit Honey Ale (Batch #1)

Batch #1 is an Ode to my sweetheart. It's a Grapefruit Honey Ale, from a kit and ingredients courtesy of Brooklyn Brew Shop. It's described as "Light and refreshing citrusy ale for those who just can't wait for summer." Since my sweetheart isn't really big on IPAs, and I'm not the greatest Wheat fan, this sounded like a good compromise. I decided to go with Brooklyn Brew Shop after seeing the kit at Williams Sonoma, and reading their book. The idea of a 1 gallon batch rather than a 5 gallon one seemed appealing from a cost and effort perspective, and it made an ideal Father's day gift.




Everything but the cooking vessels were included, and the method straightforward. This was the first time I'd done any non-extract brewing, and their method made it fairly straightforward to brew an all-mash beer. Everything was easy, except for regulating the temp of the mash. At one point it shot up well over 180' F. I hope I didn't destroy it... Anyway, it's in the fermenter, bubbling away. We'll see what happens in a week and a half or so...

It Begins again.

For the first time since 1991, I have brewed a batch of beer. It feels good to be back. My old notebooks are buried in the garage somewhere, so I'm going to augment my new physical notebooks with this one in the aether.