Pantry Clearing Bitter

I decided at the last minute that I wanted to brew today. I had some hops and grains in the pantry that needed to get used up so I figured I'd plug the amounts into BeerSmith and see what I got. Turns out I could use most of my leftovers on a 3.5gal batch of ordinary bitter. Most of the hops were pretty old so I intend to use them for bittering (reserving the oz of Saaz for a Belgian sometime). Picked up a couple of ounces of fresh hop pellets for aroma and a packet of S-04 to round out the recipe.

It's pretty cold in Ohio right now so I had trouble hitting my mash temp at first (138°F instead of the target 154°F). I figured that might happen so I mashed a little thick at first expecting I'd need to add a couple of quarts of near boiling water to get the temp right. The second addition was more like 157°F which was good since it's dropped a bit even in my cooler. I did a starch test due to the temperature issues to make sure I got full conversion and ended up with slightly more than a 60 minute mash. The grain bill is mostly pale malt with a mix of UK and Belgian 2-row since that's what I had leftover. A small amount of chocolate malt for some color and a little roast rounded it out.

A 60 minute boil with 2 hop boil additions and some at flame out clears most of my hops. The Styrian Goldings was a little more aromatic than the Fuggles and Amarillo so it's going in at 30 for some flavor. I bought Challenger and Pilgrim (both UK sourced) for some aroma and both go in during cooling. Pre-boil gravity was a smidge low at 1.028 but I suspect my efficiency was low because of the lower volume (greater percentage lost to dead space)

An unfortunate problem I encountered during my cold weather brew experiment is that a turkey fryer thermal valve will not stay open in 20° weather and occasionally catches fire since the o-ring shrinks. Luckily, my stove will boil 3.5 gallons without a problem so I just moved indoors. I eventually got up to a full boil at about 4:15 in the afternoon.

The boil was uneventful after that. I decided the cold was going to help me this time so I'm chilling outside right now. The aroma hops went in at chill time. Two new varieties for me: challenger and pilgrim. Challenger has been a staple for British styles for a while but I've always used the older varieties. Challenger seems to have a nice spicy and slightly musty smell. Jenn thinks it smells like mustard greens and I can't say I disagree. The pilgrim is a little less powerful with a spice and lemon nose.

I'm planning on drinking this one young so watch for updates and tasting notes in a few weeks.

Noble hop information

Just wanted to link everyone to a nice blog entry on noble hop characteristics and substitutions. It's a nice, succinct entry on the four noble hop varieties and is a nice read for beginner and advanced brewers.

Beersmith blog entry on noble hops

Restaurant Week and Allies Win the War!

I went to the semi-annual restaurant week in the Miami Valley tonight. As always, The Meadowlark was fantastic!

The meal began with a nice and flavorful pea soup with a rye toast covered in melted cheddar. The soup was quite good with a rich flavor but I think the toast could have used a sharper cheddar, it was a little flat tasting and slightly greasy. This course also came with a small (4oz or so) French country ale. This was not quite a saison but did have a nice clean taste with a slight spicyness.

I had the roasted winter squash salad with jalepeno, lime, yogurt, and cilantro. A surprising bite accompanied perfectly roasted squash. The sweetness of the squash mixed with the spice and the slight bite of the yogurt sauce.

The main course was a grilled pork chop with cornbread pudding. Another spicy dish that was quite good overall. The green onion gravy was not overdone and provided a nice contrast to the creamy moistness of the corn bread. The pork was a little overdone for my taste but it wasn't dry by any measure.

Finally, a soft and creamy maple créme brulee finished off the meal. The amount of food was just right and at $25.12 it was a steal.

The highlight of the evening was my Allies Win the War! beer, a collaborative between 21st Amendment and Nikasim this beer could be best described as an American strong ale. The malt was very typical of an English strong with sweet caramels, a little roast, and some dark fruits. Balanced bitterness makes this beer a perfect pairing for any of the meals that were offered for restaurant week. The nose was caramel, dried fruits (especially the California dates this beer was aged on) and the slight citrus and spice of the northwest US hops used in this brew. A medium body and a bit of carbonation lighten the beer so the malt doesn't take over. While not the best beer I've ever had, this was a solid brew and quite representative (exactly what I expected it to be) and I'd definitely buy it again.

Festivus FoS 2010 revisit

We broke out two of the last bottles of last year's Feats of Strength. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to make a batch this year but this batch is still quite nice.

Appearance: It pours with a very thick head which takes a while to settle. It's slightly off white and quite creamy settling with some nice lacing. The beer is slightly cloudy from the spices and a nice nut brown.

Aroma: There's a slight spice to the nose but it's not very pronounced probably due to the beer being fridge temperature. More pronounced is the sweet fruit: raisins, candied plum, and a little brandy alcohol. This really smells like a well aged fruit change.

Flavor: The palette hits with a spicy winter warmer character and finishes with some breadiness. It's much nicer than I remember last year. Checking my notes from last December, the things I don't like about it now are the same as last year but there's definitely some improvement, it's more rounded now.

Mouthfeel: It's still a little dry and thin and could use some more dextrin to boost the body.

Overall: I think this had improved over the last year and I'm glad there are a couple of bottles left for next year.

I haven't posted or brewed in quite a while as it's been sort of an overwhelming end of the year. I hit up a lot of breweries this year and I'm planning on putting together a year in beer summary sometime in the next week so keep an eye out.

Sierra Nevada Tumbler and The Kaiser

I decided to pick  up a six pack of Sierra Nevada's fall offering, a brown ale called Tumbler.

Appearance:
Pours with a thick off-white head that stays around for quite a while. Dark amber to light brown and fairly clear when held to the light.

Aroma:
Roasty malt nose with some raisin. There's a little grassy hop but not too much.

Flavor:
Raisin and molasses with some biscuit in the back end. A fair amount of bitterness for a brown (it's definitely an American variant).

Mouthfeel:
Medium body with a little astringency. Not entirely unpleasant. Not as thick as some browns I've had (notably Ithaca's Nut Brown).

Overall:
Not a bad beer but not my favorite brown. It could stand to have less hop bitterness which would let the malt shine a bit more. Pretty low alcohol makes this a decent session beer for cool fall afternoons. Not as impressive as the Torpedo and Kellerweiss but I'd drink it again.

Update on the 60/- heather ale

Bottled the heather ale tonight. Got 30 x 12oz, 2 x 1L and 1 x 1pt bottles. FG rang in at 1.008 with an estimate ABV of 3.51% so technically it's a 70/- since the cutoff for 60/- is 3.5% but I won't tell if you won't. It tasted a bit thin but that's to be expected with an uncarbonated session beer. There's some bitterness from the hops and heather but no discernible hop flavor. It's a little malty with a slight breadiness to the nose and a hint of floral from the heather. I'll be interested to see how it is with some bubbles.

I also tasted the partiweiss again tonight and it has mellowed a bit. I used my shallow, open top chalice this time. The sourness has mellowed a bit and is quite pleasant. There's still a little rubber in the after taste but I think it will fade in a little while. I'm feeling more comfortable submitting this one for judging as well.

Berlinergyle tasting notes

It's finally time to post tasting notes on the Berlinergyle. I've already had quite a few of these but I tried to review without any preconceptions.

The timing corresponds nicely with this month's beer blogger session.

Appearance: Straw yellow with white head that fades quickly; somewhat cloudy.

Aroma: A bright lactic sourness with some green apple and a little lemon. No hop in the nose at all. Also, there's no brett detectable even though I put some dregs from a Jolly Pumpkin in the primary. I think the lacto out competed just about everything else pretty early on.

Taste: Slightly sharp acidity with a bit of breadiness. Some acetic character but not so much as to be unpleasant. No bitterness detectable and no real maltiness.

Mouthfeel: This is a very light beer. The acid and high carbonation keep it very light and refreshing. The acid isn't strong enough to cause any tannin-like roughness in the mouth.

Overall: This beer had really mellowed since the initial tasting and is quite refreshing with a noticeable carbonation. I don't think it needs any syrup to balance the sour unlike the first bottle I drank. This tastes a little like a lemonade wine cooler but with a little more complexity. I would have liked a little brett sweetness but I'm not getting any after a few months so I think it's a lost cause on this batch. A decent beer for my first attempt at a sour and my first partigyle.