AG#1 Robinsons Old Tom

[peelman]

Ok first AG and went for the Robinsons Old Tom from the GW book as its one of my favourite beers.(and it knocks your socks off :drunk: )

19ltr length (should of done 23 as I'm not putting it in a cornie now.)

Kit all set up and ready to go!

90 minute mash. Start temp 66C bang on 64.5C after 90 minutes. My shed was only 7C so it was a bit too cold I guess??

Did the Iodine test and there was sugar.

To the copper, a hot break and eventually a nice rolling boil.

In with the 90 minute hop editions. Goldings and Whitbread Goldings

Wort chiller ready to go in 15 mins from end to sanitise

10 minute hop edition

Goldings (and some Irish moss)

Though all was going well. 19lts left in the copper and a minute to go!

But when I put it in the FV I was a good 2.5lts short!

Took a gravity reading and it was 1086! (book said 1080) So added 1 lts of boiled water and pitched Safale S-04, yeast at 21C.

Really not sure why I was that far out with the end volume?? Anyway split the difference with boiled water.

Now the hard part waiting!!

Thanks for all the advice yesterday chaps.

:thumb:

 

[BIGJIM72]

Losses to trub/hops maybe. Could just be evaporation.Looking good though

 

[calumscott]

That's a belter of a beer for your first!

Welcome to the darkside... :thumb:

You'll need to take a load of careful measurements of your volumes pre-boil, post boil, FV and bottling and monkey around with the numbers to get it right. I'm 7 in and I'm still not quite there yet...

You can lose water through:

- higher grain absorption
- higher boil off rate
- higher hop absorption
- more trub
- more FV trub

...than you planned. Given you were at your final volume before the end of the boil - start with the first two!

Are you using any brewing software?

 

[peelman]

It was at about 24lts before the boil and boiled down to 19 ish right at the end. 5 ltrs of steam in 90 mins is that usual?

I think the hops absorbed quite a lot too.

Are you using any brewing software?

No I don't use any software. I just took the volumes straight out of the book.
I'm not too worried anyway. I think its going to be a good beer and if it is anything like the shop bought OT it is going to be a regular of mine!

 

[calumscott]

5l boil off over 90 mins is low... I expect to lose 7 or 8...

 

[Dr Mike]

Congrats on AG#1 and :hat: for doing a 'big' beer!

Pretty much every AG#1 I read about on here (including mine) come up short on volume !

 

[graysalchemy]

Welcome to the darkside young padawaan. :twisted: :twisted:

I worked in a robbies ub in my teens used to enjoy changing a pin of old tom as I used to have to check it for clarity :whistle: .

 

[dennisking]

Good to see your cherry popped, only ever tried this beer in bottles, can see why it's considered one of the best in the world. Not tried the GW version.

 

[peelman]

The reason I'm not putting the OT in a cornie now is that I have been advised this could take 6 months + before its drinkable and I didn't want to tie 1 up for so long.

So still undecided if its going into my pressure barrel or bottles? By the time its done fermenting I should have enough empty bottles for it, as I'm off for a week at Easter and the Coopers Canadian Blonde is going to have a hammering!! :

 

[calumscott]

Why not just age it in bulk under airlock and transfer to a corny after a few months?

Actually, you could drop it to a barrel, flush with CO2 from your corny setup and leave it there. Drop it to the corny for dispense when its ready?

 

[peelman]

Why not just age it in bulk under airlock and transfer to a corny after a few months?

Actually, you could drop it to a barrel, flush with CO2 from your corny setup and leave it there. Drop it to the corny for dispense when its ready?

:hmm: I like the "bulk under air lock" idea! Would you transfer it to the secondary after a couple of weeks as usual and then leave it in that for a few months?

 

[calumscott]

Why not just age it in bulk under airlock and transfer to a corny after a few months?

Actually, you could drop it to a barrel, flush with CO2 from your corny setup and leave it there. Drop it to the corny for dispense when its ready?

:hmm: I like the "bulk under air lock" idea! Would you transfer it to the secondary after a couple of weeks as usual and then leave it in that for a few months?

Well it works for cider...! Yeah, rack it off the yeast cake and leave it somewhere cold. I'd flush the headspace gently with CO2 if you have it too. :thumb:

 

[Scott]

That's a big old beer for the first one, so hats off!

I came up short on my first AG and only ended up with 20l in the FV.

 

[peelman]

Popped my head in the shed after work earlier and the foam is touching the lid and the air lock is going like a steam train!! :party:

Perhaps its a blessing I was a couple of litres shy? :hmm:

 

[Asalpaws]

Well done it's a big beer! It will take time to mature, for ages mine had a plastic twang, that's settled now. Colour looks bang on.

After a while you get to know the idiosyncrasies if your set up. I always loose loads in the boil and end up liquoring back. Nice one, T

 

[graysalchemy]

I bulk aged my old tom clone for about two months before bottling. Unfortunately it seemed to be devoid of yeast and never carbed up. As a result on all my other big beers they have gone to bottle after about two weeks in a secondary, and they have all been fine. I wished I had done that with the barley wine. :thumb:

 

[peelman]

:hmm:
Yes, decisions, decisions...
I will have enough bottles by the time its ready for bottling..
Also I hope to be moving house within a month or two so maybe bottles are the answer as they will be easier to move than a carboy (with an airlock in) full of my precious brew??

We will see.

BTW had a little look at it tonight and it's still bubbling like a good-un! Topped up the airlock a bit too..

 

[peelman]

Popped it into my 23 ltr carboy today where it is going to stay for a couple of months. Took a SG and it's 1012! The book said it should have been 1016?
When it's ready for drinking I think I will have to serve it with a spare pair of trousers thrown in.... :drunk:

I have put it back in the water bath at 20C. Is that ok?

 

[Asalpaws]

One thing you might need to consider is that your beer will be about 9 %. You probably won't want a pint at a time of that strength beer (or maybe I'm just a wimp!). As such you may want to use smaller bottles. I took Greys' advice and got some friends to drink their way through a pack of little bud bottles. They seem to take a crown cap well. T

 

[hairybiker]

I enjoyed this beer when they had it at a Weatherspoons festival a few years ago. They were serving it in 1/2 pints for the wimps, but the barman knew me and I got full pints :thumb:

Personally I would barrel it and just let it condition there, no need to disturb it again until it is ready for drinking, and you can allways keep checking it :party:

Didn't know it was in the GW book, don't think it is in mine anyway. Maybe a newer version of the book?