AG#12 D&B Ale (Dandelion and Burdock)

[stevela]

I'll probably end up filing this brewday under the what the *#!? was I thinking but here goes.

I've been asked since I started brewing by one of my friends to make something alcoholic involving dandelion and burdock, I finally agreed on the proviso that he provides the required roots etc. These turned up last week so I guess it's time to hold up my end of the bargain :)

Initially I came across this recipe in the Guardian and was going to just run with that however I decided rather than use plain old sugar I'd brew a basic ale and use the D&B instead of the hops.

Recipe: AG#12 D&B Ale
TYPE: All Grain

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size (fermenter): 23.00 l
Estimated OG: 1.066 SG
Estimated Color: ???? Dark
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 78.3 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name
4.25 kg Maris Otter (Crisp) (5.5 EBC)
0.50 kg Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (118.2 EBC)
Approx 700g Burdock
Approx 250g Dandelion Root
1 Tin (454g) Black Treacle
1.0 pkg SafAle English Ale (DCL/Fermentis #S-04)


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge, Drain
Total Grain Weight: 4.75 kg
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 13.89 l of water at 69.9 C 64.4 C 75 min
Sparge: Batch sparge with 2 steps (Drain mash tun, , 20.26l) of 75.6 C water

I originally have this with 250g of crystal however I had a half open packet that needed using and thought why not put it all in :)

Measuring strike water:

Weighing out grains with my very manly scoop:

Mash is on time to have a brew. I'll stick all the D&B into the boiler at the beginning and the treacle in the last 15 minutes.

Not a very scientific one this but should be interesting at the very least :)

 

[RobWalker]

hahah looks awesome! good luck man. surely a beer for the Xmas bottle swap :p

 

[stevela]

I'm sure I will want to give as much away of this as possible

 

[stevela]

D&B roots (look a little bit like cat litter)

Measuing sparge liquor

First Wort Roots?

Transferring to kettle

Ended up with 27.5 litres at 1.045 in the kettle.

 

[fizz head1982]

Awesome, I am neraly finished my 2 gallons of ginger ale, this would be an excellent companion to this. Keep us informed! :

 

[stevela]

15 mins left of the boil roughly. Wort chiller is in, irish moss added and i decided that since there was a tin of black treacle it would be rude not to put it all in (454g). Mixed some wort with the treacle in the tin to loosen it up a bit first. Can't find my large spoon so hoping this mixes ok!

I feel if this beer does turn out to be nice it will be something I can never replicate :)

 

[stevela]

Boil starting:

Transferring to fermenter, lovely colour leeched out of the roots and treacle:

Taking a reading (eeep):

So turns out I now have 18 litres of an interesting tasting ale at 1.066. I only have one packet of S04 may need to pick up another one and pitch that as well. Alternatively could see how far this gets before it gives up the ghost and see if the sweetness compliments the flavours of the D&B.

 

[ryanshelton]

Where did your mate get the d+b from? I want to brew this!!

 

[stevela]

Just asked him and he got it from eBay.

Lots of sellers, here's a couple I found:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NaturaPurify- ... 2c539be561

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dandelion-Roo ... 232498375e

Cheers

 

[ryanshelton]

Thanks for that :-)

 

[bobsbeer]

Well done. Glad the arduino worked. :thumb:

 

[stevela]

Got a few new toys in the post today so thought it would be a good time to use them. Picked up a clear glass trial jar and a finishing hydrometer:

Nice colour to it:

New hydrometer suggesting it is at 1.015 bang on (not calibrated it yet though)

Had myself a tiny sample:

Taste is...interesting, at first I thought I it tasted of vinegar (worried about infection as it's my first time using nothing but starsan) but it must be the combination of D&B as I can't smell anything that would suggest it has turned bad. My friend is coming on Friday to give it the thumbs up or down as to whether or not I should bottle it in a week or two, might be one of those that needs some time to age.

 

[stevela]

I've had another taste of this tonight with my friend and his reaction was..."never mind".

I still don't think it's turned to vinegar but there is something off with it. I opened the lid to get a proper whiff from the fermenter and almost passed out from the fumes, very hot nasal burning fumes with a background of vinegar.

Does this sound like it could have been caused by too high gravity and low amount of yeast or is more likely some form of infection (can't see anything obvious on the surface).

I'll leave it in the cellar for a few more weeks out of the fridge as it's cool enough down there and see what happens to it. Worst comes to worst I'll dump it and a lesson has been learned :)

Also calibrated the new hydrometer and it is spot on at 20c whilst I had the water I tested my original one and discovered it's 1.006 at 20c so I've got some adjustments to make in future (and maybe a better hydrometer purchase to make as well!)

 

[RobWalker]

with odd ingredients, I would just give it time. burdock is quite pungent so I think you'll have to condition it a bit before it mellows out and tastes good.

think of it this way, if you're expecting it to smell and taste exactly like normal beer, you're probably wrong :lol:

 

[stevela]

Well there is that :)

I'll give it a week, rack it off the yeast and forget about it for a while.

Need to brew for myself this weekend, with Galaxy and other normal ingredients :)

 

[stevela]

Transferred this to a pressure barrel last tuesday and have left it in the cellar. I'll give this a few more weeks before passing final judgement on it :)

The fermenter has been cleansed, unfortunately without the aid of any priests :)

 

[ryanshelton]

Any update on how this turned out?

 

[stevela]

Not good...not good at all. I left it until the other week to see if the flavour improved or if it would clear but no joy so down the drain it went. It earned the name "scabby dog" :)

 

[peelman]

Oh well nothing ventured nothing gained... Could have been good... :sick:

:thumb:

 

[ryanshelton]

Don't think I'll bother making this now lol thanks for the update :)