Got my crimbo brew on tonight. Its a wilko £10 hoppy copper bitter kit with wilko brewing sugar. Brewed short to 18 litres. OG 1038. Planning to ferment then rack to another fv, add some seasonal spices then keg. Bit disapointed at not getting a higher OG but still got good hopes for this one.
Christmas brew
- Thread starter kentmark
- Start date
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Dieseljockey
Regular.
Well done.. :clap: all the time I've been brewing I've never done a Crimbo ale...
memit said:
I would actually go as far as brewing short to 20 pints (without additional sugar) - have done it with cheap one can kits in the past and it produces a more full-bodied beer. OK that's 50p a pint but well worth it.
Next update. Gravity still at 1.008 so have moved onto Crimbo-ising the brew.
Got about 4 pulped satsumas (had them in the fridge - see my other thread), a 500ml bottle of coopers alcoholic ginger beer, 3 cinnamon sticks and 10 whole cloves. Heated the whole lot on the hob gently just to stir together and try to release some flavours from the outset. Put this mixture into a fresh clean FV.
Racked via syphon from the first FV into the new one, onto the fruit spice mixture. Gave it a good stir as I did it to really mix all those flavours.
Sealed the new FV up and left overnight. Bit of a bulge in the lid this morning, I guess the sugars in the new ingridients fermenting a bit. Am going to leave it in a warm place for about a week then see how we're getting on.
Couldn't resist having a peek this morning though, smelt like christmas pudding! We'll see how it pans out.
Had a quick taste of the base brew as well, very nice. Not the strongest flavour (but has fermented to 4% according to readings) but I think a bitter I could drink a lot of in a short space of time LOL. Keeping fingers crossed it just gets better with the festive additions!
Got about 4 pulped satsumas (had them in the fridge - see my other thread), a 500ml bottle of coopers alcoholic ginger beer, 3 cinnamon sticks and 10 whole cloves. Heated the whole lot on the hob gently just to stir together and try to release some flavours from the outset. Put this mixture into a fresh clean FV.
Racked via syphon from the first FV into the new one, onto the fruit spice mixture. Gave it a good stir as I did it to really mix all those flavours.
Sealed the new FV up and left overnight. Bit of a bulge in the lid this morning, I guess the sugars in the new ingridients fermenting a bit. Am going to leave it in a warm place for about a week then see how we're getting on.
Couldn't resist having a peek this morning though, smelt like christmas pudding! We'll see how it pans out.
Had a quick taste of the base brew as well, very nice. Not the strongest flavour (but has fermented to 4% according to readings) but I think a bitter I could drink a lot of in a short space of time LOL. Keeping fingers crossed it just gets better with the festive additions!
Well it has been in the keg by my bed under a blanket for just under 2 weeks now. Going to move into the garage today so should be spot on for crimbo (i hope!!) and I need to make space for my wine fv.
Had a taste when I syphoned into keg. Very subtle flavours but very nice, not overpowering. Looking forward to a few pints over crimbo!
Had a taste when I syphoned into keg. Very subtle flavours but very nice, not overpowering. Looking forward to a few pints over crimbo!
It's now being drunk! Lovely, really pleased with how it's come out. It's a light bitter, but has come out with quite sweet overtones thanks to the orange and ginger. You also get the festive flavours from the cinnamon and cloves. I've got it in my keg, I did prime with sugar but it's come out pretty flat - I think that's my keg loosing pressure, it was free to I can't complain too much. But it reminds me of an ale you would get at a beer festival, straight out the keg into a glass, the flavour etc more than makes up for a lack of fizz!
I think for next year I would try something similar, but brew from a darker, stronger ale kit to start with.
Cheers :
I think for next year I would try something similar, but brew from a darker, stronger ale kit to start with.
Cheers :
Still drinking it. With the cold weather the keg in the garage is nicely chilled. Flavours are even nicer now, nicely balanced not too overpowering but really enjoyable. So pleased with this brew especially as it was my first attempt at modifying a kit.
carl_saint
Landlord.
Great stuff! I might try a Xmas brew this year round!
