Jeg3 brewdays

[jeg3]

First off in this list is Tin Miner's Ale from Greg Hughes' which I started off on Friday night.

I tweaked the grain bill slightly to reduce the ABV, down to 4.8% from 5.2, and swapped the yeast for WY1469, which I had a new pack of.

Second brew with the grainfather and hit 80% mash efficiency which I was chuffed with. The only emergency change of plan came when I tried to hook the hose up to the chiller only to find the hose was frozen...

Anyway ended up leaving it to cool overnight in the garden then went in the fridge the next morning. The yeast was pitched at 24°C. No activity all day yesterday, then boom, a huge krausen this morning. I'll crop in the next few days.

 

[jeg3]

The brew schedule:

Tin Miner's Ale
Best Bitter
4.6% / 12.2 °P
All Grain

Grainfather G30
72% efficiency

Batch Volume: 23 L
Boil Time: 60 min

Mash Water: 17.05 L
Sparge Water: 14.97 L
Total Water: 32.02 L
Boil Volume: 28 L

Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.044

Vitals
Original Gravity: 1.049
Final Gravity: 1.014
IBU (Tinseth): 35
Colour: 17.9 EBC

Mash Temperature — 65 °C — 60 min

Mash Out — 75 °C — 10 min

Malts (5.02 kg)
4.3 kg (85.7%) — Crisp Extra Pale Maris Otter® Malt — Grain — 3.4 EBC
330 g (6.6%) — Weyermann Caramunich I — Grain — 101 EBC
220 g (4.4%) — Castle Malting Chateau Biscuit — Grain — 50 EBC
170 g (3.4%) — Thomas Fawcett Crystal Malt — Grain — 118 EBC

Hops (88 g)
48 g (30 IBU) — First Gold (Whole) 6.12% — Boil — 60 min
20 g (5 IBU) — Bramling Cross (Whole) 6.4% — Boil — 10 min
20 g — Bramling Cross (Whole) 6.4% — Boil — 0 min

Miscs
20 ml — CRS — Mash
2.61 g — Epsom Salt (MgSO4) — Mash
10 ml — CRS — Sparge
2.29 g — Epsom Salt (MgSO4) — Sparge
0.25 tsp — Irish Moss — Boil — 10 min

Yeast
1 pkg — Wyeast Labs 1469 West Yorkshire Ale 71%

Fermentation
Primary — 20 °C — 14 days

Carbonation: 1.5 CO2-vol

 

[jeg3]

It was a slow start, no activity for 18 hours then the krausen developed rapidly.

Took a gravity reading tonight 1.026 and skimmed the krausen, waited for it to reform then cropped for the yeast bank.

My first time using 1469 and it's similar looking to 1318 but the taste after the gravity reading was unique. I've not tasted a beer so subtly fruity before out of all my homebrews. Looking forward to this one!

 

[jeg3]

Last night made up the Mangrove Jack's Irish Stout kit. I haven't made a kit up for about 5 years, and it felt a bit like cheating! Anyway it's fermenting away nicely today so I'll see how it goes.

 

[jeg3]

It was a slow start, no activity for 18 hours then the krausen developed rapidly.

Took a gravity reading tonight 1.026 and skimmed the krausen, waited for it to reform then cropped for the yeast bank.

My first time using 1469 and it's similar looking to 1318 but the taste after the gravity reading was unique. I've not tasted a beer so subtly fruity before out of all my homebrews. Looking forward to this one!

One thing I've realised is I need to collect cropped yeast in bigger jars. The yeast and wort I am collecting continues fermenting fairly vigorously and soon the yeast and CO2 cause the yeast to explode out of the jar. I reckon I'll need at least a litre jar in future...

 

[jeg3]

Took a gravity reading on the Tine Miner's Ale earlier this week and it's reached FG - 1.014 spot on. Tastes awesome, will be bottling tomorrow followed by the next brew - Old Hooky!

 

[Horners]

Took a gravity reading on the Tine Miner's Ale earlier this week and it's reached FG - 1.014 spot on. Tastes awesome, will be bottling tomorrow followed by the next brew - Old Hooky!

My tin miners tasted rubbish - had been looking forward to doing it for ages and when I did it was my first and only brew with Kveik Voss. ITs on the long to brew list with a 'normal' yeast next time.

 

[jeg3]

My tin miners tasted rubbish - had been looking forward to doing it for ages and when I did it was my first and only brew with Kveik Voss. ITs on the long to brew list with a 'normal' yeast next time.

Mine is very bitter (in the bitter style sense), but also very fruity currently, which is reminiscent of Adnams Broadside.

 

[Horners]

Mine is very bitter (in the bitter style sense), but also very fruity currently, which is reminiscent of Adnams Broadside.

Mine tastes like fanta

 

[jeg3]

Old Hooky Brew day:

Old Hooky
Best Bitter

4.7% / 11.1 °P
All Grain

Grainfather G30
72% efficiency

Batch Volume: 23 L
Boil Time: 60 min

Mash Water: 14.28 L

Sparge Water: 16.91 L
Total Water: 31.19 L
Boil Volume: 28 L

Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.035

Vitals
Original Gravity: 1.045
Final Gravity: 1.009
IBU (Tinseth): 32
Colour: 18.9 EBC

Mash
Mash — 67 °C — 60 min
Mash out — 75 °C — 10 min


Malts (3.991 kg)
3.3 kg (73%) — Crisp Extra Pale Maris Otter® Malt — Grain — 3.4 EBC
400 g (8.9%) — Crisp Flaked Torrefied Maize — Grain — 0.5 EBC
250 g (5.5%) — Thomas Fawcett Crystal Malt — Grain — 118 EBC
41 g (0.9%) — Double Eagle Black Magic Wheat — Grain — 1085 EBC
Other (530 g)
330 g (7.3%) — Corn Sugar (Dextrose) — Sugar — 0 EBC
200 g (4.4%) — Briess Rice Hulls — Adjunct — 0 EBC

Hops (47 g)
35 g (29 IBU) — Challenger 2020 (Whole) 7.3% — Boil — 60 min
12 g (3 IBU) — Fuggle (Whole) 6.4% — Boil — 10 min

Miscs
7 ml — CRS/AMS — Mash
2.3 g — Epsom Salt (MgSO4) — Mash
8 ml — CRS/AMS — Sparge
2.72 g — Epsom Salt (MgSO4) — Sparge
0.5 tsp — Irish Moss — Boil — 10 min

Yeast
1 pkg — Wyeast Labs 1318 London Ale III 75%

Fermentation
Primary — 20 °C — 14 days

Carbonation: 1.5 CO2-vol

 

[jeg3]

As always it never quite goes to plan...

First off the bearing/spacer on the input of my grain mill drifted out of its hole so the leading roller was all over the place. I only noticed this after I milled all the grain. A quick repair job and I had to mill it again, although this time, even though I opened the gap considerbly, it was too fine so added 200g of rice hulls to minimise a stuck sparge.

Then I got the temp wrong on the GF and started mashing at 69...had to cut short the rest time and start recirculating to bring the temp down.

Anyway, it's warming up for the mashout now and it's looking Ok

 

[jeg3]

Mine tastes like fanta

Showing my age here, maybe you could convince yourself it's like orange hooch! Although saying that, I think I'd rather have Fanta...

 

[jeg3]

Old Hooky is in the FV, 1.042 which is three points below OG, I lost track of how much sparge water input in after I pressed the wrong button on the GF, and over shot boil volume by half a litre. Also because it's cold outside today the boil off was lower than expected.

That said, Brewfather predicts 4.5% instead of 4.7% and that's good enough for me.

 

[jeg3]

First off in this list is Tin Miner's Ale from Greg Hughes' which I started off on Friday night.

I tweaked the grain bill slightly to reduce the ABV, down to 4.8% from 5.2, and swapped the yeast for WY1469, which I had a new pack of.

Second brew with the grainfather and hit 80% mash efficiency which I was chuffed with. The only emergency change of plan came when I tried to hook the hose up to the chiller only to find the hose was frozen...

Anyway ended up leaving it to cool overnight in the garden then went in the fridge the next morning. The yeast was pitched at 24°C. No activity all day yesterday, then boom, a huge krausen this morning. I'll crop in the next few days.

I bottled the Tin Miner's Ale on Friday night. My cobbled tube and bottling stick gave way after a few bottles and what felt like a few pints escaped onto the floor. It was more like half a pint, but it never ceases to amaze me how far spilt beer or wine can go.

Anyway, 38½ bottles, I've kept the ½ full bottle just to see whether it actually carbs.

I changed my priming routine this time, since I've started bottling straight from the FV (an Ss Brewtech Brewmaster Bucket) I measured out 210ml boiling water and added 60g cane sugar, then put 5ml into each bottle - I prepared 42 bottles.

Took a little bit of time but well worth it, no skimming krausen or having to stir in the priming solution direct in the FV and risk risk rousing the yeast and trub.

I reckon there was about an hour of bottle washing and sanitising mid week, 15 mins of priming and half an hour of bottling.

 

[jeg3]

Old Hooky progress: I made a starter from the harvested WY1318 from the spring ale last month and it had a nice head on it at pitching time. Pitched the yeast at 18 degC and then let it naturally rise to 20 and then plugged the heater and fridge on.

A nice 2 inch krausen this morning. I'll let it ferment for a couple of days, skim off the top and discard then harvest. I plan to keep this yeast - and the WY1469 I recently harvested - for some time as long as I like the beers.

Next up, bottling the Irish Stout, then it's the house session bitter once the Old Hooky is bottled.

 

[jeg3]

MJ Irish Stout update:

Bottled on Friday night. 40 bottles individually primed with solution to 1.9 vols. Wondered why my bottling stick was getting blocked and it was the debris from the dry hop. Hopefully it will settle out in the bottle.

Old Hooky update:

Decent quantity of top cropped yeast harvested.

 

[jeg3]

Old Hooky update:

I bottled 8 pints and out the rest in the king keg. I must admit my last two brews in the KK haven't tasted as good as the bottles, so I think I'll be bottling from now on. I can't afford a corny keg setup, and don't have the space for a kegerator yet, so bottling it is.

It tastes good though.

 

[jeg3]

Bitter brewday:

Ercall Bitter
Best Bitter

4.5% / 11.6 °P
All Grain

Grainfather G30
76.7% efficiency

Batch Volume: 23 L
Boil Time: 60 min

Mash Water: 15.52 L

Sparge Water: 16.04 L
Total Water: 31.56 L
Boil Volume: 28 L

Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.042

Vitals
Original Gravity: 1.047

Final Gravity: 1.013

IBU (Tinseth): 35

Colour: 10.8 EBC

Mash
Temperature — 65 °C — 60 min

Mash Out — 75 °C — 10 min

Malts (4.45 kg)
3.9 kg (87.6%) — Crisp Extra Pale Maris Otter® Malt — Grain — 3.4 EBC
350 g (7.9%) — Crisp Wheat Malt — Grain — 4.1 EBC
200 g (4.5%) — Thomas Fawcett Crystal Malt — Grain — 118 EBC

Hops (93 g)
28 g (22 IBU) — Challenger 2020 (Whole) 7.3% — Boil — 60 min
40 g (10 IBU) — Fuggle (Whole) 6.4% — Boil — 10 min
25 g (3 IBU) — Fuggle (Whole) 6.4% — Boil — 5 min

Miscs
15 ml — CRS/AMS — Mash
2.37 g — Epsom Salt (MgSO4) — Mash
1.34 g — Gypsum (CaSO4) — Mash
15.34 ml — CRS/AMS — Sparge
2.42 g — Epsom Salt (MgSO4) — Sparge
1.37 g — Gypsum (CaSO4) — Sparge

Yeast
1 pkg — Wyeast Labs 1469 West Yorkshire Ale 71%
Fermentation
Primary — 20 °C — 14 days

Carbonation: 1.5 CO2-vol

Water Profile
Ca2+ 100 Mg2+ 15 Na+ 41 Cl- 145 SO42- 229 HCO3- 78

 

[jeg3]

After my previous problems with my grain mill, I had to reset it and this time I think I had set it to find and a lot of flour was produced I the first kilo or so. This meant a very slow recirc and sparge in the GF, but brewfather has the efficiency as 86%.

Anyway, post mash SG was high, but OG was about right and 1.047.

I made a starter for the 1469 cropped from the Tin Miner's Ale, but it hardly seemed to wake up. It was definitely producing CO2 at pitching time, so it went in.

Anyway this morning (18 hours later) a good krausen has developed.

Following the debate about the perfect bitter -

https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/the-quest-for-the-perfect-bitter.93106
- I thought about the wheat in the recipe, and whether it was traditional or not, but then concluded that I liked it as an addition last time, and I'm not making a traditional bitter...!

 

[jeg3]

Tin Miner's Ale update:

Cracked the first bottle on Saturday evening (3 weeks since bottling).

Nicely carbed, good head retention. Complex flavour, reminds me of a badger beer: initial citrus fruit hit, from the first gold. Nice malty flavour with with chocolate undertones, and fruity after taste.

In summary I am very impressed. I've never made a beer that tastes anything like it before.

Old Hooky update:

A week in the keg. First taste (to check it's OK) very promising. Not sure it's on par with the real thing, but it tastes lovely.

Ercall Bitter Update:

After seeing minimal activity in the 1469 starter for 24 hours or so, it exploded in the FV within 24 hours of pitching and after 3 days had formed the lovely foamy krausen I love about top cropping yeasts. Harvested quite a batch of extremely viable yeast into a couple of jars which should keep me going for another couple of brews.

I've got a hefeweizen planned next, so these batches of cropped yeast will go to sleep in the fridge for another month or two before being woken up for another bitter in May / June.