Sunday, August 24, 2014

Fade to Dark (Saison)

Got a little creative with some Brett Trois yeast, and put together something I'm calling a Dark Saison. I'll let you know how it tastes!


el oscuro (dark saison)

Style: Saison
Type:Calories: 178
Rating: 0.0Boil Size: 6.35 Gal
IBU's: 18.45Batch Size: 5.50 Gal
Color:   22.1 SRM  Boil Time: 60 minutes
Preboil OG: 1.052

EstimatedActual
Brew Date:-08/16/2014
OG:1.0551.056
FG:1.0101.010
ABV:5.90 %6.03 %
Efficiency:68 %68 %
Serve Date:09/20/2014/ /

 
Fermentation Steps
NameDays / TempEstimatedActual
Primary21 days @ 72.0°F08/16/201408/16/2014
Secondary14 days @ 72.0°F09/06/2014-
 
Grains & Adjuncts
AmountPercentageNameTimeGravity
8.00 lbs59.26 %Pilsner (2 Row) Bel60 mins1.036
4.00 lbs29.63 %Rahr Red Wheat60 mins1.037
1.00 lbs7.41 %Oats, Flaked60 mins1.037
8.00 ozs3.70 %Carafa III60 mins1.032
 
Hops
AmountIBU'sNameTimeAA %
1.50 ozs18.45Hallertauer Hersbrucker60 mins4.00
1.00 ozs0.00Citra0 mins13.20
1.00 ozsCitra7 days13.20
 
Yeasts
AmountNameLaboratory / ID
1.0 pkgBrettanomyces Bruxellensis TroisWhite Labs 0644
 
Additions
AmountNameTimeStage
1.00 ozCoriander Seed15 minsBoil
1.00 ozWhirlfloc Tablet15 minsBoil
3.00 eachOranges14 daysSecondary

 
Mash Profile

Light Body Infusion In75 min @ 150.0°F
 Add 16.88 qt ( 1.25 qt/lb ) water @ 162.0°F

Sparge
 Sparge 17.54 qt of 170.0°F water over 60 mins

Monday, July 7, 2014

Xmas on my mind



Being that its warm outside it seemed a good time to start to plan a brew for when its cold outside, namely the HolzBrew 2014 Xmas Ale. I decided upon a Bourbon Dubbel/Quad. I call it a Dubbel/Quad (perhaps a "Duad") because the OG (1.082) places this beer somewhere between the Dubbel and Quad categorical styles. I've never cared much about brewing to a particular style, so no worries. I've been on a big trappist kick lately and thought it would make a nice beer for winter. I saw that LaTrappe makes a bourbon barrel aged version of their quad that gets great ratings on BeerAdvocate and RateBeer, so I figure it might be worth aging this batch on bourbon soaked oak cubes.

The White Labs 500 strain that I pitched took off beautifully. The picture above shows the wort at pitching (left) and then again 12 hours later (right).

Papa Noel


Style: Belgian Dark Strong Ale



Type:
Calories: 260


Rating: 0.0
Boil Size: 7.96 Gal


IBU's: 21.77
Batch Size: 7.00 Gal


Color:   20.0 SRM  
Boil Time: 90 minutes


Preboil OG: 1.075






Estimated
Actual


Brew Date:
-
07/06/2014


OG:
1.080
1.082


FG:
1.018
1.018


ABV:
8.12 %
8.38 %


Efficiency:
72 %
74 %


Serve Date:
06/22/2015
/ /



Fermentation Steps
Name
Days / Temp
Estimated
Actual
Primary
21 days @ 70.0°F
07/06/2014
07/06/2014
Secondary
90 days @ 72.0°F
07/27/2014
-
Bottle/Keg
30 days @ 74.0°F
10/25/2014
-

Grains & Adjuncts
Amount
Percentage

Name
Time
Gravity
18.00 lbs
82.76 %

Pilsner (2 Row) Bel
60 mins
1.036
2.00 lbs
9.20 %

Candi Sugar, Dark - D90
20 mins
1.036
6.00 ozs
1.72 %

Special B Malt
60 mins
1.030
1.00 lbs
4.60 %

Turbinado
60 mins
1.044
6.00 ozs
1.72 %

Briess 2-Row Caramel 40L
60 mins
1.034

Hops
Amount
IBU's

Name
Time
AA %
2.00 ozs
15.73

Hallertauer Hersbrucker
60 mins
4.00
1.00 ozs
6.04

Hallertauer Hersbrucker
30 mins
4.00

Yeasts
Amount
Name
Laboratory / ID
1.0 pkg
Trappist Ale
White Labs 0500

Additions
Amount
Name
Time
Stage
1.00 oz
Oak Chips
15 weeks
Secondary
1.00 oz
Whirlfloc Tablet
15 mins
Boil

Mash Profile

Medium Body Infusion In
60 min @ 154.0°F
 Add 23.44 qt ( 1.25 qt/lb ) water @ 166.0°F

Sparge
 Sparge 20.16 qt of 170.0°F water over 60 mins

Other

2oz. Hungarian Medium Roast Oak Cubes
375ml Bourbon


-HolzBrew

Sunday, March 2, 2014

New Brews during 2014



Its been some time since I've updated the blog.  HolzBrew Jr. has arrived and he demands/deserves most of Sr.'s attention.   Despite this, I have done some brewing the last couple of months and I figured I share the recipes.  The first batch was a bock with substantial rye additions.  I thought this Rye-bock (named "Heart Shaped Bock") would hit the spot at the end of winter and help usher in the Spring.  The second brew is a West Coast style DIPA.  It had been some time since I made a gnarly hop filled DIPA ("Hop Sauce"), so I figured why not.  I brewed the DIPA yesterday and unfortunately over milled the grain which led to a painfully stuck mash, which took two hours of hand filtering to extract a good 7+ gallons of wort to go into the kettle.  Fortunately, I don't think there was any irreparable damage to the brew, even if there was to my brewer-ego.


Heart Shaped Bock

Style: Maibock/Helles Bock



Type: All Grain
Calories: 178


Rating: 0.0
Boil Size: 6.87 Gal


IBU's: 47.52
Batch Size: 6.00 Gal


Color:   11.3 SRM  
Boil Time: 60 minutes


Preboil OG: 1.052






Estimated
Actual


Brew Date:
-
01/05/2014


OG:
1.055
1.050


FG:
1.010
1.010


ABV:
5.90 %
5.24 %


Efficiency:
70 %
63 %


Serve Date:
03/16/2014
/ /



Fermentation Steps
Name
Days / Temp
Estimated
Actual
Primary
14 days @ 52.0°F
01/05/2014
01/05/2014
Secondary
42 days @ 35.0°F
01/19/2014
-
Bottle/Keg
14 days @ 74.0°F
03/02/2014
-

Grains & Adjuncts
Amount
Percentage

Name
Time
Gravity
3.00 lbs
21.05 %

Weyermann Rye Malt
60 mins
1.029
0.50 lbs
3.51 %

Weyermann Carawheat
60 mins
1.037
0.25 lbs
1.75 %

Weyermann Chocolate Rye
60 mins
1.032
0.25 lbs
1.75 %

Cara-Pils/Dextrine
60 mins
1.033
9.25 lbs
64.91 %

Pale Malt (2 Row) US
60 mins
1.036
1.00 lbs
7.02 %

Candi Sugar, Clear
60 mins
1.036

Hops
Amount
IBU's

Name
Time
AA %
1.00 ozs
21.30

Sterling
First Wort
7.50
1.00 ozs
16.37

Sterling
30 mins
7.50
1.00 ozs
7.72

Sterling
10 mins
7.50
1.00 ozs


Sterling
7 days
7.50

Yeasts
Amount
Name
Laboratory / ID
1.0 pkg
German Bock Lager
White Labs 0833

Additions
(none)


Mash Profile

Sacch' Rest
60 min @ 151.0°F
 Add 19.88 qt ( 1.50 qt/lb ) water @ 165.3°F

Mashout
5 min @ 168.0°F
 Heat to 168.0°F over 2 mins



Hop Sauce


Style: Imperial IPA



Type: All Grain
Calories: 235


Rating: 0.0
Boil Size: 5.88 Gal


IBU's: 220.92
Batch Size: 5.00 Gal


Color:    7.7 SRM  
Boil Time: 90 minutes


Preboil OG: 1.068






Estimated
Actual


Brew Date:
-
03/01/2014


OG:
1.073
1.076


FG:
1.012
1.012


ABV:
7.99 %
8.38 %


Efficiency:
65 %
67 %


Serve Date:
04/10/2014
/ /



Fermentation Steps
Name
Days / Temp
Estimated
Actual
Primary
14 days @ 68.0°F
03/01/2014
03/01/2014
Secondary
14 days @ 35.0°F
03/15/2014
-
Secondary
12 days @ 72.0°F
03/29/2014
-

Grains & Adjuncts
Amount
Percentage

Name
Time
Gravity
14.50 lbs
87.83 %

Pale Malt (2 Row) US
60 mins
1.036
0.63 lbs
3.82 %

Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L
60 mins
1.034
0.63 lbs
3.82 %

Briess Carapils
60 mins
1.034
0.75 lbs
4.54 %

Corn Sugar (Dextrose)
60 mins
1.046

Hops
Amount
IBU's

Name
Time
AA %
3.50 ozs
153.64

Columbus (Tomahawk)
First Wort
14.00
0.75 ozs
28.26

Columbus (Tomahawk)
45 mins
14.00
1.00 ozs
23.66

Falconer's Flight
30 mins
10.50
1.00 ozs
0.00

Centennial
0 mins
10.00
1.00 ozs
0.00

Falconer's Flight
0 mins
10.50
1.00 ozs


Columbus (Tomahawk)
12 days
14.00
1.00 ozs


Centennial
12 days
10.00
1.00 ozs


Falconer's Flight
12 days
10.50
0.25 ozs


Falconer's Flight
5 days
10.50
0.25 ozs


Centennial
5 days
10.00
0.25 ozs


Columbus (Tomahawk)
5 days
14.00

Yeasts
Amount
Name
Laboratory / ID
1.0 pkg
American Ale
Wyeast Labs 1056

Additions
Amount
Name
Time
Stage
7.00 g
Gypsum
15 mins
Mash
1.00 oz
Whirlfloc Tablet
15 mins
Boil

Mash Profile

Light Body Infusion In
60 min @ 153.0°F
 Add 19.70 qt ( 1.25 qt/lb ) water @ 162.0°F

Mashout
10 min @ 170.0°F
 Heat to 170.0°F over 2 mins

Sparge
 Sparge 14.01 qt of 170.0°F water over 60 mins

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

A Decade Under the Influence, 10 years of GABF in Review

In 2007, I had the great fortune of attending the Great American Beer Festival (GABF).  It was a fun trip to Denver with several brewery visits and a trip to Falling Rock thrown in as well.  If you've been, you know its the big show.  The crowd is energetic and rowdy.  And the brewery employees  and volunteers are tremendous.  Brewers can pretend that winning hardware at GABF doesn't matter, but that's simply not true.  Winning medals tends to be followed by a decent bump in sales or at least increased visibility and recognition in the industry.  I'd go every year if money and vacation time were no object.  If you haven't been, you need to go.

With the release of this year's medal winners a few weeks ago, I took it upon myself to download the last ten years of medal winners for some quick analysis.

Top US-States

The brewing industry might be 99% free of jerks, but that doesn't mean that bragging rights don't exist.  Over the last ten years, three brewing communities stand out as exceptional based upon total medals (gold, silver and bronze) won.  Of the time-trends shown below only three are statistically different: California, Colorado, and Oregon.


I doubt these results are surprising to anyone attuned to the craft brew industry.

Top Breweries

I think the list of the top twenty breweries winning medals below is a bit more surprising than the top states list above.  Several of the breweries on the list below are, in fact, brewpubs with multiple locations, so I'm not sure this is a fair comparison.  Surprisingly, Pabst, Miller, and Anheuser-Busch are high on this list.  However, these macros typically win medals in the less exciting categories, such as american light style lager.  The first brewery on the list that is not a macro or a brewpub chain is Firestone Walker.


Brewery Medal Count
Pizza Port 68
Rock Bottom Brewery 60
Pabst Brewing Co. 39
Miller Brewing Co. 38
Firestone Walker Brewing Co. 37
Pelican Brewing Co. 28
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant 26
SandLot (The) 23
Devils Backbone Brewing Co. 23
Deschutes Brewery Bend Public House 23
Anheuser-Busch 22
Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant 19
Barley Brown's Brew Pub 19
Dry Dock Brewing Co. 18
BJ's Restaurant & Brewery 18
Russian River Brewing Co. 17
New Glarus Brewing Co. 17
Boston Beer Co. 17
Alaskan Brewing Co. 17
Snake River Brewing 16


Fest Love,

HolzBrew

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Empirical Anomaly (Brett Trois IPA)


Not everything can be explained by theory and scientific testing.  Alchemy still exists to an extent when it comes to homebrewing.  This afternoon I figured I'd try to brew up a batch where Brettanomyces no longer remained a member of the supporting cast.  It was time for it to be featured in a staring role.

I've been reading the last couple of months about a variety of exciting Brett-only beers, so I figured it was time to give it a try.  I've used Brett quite a bit in the past to help add funkiness once primary fermentation is complete.  This beer uses Brett as the primary fermenter.  These Brett-only beers ferment somewhat fast and have a nice flavor profile full of mango and tropical fruit, which sounds really awesome.  I added some wheat to in order to keep the body light.  Additionally, I added acid malt to the mash in order to give the Brett some lactic acid to grab on to.  The hop profile is pretty much 50/50 Centennial (my love affair continues) and Citra (the new girl in town).  I threw in a little Chinook since I already had an ounce around the house and have been trying to find a use for it.

                                                                        Empirical Anomaly
Style: Unassigned
Type:Calories: 212
Rating: 0.0Boil Size: 6.87 Gal
IBU's: 64.09Batch Size: 6.00 Gal
Color:   10.3 SRM  Boil Time: 75 minutes
Preboil OG: 1.062

EstimatedActual
Brew Date:-10/13/2013
OG:1.0661.060
FG:1.0101.010
ABV:7.34 %6.55 %
Efficiency:70 %64 %
Serve Date:11/09/2013/ /

Fermentation Steps
NameDays / TempEstimatedActual
Primary28 days @ 68.0°F10/13/201310/13/2013
Grains & Adjuncts
AmountPercentageNameTimeGravity
13.00 lbs76.47 %Pale Malt (2 Row) US60 mins1.036
4.00 ozs1.47 %Briess 2-Row Caramel 40L60 mins1.034
3.00 lbs17.65 %Rahr Red Wheat60 mins1.037
8.00 ozs2.94 %Acid Malt60 mins1.027
4.00 ozs1.47 %Fawcett Pale Chocolate60 mins1.030
Hops
AmountIBU'sNameTimeAA %
2.00 ozs51.71Centennial60 mins10.00
1.00 ozs12.38Citra10 mins13.20
1.00 ozs0.00Citra0 mins13.20
1.00 ozs0.00Centennial0 mins10.00
1.00 ozs0.00Chinook0 mins13.00
1.00 ozsCentennial7 days10.00
1.00 ozsCitra7 days13.20
Yeasts
AmountNameLaboratory / ID
1.0 pkgBrettanomyces Bruxellensis TroisWhite Labs 0644
Additions
(none)
Mash Profile

Full Body Infusion In45 min @ 158.0°F
 Add 21.25 qt ( 1.25 qt/lb ) water @ 170.0°F

Sparge
 Sparge 17.07 qt of 170.0°F water over 60 mins


Batch Updates:

10/26/13 : Gravity reading today indicated a specific gravity of 1.017, which is roughly where I hoped it would be after two weeks.  I'd ultimately like this one to finished around 1.010 - 1.012 then bottle it.  I'l probably check it  again next weekend.

The taste was both citrusy and fruity.  I hope the citrusy Centennial flavor sticks around for a bit, however, the fruity Brett Trois characteristics may dominate.  Most people brewing with Trois report that the hop flavors are subsumed by the fruity brett characteristic.

Keeping it wild (yeast),

HolzBrew

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Celebration Day

I was itching to brew this weekend, but was ambivalent to the style, so I asked Mrs. HolzBrew what style she is craving.  Back story, she is 8 months pregnant and this beer will be ready to drink right around the time she can drink beer again!  We currently have a dubbel, hoppy red and porter on draft, so she wanted something light, malty, and fruity.  We decided upon a saison.

Saison is such a fun style to brew due to the incredible amount of latitude with-in the style, and I have brewed several.  Almost any sort of spice or fruit is fair game in a saison, or instead, you can keep it clean and go without excessive additives.  Saisons can be funky, sour, hoppy, or floral.  Also, I note people have been brewing black saisons lately, which is a cool innovation.  Basically, saison is defined as almost any wort fermented with a saison yeast strain.  Within the yeast selection there are several belgian and french strains.  I really like the Wyeast french saison varietal, unfortunately, it was not available at the local HBS yesterday when I stopped by.  Consequently, I ended up with White Labs 585.  I've never used this strain before, but it looked just right.  Both tart and fruity.

It was a rainy day, but things went pretty well.  No major set backs.  I used a mix of 2 row, unmalted red winter wheat, and oatmeal for the fermentables.  I would have loved to have added some belgian pilsner, but I've got a ton of 2 row around the house and I couldn't justify buying pilsner malt on my grad student budget.  I also probably would have liked to have used malted wheat, but I had the the red wheat around the house.  The hop profile is 100% Saaz, simple and beautiful.  The color turned out really light and clear as can be seen below:



If I can swing it, I may try to brew up a Brett Trois IPA next week.  I'd read a lot of great things about these all brett beers lately and I figure I might try my hand at it.  Below is the recipe from today's foray into familiar Belgian territory.


Celebration Day

Style: Saison
Type:Calories: 206
Rating: 0.0Boil Size: 5.83 Gal
IBU's: 32.71Batch Size: 5.00 Gal
Color:    5.2 SRM  Boil Time: 60 minutes
Preboil OG: 1.061

EstimatedActual
Brew Date:-10/06/2013
OG:1.0641.055
FG:1.0101.010
ABV:7.07 %5.89 %
Efficiency:70 %59 %
Serve Date:10/06/2013/ /



Grains & Adjuncts
AmountPercentageNameTimeGravity
9.75 lbs69.64 %Pale Malt (2 Row) US60 mins1.036
3.00 lbs21.43 %Rahr Red Wheat60 mins1.037
1.00 lbs7.14 %Oats, Flaked60 mins1.037
4.00 ozs1.79 %Acid Malt60 mins1.027
Hops
AmountIBU'sNameTimeAA %
2.00 ozs25.10Saaz60 mins4.00
1.00 ozs7.60Saaz20 mins4.00
2.00 ozs0.00Saaz0 mins4.00
Yeasts
AmountNameLaboratory / ID
1.0 pkgBelgian SaisonWhite Labs 585
Additions
AmountNameTimeStage
1.00 tspBlack Pepper15 minsBoil
0.40 ozCoriander Seed15 minsBoil
1.00 ozWhirlfloc Tablet15 minsBoil
Mash Profile

Light Body Infusion75 min @ 150.0°F
 Add 17.50 qt ( 1.25 qt/lb ) water @ 166.3°F

Sparge
 Sparge 15.10 qt of 170.0°F water over 60 mins

Keep the tanks bubbling!

HolzBrew