Homebrewers - Whats Fermenting?

[HIM*]

That's a good idea with the growlers. It was windy that day and took a while to chill with the immersion chiller. I'm thinking we may have picked up something while it was chilling uncovered. Another reason to break down and buy the plate chiller.

I certainly wouldn't count it out but I'd be inclined to check everything on the cold side first. The odds are probably higher that a line didn't get sanitized or a spot on a tank was missed than spontaneous inoculation. Im just assuming here but I feel like if that was the cause then you'd probably have run into this issue before.


So in doing some digging I found my German APA idea isn't so original lol. I guess Victory did it a few years back with the same hop though their approach to the grain bill was more American than mine. While somewhat discouraging its not uncharted territory its also a good sign I'm probably in for a great beer.

"Below is a description of CBC Mandarina Pale Ale from the Victory website:

'CBC Mandarina Pale Ale

Pale Ale

A blend of German pils and caramel malts combine with German Mandarina and dry-hopped Mandarina to create a full bodied, citrus-hopped brew with a pleasant bitter finish and lots of hop flavor.

Composition

ABV: 6.0%

Availability

Special one-time release, March 2013”

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I certainly wouldn't count it out but I'd be inclined to check everything on the cold side first. The odds are probably higher that a line didn't get sanitized or a spot on a tank was missed than spontaneous inoculation. Im just assuming here but I feel like if that was the cause then you'd probably have run into this issue before.


So in doing some digging I found my German APA idea isn't so original lol. I guess Victory did it a few years back with the same hop though their approach to the grain bill was more American than mine. While somewhat discouraging its not uncharted territory its also a good sign I'm probably in for a great beer.

"Below is a description of CBC Mandarina Pale Ale from the Victory website:

'CBC Mandarina Pale Ale

Pale Ale

A blend of German pils and caramel malts combine with German Mandarina and dry-hopped Mandarina to create a full bodied, citrus-hopped brew with a pleasant bitter finish and lots of hop flavor.

Composition

ABV: 6.0%

Availability

Special one-time release, March 2013”

I do plan to pitch the transfer hose and turn the fermentor into a "funk bucket" for sour or wild beers. It's possible the transfer hose might be the culprit, I know the bucket was sanitized thoroughly and was pretty sure the hose was as well but you never know. Wish I had a microscope so I could identify the bacteria as lacto or Brett with certainty.

 

[MoldMan]

Cover with tinfoil while chilling. At least below 140.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

Cover with tinfoil while chilling. At least below 140.

That's crazy.... So crazy, it just might work! Jesus I was sitting here thinking about how to buy a lid and modify it and here you come along with your logic.

 

[MoldMan]

Two sheets side by side seam them together. Maybe 3 sheets depending on brand. Molds around the chiller and stops shit from falling in.

 

[jasonsbeer]

That's a good idea with the growlers. It was windy that day and took a while to chill with the immersion chiller. I'm thinking we may have picked up something while it was chilling uncovered. Another reason to break down and buy the plate chiller.

I've been using a counter flow chiller for about 4 years now. I can't believe I ever brewed without one. Super hot in one end, pitching temp out the other.

 

[Lezanstar]

You guys are making me paranoid... Brewed an 11 gallon batch of 2 hearted today. Hit all my numbers for OG and volume. Use the immersion chiller uncovered as I always do, but never had the garage door fully open. Fuck it. It will make beer.

 

[MoldMan]

I don't think you really need to worry like we do. He probably brewed when the wind was blowing at 30 mph and the Valley fever was flying around.

One side affect is that you really have to watch your boil off.

 

[HIM*]

So I had planned on doing something interesting with cypress wood after getting some inside info on its potential and settled on something along the lines of lemon cake. Well Funky Buddha recently released their Lemon Morangue Pie which is not only amazing but pretty much what I had in mind. In thinking how I could do something different I came back to an older idea Ive had, coffee cake. I did a browns/bitters/porters judging this past weekend and really enjoyed a couple of the brown porters I got to try. I'm thinking it could make a great base style to introduce some cypress into and the coffee cake angle just might work.
Any thoughts on this?

OG - 1.050
FG - 1.012
IBU - 24
ABV - 4.9%


Grain Bill - single infusion, 60min @ 154

7.5# Maris Otter(75%)
1# Brown Malt(10%)
12oz Crystal 60(7.5%)
8oz Pale Chocolate(5%)
4oz Chocolate(2.5%)

Boil - 60min

1oz EKG @ 60min
1oz EKG @ 10min

Fermentation - age 6 weeks on cypress spirals

 

[MoldMan]

So I had planned on doing something interesting with cypress wood after getting some inside info on its potential and settled on something along the lines of lemon cake. Well Funky Buddha recently released their Lemon Morangue Pie which is not only amazing but pretty much what I had in mind. In thinking how I could do something different I came back to an older idea Ive had, coffee cake. I did a browns/bitters/porters judging this past weekend and really enjoyed a couple of the brown porters I got to try. I'm thinking it could make a great base style to introduce some cypress into and the coffee cake angle just might work.
Any thoughts on this?

OG - 1.050
FG - 1.012
IBU - 24
ABV - 4.9%


Grain Bill - single infusion, 60min @ 154

7.5# Maris Otter(75%)
1# Brown Malt(10%)
12oz Crystal 60(7.5%)
8oz Pale Chocolate(5%)
4oz Chocolate(2.5%)

Boil - 60min

1oz EKG @ 60min
1oz EKG @ 10min

Fermentation - age 6 weeks on cypress spirals

Looks tasty. Maybe bump the mash temp and shoot for a FG of 1014/1015?
I like a little more body in my porters and a little sweetness in a "cake" beer wouldn't hurt. Drop the Brown Malt to 3/4# and up the crystal to 14oz and make up the rest in base malt maybe too. I like the chocolate malt blend though.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

So I had planned on doing something interesting with cypress wood after getting some inside info on its potential and settled on something along the lines of lemon cake. Well Funky Buddha recently released their Lemon Morangue Pie which is not only amazing but pretty much what I had in mind. In thinking how I could do something different I came back to an older idea Ive had, coffee cake. I did a browns/bitters/porters judging this past weekend and really enjoyed a couple of the brown porters I got to try. I'm thinking it could make a great base style to introduce some cypress into and the coffee cake angle just might work.
Any thoughts on this?

OG - 1.050
FG - 1.012
IBU - 24
ABV - 4.9%


Grain Bill - single infusion, 60min @ 154

7.5# Maris Otter(75%)
1# Brown Malt(10%)
12oz Crystal 60(7.5%)
8oz Pale Chocolate(5%)
4oz Chocolate(2.5%)

Boil - 60min

1oz EKG @ 60min
1oz EKG @ 10min

Fermentation - age 6 weeks on cypress spirals

Looks tasty. Maybe bump the mash temp and shoot for a FG of 1014/1015?
I like a little more body in my porters and a little sweetness in a "cake" beer wouldn't hurt. Drop the Brown Malt to 3/4# and up the crystal to 14oz and make up the rest in base malt maybe too. I like the chocolate malt blend though.

All of this sounds like it needs to be in my mouth. Especially bumping up the crystal or keep the crystal 60 and add a little crystal 120 for some added sweetness. Possibly some lactose for some creaminess. If you want some fresh roasted coffee to add let me know, I have some Guatemalan green coffee I can roast for you that should really kick some ass in a coffee beer.

 

[HIM*]

Looks tasty. Maybe bump the mash temp and shoot for a FG of 1014/1015?
I like a little more body in my porters and a little sweetness in a "cake" beer wouldn't hurt. Drop the Brown Malt to 3/4# and up the crystal to 14oz and make up the rest in base malt maybe too. I like the chocolate malt blend though.

lol you don't know how long I went back and forth in my head messing with the brown/crystal. It was driving me nuts. Is that too much brown(% wise) or do you think the crystal is just better here? Agreed on the FG too. Beersmith is giving me 1.014 if I mash at 156 so I'm definitely make that move.

 

[MoldMan]

lol you don't know how long I went back and forth in my head messing with the brown/crystal. It was driving me nuts. Is that too much brown(% wise) or do you think the crystal is just better here? Agreed on the FG too. Beersmith is giving me 1.014 if I mash at 156 so I'm definitely make that move.

My experience with Brown Malt was with 2# of cherry smoked malt so your mileage may vary. You may want to knock it down to 1/2# but being a first run I'd leave it as is. These suggestions were for my personal preferences so take that as you may. Another kicker is I would add another chocolate malt to the blend as well. But i approach it differently. Mine would be, pale, Belgian and English in equal measure. I've been told that you couldn't tell the difference or it would come out muddy but I thought it gave a truer, more complex taste. I do feel Brown should be explored more. And was always thinking of trying a brown Porter with Brown Malt being a large part of the bill.

 

[HIM*]

My experience with Brown Malt was with 2# of cherry smoked malt so your mileage may vary. You may want to knock it down to 1/2# but being a first run I'd leave it as is. These suggestions were for my personal preferences so take that as you may. Another kicker is I would add another chocolate malt to the blend as well. But i approach it differently. Mine would be, pale, Belgian and English in equal measure. I've been told that you couldn't tell the difference or it would come out muddy but I thought it gave a truer, more complex taste. I do feel Brown should be explored more. And was always thinking of trying a brown Porter with Brown Malt being a large part of the bill.

You know how it goes digging the web for this stuff. Lots of dead ends, unreliable info, and conflicting opinions. These have been the main consistencies though...

1. Don't use the American stuff. Thomas Fawcett's is spoken highly of which isn't surprising but its hard to find.
2. Its a signature malt for brown porters and english browns.
3. Its toasty/bready with some subtle coffee/chocolate notes and pairs well with chocolate malts.

 

[MoldMan]

You know how it goes digging the web for this stuff. Lots of dead ends, unreliable info, and conflicting opinions. These have been the main consistencies though...

1. Don't use the American stuff. Thomas Fawcett's is spoken highly of which isn't surprising but its hard to find.
2. Its a signature malt for brown porters and english browns.
3. Its toasty/bready with some subtle coffee/chocolate notes and pairs well with chocolate malts.

Yeah, mine was from Crisp. I definitely believe if you want an English style malt, buy malt produced by an English Maltster. It's the only way to get close. Even between them the malts have a range of flavors.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

Pretty sure this is lacto if my Google fu is accurate.

I can't taste or smell anything off so whatever it is works slow. Got 10gal in kegs and pulled a gallon off to let sit and get funky to see if whatever I have is worth working with.

 

[MoldMan]

All right. This is really good beer. Just wanted to put it out to the newer brewers that keeping it simple can be rewarding.

One malt = Golden Promise
Two Hops = Citra and Mosaic
Mash high to give you some body. My guess is 158 to 160. Hop heavy for flavor and some bitterness as well as aroma.
Guessing 8ish abv and IPA hopping. Chico yeast. I'd probably use wlp 007/s04 though.
Labeled as a west coast IPA. Don't think so, more east coast/English because of body.

 

[HIM*]

I got the malts in the other day and couldn't help but eating some. The "toast" and "bread crust" descriptions for Brown Malt are amazingly accurate. This stuff is like a piece of toast that's started to burn. Not beyond being edible burnt but as about as toasted as you can get your toast. Amber malt is very very similar but I'd describe it more as buttered toast that's starting to be a nice golden brown.
While both are what I consider "bread malts" they are very different from the flavors you'll get from biscuit, victory, special roast. The flavors are more like maris otter with stronger toast notes. I'm definitely going to brew the Cinnamon Raisin Bread again because after trying this stuff I can't see how Brown/Amber + special b wouldn't taste like raisin bread. I've never been so excited to rebrew a beer I haven't even tried the first time lol.

 

[HIM*]

Pretty sure this is lacto if my Google fu is accurate.

I can't taste or smell anything off so whatever it is works slow. Got 10gal in kegs and pulled a gallon off to let sit and get funky to see if whatever I have is worth working with.

I haven't used a wide range of lacto sources so you'll have to take it with a grain of salt....but none of the sours I've done have gotten a pellicle or krausen. Maybe because it's been pure pitches of lacto, I dunno.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I haven't used a wide range of lacto sources so you'll have to take it with a grain of salt....but none of the sours I've done have gotten a pellicle or krausen. Maybe because it's been pure pitches of lacto, I dunno.

The pellicle didn't form until after the first gravity sample was drawn exposing the surface of the beer to oxygen. I don't have the equipment yet to verify the culture and it is possible I have a combination of things in there. I hope in a few months I will be able to semi-confirm what the culture is by taste.