Cider again

Started brewing making another plain apple cider on August 23rd, 2009. I used D47 yeast (I think) and some yeast nutrient. Original was a 'hit' and more is needed. Milk Stout up next.

BERLINER WEISSE - The Beer that Didn't Want to Get Made

First, I used a newly crafted, unwashed immersion chiller in the brew. Fears of copper factory germs arise. Quelled by online brewing community who say go ahead, but your beer will might taste like copper. I forge ahead.

2.) The case of no fermentation. Sun Jun 07, 2009 11:46 am

I was trying to make a an all extract Berliner Weisse. 3.3 lbs light LME and 3.3 lbs wheat LME. After cooling to 85°F I pitched 90 ml of Wyeast lactobacillus and gave it a ~ 12 hour head start and then I pitched some K-97. After 24 hours I saw no airlock activity and then proceeded to the check the gravity, no change. So then I thought, well since there has been no activity why not aerate again? I did. 3 days later, no activity, no gravity change figuring all is already lost (a second time with this batch) I pitched some S-04. Here I am, no fermentation. However, I tasted no pennies in the the samples I pulled for checking the gravity.


3. Wed Jun 10, 2009 11:20 pm

Timeline:
5/31/09 - Beer Brewed. 90ML Lactobacillus pitched.
6/1/09 - K97 pitched. Didn't check gravity until now (1.036)
6/3/09 - no airlock activity, no change in gravity. Aerate with aquarium pump.
6/4/09 - Still no activity, freak out, pitched S-04
6/5/09 - no activity, add some yeast nutrient
6/7/09 - Airlock activity.
6/9/09 - No airlock activity, gravity 1.012, after taking sample - more airlock activity.

Did not taste like pennies.

4. I bottled this 6/25/09. OG was 1.036 and final was ... well I added the priming sugar before I could get the sample, but since it was 1.012 a while back I was comfortable with that. I also added a pint starter of more lactobacillus and a sachet of Lalvin #EC-1118 Champagne Wine Yeast for good measure. After it carbs up I'll let you all know if its coppery, good, bad, etc.

Come Wit it Now!

Wit

9 oz oats
15 oz wheat
1 lb 2 row
15 min @ 122
15 min @ 152
15 min boil

Added to:
1 lb pilsner
2 lb white wheat
resting at 122

Brought temp to 155, rest for 45 min

3 lbs Wheat DME

1 oz German Tettnang Pellet Hops 4.4% AA @ 60 min
0.3 oz hallertau 3.9% AA @ 30 min
0.5 oz crushed coriander @ 15 min
0.5 oz orange peel @ 15 min
pinch of cumin seeds
1 oz hallertau select @ 2 min
0.5 oz orange peel
0.25 oz chamomile

O.G. 1.039
F.G. 1.009
ABV 3.86

This would mean only about 60% attenuation. Maybe this is right? I used safbrew wb-06, which is a dry wheat bear yeast, but not a true wit beer yeast, but the sample I took before bottling, tasted delicious. So ... a small beer great for summer. (I hope.) It also left a nice ring of crud around the fermenter, orange peel I think and I used red caps and they look sweet.

14 months to freedom, or Apple Cider Revealed.

My first 5 gallon yeast experiment has come to fruition.
Recap:
- 5 gallons of Tipton grove natural juice (not from concentrate)
- Pitched yeast: Lalvin 71B - 1122 (x2) on 04/10/08
- Added yeast nutrient (2.5 tsp) on 04/12/08
- Racked the cider into secondary on 4/29/08 (~62F)
- Bottled 5/29/09 with one can AJ concentrate and one packet of Red Star Cote des Blancs
- Bottled Conditioned for about 3 weeks
- Taste: crisp and quite dry.

Images below, L to R, 4/15/2008, 6/26/2008, 5/29/2009

On Deck: Berliner Weisse and Wit - Beers of summer

Berliner Weisse:
The beer Napoleon called the champagne of the north. Wheat beer with a modest gravity and sour punch (thank to lactobacillus)

Wit:
One of my favorite beers - Hazy, Wheaty, Citrusy.

Lets see if I can actually get them done before summer is over.

Brew like a monk.

I read this book Brew Like a Monk. It is a good beer history type book and as such doesn't have complete recipes. May or may not be interesting to those who don't brew beer. I liked it. I have never drank a Trappist ale, but I bought one the other day and will have had one in the future.

Added the oak, hope it ain't broke

I went to go see how the pellicle was doing and found my stopper and airlock had popped out of the carboy (5/7/09). That was lame. I am not all that worried because this beer style needs some oxygen during the long secondary fermentation, but still it was lame. Since I had not added any oak, I decided this was the time to do so. I took 0.7 ounces of oak chips, boiled them in 3 changes of water to reduce there oakiness (i.e. tannins) and added them to the carboy and sealed it back up. Pretty sweet huh?