Vienna Lager 3.0 – Recipe and Brewday

Posted on November 18, 2013 by Nick Ladd

Nice cool lager fermentation chugging away.

Nice cool lager yeast fermenting away.

Update 2/20/2014 – Beer placed 3rd as a Vienna Lager in Category 3 European Amber Lagers at the 2014 Homebrew Alley 8 competition.

UPDATE 4/5/2014 – Beer placed 1st as a Vienna Lager in Category 3 European Amber Lagers at the 2014 First Round of the National Homebrew Competition (NYC Regional).

When it comes to brewing a particular style of beer, I am a serial philander. Rarely do I brew the same beer twice, and when I do it is typically with radical departures to the recipe. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, and Vienna lager is one of them.

I’ve probably brewed four or five Vienna lagers since I began brewing in 2009. While most have been outstanding, and several have won pretty nice awards (Gold in the 2012 NHC first round, and 2nd Best of Show at the 2011 Best of the Bay), I seem to always be making tweaks to the recipe to correct minor details that I believe would lead to a better beer.

With this iteration, I’ve gone back to my favorite lager strain, White Labs WLP833 German Bock, which always seems to produce very malt-forward, diacetyl free lagers for me. Additionally, I’ve introduced a single step decoction into the recipe as a replacement for the touch of melanoiden malt that I generally throw into my non-decocted lagers. A small Hallertaurer addition with 10 minutes left in the boil gives the beer an almost imperceptible late hop character.

With winter coming, and the ground water cooling, it is the perfect time to brew lagers. My Blichmann Therminator plate chiller struggles with warm summer water, but drops the wort to pitching temperatures with ease during the cooler months. With a little extra time in my fermenation fridge, I am able to chill my wort to 44°F before pitching my yeast. Over the course of the lag phase, I let the temperature free rise to 48°F and then keep it there until the very end of fermentation when I complete a diacetyl rest. This requires a very large starter, but tends to create what I feel is a cleaner lager character.

Recipe

Size: 3.25 Gal
Efficiency: 68%
Attenuation: 74% (projected)

Original Gravity: 1.052 SG
Terminal Gravity: 1.014 SG (projected)
Color: 14.09 SRM
Alcohol: 5.07% ABV (projected)
Bitterness: 28.4 IBU

Grist:
3.5 lb (47.9%) Vienna Malt (Weyermann)
1.25 lb (17.1%) Pilsner Malt (Weyermann)
2.25 lb (30.8%) Munich TYPE II (Weyermann)
4 oz (3.4%) Carafoam® (Weyermann)
1 oz (0.9%) Carafa® TYPE II (Weyermann)

Boil Additions:
1 oz Hallertauer Hersbrucker (4.1% AA) – 60 m
1/2 Tablet Whirlfloc (Irish moss) – 15 m
0.5 oz Hallertauer Hersbrucker (4.1% AA) – 10 m
0.5 tsp Wyeast Nutrient – 10 m

Yeast:
1800ml 1.040 starter on stir plate – White Labs WLP833 German Bock Lager

Mash Regiment:
20m – 144 °F
Decoct to 156 °F
20m – 156 °F
Direct Fire to Mashout at 168 °F
10m – 168 °F

Water Adjustment:
Carbon filtered NYC water with 1g gypsum and 4g calcium chloride added to the mash.

Yeast Notes:
Final Volume into Fermenter = 2.75 Gallons
Yeast Required = 100 billion (per Mr. Malty)
Yeast Production Date: 10/14/13
Yeast Starter = 1.8L @ 1.040 on stir plate (Mr. Malty suggests 1L) = 7.5 oz. DME

Fermentation:
1. Chill to 44°F and keep at 48°F until activity slows (1.5 weeks or so).
2. Raise to 58°F for diacetyl rest 24-48 hours .
3. Cool 2°F / day until down to 34 °F.
4. Rack to corny keg.
5. Lager near freezing 4-6 weeks.

Spawn of Duvel – Homebrew Tasting

Posted on November 17, 2013 by Nick Ladd

Judged as a BJCP Category 16B Belgian Pale Ale

Note: The Spawn of Duvel wasn’t really brewed to fit the Belgian Pale Ale category, but that is the closest category it fits into.

Aroma (6/12)
Very prominent banana ester that is reminiscent of artificially flavored banana candy or even under ripe green bananas. There is a bit of sharp alcohol that merges with this and reminds me that this beer is only 3 weeks old. The pear ester that I was hoping for is present, but in quantities that are barely perceptible. The is a very pleasant round pilsner malt aroma that is probably my favorite part about this beer. A herbal / earthy hop aroma is very low, but present.

Appearance (2/3)
The beer is a hazy rich gold color. The head is persistent and white. A couple weeks in the fridge should transform this into a much brighter beer.

Flavor (15/20)
The beer has a really nice slightly sweet pilsner malt character. The malt is a bit bread-like and features a very low, but complimentary toasty note on the finish. The banana ester and alcohol that was on the nose is much more subdued on the palate. Again, the hops are perceptible, but much lower in flavor than i had hoped or would have suspected based on the recipe formulation. There is a nice clean firm bitterness that doesn’t linger and perfectly balances the malt. At the finish there is a slight mineral note that is bit chalky.

Mouthfeel (3/5)
The beer has a medium mouth feel with a nice creamy texture. The carbonation is in line with most beer styles, but could used a bump to better fit the category. No alcohol heat or astringency.

Overall Impression (6/10)
This is a very enjoyable Belgian Pale Ale. It doesn’t have the malt complexity that the style guideline would call for which would likely hurt its scores in a beer competition. The main problem I see with the beer is that the banana ester is way too dominate. This muddies the familiar resemblance to Duvel that I was hoping for. In next iteration of this beer I need to figure out how to change my fermentation profile to better create the ester character I was striving for. Additionally, I would like to dry the beer out a bit more by mashing at a lower temperature.

Total: 32/50 (Very Good)

Sour Mashed Berliner Weisse with Brett Trois

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Nick Ladd

Reheating and recirculating the sour mash after 60 hours of sour-mashing.

Recirculating and reheating the mash after 60 hours of sour-mashing.

My first batch of Berliner Weisse left me confident that sour mashing is a viable option for creating brightly acidic sour beers in short order. I’ve had a number of wonderful sour mashed beers along with quite a few terrible ones. A lot of people proclaim that sour mashing is a bit of a crap shoot, but I believe with careful process control, you can utilize sour mashing with a high success rate. It seems that the key to success with sour mashing is creating an environment that favors the lactic acid production you’re looking for while discouraging the growth of other bacteria and yeast that can easily fowl your mash with pretty horrific off-flavors.

My primary concerns are creating an anaerobic (no oxygen) environment, maintaining temperatures above 105°F, and pre-acidifying the mash. An anaerobic environment is achieved by thoroughly flushing the fermenter with C02 gas and then sealing the lid. Temperatures are maintained by insulating the mash tun and periodic hot water additions. Pre-acidification is achieved through a healthy dose of acidulated malt at the end of the mash regiment. After a 60 hour sour mash, the liquid was very tart and clean. There was no pellicle, mold, or otherwise odd looking growths on the surface of the mash. At this point in the process, you’re looking for a bright clean acidity — more similar to yogurt (lactic) than vinegar (acetic). If your mash smells or tastes like rotten vegetables, baby diapers, vinegar, or other funky flavors, your mash likely went off. Boiling and subsequent fermentation may drive off some of these offensive aromas, but chances are pretty slim that they will be eliminated completely.

After sour-mashing I retrieved the soured wort and boiled it for 30 minutes to achieve a minor reduction in volume, kill any bacteria, and achieve a slight amount of bitterness. I cooled the wort and pitched Wyeast’s German Ale strain. I have heard antidotal evidence that low pH can adversely effect yeast fermentation. ~~I can offer my own contrary antidotal evidence — my low pH wort exhibited a very vigorous fermentation and attenuated well.~~

UPDATE 11/16/2013: After about 2 weeks in primary, I seem to be experiencing a pH related issue with this beer. Fermentation appeared extremely vigorous. It has however stopped at 1.010, which is most likely related to the beer’s low pH. At this point I am not comfortable bottling with a secondary Brett Trois strain. Instead, I have racked the beer to a secondary fermenter and pitched the Brett in an attempt to reach terminal gravity prior to packaging and bottle conditioning.

Wyeast describes the German Ale strain as a true top cropping yeast... I concur.

Wyeast describes the German Ale strain as a true top cropping yeast. Fermenting at 64°F created a large amount of yeast blowoff.

Recipe

Size: 3.25 gal
Efficiency: 68%
Attenuation: 80.0% (projected)
Boil Length: 30m

Original Gravity: 1.034 SG
Terminal Gravity: 1.007 SG (projected)
Color: 3.99 SRM
Alcohol: 3.59% ABV (projected)
Bitterness: 5.0 IBUs

Grist:
2 lb (43.2%) Bohemian Pilsner Malt (Weyermann)
2 lb (43.2%) White Wheat (Briess)
2 oz (2.7%) Victory® Malt (Briess)
8 oz (10.8%) Acidulated Malt (Weyermann) – 2oz during mash, 6oz to cap mash post sugar conversion

8 g Hallertauer Hersbrucker (4.3% AA) – 30m
0.5 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – 15m
0.5 tsp Wyeast Nutrient – 10 m

WYeast 1007 German Ale™ – Primary Fermentation
White Labs WLP644 Brettanomyces Trois – ~~Added to individual bottles during bottle conditioning.~~ Ended up adding it in secondary before packaging.

Water Treatment:
Carbon filtered Brooklyn water (very soft) with 2g Gypsum and 4g Calcium Chloride added to mash.

Mash Regiment:
60m – 148 °F
10m – 154 °F
10m – 168 °F

Sour mash 60 hours:
1. Complete mash regiment above. Let mash cool to 128°F. Minimize stirring and aeration of wort.
2. Add 4 oz uncrushed grain & remainder of acidulated malt (6 oz).
3. Cover mash bed with aluminum foil, purge with CO2, and seal mashtun.
4. Insulate the mash tun and let rest for 60 hours.
5. Add boiling H2O to increase sour mash temp as required to keep above 105°F.
6. After 60 hours, increase mash tun temperature to 168°F and transfer wort to kettle.

Fermentation:
1. Chill to 64°F and keep at 64°F until activity slows (1 week+).
2. Raise temp to 68°F 2 days
3. Drop temperature to 32°F over the course of 4 days. Hold at 32°F for 2 days.

Packaging:
Prime with sugar as required to achieve 3 volumes of CO2. ~~Inoculate half the bottles with Brett Trois (WLP644) for future side-by-side comparisons.~~ Ended up adding the Brett to secondary in bulk prior to packaging.

Spawn of the Duvel – Homebrew Recipe

Posted on November 2, 2013 by Nick Ladd

UPDATE 11/17/2013 – Read the review here.

UPDATE 2/20/2014 – Beer placed 2nd as a Belgian Blond in Category 18 Belgian Strong Ales at the 2014 Homebrew Alley 8 competition.

UPDATE 4/5/2014 – Beer placed 1st as a Belgian Blond in Category 18 Belgian Strong Ales at the 2014 First Round of the National Homebrew Competition (NYC Regional).

Duvel. You sneaky little bastard. Crisp, refreshing, complex, yet not overbearing. Your austere dryness and pear-like ester melds with an ever-so-sweet pilsner malt background striking a balance that is tough to resist. I know it’s not a problem for you, but your 8.5% ABV is for me. I need a beer that possesses everything I love about Duvel, but doesn’t leave me spinning after a few.

This recipe intends to do just that. I’ve started this beer at 1.054 original gravity versus Duvel’s reported 1.069; mashing a bit higher and not including any simple sugars to decrease the wort’s fermentablity and create a mouth feel comparable to Duvel while having significantly less alcohol. Duvel attenuates in the 90%+ range helping it hit 8.5% ABV with a somewhat modest starting gravity. With the lower gravity of my beer, I’m hoping to achieve a similar balance by lowering the attenuation rate and finishing the beer at a more sessionable 5.5% ABV.

Duvel is reputed to contain only pilsner malt and simple sugar; up to 17% by some accounts. I’ve dropped the alcohol boosting simple sugar in favor of an all-malt grain bill, including a touch of character malts to bring some complexity to the wort composition. For hops, I’ve decided to go ahead and bump up the continental hop character found in Duvel by increasing the amount of late hops in the beer. This beer is by no means meant to clone Duvel, but will hopefully capture the spirit and attributes that make it such a great beer. We’ll know how successful I was when I taste the finished product in a few weeks.

Recipe

Size: 3.25 gal
Efficiency: 68%
Attenuation: 78.0% (projected)

Original Gravity: 1.054 sg
Terminal Gravity: 1.012 sg (projected)
Color: 5.81 SRM
Alcohol: 5.53% ABV (projected)
Bitterness: 22.6 IBU (doesn’t account for whirlpool isomerization)

Ingredients:
6.5 lb (87.4%) Belgian Pils (Dingemans)
.5 lb (6.7%) Pale Wheat Malt (Weyermann)
4 oz (3.4%) Belgian Biscuit (Dingemans)
3 oz (2.5%) Acidulated Malt (Weyermann) – pH Adjustment

1 oz Styrian Goldings (3.2% AA) – 60 m
0.5 oz Czech Saaz (3% AA) – 20 m
0.5 oz Czech Saaz (3% AA) – whirlpool 20m
1 oz Styrian Goldings (3.2% AA) -whirlpool 20m

0.5 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – 15 m
0.5 tsp Wyeast Nutrient – 10 m

WYeast 1388 Belgian Strong Ale™

Mash Regiment:
154 °F – 60m
168.0 °F – 10m

Water Treatment:
Carbon filtered tap water. Salts added to the mash.
4g Calcium Carbonate
2g Calcium Sulfate (gypsum)

Yeast Notes:
Final Volume into Fermenter = 2.75 Gallons
Yeast Required = 104 billion (per Mr. Malty)
Yeast Production Date: 9/3/2013
Yeast Starter = 1L @ 1.040 on stir plate (per Mr. Malty) = 4 1/8 oz. DME

Fermentation:
1. Chill to 62°F and keep at 66°F until activity slows (1 week+).
2. Raise temp to 74°F 3 days
3. Crash to 32°F 5 days
4. Verify gravity has stabilized. Bottle condition in 12oz bottles primed to 2.8 volumes CO2

Pumpkin Homebrew Tasting

Posted on October 26, 2013 by Nick Ladd

Six weeks have passed since I brewed my high gravity pumpkin ale. The base recipe for the beer was an English Barley Wine on the low end of the style category. The original gravity started at 1.077 and finished at 1.017, giving me an approximately 8% ABV beer.

My goal with this beer was to take take the pie crust malt character found in many commercial pumpkin beers and amplify it, while decreasing the spice intensity. Additionally, I really wanted to make a beer where you could actually taste the caramelized pumpkin that was added to the mash.

Beer Tasting

Judged as a BJCP Category 21A Spice / Herb / Vegetable Beer.

Aroma (10/12)
Big round malt on the nose that is quite full with lots of deep caramel, toffee, and a hint of honey. There is a definite vanilla aroma as well as some oakey bourbon. The spicing is quite low with cinnamon being the most readily apparent, along with some nutmeg that instantly combines with some of the whiskey aromas to become reminiscent of eggnog. There are some pumpkin aromas that come off as cooked squash. As the beer warms, there is a hint of alcohol heat and acetone.

Appearance (3/3)
The beer is a beautiful deep amber or garnet with reddish highlights. The beer is clear, but not brilliantly so. The head is off-white and persistent.

Flavor (10/20)
There are some intense crackery and biscuit malt flavors upfront that are a little more substantial than I would have liked. There is no hop flavor although the beer has a nice firm balancing bitterness. Caramel hits mid palate and gives an impression of sweetness. It feels like the melanoidin rich malt is combining with the spice and alcohol to give a somewhat harsh flavor on the finish. There is a earthy gourd-like flavor that reminds you that you’re drinking a beer brewed with a substantial amount of pumpkin.

Mouthfeel (3/5)
The beer is quite full, perhaps a bit too much. The carbonation is low, further enhancing the beer’s fullness and leaving the mouthfeel a touch flabby.

Overall Impression (5/10)
This is not a bad beer, but I wouldn’t say it is world-class either. The slight harshness from the very intense toasty flavors are a bit much and could be dialed down a bit. Additionally, the whiskey and vanilla notes, while interesting, could benefit from some restraint. The presence of actual pumpkin in the beer is very apparent and quite welcome. It is quite likely that the beer will mellow out and become much more enjoyable with some age.

Total: 31/50 (Very Good)