And the Winners Are....

I just opened one of the Amarillos, and I have to say that I'm quite surprised.  It's kind of like a weaker version of Simcoe, and I was expecting something a bit more unique.

Not that it's necessarily bad, just not as good as I had hoped.  Here's the breakdown:

Bitterness:  Not really prominent.  Sort of like the Simcoe, but almost undetectable.
Flavor:  Kind of like watered-down grapefruit juice.  Not quite as tart as the other varieties.
Aroma: Same as the flavor.  Grapefruit, but weak.

I also realized that I never gave a Willamette report:

Bitterness:  Weak, not very noticeable.
Flavor:  Floral and fruity.  Less citrusy than its other American cousins.
Aroma:  Light.  Not unlike cascade, but very hard to detect.

So I believe, after all this, that I am ready to begin developing the recipe for TPB.  I will definitely be using
Centennial hops for bitterring.  The Flavor hops may be a mix of Cascade and Simcoe, but I will probably just use one or the other at first.  Aroma will most likely include the Columbus.

I am waiting until after the holidays to start, since shopping, school, and home renovations will be taking up some time.  I'll check back in soon with a final recipe.

The Next Phase of the Quest

This will be my "The Empire Strikes Back" or "The Two Towers".  Since, after this weekend, I will have tasted all of the hops I intended, I need to start thinking of how best to mix them.  So far, Centennial has my favorite bitterring characteristics.  Most of the others kind of stuck to the back of my throat and made me feel like Dragon Breath from "House Party" (3 movie references in one paragraph...not bad).  I think Cascade had a nice flavor, as did the Willamette, and the Simcoe, with its distinctive grapefruit mimicry, was probably the best aroma.

These are not, by any means, final verdicts.  First of all, I haven't even tried the Amarillo yet, and second, you never know what happens once the yeast is done its work.

But this will be the next phase.  I will organize the hops into the 3 categories (bitterness, flavor, and aroma), and rate them according to how much I liked their contribution.  Then I will simply make a batch with the top three.  If something is off or missing, I will switch it up for the next batch.  My posts should be a bit more frequent now, because I plan to get another fermenter and brew once per week instead of waiting two weeks for the fermenter to be free.  This way, I should be able to get 3 or 4 beers going, all with different hop combinations, before I even taste the first.

On another note, My brewing partner and I have worked out a schedule for brewing in the new year, and it looks like we will have a steady stream of cases to keep us nice and stocked pretty much 100 percent of the time.  We have two beers that we believe we have mastered, a German Pilsner and a Dunkel, which we are very proud of, and are switching our brews to all-grain pretty much immediately.  I may never buy beer again...ok, that was too far.

Later!

YAY!!!!

I LOVE SIMCOE!!!!

These hops are the shiznit (for lack of a better term).  They have an amazing aroma and flavor, and a bitterness which is strong, yet not overpowering.  Definitely the best beer I've brewed so far, and the only one I would actually order in a bar.  The Willamette is in bottles, and I am looking forward to getting it chilled.  I have brewed the last of the experiments, the Amarillo, and it will hit the fermenter in a matter of minutes.

SIMCOE REPORT:
Bitterness: Strong, accumulating bite which stays with your tounge throughout the drink.
Flavor: Grapefruit...that's pretty much all there is to say
Aroma: See "Flavor".  Very nice, very much like grapefruit juice.

Here is what happened today:

25 c Pocono Springs bottled water brought to rolling boil.

1 lb Muntons Extra Light DME stirred into pot.

Wort brought back to boil, and .20 oz (1.64 AAU) Amarillo hop pellets added.  60 minute timer started.

At 45 minute mark (15 min left in boil) .20 oz (1.64 AAU) Amarillo hop pellets added to boil.

At 55 minute mark (5 min left in boil) .20 oz (1.64 AAU) Amarillo hop pellets added to boil

At 60 minute mark, brew pot is removed, covered, and placed in freezer to cool.

When wort reads 70 degrees F, wort transferred to fermenter, and 11.5 g Fermentis brand Safale us-05 also added to fermenter.

Fermenter closed and shaken for 1 min

The World, and the Beer, Is Flat

I'm a little late in posting this week.  No real excuses, just plain lazy.


I brewed the Willamette batch, and bottled the Simcoe.  I also cracked the Columbus.

The Columbus beer has a similar bitterness to the cascade, but not quite as intense.  The flavor, I feel, is the weakest of the three I've tried so far, but the aroma is the best.  I tried a new method of bottling, or rather priming.  I used priming tabs, but not enough.  The beer has no head whatsoever, and the carbonation is almost nil.  Full report on the Columbus, and the brew day for the Willamette follows.

Columbus:

Bitterness: Lingering, back-of-the-tongue bite.
Flavor: Not unpleasant, yet not highly present.  Mild sourness.  Grapefruit-like.
Aroma: Light, pleasant, citrusy scent.

Willamette Brewday:

24 c Pocono Springs bottled water brought to rolling boil.

1 lb Muntons Extra Light DME stirred into pot.

Wort brought back to boil, and .20 oz (0.96 AAU) Willamette hop pellets added.  60 minute timer started.

At 45 minute mark (15 min left in boil) .20 oz (0.96 AAU) Willamette hop pellets added to boil.

At 55 minute mark (5 min left in boil) .20 oz (0.96 AAU) Willamette hop pellets added to boil

At 60 minute mark, brew pot is removed, covered, and placed in freezer to cool.

When wort reads 70 degrees F, wort transferred to fermenter, and 11.5 g Fermentis brand Safale us-05 also added to fermenter.

Fermenter closed and shaken for 1 min

Centennial; Chilled and Awesome

Now THIS is more like it.  I just sat down after bottling the Columbus and brewing the fourth experiment (Simcoe), and am having my first taste of the Centennial brew.  Its really good.  The Cascade was pretty harsh in the bitterness department, and had a "funny" aroma.  This one has a little bite- I would say just the right amount- and a mild, fruity aroma.  I prefer the Cascade hops' flavor, however, as its more pronounced, and very bright and crisp.

So, of the two, I would say Centennial has the edge in bitterring character and aroma, but the Cascade has the better flavor.  Obviously my opinion, and its important to keep noting that the beers will improve as my solo-small-batch skills improve.  Just to make it official, here's the Centennial report:

Bitterness: Mild, smooth bitterness that adds to the flavor of the beer.  Mellow and pleasant.  I would use this hop for bitterring again and again.

Flavor: Fruity with a citrus hint.  Not great, but not unpleasant either.  I would use this one for flavoring again, but only for beers with a heavy malt character.

Aroma:  Mild and fruity.  Very pleasant, and not much different from the aroma that comes out of the bag when you first open them.

This is the Simcoe Batch:

• 24 c Pocono Springs bottled water brought to rolling boil.
• 1 lb Muntons Extra Light DME stirred into pot.
• Wort brought back to boil, and .20 oz ( 2.44 AAU) Simcoe hop pellets added.  60 minute timer started.
• At 45 minute mark (15 min left in boil) .20 oz (2.44 AAU) Simcoe hop pellets added to boil.
• At 55 minute mark (5 min left in boil) .20 oz (2.44 AAU) Simcoe hop pellets added to boil
• At 60 minute mark, brew pot is removed, covered, and placed in freezer to cool.
• When wort reads 70 degrees F, wort transferred to fermenter, and 11.5 g Fermentis brand Safale us-05 also added to fermenter.
• Fermenter closed and shaken for 1 min

Just A Quick Thought

In comparing some recipes, I realized that very few batches use the same amount of hops for bitterring as they do for flavor and aroma.  As a matter of fact, many actually use the same amount for bitterring as they do for flavoring and finishing combined.  I will have to take this into consideration when I start mixing the hops and trying to bring together the results.

I was also thinking of maybe, after I am done trying the American varieties, putting together my favorites in each category (bitterring, flavoring, and aroma) using this formula.  I have a way to go yet, but we''ll see.

The fermenter is bubbling big-time with the Columbus.

Cascade Report, Centennial Bottling, and Columbus Discovers My Brewpot

I got to chill and try the Cascade Experiment this weekend!

Because of some time constraints, I didn't get to brew the Columbus until Tuesday, but the Centennial was in bottles as scheduled.  The bottling went VERY smoothly, although I didn't get many bottles (4).  I think more wort got boiled off this time.  I'm going to have to keep an eye on this.

I was pretty surprised at how well the Cascade turned out, and have decided this is the best hobby for someone like me.  Its relatively easy, and extremely forgiving.  I was convinced of contamination after the bottling fiasco, but its not bad.  There is some detectable "off" flavor, but I might be imagining it.  For this reason, I may run it back after the other batches just in case there was some difference in character due to the mistakes.

Here is my report on the Cascade-Hopped Experiment:

Bitterness:  Characteristic late, back of the tounge, almost after-taste like bitterness.  If I were to bitter with these hops again, I would cut back a little.  Maybe only .15 or even .10 oz. (.75 oz. and .5 oz. respectively for a 5 gallon batch).  I would rather taste the bitterness, if that makes any sense.

Flavor:  Everyone says "citrusy" when describing this hop, and they aren't kidding.  That't the best word I could come up with.  Bright and crisp in flavor.  Love it.  Just about the right amount too....20 oz. (1 oz for a 5 gallon batch).

Aroma: Eh...  Since some of the yeast cake got kicked up during bottling, I'm thinking this is what suffered.  Not at all like the flavor.  I would not use this for aroma hopping again without a second experiment.

This is what the Columbus brew looked like:

• 24 c Pocono Springs bottled water brought to rolling boil. (moved up from 20 to compensate for the boil-off)
• 1 lb Muntons Extra Light DME stirred into pot.
• Wort brought back to boil, and .20 oz ( 2.8 AAU) Columbus hop pellets added.  60 minute timer started.
• At 45 minute mark (15 min left in boil) .20 oz (2.8 AAU) Columbus hop pellets added to boil.
• At 55 minute mark (5 min left in boil) .20 oz (2.8 AAU) Columbus hop pellets added to boil
• At 60 minute mark, brew pot is removed, covered, and placed in freezer to cool.
• When wort reads 70 degrees F, wort transferred to fermenter, and 11.5 g Fermentis brand Safale us-05 also added to fermenter.
• Fermenter closed and shaken for 1 min. 

Bottling Sucks!!!

So I brewed on Sunday, and bottled...attempted to bottle...my Cascade experiment.  Due to a faulty siphoning apparatus, we had some terrible trouble getting the beer into the bottles, and lost a full beer.  She hung in there with me though, and we got 5 cloudy, probably contaminated 100% Cascade-hopped beers.

The Centennial experiment is in the fermenter and bubbling away.  Here's what it looked like:

• 20 c Pocono Springs bottled water brought to rolling boil.
• 1 lb Muntons Extra Light DME (This will remain constant throughout the rest of the hops testing) stirred into pot.
• Wort brought back to boil, and .20 oz ( 1.8 AAU) Centennial hop pellets added.  60 minute timer started.
• At 45 minute mark (15 min left in boil) .20 oz (1.8 AAU) Centennial hop pellets added to boil.
• At 55 minute mark (5 min left in boil) .20 oz (1.8 AAU) Centennial hop pellets added to boil
• At 60 minute mark, brew pot is removed, covered, and placed in freezer to cool.
• When wort reads 70 degrees F, wort transferred to fermenter, and 11.5 g Fermentis brand Safale us-05 (This will remain constant throughout the rest of the hops testing) also added to fermenter.
• Fermenter closed and shaken for 1 min.

I will chill the Cascade Experiment one week from Sunday and give it a try while bottling the Centennial Experiment and brewing the Columbus Experiment...CAN'T F'N WAIT!!!! (I seem to be saying that a lot)

Small Change

So Sunday is bottle and brew day.  I will be bottling the Cascade brew, and brewing a nearly identical batch with Centennial hops.  The estimated bitterness for this one is almost twenty points higher than the Cascade, which is ok, but I am not even up to the most bitter of the American hop varieties.  The next experiment, Columbus, will be reeeeeeeeealy bitter.

The owner of the homebrew shop gave me a 3 pound bag of a lighter DME, which really wont make any difference at this hop level, and he suggested I use the full packet of yeast, since once you open the packet, the unused portion is very prone to infection.  Ahh the things you learn...

I'll check in again Sunday with the recipe.

Just A Quick Update

Yup! We've got bubbles!  The airlock is throwing out a bubble every 3-5 seconds, which tells me that some type of fermentation is taking place.  It is not as vigorous as I would like, but I assume that is because there is only a gallon in the bucket.

I should probably mention a few things in the interest of clarity.  First, I am brewing other batches with a friend at the same time this experiment is taking place.  We do 5 gallon batches about once per month.  Our third batch (a German spice ale) is currently in the fermenter.  I am doing this myself only because he is more inclined to try different malts and yeasts, as beers with those flavors at the forefront (as opposed to hops) are his favorite.  I'm a hop guy.  I mention this because I may refer to the brews we make or the ingredients we use from time to time.

Also, in my last post, I included alpha acid units (AAUs) in the recipe description.  I know these numbers apply differently when brewing a 5 gallon batch (as far as I know), but I wanted to have some record of the alpha acid content of the hops I'm using so I could continue this experiment over several harvests and not have this variable effect the experiment.

Later.

Brew Day 1: Cascading Deliciousness.

Batch #1 is in the fermenter!  I made a few little procedural mistakes, mostly in timing things properly so everything flowed smoothly, but nothing that will effect the experiment.  The Malt extract caused an almost immediate near boil-over.  I was able to stop it before it went over the edge, but it was close.  Next time I'll need to turn the heat down a little.  Using high heat to bring the water to a boil and then turning down the heat to medium or medium-high to maintain the boil might work pretty well.  I've actually heard of home brewers who take the pot off the heat while adding the extract.  I might try that too.

 

Here is what the brew looked like:

 

• 20 c Pocono Springs bottled water brought to rolling boil. 2 c then removed to measuring cup for  yeast starter and miscellaneous purposes.  The additional extra 2 c were to make up for boil-off.
• 1 lb LD Carlson brand Briess DME (This will remain constant throughout the hops testing) stirred into pot.
• Wort brought back to boil, and .20 oz (1.46 AAU) Cascade hop pellets added.  60 minute timer started.
• At 45 minute mark (15 min left in boil) .20 oz (1.46 AAU) Cascade hop pellets added to boil.
• At 55 minute mark (5 min left in boil) .20 oz (1.46 AAU) Cascade hop pellets added to boil
• At 60 minute mark, brew pot is removed, covered, and placed in freezer to cool.
• When wort reads 70 degrees F, wort transferred to fermenter, and 5.75 g Fermentis brand Safale us-05 (This will remain constant throughout the hops testing) in 1/2 c starter with 1 sugar cube also added to fermenter.
• Fermenter closed and shaken for 1 min.

So that's it.  I will check it tomorrow night to see if there's activity in the airlock.  If I can figure it out, I may post a video.  Can't wait to bottle this...can't wait to sample it either.

And So It Begins...

Welcome to my version of science.  Over the next several months, even years, I will be formulating and brewing small batches of beer, making minor tweaks along the way, in the interest of creating a beer that I would deem "My Favorite Ever" (MFE).  First, however, a few disclaimers and clarifications.

I am no scientist, but I understand the concept of controls and variables, and will be applying this throughout the experiment.  For example, when testing hops, I will use every other ingredient exactly the same as in every other hop-test batch.  In other words, when testing one ingredient, all other ingredients will freeze in place to give me a better understanding of the differences the variables create.

I should also point out that this was not entirely my idea. I learned of the small batch concept while listening to old episodes of a great podcast I found when first starting this hobby called Basic Brewing Radio.  The hosts made a six pack of IPA, and it looked like a lot of fun.  I then heard, on the same podcast, of a guy who had done several single-hop batches in order to taste the different varieties of American hops.  My mind began to churn, and this idea was born.  I created this experiment in my head and did a little bit of research, and now I'm set to go.

So here's how I will start this thing off.  My favorite commercially available beers are all IPA's, and I tend to lean towards the American varieties.  Avery's IPA, and Dark Horse's Crooked Tree are two of my favorites, and they are both relatively mild in terms of malt and yeast flavors, and heavier on the hop side.  This is where I will start.  My first few batches will focus on hop bitterness, aroma and flavor, and include a light American dry malt extract, as well as an American yeast (I will use the same brands throughout) in order to keep the non-hop flavor profiles mild.  I plan to add the hops in equal amounts (.20oz) at 0:00 (60 min left in the boil), 0:45 (15 min left in the boil), and 0:55 (5 min left in the boil).  I will then ferment for 2 weeks, bottle, and allow the beer to condition for a further two weeks before chilling and tasting the brew, and recording as much as possible regarding the body, flavor, color, bitterness, and aroma among other aspects which I will rate for all batches.

Starting with American hop varieties (Cascade is the first), I will then move to hops from other areas of the world.  I will probably stay with the more common varieties for now, because I probably wont live long enough to get through every single hop out there.  Once I find a good hop mix, I will move on to trying different malts, then yeasts, then maybe go to adjuncts, specialty grains, fresh water from the Pocono mountains...who knows?  What I do know is that this is going to be a hell of a lot of fun.  Brew Day number one is tomorrow!!!