Kit O' Beer #22 - Attack of the Clones Ep. 2 - LCBA #2

[Glass]

Attack of the Clones - Little Creatures Bright Ale (LCBA) #2

KoB #22 is just about going. Waiting for the temps still. I thought we were there but on closer inspection it is still about 28C. More difficult to get these regular fermenters 1in a water bath. The tap/spigot is very low in the fermenter so not much room for water before it's hitting the tap.

Slight change to the recipe of #7 but same method. I did not add any extra dextrose. I realised when I did the OG. So it's about 1.041 might go to 2 on cooling. Included Amarillo at the 45 minute addition. Added more Cascade to the 2nd addition.

The recipe:
2 x 1.5kg Coopers Light Malt liquid extract (unhopped)
1 pkt Brew essentials yeast 15gms
50 gms /1.3 Oz Cascade hops in 3 additions
40 gms /1.3 Oz B-SAAZ hops in 3 additions (also known as Motueka)
12 gms Amarillo hops 1 addition.

O.G 1.041

Fermenter: standard round #1

The method:
Open a cold beer. Then bring 14L of water + 1.5kg of Coopers Light Malt liquid extract to the boil. I started with 13L. Then I pre-boiled 2 litres and used 1 of them to rinse the can into the pot. I used the 2nd liter at the end of the boil. We are going for a 45 minute boil.

Hop additions:
12gms Motueka at 45 minutes
12gms Cascade at 45 minutes
12gms Amarillo at 45 minutes
10gms Motueka at 15 minutes
20gms Cascade at 15 minutes
18gms Motueka at 0 minutes
18gms Cascade at 0 minutes

Hop sock was a stocking well boiled. Made it long and anchored it to the handle

On flame out add 2nd can of extract stir well.

I dropped a 2L block of ice in which disappeared straight away. Topped it off to 23L Its been about 5 hours waiting for the temps. Getting close. It's late. Want to pitch the yeast. Its being rehydrated and is going crazy.

Wanted to get some Amarillo in there but not too much bittering so only the first addition. Extra Cascade for the flavouring addition and probably could have got away with more on the flame out. We see. Might dry hop it as well.

Worried I burnt the extract but dumping it in when should have poured and stirred. Was dark. Looking ok now. About the right colour. Malty aroma and flavour. Still has a fairly gentle hop profile. We see how it goes.

[Libertytree]

I hear ya man, it's easy to blow a whole day brewing and can be a long one when ya wind up drunk and tired and still have a hot wort to cool etc... I came to the same conclusion you did, an earlier start is a must! To help this along I got most everything set up and ready the night before, hops labeled and pre-done in their hop sacks and numbered w/ the sequences and timing I planned. Just doing that the day before saved me 2-3 hours the next day and really saved me a lot of grief, confusion and rushing.

Yep, the more brew ya make the wort cooling becomes more problematic but even smaller batches will benefit from a wort chiller as well. My chiller uses the same pump that powers the sanitizer so it kills 2 birds w/ one stone. So, don't get a weak pump if you pull the trigger on a chiller as you'll be able to use it for both jobs and cooling a wort with ice water is very effective.

[Glass]

It was a big day but I got a lot of stuff done. If I could have started the brew earlier I would of done it. I was determined to get it done. I pitched the yeast at 2:22am. Was worried this morning I might have killed it. I can't see inside as the lid is dripping with moisture clouding the view and the sides are not see through. I think there is now a thin krausen. I'm getting old LT. getting difficult to lift some of this stuff. I was worn out afterwards. I've thrown a lot of crates and cartons in my time working warehouse and it pays out on you. Might need to find a chiro I think.

Brewing station. no lifting no shifting. problem solved. Like that brewing YT guy northern rock brewer. Tony Yates. or Time4Another1 Paul Wicksteed. Very good setups.

[BrewTech]

It was a big day but I got a lot of stuff done. If I could have started the brew earlier I would of done it. I was determined to get it done. I pitched the yeast at 2:22am. Was worried this morning I might have killed it. I can't see inside as the lid is dripping with moisture clouding the view and the sides are not see through. I think there is now a thin krausen. I'm getting old LT. getting difficult to lift some of this stuff. I was worn out afterwards. I've thrown a lot of crates and cartons in my time working warehouse and it pays out on you. Might need to find a chiro I think.

Brewing station. no lifting no shifting. problem solved. Like that brewing YT guy northern rock brewer. Tony Yates. or Time4Another1 Paul Wicksteed. Very good setups.

My IPA grain bill is 745 lbs. I don't have an auger or mash mixer to deliver it to the mash tun. Nope, for me it's opening, lifting and pouring 50 lb bags of premilled malt into the mash tun, grabbing the SS boat oar, and stirring, while the strike water is pouring in. Have to watch the volume and temp, and adjust on the fly to hit 148F mash temp. That's only a 7.8% ABV beer. Imperial Red or Wee Heavy at 10%? Looking at 850 - 950 lbs of grain, maxing out the capacity of the vessel... Lift pour stir...Lift pour stir... repeat as necessary...

...and that's just to start the 8 hour brewing day, because when the kettle is full, that grain has to come back out into barrels so that the grain guy can come take it...

Happy homebrewing! :)

[Glass]

I'm sure I thanked before. I hear you. A lot of weight for sure. I spent that day crawling around fixing this and that. I got it done learned a new thing and was well pleased with myself. At some point I've done something. Not sure what exactly. But the brew and moving it a couple times and up high to get it into the tub, and out again for a reading sample was the straw. N. E. way nearly all good again. The yeast went off as well. There is at least a 1" krausen in there now.

[Libertytree]

I addressed this quandry because it's simply a PITA that needed to be fixed.

First off I built a 4ft tall, 2ftx2ft fermenting platform, big enough for a 32gal ferment vessel or 4 6gal ferment buckets. All ferment buckets are installed w/ spigots. I also have shelves a little lower for secondary ferments if chosen. generally when making 20 gals I spigot off 5 gals at a time to the bottling bucket where I mix the primer and then can bottle from there.

Next to that on the left at a right angle is the bottling bench and all the primed beer is just a bottling wand away from easy bottling.

But as usual there is a hard part about this system because I have to get X amount of wort into my ferment bucket/s and pitch the yeast after my temps are ok. 20 gals is a PITA but if ya break it down into more manageable sizes it's much easier. Ya just need to sterilize some smaller buckets to transfer to so you can get them up the ladder to the fermenter safely and without spilling any.

I brew in the garage and ferment and bottle inside and have to be very careful not to make any mess in the process. This method works good for me though with minimal work.

ETA: There's a benefit for using 3-4 different ferment buckets as they can be dry hopped with different hops to achieve different results.

[Libertytree]

My IPA grain bill is 745 lbs. I don't have an auger or mash mixer to deliver it to the mash tun. Nope, for me it's opening, lifting and pouring 50 lb bags of premilled malt into the mash tun, grabbing the SS boat oar, and stirring, while the strike water is pouring in. Have to watch the volume and temp, and adjust on the fly to hit 148F mash temp. That's only a 7.8% ABV beer. Imperial Red or Wee Heavy at 10%? Looking at 850 - 950 lbs of grain, maxing out the capacity of the vessel... Lift pour stir...Lift pour stir... repeat as necessary...

...and that's just to start the 8 hour brewing day, because when the kettle is full, that grain has to come back out into barrels so that the grain guy can come take it...


Happy homebrewing! :)

My question is...do ya have to carry all the grain up a ladder to the ferment kettle?

Another question...why not get an insanely long paint mixer and mix it with a drill?

[Glass]

bottled this one today. It's been in primary nearly 2 weeks. It's been ready since Monday. Its been warm this week as well. I could not get it together to bottle before today.

Bulk primed 166gms.

Very clear. No distinct taste other than beer flavour. So no dominate hop. The brew pub I went to yesterday brewed 4 in house beers. One was a pale ale. Did not taste much different to their larger. So these are not India pale ales. This is similar.

I had a taste when I primed it. Tasted ok. I took another taste from the racked beer after I bottled everything. It tasted like diesel or oil. I don't know if it was the glass or the beer. Everything was clean by then. I did not smell anything particularly bad when I was bottling. I took a wiff of the bottling hose to make sure it didn't have something in it. Smells ok. I guess we find out in a few weeks.

I've got nothing brewing. First time in a while. There is a lot of beer stacked up now. About 9 or so cases. I have 1 more kit that I might do tomorrow if I have time. I wanted to do it this week but the warm weather, it's been hard keeping things cool. I changed up the trough with a ball valve and a barb attachment for a hose. It sticks out too far to allow the fermenter to fit. Today I grabbed an elbow so I can have the valve go vertical. Should be enough room to fit the fermenters in so I can chill them.

[BrewTech]

bottled this one today. It's been in primary nearly 2 weeks. It's been ready since Monday. Its been warm this week as well. I could not get it together to bottle before today.

Bulk primed 166gms.

Very clear. No distinct taste other than beer flavour. So no dominate hop. The brew pub I went to yesterday brewed 4 in house beers. One was a pale ale. Did not taste much different to their larger. So these are not India pale ales. This is similar.

I had a taste when I primed it. Tasted ok. I took another taste from the racked beer after I bottled everything. It tasted like diesel or oil. I don't know if it was the glass or the beer. Everything was clean by then. I did not smell anything particularly bad when I was bottling. I took a wiff of the bottling hose to make sure it didn't have something in it. Smells ok. I guess we find out in a few weeks.

I've got nothing brewing. First time in a while. There is a lot of beer stacked up now. About 9 or so cases. I have 1 more kit that I might do tomorrow if I have time. I wanted to do it this week but the warm weather, it's been hard keeping things cool. I changed up the trough with a ball valve and a barb attachment for a hose. It sticks out too far to allow the fermenter to fit. Today I grabbed an elbow so I can have the valve go vertical. Should be enough room to fit the fermenters in so I can chill them.

Diesel or petroleum-like aromas are actually not that uncommon. Here's a speculative thread, there may be something to it:

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f14/diesel-fuel-hops-404750/

[Glass]

I'm a bit confused because the first sample was fine. It was the second one after bottling that has the taste. Unless is was dregs.

Amarillo is in there so that lines up. I guess I wait or there is one bottle which is only 3/4 full. I might dig that one out and crack it to check.

[Glass]

ok good news I think. I chilled and cracked the 3/4 bottle. There are no bad smells or tastes here. I can sense a slight fresh bread aroma, actually it is more like a cake smell. Taste is clean and fresh.

The intensity of the bad taste was very strong. I immediately spat out the beer I sipped. Either it was something in the glass or something like a bit of yeast dregs. who knows.

We can relax and look forward to this one being ready for xmas. I think it will be an easy drinker.

[Glass]

I cracked one of these last night. It's been 9 or 10 days. Some carbonation in this beer but it doesn't last a whole lot of time. Maybe after 20 or 30 minutes its mostly gone.

This beer has a funk to it. I could have sworn I was drinking a Cerveza. It had that kind of taste to it.

The jury is still out. I got that foul taste on the dregs after bottling. I cracked a partially filled bottle and that was ok. But the second bottled sample was definitely funky.