Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Try some of these great recipes out, or share your favourite brew with other forumees!
TheSheeprug

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by TheSheeprug » Sun Feb 10, 2013 9:46 pm

Col Robinson wrote:Wow, more nice comments, I could get used to this :!:
Cheers Dave, yes, I am still brewing and still enjoying it. I recently went through a period of brewing very simple recipes; in fact, so simple that I'm not even sure I should call them 'recipes' - I did a series of brews simply chucking in 5Kgs of any type of pale malt, a sachet of Safale, and I'd use different combinations and types of hop for each brew (including 'green' hops once complete with caterpillars and spiders), just out of curiousity really to see how the taste of the finished products differ.
mcdonald_ajr wrote:


I'm currently drinking your Dark Lantern recipe, which is also very nice. Lovely rich, full taste. Strongly recommended. I suspect it will continue to improve with age, but I'm drinking it too fast! So thanks for the recipes. I plan to do another Toad at Toad Hall soon.

Anthony
Hi Anthony, I'm glad you like Dark Lantern and you're right, it does get better with age. I spent two years on and off, experimenting with Oatmeal Stout recipes, and finally I settled on Dark Lantern as my Oatmeal Stout of choice. A meal in a glass, as they say. :D
minesapint wrote:... It is not worth buying a pack of Green Bullet mail order for the amount that I would use in my three gallon brew.
I already have plenty of small oddments of hops.
Must make an effort to use them up in a hotch potch brew.
Maybe I should call it a "Hop Potch Brew ".
.
Hi minesapint, totally agree it's not worth buying a pack of Green Bullet for such a small amount and where's the fun in slavishly following a recipe to the letter anyway? :D And isn't it amazing how often these 'Hotch Potch chuck-it-in-to-use-'em-up' brews turn out to be absolutely delicious :?:

Happy Brewing!

Col
Mr Mole,

You are to be congratulated - a very nice site with some excellent recipes. Dark Lantern in particular look good. I'm curious though, about the long mash times. I used to do overnight mashes following the David Line approach, but standard 90 mins work very nicely these days. Do you really get much benefit from the long time? My understanding is there's not much to be gained from doing it overnight.

SR

Col Robinson

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by Col Robinson » Sun Feb 10, 2013 10:57 pm

TheSheeprug wrote: Mr Mole,

You are to be congratulated - a very nice site with some excellent recipes. Dark Lantern in particular look good. I'm curious though, about the long mash times. I used to do overnight mashes following the David Line approach, but standard 90 mins work very nicely these days. Do you really get much benefit from the long time? My understanding is there's not much to be gained from doing it overnight.

SR
Hello TheSheeprug,
Many thanks for the kind words. If you don't mind me saying so, I think you've answered your own question there. If standard 90 minute mashes work very nicely for you, then I would suggest you do exactly that. IMHO brewing is supposed to be fun and I can see little point in slavishly following a recipe if it suggests you do something you're not going to enjoy. Perhaps the biggest benefit of doing overnight mashes is being able to get your mash started and then slope off to bed - a luxury never to be underestimated in my view. :mrgreen:

TheSheeprug

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by TheSheeprug » Mon Feb 11, 2013 12:12 am

Col Robinson wrote:
TheSheeprug wrote: Mr Mole,

You are to be congratulated - a very nice site with some excellent recipes. Dark Lantern in particular look good. I'm curious though, about the long mash times. I used to do overnight mashes following the David Line approach, but standard 90 mins work very nicely these days. Do you really get much benefit from the long time? My understanding is there's not much to be gained from doing it overnight.

SR
Hello TheSheeprug,
Many thanks for the kind words. If you don't mind me saying so, I think you've answered your own question there. If standard 90 minute mashes work very nicely for you, then I would suggest you do exactly that. IMHO brewing is supposed to be fun and I can see little point in slavishly following a recipe if it suggests you do something you're not going to enjoy. Perhaps the biggest benefit of doing overnight mashes is being able to get your mash started and then slope off to bed - a luxury never to be underestimated in my view. :mrgreen:
I couldn't agree more! I had a 10 year break from brewing due to family commitments and a day job, and it's been fun starting again. In fact these days I find that rather than mashing overnight, mashing during the day and finishing in the evening is a more practical approach. My question was prompted more by the impact on the final result - I've found long mashes tend to produce a lower FG and a drier beer - which is not always what's wanted.

SR

Col Robinson

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by Col Robinson » Mon Feb 11, 2013 12:45 am

TheSheeprug wrote:
My question was prompted more by the impact on the final result - I've found long mashes tend to produce a lower FG and a drier beer - which is not always what's wanted.

SR
Agreed. All I can say is that the recipes and processes on my site produce beer that I enjoy and were decided upon after a lot of trial runs. I wouldn't be so presumptious as to think everyone will prefer them. That's one of the reasons why I included a section on how to make up your own recipes. Brewing a nice beer from a recipe you created yourself is, I find, infinitely more satisfying than following someone else's recipe, and I'd say, as you're not a fan of long mashes, don't do 'em! :D

minesapint
Piss Artist
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 10:43 pm
Location: Merseyside.

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by minesapint » Wed Feb 20, 2013 7:10 pm

Twelfth Night is on the bubble now.
I am only making three gallons but the grain bill was so great that I had to split the mash into two separate runs. Part in my normal bucket and Electrim boiler set up and the rest in a stockpot on the gas cooker. All of my other five gallon brews fitted easily into my 13 litre bucket that I use for mashing. This is a bit of a monster to me.
Get a bit more ginger than required. I lost a fair old bit when I peeled the rough skin off. Not sure if I should have done that.
Starting gravity 1.088 , Safbrew S-33 yeast and the fermenting bin is sitting on an old demi-john heater that I bought in the seventies for wine making. Combined with a couple of plastic bin bags for insulating. Bit cold on the kitchen window sill but bubbling fine.
The trub in the boiler at the end looked like Christmas cake mix before it is cooked and the smell was just delicious.
Thanks everyone for your ideas and suggestions and putting me on to Col Robinson.
Cheers all.

User avatar
seymour
It's definitely Lock In Time
Posts: 6390
Joined: Wed Jun 06, 2012 6:51 pm
Location: Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA
Contact:

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by seymour » Wed Feb 20, 2013 7:13 pm

minesapint wrote:...The trub in the boiler at the end looked like Christmas cake mix before it is cooked and the smell was just delicious...
Maybe you should've stirred in some flour and an egg, and baked it. :)

Dave S
Even further under the Table
Posts: 2514
Joined: Sun Apr 01, 2012 5:38 pm
Location: Wirral, Merseyside

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by Dave S » Wed Feb 20, 2013 7:28 pm

minesapint wrote:Twelfth Night is on the bubble now.
I am only making three gallons but the grain bill was so great that I had to split the mash into two separate runs. Part in my normal bucket and Electrim boiler set up and the rest in a stockpot on the gas cooker. All of my other five gallon brews fitted easily into my 13 litre bucket that I use for mashing. This is a bit of a monster to me.
Get a bit more ginger than required. I lost a fair old bit when I peeled the rough skin off. Not sure if I should have done that.
Starting gravity 1.088 , Safbrew S-33 yeast and the fermenting bin is sitting on an old demi-john heater that I bought in the seventies for wine making. Combined with a couple of plastic bin bags for insulating. Bit cold on the kitchen window sill but bubbling fine.
The trub in the boiler at the end looked like Christmas cake mix before it is cooked and the smell was just delicious.
Thanks everyone for your ideas and suggestions and putting me on to Col Robinson.
Cheers all.
You must have a jolly wide window sill!! :shock:
Best wishes

Dave

minesapint
Piss Artist
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 10:43 pm
Location: Merseyside.

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by minesapint » Wed Feb 20, 2013 7:39 pm

Hello Dave.
No I dont live in Speke hall.
I have a piece of an old formica , kitchen cabinet door on the windowsill with a block of wood under the sticky out part, between the worktop and the board. Just to stop it tipping over.
If I did live in Speke hall I would rip out all of the leaded , stained glass windows and get some double glazing installed. It must cost a fortune to heat an old place like that!
Cheers Dave.

minesapint
Piss Artist
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 10:43 pm
Location: Merseyside.

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by minesapint » Wed Feb 20, 2013 7:53 pm

Hello seymour.
I tapped in a reply to you but I think I must have forgotten to press the submit button.

I enjoyed that comment but if you saw my girth you'd realise that cake is the last thing I need.
Thanks for the introduction to H E Bravery. I have just got hold of one of his books called "HOME BOOZE a Complete Guide for the Amateur Wine and Beer Maker".
Recipes and methods just like we used for wine and beer in the seventies. A real method nostalgia trip. I think I shall try a couple of his allgrain recipes with a bit of a tweek sometime in the future. He makes for entertaining reading.
I have found a good book meant for trainee and apprentice brewers.
Simply called "Brewing by E,J,Jeffery"
A good read. Technical but understandable to a non chemist like me.
Lots of industrial hints and tips. Well worth looking out for on Abe books, ebay or Amazon,
Cheers again seymour.

User avatar
seymour
It's definitely Lock In Time
Posts: 6390
Joined: Wed Jun 06, 2012 6:51 pm
Location: Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA
Contact:

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by seymour » Wed Feb 20, 2013 8:42 pm

Thanks for the leads, minesapint. I'll check 'em out.

User avatar
far9410
Even further under the Table
Posts: 2472
Joined: Wed Sep 22, 2010 4:37 pm
Location: Nottingham, usually!

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by far9410 » Wed Feb 20, 2013 11:01 pm

I've got "home booze", had it years, it was relevant then, not now
no palate, no patience.


Drinking - of course

minesapint
Piss Artist
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 10:43 pm
Location: Merseyside.

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by minesapint » Thu Feb 21, 2013 3:43 pm

Hello to far9410

Valid and fair comment.

I did say though that it was " a real method nostalgia trip."
What I wanted was old allgrain recipes and I found a few.
With a little tweeking and some up to date water treatment they should be interesting,and hopefully pleasant to drink.
In the days that this book was produced ( the seventies ) methods were very basic and were reflected in a lot of the results. All of the homebrewers that I knew ( myself included) thought it was normal to bottle cloudy beers and end up with about an inch of sediment in the bottom of the big old glass pop bottles we used. Some brews were good and some were grin and bear it . Had to be drunk though to save face. Couldnt pour it away.
Times and methods have changed but with a little of our modern day knowledge I will try and ressurect a recipe or two of Bravery s.
Cheers.

User avatar
seymour
It's definitely Lock In Time
Posts: 6390
Joined: Wed Jun 06, 2012 6:51 pm
Location: Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA
Contact:

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by seymour » Thu Feb 21, 2013 4:01 pm

minesapint wrote:...All of the homebrewers that I knew ( myself included) thought it was normal to bottle cloudy beers and end up with about an inch of sediment in the bottom of the big old glass pop bottles we used. Some brews were good and some were grin and bear it. Had to be drunk though to save face. Couldnt pour it away...
That's no longer the case? Oops, I must be doing something wrong. :)

Dave S
Even further under the Table
Posts: 2514
Joined: Sun Apr 01, 2012 5:38 pm
Location: Wirral, Merseyside

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by Dave S » Thu Feb 21, 2013 4:20 pm

minesapint wrote:Hello Dave.
No I dont live in Speke hall.
I have a piece of an old formica , kitchen cabinet door on the windowsill with a block of wood under the sticky out part, between the worktop and the board. Just to stop it tipping over.
If I did live in Speke hall I would rip out all of the leaded , stained glass windows and get some double glazing installed. It must cost a fortune to heat an old place like that!
Cheers Dave.
Yes, how they used to put up with all that in the 16th century lord knows.

If you don't mind my asking, why do you store your FV on the window sill?
Best wishes

Dave

User avatar
far9410
Even further under the Table
Posts: 2472
Joined: Wed Sep 22, 2010 4:37 pm
Location: Nottingham, usually!

Re: Christmas brew for 2013. Ideas please.

Post by far9410 » Thu Feb 21, 2013 4:24 pm

minesapint wrote:Hello to far9410

Valid and fair comment.

I did say though that it was " a real method nostalgia trip."
What I wanted was old allgrain recipes and I found a few.
With a little tweeking and some up to date water treatment they should be interesting,and hopefully pleasant to drink.
In the days that this book was produced ( the seventies ) methods were very basic and were reflected in a lot of the results. All of the homebrewers that I knew ( myself included) thought it was normal to bottle cloudy beers and end up with about an inch of sediment in the bottom of the big old glass pop bottles we used. Some brews were good and some were grin and bear it . Had to be drunk though to save face. Couldnt pour it away.
Times and methods have changed but with a little of our modern day knowledge I will try and ressurect a recipe or two of Bravery s.
Cheers.
Point taken, things have moved on so much for the better, I'm sure you'll have fun adapting some of the old recipes
no palate, no patience.


Drinking - of course

Post Reply