AG#10 - Spring Bitter

[Monkeybrew]

This will be my first AG brew since October 2014, and as usual for a brewday that has to be boiled outside of my shed, it's wet (snowing).

Here is the recipe that uses up some hops and grains -

Spring Bitter - 23L

4000g Mild Ale Malt - 7 EBC (88.8%)
250g Pale Crystal Malt - 60 EBC (5.6%)
250g Wheat Malt - 4 EBC (5.6%)

52g Fuggles Whole Hops 3.0% AA - FWH
15g Cascade Whole Hops 9.1% AA @30mins
25g Cascade Whole Hops 9.1% AA @10mins
30g Styrian Goldings Pellet Hops 3.7% AA @0mins
15g Cascade Whole Hops 9.1% AA Dry Hop
15g Aurora Whole Hops 9.3% AA Dry Hop

3g Irish Moss @10mins

Yeast - WLP002 @19C (1L starter)

36 EBU
14 EBC
OG - 1.042
FG - 1.012
ABV - 4.1%
74 % Brewhouse Efficiency
81% Mash Efficiency
60min Boil
90min Mash

Hoping to get the mash on just before tea time, and then escape to the shed to carry on with the brew.

Grain, hops and DLS all weighed out





Cheers

MB

[seymour]

Oh I bet that's gonna be very, very nice. Great recipe, doesn't look like a user-upper at all.

[Monkeybrew]

I had a cold but good brew evening, I didn't get my mash on until 7pm in the end, but managed to pitch my yeast just before midnight.

I was aiming for 1.043 @ 23L, but ended with a slightly lower efficiency than usual and got 1.042 @ 23L, so no big problem.

I assume that using Mild Ale Malt as apposed my normal Maris Otter may have contributed to a slight dip in efficiency.

Another first for me on this brew is the use of a liquid ale yeast, but I have brewed with a few liquid lager yeasts though. I made up a 1L starter and tried out my homemade stir plate. I stirred it for just over 24hrs, and once I had cooled it for a couple of days, there seemed to be a reasonable amount of yeast in the bottom of my conical flask.

After cooling my wort down to 19C, I pitched my starter that was up to room temperature, and it was doming the lid on my FV after 9hrs and showing a good krausen after 12hrs

Mash temp averaged out just under 66C and lost nearly 2C after 90 minutes


Recirculated 3L of wort after each batch sparge


Collecting the first 16.5L batch sparge


Spent mash


Fuggles first wort hops added, whilst I'm collecting the last few litres from the 2nd sparge in a separate bucket


Collecting the cooled wort in very windy and cold conditions


Stirring my starter a few days prior to brewing


WLP002 ready for the decant and pitch


Bang on 23L after I allowed a bit more in the sparge for extra evaporation


Cheers

MB

[WalesAles]

MB,
Good looking Brewday!
FG 1010
ABV 4.4%
Dry Hopping?
Or try your Hop Tea thingy!
Or try Both!!!!!!
Go On, You know you want to!

WA

[Monkeybrew]

MB,
Good looking Brewday!
FG 1010
ABV 4.4%
Dry Hopping?
Or try your Hop Tea thingy!
Or try Both!!!!!!
Go On, You know you want to!

WA

Haha mate, stop putting ideas in my easily led head!

I hadn't planned on dry hopping, but I will have a little taste once primary is over and the brew has cleaned up.

I have got some unopened Aurora whole hops in the freezer that might fit the bill if required. Now look what you've done!!

Not to sure what FG I'll end up with, as WLP002 isn't highly attenuative (is that a word?), but my mash finished a bit cooler than planned, so you never know.

Cheers

MB

[Monkeybrew]

I tested the gravity for the first time last night (day 8 ), and it was looking like 1.013.



Looking lovely and clear though, and smelt and tasted nice and malty.

Body was really good too, can WLP002 really make this much difference?

Cheers

MB

[Monkeybrew]

All activity has ceased through my blow-off tube on day 12 and the gravity is now reading 1.012, so that's an apparent attenuation of 72%.

The sample tasted slightly less malty than the other day and I could pick up a little citrus hop hint. I have decided to rack this onto a modest amount of dry hops tonight to lift the aroma and flavor a little.

I have decided to go for 15g of Cascade & 15g of Aurora. The Aurora had a lovely orange citrus smell and we're quite sticky. They overshadowed the Cascade, but I'm sure that this combo will compliment the hops that are already in the brew.



Cheers

MB

[WalesAles]

aroma and flavor

MB

MB,
flavor? You`ve been Americanised by Seymour!

WA

Yes, that`s right, 7.22am just off 12Hr nights, `Tasting` my Graff, what a beautiful Pint. Puts TC right in the shade!
Graff is Bloody Lovely Mun!
It`s only been in the bottle 2Wks!

WA

[Monkeybrew]

aroma and flavor

MB

MB,
flavor? You`ve been Americanised by Seymour!

WA

Yes, that`s right, 7.22am just off 12Hr nights, `Tasting` my Graff, what a beautiful Pint. Puts TC right in the shade!
Graff is Bloody Lovely Mun!
It`s only been in the bottle 2Wks!

WA

Lol, just a typo mate, I'm still fluent in Essex English

What's Graff?

Cheers

MB

[WalesAles]

What's Graff?

Cheers

MB

MB,
Look in the Post `Other Brews` on JBK. It`s under `Bodgers Graff` by CJR.
Brilliant colour on this. Will post a pic tonight.
So easy to make, mix all together, forget about it for 2 weeks, bottle it, forget about it for 2 weeks, start drinking it.

WA

[Monkeybrew]

I got this brew bottled and kegged last night, and yielded 26 x 500ml bottles and filled my 9L Mini PB

I plan to give the bottles 5-6 weeks to condition, but start early on the keg after around 3 weeks

Cheers

MB

[Monkeybrew]

I transferred my mini PB into my garage this morning for some cold conditioning for a couple of weeks, but had to have a little taste first.



Certainly very promising, even though I now know that I have overdone the CRS addition and underdone the DLS, after now checking my water with a Salifert kit and finding out that the Alkalinity is a quite a bit lower than the figures from my water company.

At this early stage, I would say that it's my best AG pale ale so far My pale brews have been quite inconsistent so far, but now that I'll be treating my water to my Salifert results each time I brew from now on, my results should be more predictable.

Hopefully I won't hear the little voice calling me from my mini PB as it's in the garage!

Cheers

MB

[Monkeybrew]

Dunno what's going on with this brew, it's got worse week by week

I don't think that it's off, it just tastes weird, no defined malt or hop flavours now, just a confused mish mash

I'm brewing AG #11 tonight, which is based on my First Gold Best grain bill, but to 1.045 instead of 1.040 and I'm using all WGV this time.

Hopefully this will turn out ok and take away the pain of this brew.

Cheers

MB

[Monkeybrew]

Had another bottle of this last night and it was a bit better, slightly more defined hop flavours than before, but still not totally clear.

Maybe I just went a bit mad with the hops on this brew?

Certainly given me a bit of hope anyway. I'll try and resist trying another one for a couple of weeks.

Cheers

MB