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| Label Inspiration: We had a storm coming that the meteorologists labelled "Pandora". Like many of the newly named NORMAL/AVERAGE EVERY DAY storms, Pandora didn't hit us. I found this pic on the internet and really liked it. |
Mr. Beer’s Belgian Spiced
Ale Winter 2013 Seasonal recipe plus elements of a Spiced Christmas Ale recipe
on the Mr. Beer website
1 can Belgian Spiced Ale HME (Seasonal)
1 packet T-58 Safbrew Ale yeast
1 mulled spices bag (1 T)
½ T pure almond extract
1 BrewMax LME Softpack- Robust
½ oz. Tettnanger pellet hops (4-5% alpha acid)
1 muslin hop sack
ABV:
7.5% (approximately) SRM: 18 (approximately) IBU: 56 (approximately)
OG:
1.070 FG:
1.020 ABV: 6.56%
Brewed beer
on January 19, 2015…the same day I bottled the pale ale Something Else. To help with sanitation, I used dish
soap, rinsed, then Craft Meister to clean the same LBK I used with Something
Else…flowed by the One-Step to sanitize.
Bottled beer
on February 22, 2015. I thought about batch priming today but after some
research online I decided I wasn’t ready for it. I am, however, going to try to
use Domino Dots when I bottle prime today. A lot of brewers (newbies and
old-timers) use them when they bottle prime.
I
filled up each of the emptied and washed (sanitized in a dishwasher a few weeks
ago) bottles with warm One-Step mixed in water and emptied the solution out of
each bottle as I primed it with a Domino Dot and filled I up. I was going to
empty every bottle out but I thought it was best to keep the sanitizer in the
bottle until just before I filled them. Two bottles had a lot of foam in them
because there was an obstruction on the inside of the LBK by the spigot. I
moved the LBK around a bit (gently) and the steady stream resumed.
I
used 21 bottles today…the lip on ne bottle broke so I had to throw it away.
I
tried the warm, cloudy brew and it really tasted strong- lke alcohol-y and
hoppy strong, which might smooth out after a few weeks in the bottle and in the
fridge.
Put beer in
refrigerator on March 21, 2015.
Tasted first
beer on March 26, 2015. Didn’t taste
weird or bad like my most recent beers have tasted. Not enough body…feels even
lighter than a light beer. Bitter, but I like it. That was probably due to the
extra hops. The carbonation, in my opinion, is perfect- about a ¼” head on it
still after about 3 minutes or so (after pouring). Again- the “off” flavor
really isn’t there (not yet). Slightly sweet. Still young.
Tried a few
more on March 30, 2015. This beer is getting better…too bad I don’t have a lot
left! Another bottle broke. I love the spice and bitterness together.
Tried 3 on
April 4, 2015. It’s
bittersweet but that may not be a bad thing. I’m still looking for a beer to
taste like a REAL beer, but this one is as close as I’ve gotten in a while.I HATE that homebrew taste!
Last beer
finished on April 16, 2015.
Overall score: 5 out of 10
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