Brew Day

On Sunday, I brewed a bitterless saison. Meaning, I didn't use any buttering hops in the recipe- just 0.9 oz of various hops I had left in the freezer (Calypso, Hersbrucker, Strisselspalt, Sorachi Ace, Santiam). The hops were added at flameout and left in the whirlpool for 10 minutes (i.e., just prior to chilling the wort).

The session went well overall, but I DID manage to miss my OG. I chose to do BIAB and that may have contributed to the lower efficiency. I tried adding Pilsen DME to the boil but it didn't bring it up enough. I should've calculated how much DME I needed, but I was in a bit of a rush. 

I'm getting to the point to where I am doing more AG recipes and it's taking me a while to figure out what equipment to use and what techniques work best with what I have in my brewhouse. I am really into water chemistry now and have started doing some calculations on my own (I need to do a lot more work on those calculations!).

I just bottled my Blind Pig IPA clone (named Duncan Double IPA after the newly retired Tim Duncan). I left the oak chips out this time because I just wanted to taste the hops. It tasted slightly sweet but had a decent happiness to it. I'm really looking forward to finally making an IPA I can drink. 

I have two water chemistry experiments going on right now- both involving one-gallon batches. The first is a Smoked Pear ale that uses my town water treated with a campden tablet and a few salt additions in the mash. The second one is a variation of Gordon Strong's Columbus Pale Ale recipe from his book Modern Homebrew Recipes. Instead of Columbus hops, I am using a "new" variety called Pekko. 

Since I have been using spring water for my beers anyway, I thought it was time that I try RO water, which is something Gordon Strong does quite a bit apparently. I also followed the salt/acid additions that were in his recipe. We'll see how it goes!

Up next- the Bawlmer ESB recipe from the NHC that I was supposed to make last month. Also, I am planning on entering a competition in October that's being held in Salisbury. I'm not exactly sure what I will make, but right now I'm thinking I'll try another Pekko Pale Ale, my Belgian dubbel and a beetsaison. 

 I wish I could keep my fermentation temps down because I really think that it would help with some of these beers- especially for competition- but I guess I'll just have to make do with the way things are now.