Brewing Day!

Today was the official brew day, as planned.  Before we get into that, let's get into more beer -- my first batch.

We tried it again, and it hadn't changed a whole lot from the last tasting.  More malt than hops; still more sourness from the yeast.  Not a bad ale, but not an IPA.  My sister was not a big fan, but the fiance and my friend Matt seemed to like it.  I'll let it sit for a while and see how it goes in another couple of weeks.

The brewing.  Easier than last time, but not without slight complications.

I started by steeping one pound of crushed crystal malt for about half an hour in 2.5 gallons of water.  This gave the wort a nice malty smell, and once I kept the water to just under a boil, I added six pounds of Munton's Light DME.  This boiled over (hurray!  first time!) and then I let it go for about 45 minutes or so.

I added two ounces of Super Styrians at the beginning of a 60-minute countdown.  Hurray, another boilover.  This was to be the last one, thank god.

I then added one ounce of Willamettes at the 30 minute point, and one ounce of Centennials at the 10 minute point.

At the final three to five minutes, I added two good pinches of Irish Moss, and then added a half-cup of honey along with 32 ounces of Grade A maple syrup.

I was going to use liquid yeast once I cooled down the wort and added it to the carboy.  I failed to read the directions on the back of the smack pack which said to make a culture three hours in advance.  Instead, I grabbed a packet of Munton's Gold dry yeast which had been in the fridge, activated that in some hot water, and added it to the carboy.

The wort now sits in my sink.  I figure that if there's any blowover, it can go right into the sink and make cleanup slightly easier.

Pictures to come tomorrow.  It's late and I didn't get much sleep last night, so I'm hitting the sack.

Three weeks in the bottle.

It sounds like a good album title.  Or song title.

Nevertheless, my beer has been bottled for three weeks.  Given that it's now September 16th, and it was brewed on August 8th, that's not a bad lifespan thus far.

I took a six-pack of it over to my job this morning, so a couple of co-workers could try it out.  Brendan had tried it when I'd first brought a couple of bottles over, and he instantly noticed a change in the flavor from back then.  Better, richer, "wheatier" (as he put it).  I cracked one open and noticed it myself.  Was that wheat I tasted?

I brought in the owner of the restaurant, Joe, who knows his beer pretty well.  His was an opinion I wanted.

He sampled it, and made the following observations (not verbatim):

• it had good body to it,
• it wasn't overly bitter,
• he didn't think it "wheaty" but definitely tasted malt,
• he wouldn't call it an IPA because it's too dark (but he would call it a pale ale)
• it was hoppy to his liking, but not insanely hoppy.

He suggested that next time I brew, I go easier on the crushed malt steeping at the beginning of the process.  That would alleviate some of the malt flavor (which I'd like to lessen, so that was good advice).  

It was beer well received by both co-workers, so I was happy.  I don't intend on drinking any more of it until the 28th, when I brew again.  I still have to get the DME and a nylon bag for steeping the crushed malt, but aside from that, it's all systems go.