Time for another batch of the house saison.
Brew date: TBD
Bottling date: TBD
Target OG: 1.042
Target FG: 1.002
ABV: 5.3%
IBU: 34
Water:
4g gypsum
6g CaCl
Grist:
2.72 kg Pilsner malt (68%)
0.72 kg Vienna malt (18%)
0.48 kg Flaked wheat (12%)
0.08 kg Acid malt (2%)
Hopping:
35g Willamette @ 60 min
14g Motueka @ 15 min
28g Nelson Sauvin @ flame out
Fermentation:
Escarpment Spooky Saison, gen 2
Pitch at 27C, raise to 29C over 48hr
This is the second iteration of Kombi, a Belgian pale ale brewed to BJCP style 24B. The first iteration was brewed with homebrew competitions in mind. I only entered it in one competition, because of carbonation issues due to my error, but it placed gold in that one!
This re-brew has only minor tweaks to the grist and hopping, but I’m switching to Escarpment’s Dry Belgian strain (STA-1 positive) for a much more dry interpretation, more in line with my preferences. It is hard to say at this point if it’ll be as well suited to competitions, but I do plan to enter it in a couple in 2020.
Brew date: December 26, 2019
Bottling date: TBD
OG: 1.049
FG: TBD
ABV: 6.0%
IBU: 27
Grist:
3.80 kg Bohemian Pilsner malt
0.60 kg Munich II malt
0.20 kg Biscuit malt
0.20 kg Caramunich II malt
0.20 kg Flaked oats
Water:
4.5g CaCl
2.5g gypsum
5g 88% Lactic Acid
Mash Schedule:
55C for 15 min
65C for 70 min
75C for 10 min
Boil 90 minutes
Hopping:
35g Boheme (6% AA) @ 60 min
25g Saaz (2.8% AA) @ 5 min
Fermentation:
Escarpment Dry Belgian (gen 1) approx 150B cells
Fermented at ambient, 72F generally during activity.
Brew Day Notes: Prepared the full volume (30L) with salts in the GF, and pumped off 14L once warmed into my sparge pot.
Sacred Place is the second of three core beers in my dream brewery, following Quiet Light. It has more malt complexity and less hop prominence than Quiet Light, and I’d call it a farmhouse (style) pale ale. It’s fermented with the same house primary strain, and bottle conditioning strain.
Brew date: December 13, 2019
Bottling date: TBD
OG: 1.044
FG: TBD
ABV: 5.5%
IBU: 31
Grist:
2.80 kg Vienna malt (70%)
0.60 kg Malted rye (15%)
0.60 kg Flaked wheat (15%)
Water:
6g CaCl
4g gypsum
3g epsom
2g baking soda
1g chalk
5g 88% Lactic Acid
Mash Schedule:
55C for 15 min
65C for 70 min
75C for 10 min
Boil 120 minutes
Hopping:
30g Boheme (6% AA) @ 60 min
30g Loral (10% AA) @ 5 min
Fermentation:
Spooky Saison (gen 1) approx 150B cells
Temp 78F starting, up to 82F at 48h
Brew Day Notes: Prepared the full volume (30L) with salts in the GF, and pumped off 14L once warmed into my sparge pot. Checked pH after 10 min and was surprised to find it at 5.90. Might be my meter calibration, but added a further 6g lactic acid to get it down to a measured 5.30.
Like many homebrewers, I have an imaginary brewery I have been refining in my mind for a couple years now. It’s separate from Sandbox, though of course it shares many similarities and many of the beers I make are in an effort to hone in on what I’d want to brew in said brewery.
At the present moment, Quiet Light is one of three core beers of this imaginary brewery. It’s a golden saison style ale, hoppy and bright when fresh, and bottle conditioned with a subtle brettanomyces strain for further complexity over time. My magic combo for primary and bottling strains is currently Escarpment’s Spooky Saison and Berliner Brett, respectively. I’ll be trying this combination in the two other core beer prototypes, which will be brewed over the coming months.
Brew Specs:
Batch size: 20L into the fermentor
Equipment: Grainfather (Est 72% BHE)
Brew date: November 11, 2019
Bottling date: December 4, 2019
Target/Actual OG: 1.042 / 1.041
Target/Actual FG: 1.005 / 1.006
ABV: 4.6%
IBU: 30
Water Adjustments:
6.5g gypsum
4g CaCl
1g epsom
Grist:
2.80 kg Bohemian Pilsner (70%)
0.60 kg Vienna malt (15%)
0.60 kg Flaked wheat (15%)
Hopping:
25g Boheme @ 60 min
40g Perle @ 5 min
Dry hop: 10g Perle for 7 days
Other:
Whirfloc @ 5 min
Fermentation:
Escarpment Labs ‘Spooky Saison’ gen 1 pitch (approx 130B cells)
Temp SP: 80F for first 24h, raised gradually to 84F at 72h.
Bottled with 3.0 vols (152g of sucrose).
Brew Day Notes:
Forgot the salts for the second brew day in a row, resulting in a mash pH of 5.66 at midway through. Whoops. Added alongside some 88% LA to bring it down to the happy zone.
Originally brewed for the Vanbrewers Advent calender, this didn’t end up making the cut due to needing more conditioning time. It is a dark farmhouse ale, with a judicious amount of sage added at flameout.
Brew Specs:
Batch size: 21L into the fermentor
Equipment: Grainfather (Est 72% BHE)
Brew date: October 14, 2019
Bottling date: November 3, 2019
Target OG: 1.060
Actual OG: 1.054
Target FG: 1.005
Actual FG: 1.006
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: 31
Water Adjustments:
6g gypsum
4g CaCl
2g epsom
1g baking soda
Grist:
3.75 kg Bohemian Pilsner
0.75 kg Munich II
0.50 kg Flaked wheat
0.45 kg D-90 candi sugar
0.15 kg Special B
Hopping:
25g Boheme @ 60 min
20g Boheme @ 5 min
Other:
4 sage leaves @ 5 min
Whirfloc @ 5 min
Fermentation:
Escarpment Labs ‘Spooky Saison’ gen 3 pitch (approx 250B cells)
Temp SP: 78F for first 24h, raised gradually to 85F at 72h.
Bottled with 2.6 vols (125g of sucrose) in generic 12oz bottles.
Brew Day Notes:
Forgot the salts until 50 min into the mash! Doh. Checked pH, 5.58. Added salts and 4g of 88% lactic acid, checked after 10 min and pH settled down to 5.26. Mashed an extra 20 min to account for loss of performance from higher pH.