Part 3 - Decoction Mashing

Continued from Part 1 - The Dunkelweizen Clone and Part 2 - Mastering the Yeast

After my trials with trying to nail down and balance the yeasts elements, I returned to my tomes for further resources. Getting too much banana or clove on a yeast that was entirely too picky had become a chore in itself. Even understanding how each is produced there was just too much variance with minor changes and there had to be a way to help control these better. Researching further I looked into brewing methods that are used for Hefeweizens in the past. Beyond just the Fuleric Acid rest there was a mention of Decocting and it's controversial benefits. This topic has been covered by other blogs, articles and books so I will try to keep it focused to Hefeweizen.

Adventurer B and his animal companion

Recipe - Time for a change up

Due to the topic, I am changing the recipe off the Dunkelweizen I usually post in order to focus on bringing out the benefits of Decoction Mashing.

Type: BIAB All Grain
Style: 15a Weizen/wiessbeer
Alcohol: ~5%
IBU: ~12
Batch Vol: 5.50 gal
Bottling Vol: 5.00 gal

Amount	Name	Type	Addition	%Bill/IBU
5 lb	White Wheat Malt	Grain	Mash	56%
3 lbs	Pilsner (2-row) UK	Grain	Mash	33%
1 lb	Flaked Wheat	Grain	Mash	11%
0.75 oz	Hallertau [4%]	Hop	Boil 60.0 min	12.6
1 Vial	Hefeweizen Ale Yeast (White Labs WLP300)	Yeast	Pitch Temp	-

Process

BIAB is highly recommended for Decoction mashing, at least until you get used to the volumes required to hit target temperatures. This is similar to doing a Step-Infusion mash but we take out a portion to

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Tags for this post: Decoction, Decoction Mash, hefeweizen, dunkelweizen, Adventure

As you may know, I currently have a split batch of competition beer going. Four gallons have been hit with WLP820 to become a Festbier, and are located in a carboy inside my fermentation chamber (an ancient mini fridge with an STC-1000 temperature controller). I love the control that this setup gives me; set the desired temperature, then walk away in confidence that my beer will remain within one degree F of my target temperature.

On the other hand, I have about three other gallons with WLP500, which are then further split between a pair of two gallon buckets; these will become variations on a Belgian Blond. These two gallons have been sitting in my DIY Son of a Fermentation Chamber, which has been brought out of semi-retirement to serve as my backup fermentation chamber. While the SOAFC is a great improvement over absence of temperature control, it is nowhere near as precise as my fridge/STC-1000 combo; luckily, I had planned to keep this Belgian yeast happy with a little heat, anyway.



Since these are competition beers, my desire for clarity extends beyond vanity. I had planned to cold crash and treat both beers with gelatin, then complete the "fast lager" process on the Festbier. Cold crashing is obviously a simple thing in a mini fridge, but I was drawing a blank as to how I...
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Tags for this post: cold, crash, fermentation, chamber, ice, cooler, festbier, Belgian, blond

The previous owner of our house was apparently very big into gardening. It's been a lot of fun watching the backyard change over the summer and finding out what's all back there. Three of the largest bushes back there are Rose of Sharon, which is a type of hibiscus. I've been doing some reading on them, and it turns out that they are very edible, both the leaves and the flowers. The leaves are really tough and chewy and have that green, vegetal taste. I probably won't be doing much with those. The flowers, though, are pretty good. They have a very mild floral flavor with a bit of sweetness. Most of the recipes I've seen online are for teas or salads, so I figure that a tea would be a great first start. Right now I'm in the process of drying out some of the flowers, we'll see what happens.
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Tags for this post: local, backyard, hibiscus, dry, drying

Competitions. For many homebrewers, competing is the ultimate affirmation of skill; it is a chance to see how you stack up against other talented brewers, to see how well you can brew to a given style, to see find out how people who have never met you (and thus lack the interest of obtaining free beer from you in exchange for their praise) honestly rate your efforts. For some brewers, a beer can never be considered truly great until there is a ribbon attached to it.

Of course, competitions are not for everyone. Many brewers care nothing for brewing to style, or for brewing for anyone but themselves. For these brewers, the external validation of a competition win is unnecessary.

As far as I am concerned, both types of brewers - as well as those who fall anywhere between these two positions - are absolutely correct. One of the truly fantastic things about this hobby is the amazing flexibility it offers; brew what you like, for whatever motivations you may have. There is no absolute "right" or "wrong" in homebrewing.

I myself have never been a big competition guy. For the first couple of years that I brewed, I was painfully aware of my newbishness, and I simply did not see the point in inflicting potentially substandard beer upon a competition I had no chance of doing well in. Then, there was the fact that I live in Alabama - the next to last state in America for homebrewing...
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Tags for this post: competition, brewing, beer, festbier, Belgian blond, 2015 BJCP guidelines, decoction, 9 hour

Brewing beer is not about following a recipe, it is about the technique.  Of course the recipe is important but the art of brewing craft beer sits on a wide spectrum of technique.  The only way to really hone in on your craft…pun intended…is to truly understand what you are doing as opposed to just following a recipe and going through the motions like mash at 150, sparge at 168, collect 7 gallons, boil for 90 minutes, add hops at 60, 30, 15, and 5 minutes, chill wort, pitch yeast, check every 5 hours, post a pic of the krausen and ask if it is infected, etc…  Can you make good beer with extract kits and following the recipe?  Sure.  If you got into brewing to cook up some awesome beers to share with your beer snob buddies or keep your palate entertained you better get studying. 

 

I really like analogies.  Nah, I love analogies like sweet wort loves a healthy pitch of yeast.  I find it very easy to compare beer and music which of course is heaven for me because I love them both more than analogies…get it?  Seriously, just like every musician has their musical influences that help shape their sound, every new brewer should have multiple sources to help shape their technique and process. 

Below is a list of resources I have

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Tags for this post: newb, newbie, noob, brewing, brewer, resource, learning, resources

As mentioned in my initial post, I figured my blog posts would include things I’ve spent money on, whether I’ve regretted it or not. Everybody has their own brewing style, and everybody has certain areas of brewing that they enjoy more than others, so a product that works for me (or a product that I didn’t like) may not present the same experience for others. ...
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Tags for this post: brewjacket, homebrewing, homebrew, fermentation, temperature, control

Part 2 - Mastering the Yeast

Continued from part 1

My first alchemical run at brewing a Dunkelweizen Clone had started out quite a success but the yearning to make it better left me no time to rest. Lady Luck had provided me with a base yet being a new brewer it also left me in the dark on just how I did it. Where to even start when making this beer into something better? Again I search my clerical tomes, this time a real one, Brewing With Wheat by Stan Hieronymus. This book was about the history and modern methods of wheat beer creation.  While not a guide - as it details more professional level brewing than that at home - it gave me good insight to start experimenting.

The first step in my research was the two primary elements of this beer, Phenols (Clove) and Esters (Banana). These are what make a hefeweizen what it really is as the wheat base is generally quite simple and clean tasting. My primary goal forming, I wanted a balanced beer that wasn't strong in any aspect to make it quite drinkable yet tasty enough to enjoy drinking it daily. To that end I needed to figure out just how to perfect the flavors produced by the yeast. This post will be a little more extensive to cover both aspects of the yeast as well as the background to understanding the 'why'.

No...
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Tags for this post: dunkelweizen, hefeweizen, WLP300, Banana, Ester, Clove, Phenol

Part 1 - The Dunkelweizen Clone

A discussion on reddit recently had prompted me to write up about Hefeweizen yeast. Yet as I started it just didn't hold light to the experiences I had. Just a summery of what was learned instead of the Adventure that had transpired to get me there. So this post starts the five part recordings of 'A Dark Journey through Hefeweizen'

Over this time I will be covering different parts of the brewing process for Heff beers. Though this is for a Dunkelweizen the notes and techniques are still comparable for normal Heff beers. This first post will be more an introduction to myself and how I got myself started down this dark path. This will continue into Part 2 about Heff Yeast, Part 3 on Decoction Mashing, Part 4 on some Yeast Trickery (wait for the surprise), and part 5 on combining all these elements into the final form of this beer.

A quick pre-cursor before the story begins. The homebrew beers I detail out in each part has been a one or more batch experiment with changing a variable or two. These are not side by side blind taste tests and have only been vetted by my experience and response from those tasting them. Also each is my recorded recipes before I knew better ways to brew. You are welcome and encouraged to try them yourselves, with improvements or not, and hopefully report back.

Image source -...
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Tags for this post: dunkelweizen, hefeweizen, clone, adventure

Competition can be stressful. Learning how to maximize your chances and minimizing problems is very important. You want your beer to be judged in its prime, unharmed from shipping or poor handling. You may wish to start a 'career' in competition, which is great, but takes planning and can cost a considerable amount of money. Hopefully you will find tips and tricks below to help you find some success.

Let's set some assumptions: You have to brew exceptional beer consistently. Your recipes must be refined and strike an impression of a specific style category. You need to have your fermentation and packaging technique completely under control, even if you bottle condition. You must also have a realistic view of what happens during competitions. Truly great beers don't always medal, but they should have consistently high scores. I am not trying to scare you off or discourage you from entering, just setting an expectation for your competition experience.

Prepare your attitude for both success and disappointment. A low score should be disappointing, but not crushing! Make sure to take constructive feedback appropriately and simply ignore the occasional crappy remarks. Your beer should be reviewed by skilled judges with sensory training. Take their feedback seriously and refine your process. Competition is not for everyone.

Why should I enter a competition?

There are two primary reasons to enter a competition; constructive feedback and bragging rights. Most competitions, especially those that are BJCP qualified, will provide you standardized judging feedback in one of two forms....
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Tags for this post: homebrewing, competition, judging, scoresheets, shipping, packaging

A few weeks ago, Olan asked me to review a tap handle from Half Yankee Workshop. HECK YES! was my not so hesitant first response. I believe that Olan would like to review most of the products he's asked about, but in this case he felt like he couldn't do an honest and thorough review since he doesn't keg (poor guy) and has no taps at home to try them out.



Full disclosure on this - Olan did give me the handles in exchange for the review. However, I almost declined because I felt like it was possible I wouldn't give them a fair review. My retired father makes my tap handles now, and has given me some very nice examples that he's turned on his lathe. My dad uses a variety of hardwoods he has on hand - walnut, cherry, hickory, oak - and I'm very proud of them all. I knew it would be a tough hill to overcome to earn a spot on my keezer. I'm a pretty fair guy though, so I agreed.

After waiting somewhat impatiently for the handle to arrive, I was finally able to unwrap what Olan gave me and I was pleasantly surprised with not one but two handles - one from the Session Series well as one from the Seasonal Series. My first impression was "WOW", the wood selection was absolutely phenomenal. My second impression was...
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Tags for this post: tap, handle, handles, review, wood, custom, half, yankee, workshop