Straight C IPA Tap Handle

Straight C IPA
14-B American IPA
Author: Mark Ranes

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 234.7 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.070 (1.056 – 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.018 (1.010 – 1.018)
Color: 12.51 (6.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 6.94% (5.5% – 7.5%)
Bitterness: 57.5 (40.0 – 70.0)

Ingredients:
12.0 lb Maris Otter Pale Ale Malt
12.0 lb Northwest Pale Ale Malt
1.0 lb Crystal Malt 60°L
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Malt
1.0 lb American Munich
1.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 m
2.0 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 m
2.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 m
2.0 ea Servomyces – added during boil, boiled 10.0 m
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 m
4.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – steeped after boil
2000 mL White Labs WLP090 San Diego Super Yeast
2.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
1.0 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
1.0 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter

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Alesmith's San Diego Dark Session Ale

Anyone who knows me would laugh if I told them I was going to brew a session ale.  For me, life starts at 1.060 OG and goes up from there!

As a part of our schwag for NHC 2011, we were given a commemorative bomber of San Diego Dark Session Ale, brewed by Alesmith in San Diego (the picture of the bottle on Beer Advocate is mine:)  The ale was incredibly drinkable – sessionable even – but with enough lightly roasted hoppy flavor to meet my needs.  The recipe was published in the May/June 2011 issue of Zymurgy as a 5 gallon recipe.  I threw the ingredients into Beer Tools for a 10 gallon batch, adjusted the OG for my system’s efficiency, and I plan on brewing this on Labor Day.  A starter of the new White Labs WLP090 San Diego Super Yeast is bubbling away on the stir plate as I type this entry.  This is the second batch of ale that will be run through my new  fermenter.

The weather here has been so hot I just haven’t wanted to brew and Monday is the coolest projected day for this weekend.  Additionally, the 26 month old Sears refrigerator that I use for a fermentation vessel crapped out last week.  Thankfully, it is now up and running again after a $139 repair bill.  It’s time to brew!

Here’s the recipe I’ll be brewing on Monday:

Central Valley Dark Session Ale
11-A Mild
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 9/5/11

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 194.62 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.044 (1.030 – 1.038)
Terminal Gravity: 1.011 (1.008 – 1.013)
Color: 17.4 (12.0 – 25.0)
Alcohol: 4.32% (2.8% – 4.5%)
Bitterness: 31.5 (10.0 – 25.0)

Ingredients:
12.0 lb Maris Otter
1.2 lb Crystal 45
0.6 lb Biscuit Malt
0.6 lb Crystal 120
0.6 lb Crystal 75
0.6 lb Melanoidin Malt
0.25 lb American Chocolate Malt
1.0 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
0.4 oz Simcoe® (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.4 oz Warrior® (16.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.5 oz Simcoe® (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Servomyces – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
0.5 oz Amarillo® (8.5%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
0.5 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 5.0 min
1.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to primary fermenter
0.5 oz Amarillo® (8.5%) – added dry to primary fermenter
0.5 oz Simcoe® (13.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
2000.0 mL Starter White Labs WLP090 San Diego Super Yeast

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Cookie Dough Brown Ale Tap Handle

I now have ten gallons of Cookie Dough Brown Ale sitting in a couple carboys.  I’d love to take credit for the inspiration for this wonderful ale, but that goes to my brew buddy, Stephen.  The idea came to him one day when he was sitting around (probably with an ale in his hand:) thinking about how to take his Brew Barn Brown Ale to the next level, and the idea of adding dark brown sugar and raisins to the batch came to him, to give it a deeper, cookie-like quality.  He brews the ale as an imperial, but I scale it back a bit in the OG to make it a bit more of a session ale.  This is the third time I’ve brewed this ale and it just seems to get better with every batch.  The one I have on tap right now is easily in the top five best ales I’ve ever brewed.

This beer was also my inaugural run using my new Therminator plate chiller, and I was on edge throughout most of the brew session, knowing that a big change was coming to my process at the end of the day.  On top of the chilling process change, I haven’t brewed for at least three months, so overall, the brew day was just a bit out of the ordinary.  I chased my mash temps, and I forgot to add the Whirlfloc tablets at the end of the boil. In the end, I made beer:)

Here’s the recipe for Cookie Dough Brown Ale:

Cookie Dough Brown Ale
10-C American Brown Ale
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 04/25/11

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 69.06%
Attenuation: 79.0%
Calories: 212.53 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.064 (1.045 – 1.060)
Terminal Gravity: 1.013 (1.010 – 1.016)
Color: 24.6 (18.0 – 35.0)
Alcohol: 6.66% (4.3% – 6.2%)
Bitterness: 37.9 (20.0 – 40.0)

Ingredients:
12.0 lb Golden Promise Malt
8.0 lb Pale Ale Malt
2.0 lb Brown
1.0 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
1.0 lb Chocolate Malt
1.0 lb Crystal 120
1.5 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.5 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
2.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 lb Dark Brown Sugar – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
12.0 oz Raisins – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2000 mL White Labs WLP001 California Ale
2.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
2.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter

Therminator Set Up

Overall, the chilling process with the Therminator went well.  Man, that plate chiller can drop the wort temperature fast!  I was a bit out of sorts with my anal retentive need to super clean the plate chiller though.  I had lots of problems with the March pump cavitating, while trying to repeatedly forward and reverse flush the Therminator.  And the hop bit just seemed to never stop coming out of the chiller.  Steve uses a sump pump for cleaning the chiller, and I got one for these from Mrs. Lazy Brewer for Christmas, but it was the one part of the system I didn’t take the time to flesh out all of the fittings for, so it wasn’t ready.  It will be the next time I brew:)

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AHA Learn To Homebrew Day

Saturday, November 6th, is the  AHA Learn to Homebrew Day (formerly called Teach a Friend to Brew Day). The American Homebrewers Association (AHA) Learn to Homebrew Day is an international event to introduce people to the hobby of homebrewing.  For the sixth time, I’ll be inviting friends – and their friends – over to learn how to brew beer.  We’ll be starting promptly at 10:00 a.m., milling over 25 pounds of malted barley, to make a 10 gallon batch of TAFTBD IPA.  Brad, a veteran brewer, will be brewing a 10 gallon batch of German Hefeweizen.  He’s living proof that anyone can do this with a minimal investment.

We’ll have coffee and morning munchies early in the day, as well as sausages and lunch munchies in the afternoon.  Additionally, attendees will have full run of the 8 ales and lagers I have on tap throughout the day:)  We should be done around 4:00 p.m.  My best guess is that there will be about twenty attendees.

Last year’s event at Sociables was a huge success!

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Black Widow Stout Mash

A new batch of Black Widow Stout is underway.  The mash smells wonderful and so far all is going smoothly.

I don’t have a basic stout on tap right now, just a Russian Imperial Stout, and I’m looking for more of a session dark ale.  I’ll be trying to get this ale in kegs before we leave for Italy on October 1st.  The last time I brewed this stout, I oaked half the batch with bourbon infused, medium toast oak cubes.  It was significantly better than the un-oaked keg.  The flavor was more complex with just a hint of oak, and the overall mouth feel was creamier and smooth.  I do worry about over-oaking the ale, so I’ll be carefully monitoring the oaking process to get the stout off the wood before it tastes like a mouthful of toothpicks.

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Colona Mexican Lager Tap Handle

Batch 102

I was swapping out some kegs in the kegerator a couple days ago and discovered that my Colona Mexican Lager has only about a gallon left to go before the keg blows.  Time to brew it again:)

I named this beer, the first time I brewed it, as a kind of play on words – it’s a clone of Corona – hence Colona.

Lagers aren’t my favorite style, by a long shot, but I do like to have beer available for the masses when they visit Sociables. I will admit that it is a refreshing beer after yard work on warm days! Colona is a crisp lager, bittered with Liberty hops, which have a spicy, earthy quality to them. Think Czech Saaz, only more aromatic and American. The key ingredient is flaked maize, along with some 6-row pale malt, with extra enzymes to help convert the corn. The Colona is cold fermented with White Labs WLP 094, a seasonal yeast, released every spring.

Here’s the recipe:

Colona
1-B Standard American Lager
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 7/3/10

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 263.46 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.059 (1.040 – 1.050)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (1.004 – 1.010)
Color: 3.0 (2.0 – 4.0)
Alcohol: 5.84% (4.2% – 5.1%)
Bitterness: 16.7 (8.0 – 15.0)

Ingredients:
2.0 tbsp 5.2 Ph Buffer – added during mash
10.0 lb Pale Malt (2-row)
4.0 lb Pale Malt (6-row)
1.0 lb 2-Row Carapils Malt
7.0 lb Flaked Corn (Maize)
1.75 oz Liberty (4.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 tsp Yeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.25 oz Liberty (4.0%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2000 mL Starter White Labs WLP940 Mexican Lager

Notes
Ferment at 51-53 degrees F for 7 days, then let fermentation warm to 62-64 degrees F for 4-6 days for diacetyl rest, chill 5 degrees F a day until you reach desired lagering temperature. Fine with gelatin or to clarify, carbonate to 2.8 to 3.0.

Flaked Maize for the Colona Mexican Lager

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Mark's Centennial IPA Tap Handle

Batch 100

This Friday (with the close of another school year imminent, I’m trying to recover some of the extra days I worked last summer to open a new school campus – use ‘em or lose ‘em), I’ll be brewing my 100th batch of home brewed beer!  My, how the time flies.  Seems like it was just yesterday and I was waiting for any new information I could get on the progress of the construction of my MoreBeer 1550 BrewSculpture.  I even visited the Concord showroom and was taken on a tour of the metal shop.  There in a bucket, were the various pieces of of angle iron , tubing and parts that would eventually become my brewery.  When the FedEx freight truck finally arrived in June, I couldn’t wait to brew my first batch and in 100 degree plus weather, I brewed a Racer 5 clone.  It turned out OK – not great, but OK.

It was at least fifteen batches before I really felt comfortable with my equipment, where I could brew on autopilot and not make stupid mistakes.  By batch 30 I was making really good beer and feeling comfortable with replicating recipes and experimenting with what different malts and hops brought to an ale.  I started messing around with lagers, first brewing in the winter, taking advantage of environmental chilling to aid the fermentation.  By batch 50, I was fermenting both ales and lagers in a temperature controlled fermentation vessel – a thermostatically controlled refrigerator.  I brewed a couple amazing ales in this period of time.  Somewhere in the next few batches, Sociables became a reality.  From there, it was a race to this batch!

I’ve been thinking about this batch of ale – batch number 100 – for quite some time.  I has to be an IPA:)  It has to use my favorite hops and have a simple malt bill.  It needs to be a big, bitter IPA.  Here’s what a threw together.

Mark’s Centennial IPA
14-B American IPA
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 5/7/10

Size: 10.0 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 316.98 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.071 (1.056 – 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.018 (1.010 – 1.018)
Color: 9.71 (6.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 7.03% (5.5% – 7.5%)
Bitterness: 71.1 (40.0 – 70.0)

Ingredients:
12.0 lb American 2-row
12.0 lb Maris Otter Pale
1.0 lb 2-Row Carapils Malt
1.0 lb Carastan
1.0 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
2.5 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
1.0 ea Servomyces Yeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
4.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 4.0 min
4.0 oz Amarillo (8.5%) – added during boil, boiled 4.0 min
4.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
4.0 oz Amarillo (8.5%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
2000 mL Starter White Labs WLP041 Pacific Ale

I hope turning 100 feels this good!

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Mark's German Hefeweizen Tap Handle

Batch 99

I just realized that my German Hefeweizen recipe has never been posted.  This is a staple at Sociables, and is always on tap.  It is well received by those folks who may not be into the hoppier ales I typically brew.  It has a very nice banana and clove nose that is typical of German hefeweizens.  It’s a pretty simple, traditional hefeweizen recipe and includes just a hint of Carastan malt to give it some complexity.

Typically, my wheat beers tend to have pretty crazy fermentations, but neither of these ales benefited from my traditional 4-5 day starter process. The wit starter only worked overnight, and the hefeweizen starter only ramped up for two days. So far, the wit is chugging along slowly, and I have blow-off tubes on the hefeweizen just in case it takes off in a big way. Both the German Hefeweizen and Friday’s Belgian Wit should be ready to keg up in about ten days, and then be drinkable a week or so after that.  Wheat beers are best enjoyed fresh:)

Here’s the recipe:

Mark’s Hefeweizen
15-A Weizen/Weissbier
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 4/25/10

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 65.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 201.92 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.061 (1.044 – 1.052)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (1.010 – 1.014)
Color: 6.37 (2.0 – 8.0)
Alcohol: 5.97% (4.3% – 5.6%)
Bitterness: 15.5 (8.0 – 15.0)

Ingredients:
11.0 lb Pilsner Malt
11.0 lb Wheat Malt
2.0 lb Pale Malt(2-row)
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
0.5 lb Carastan
0.75 oz Northern Brewer (9.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.25 oz Northern Brewer (9.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30.0 min
1 tsp Yeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2000 mL White Labs WLP300 Hefewizen Ale

Collecting the Hefeweizen Wort

I nailed the OG today and hit exactly 1.061.

On a side note, I brewed barefoot today.  It’s foreshadowing the coming of summer here in California’s Central Valley.  Please remind me of that tomorrow evening when the latest big ‘ole storm hits:)

We’re hoping for nice weather by week’s end so we can host a TGIF next Friday afternoon.

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Back in Black IPA Tap Handle

Batch 95

Before a recent Stockton Thunder game, I had the opportunity to enjoy a couple of Steve Altimari’s Black IPAs at Valley Brewing, in Stockton.  It was a big ‘ole IPA, bursting with a wonderful grapefruit finish from massive amounts of Amarillo hops, and dark as night.  Two of them made me really happy and set the tone for the evening:)

I contacted Steve on FaceBook and he was incredibly forthcoming about the hop bill, and how he darkened up the IPA, without adding the roastiness and astringency from dark grains.  The secret is to use Weyermann’s Sinamar, a proprietary extract of their roasted malt, Carafa, add some Magnum hops for bittering, and bunches or Simcoes and Amarillos for flavor and aroma.  What follows is a wide sweep at his recipe (I’m way too lazy to do the math from Steve’s info:) – with lots of late hops to add the grapefruit explosion.

I’m only five batches away from my centennial batch!

Back in Black IPA
14-C Imperial IPA
Brewers: Mark Ranes, Steve Hillestad
Brewer Focus: Maggie Curley
Date: 12/23/09

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 385.8 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.086 (1.070 – 1.090)
Terminal Gravity: 1.022 (1.010 – 1.020)
Alcohol: 8.56% (7.5% – 10.0%)
Bitterness: 100.0 (60.0 – 120.0)

Ingredients:
15.0 lb Pale Malt(2-row)
15.0 lb Maris Otter Pale
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
1.0 lb Carastan
1.0 lb Carafa TYPE III- in the Sparge
2.0 oz Magnum (14.5%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
2.0 oz Amarillo Gold (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
2.0 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
4.0 oz (or more) Sinamar – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2 Servomyces Yeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2 ea Whirlfloc – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
3.0 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 min
3.0 oz Amarillo Gold (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 min
2000 mL White Labs WLP001 California Ale
8.0 oz Amarillo Gold (10.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter

We’ll be brewing this up at Steve and Maggie’s place, on the Buford 3-10. Additionally, we’ll be fermenting in Steve’s kegmentor (or is that a fermeggle:), so we get 10 gallons of the same wort fermenting in one vessel.  We’ll dry hop with 8 ounces of new crop Amarillo pellet hops that are en-route from Hops Direct.

Black IPAs may simply be a trend, but I’m looking forward to this ale!

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Back in 2007, I brewed the best batch of beer I’ve ever brewed – Blue Flame Imperial IPA.  It was my first encounter with Summit hops, and was intended to be a clone of Green Flash Imperial IPA.  All modesty aside, it was far better than Green Flash’s efforts.  Everyone who tasted it, even folks who aren’t hopheads, agreed that it was an incredible ale.  I’ve tried rebrewing this ale probably a half a dozen times and have never hit the same high mark again.  It just never seems to have the same hop brilliance in either the flavor or aroma as the original.  Brewing this ale, in its original form, has become my life’s challenge!  I tried again today.  I went back to the original, un-tweeked recipe, and gave it another shot.  Here’s the 97% original (I was missing .3 lbs of crystal 60) recipe:

Blue Flame Imperial IPA
14-C Imperial IPA
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 12/12/09

Size: 5.04 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 384.58 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.090 (1.075 – 1.090)
Terminal Gravity: 1.020 (1.012 – 1.020)
Color: 12.85 (8.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 9.8% (7.5% – 10.0%)
Bitterness: 222.4 (60.0 – 100.0)

Ingredients:
1.0 tbsp 5.2 pH Stabilizer – added during mash
20.0 lb American 2-row
0.5 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
0.3 lb Crystal Malt 40°L
0.2 lb Crystal Malt 120°L
0.2 lb Carastan
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
1.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 90 min
.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 45 min
.5 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 45 min
.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30 min
1 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30.0 min
1.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.5 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
.5 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
1.5 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
2000 mL Starter White Labs WLP001 California Ale

Steve and Cooper

The brew day went well and Steve and Cooper came to keep me company.  It was a late start for Steve, as he’s usually cleaning up about the time I mashed in, but it gave the Boston boys a chance to play.  Steve brought some of the Imperial IPA we brewed at his place back in November.  We messed up on the hopping schedule, but it turned out to be an amazing IPA.

I also had my first real scary encounter today with a carboy.  As I was taking it back to the bedroom to “put to it bed” for a cozy fermentation, my foot caught on something in the walkway, and I went down to my knees, barely softening the blow with my hands as the carboy hit the floor.  Luckily, it didn’t break and all was fine.  But, it was definitely a wake up call…

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Citra IPA Tap Handle

Batch 90

I’ll be brewing with the Citra hops that Ralph Olson, of Hop Union, sent me last week.  They are wonderfully aromatic and I can’t wait to see how this brew turns out.  At last evening’s Central Valley Brewers Guild gathering, several of the members were drooling over the hops. This recipe will be the standard malt bill used for all of my single hop experiment ales.  The hops are adjusted to keep the bittering levels the same for all hop additions, throughout the brew.  This allows me to see what any particular hop brings to the ale.

I’m way ahead on my contract days at work, so I’m taking tomorrow off to brew.  I’m looking forward to a quiet morning, surrounded by the aroma of very fresh hops!

Here’s the recipe:

Citra IPA
14-B American IPA
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 10/19/09

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 317.28 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.071 (1.056 – 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.018 (1.010 – 1.018)
Color: 7.27 (6.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 7.03% (5.5% – 7.5%)
Bitterness: 62.3 (40.0 – 60.0)

Ingredients:
20.0 lb Pale Malt(2-row)
4.0 lb Vienna Malt
10.0 oz Crystal Malt 10°L
6.0 oz Crystal Malt 40°L
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
1.0 oz Citra (11.1%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.0 oz Citra (11.1%) – added during boil, boiled 45.0 min
1.0 oz Citra (11.1%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
1.5 oz Citra (11.1%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.5 oz Citra (11.1%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2 ea Whirlfloc – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 tsp Yeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2000.0 mL Starter White Labs WLP001 California Ale
4.0 oz Citra (11.1%) – added dry to primary fermenter

Milling Grains for Citra IPA

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Hmmmm? What's this?

…and on the porch is this white, unassuming package.  My daughter said she had a delivery coming, so I assumed that it was her package.  But no, it was a package from Hop Union!  Here’s the back story…

Back in June, Stephen and I went to the 2009 National Homebrewers Conference in Oakland.  I attended a session called Commercial Hop Production and Sales and Its Effect on Homebrewers with Ralph Olson, of Hop Union, since I have an intense interest and love for hops.  I had the opportunity to ask Ralph a question during the Q&A part toward the end of the session.  I asked what was new in the hop world – basically what was coming down the pike that I should be looking out for.  Ralph said to look out for a new high alpha hop called Citra.  He said that Citras were not widely available last year, but were being used by Sierra Nevada in their new release, Torpedo Extra IPA.

It smells good! Still very mysterious...

When  got home from NHC, I e-mailed Ralph a couple weeks after the conference and asked him if he could somehow hook me up with some Citra hops.  He said to get in touch with him around harvest time in September.  Well, it’s harvest time!  Last week I again contacted Ralph and asked about the Citras.  He promptly responded and asked his folks to send me half a brewer’s cut of Citra hops.  I instantly hit Google to find out what a brewer’s cut is and discovered that it is a rectangular  15 x 10 x 10 cm sample from a hop bale, wrapped in stiff, light-proof paper, held together by a pin.  “These samples are cut from the sides of representative bales using a sharp knife and a special pair of hinged tongs, which grips the sample on the pressed sides of the cones and enables the sample to be withdrawn without breaking apart.”  Ooooh!  Now this sounds intriguing!

Yup! It's a brewer's cut!

Flash forward to today…

I opened the package and was instantly hit with the familiar aroma of fresh citrusy, piney hops!  Woohoo!

I’ll be checking out the properties of the Citra hops by using them in my standard single hop recipe where the malt bill is always the same, and only a single hop is used.  This really lets me focus on what any particular hop brings to a ale.  I’m hoping to brew this ale next weekend.  I’ve been waiting on twelve pounds of 2009 new crpp hops (Centennials, Cascades, Columbus, Magnums, Goldings, Northern Brewers, Simcoes) to arrive, so I didn’t get a starter ready for this weekend.  I guess I could have brewed:)  I do need to make a B3 run soon to get some bulk base grains, but I may brew twice next weekend to get ready for the holiday season if I have enough base malt.

Brick of Citra hops!

Now don’t you all go hitting up Ralph for free samples!  This whole thing came out of his very informative and interesting session at NHC, and I didn’t see all of you there!  But I have to say, Ralph swims with the sharks of the brewing industry.  I’m but a plankton floating in the sea of homebrewers!  For him to set me up with this sample of Citra hops is waaaay more than he had to do.  Jeez – I was just a guy sitting in a conference audience, asking a question!  But from what I’ve seen over the last few years, and particularly relating my experiences at this year’s NHC, this is typical of the type of quality folks you find in the brewing industry.  Even the Ralph Olsons, the Sam Calagiones, the Ken Grossmans, the Charlie Papazians, the Vinny Cilurzos, and on and on, show respect and appreciation for us little guy homebrewers.  They don’t need to, but they do:)

Ralph Olson at NHC

Simply put, Ralph – you da man! I owe you an ale or two when I get up your way:)

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Mark's Oktoberfest Tap Handle

Batch 89

Time to brew this year’s Oktoberfest.  I haven’t brewed a Marzen for several years, but Brenda has been asking for it.  If all goes well, it should be ready for the Brenda’s staff’s end of October TGIF.  I didn’t have any Tettnangers, so I had to sub in some Saaz in the last five minutes of the boil.  I’m sure it will still turn out to style and be pretty tasty.

This is pretty much the same recipe Stephen and I took a second place with in the regional finals several years ago.  This lager has always been well received over the years, but for some reason, we just haven’t brewed it.  I’ll need to find a tap handle to offer this brew out, but it’s a nice seasonal brew to have on tap.  Time to bring it back for the Oktoberfest season!

Here’s today’s recipe:

Mark’s Octoberfest
3-B Oktoberfest/Maerzen
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 8/22/09

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 197.69 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.059 (1.050 – 1.056)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (1.012 – 1.016)
Color: 11.65 (7.0 – 14.0)
Alcohol: 5.84% (4.8% – 5.7%)
Bitterness: 31.6 (20.0 – 28.0)

Ingredients:
10.0 lb Pale Malt(2-row)
10.0 lb Munich Malt(2-row)
1.0 lb Aromatic Malt
1.0 lb CaraVienne Malt
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
2.0 oz Organic Hallertau (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.0 oz Whirlfloc – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 oz Czech Saaz (5.0%) – added during boil, boiled 5.0 min
2000.0 mL Starter White Labs WLP820 Octoberfest – Marzen

Overall, the brew day went well, but the temperature was high and the day was very humid.  I was glad to wrap up the brew, clean up and then hit the showers for a nice cool session.  I missed my projected OG by a couple points, coming in at 1.056.

I had a big 2000 mL starter, and as of 7:00 pm, the fermentation hadn’t taken off.  Such is the life of a lager brewer:)  I’m sure by tomorrow morning things will be cranking along nicely.

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Trailer Park IPA Tap Handle

I brewed Sunday.  I winged it.  It felt good.

Usually I spend several days getting ready for a brew session, but Sunday I played it by ear.  Saturday, I went and saw Paul Thorn at the Sonora Blue Festival.  He kicked ass!  We saw him in an hour-long workshop, where it’s just Paul and an acoustic guitar.  John went with me, and I successfully requested “Give Them Their Roses” in honor of John’s dad’s recent passing.  He was touched – and now he believes in Paul Thorn.  Paul Thorn is the best musical artist you’ve never heard of!  We enjoyed Don Oliver’s, of Dust Bowl Brewing’s, Hops of Wrath at the festival and supported the local boys:)

I came home Saturday night, filtered and measured my brewing water, and then got up early (not Steve early:) Sunday morning and weighed and milled my malt.  I used my standard single hop ale malt bill, and then just winged the hops.  You may know me as the Lazy Brewer, but those close to me would probably call me the Anal Retentive Brewer.  I like to know what is going on waaaaaaaay in advance, so this was a stretch for me.  And I enjoyed it!  I just used some of my favorite hops and matched the standard bittering levels of my single hop ales.  The ale is still currently unnamed.  This was my 88th batch.  Here’s the recipe:

Trailer Park IPA
14-B American IPA
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 8/09/09

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 317.28 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.071 (1.056 – 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.018 (1.010 – 1.018)
Color: 7.27 (6.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 7.03% (5.5% – 7.5%)
Bitterness: 63.3 (40.0 – 60.0)

Ingredients:
20.0 lb Pale Malt(2-row)
4.0 lb Vienna Malt
10.0 oz Crystal Malt 10°L
6.0 oz Crystal Malt 40°L
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
0.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.5 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 45.0 min
1.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
2 ea Whirlfloc – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 tsp Yeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2000 mL White Labs WLP002 English Ale Starter
3.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
4.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to primary fermenter

This ale is currently cranking away in my fermentation fridge.  When I open the fridge’s door, wonderful aromas escape:)

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Moridicai's Red Flare Ale Tap Handle

I’ll be rebrewing my most recent red ale this morning.  The last batch was well received by visitors to Sociables, and the last keg blew a couple of weeks ago.  I’ve changed it up just a bit – dropped the Victory malt, upped the Munich, and added some Ahtanum hops.  One final difference is subbing in White Labs Pacific Ale yeast WLP041, for the Cal Ale yeast I used last time.  I’ll be be mashing in a bit lower, at 150 degrees, to make up for the fact that the Pacific Ale yeast attenuates a bit lower than the Cal Ale yeast.  This is a big red ale – basically an imperial red ale.  I comes out a bit big in both the OG and bitterness, but it tastes hoppily great with all of the hops added right near the end of the boil. Yum!

I lit the burners twenty minutes ago and will be mashing in just before 10:00 am.  The weather looks cooler for brewing today. Life is good!

Here’s today’s recipe:

Mordicai’s Red Flare Ale 2
10-B American Amber Ale
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 8/12/09

Size: 10.04 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 345.55 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.077 (1.045 – 1.060)
Terminal Gravity: 1.019 (1.010 – 1.015)
Color: 16.56 (10.0 – 17.0)
Alcohol: 7.66% (4.5% – 6.0%)
Bitterness: 65.9 (25.0 – 40.0)

Ingredients:
2.0 tbsp 5.2 pH Stabilizer – added during mash
27.0 lb Pale Ale Malt
2.0 lb Munich Malt
0.5 lb Crystal Malt 40°L
0.5 lb Crystal Malt 120°L
1.0 lb 2-Row Carapils Malt
0.5 lb Pale Chocolate
0.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.75 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30.0 min
0.75 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 oz Ahtanum (6.0%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 min
2.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 min
2000.0 mL White Labs WLP041 Pacific Ale Yeast Starter
4.0 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
2.0 oz Ahtanum (6.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter

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Mark's Big Foot Barley Wine Tap Handle

My Czar’s Pride Russian Imperial Stout keg blew recently, so I put my barleywine online sooner than I had originally planned.  The barleywine really needs a bit more time to mature, but I always like to have a big ale on tap, so it filled a need.

For the first time, I’ll be pitching this barleywine on top of a White Labs English Ale, WLP002, yeast cake.  I’ll need to rack five gallons of Eddy’s IPA to clean carboy in the morning, so that the yeast cake is ready to receive its new charge.  I’ve always been a bit suspect of reusing yeast, but Stephen, and Steve, used to do this all the time.  Additionally, commercial craft breweries reuse yeast all of the time.  I have a vial of White Labs Super High Gravity Ale yeast, WLP099, to throw into the carboy after a couple days of initial fermentation.  I usually have to baby my barleywines to get them to attenuate out completely.

I’ve tweaked my barleywine recipe a bit, so here’s the updated version:

Mark’s Bigfoot 5
19-C American Barleywine
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 7/25/09

Size: 5.28 gal
Efficiency: 70.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 486.57 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.143 (1.080 – 1.120)
Terminal Gravity: 1.036 (1.016 – 1.030)
Color: 19.64 (10.0 – 19.0)
Alcohol: 14.48% (8.0% – 12.0%)
Bitterness: 120.3 (50.0 – 120.0)

Ingredients:
1.0 tbsp 5.2 pH Stabilizer – added during mash
15.0 lb Pale Malt(2-row)
10.0 lb Maris Otter
1.0 lb Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
1.0 lb Carastan Malt
1.0 lb Aromatic Malt
0.3 lb Chocolate Malt
1.5 lb Corn Sugar
1.25 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.0 oz Centennial (10.5%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
0.75 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablet (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
2.0 oz Cascade (5.8%) – added during boil, boiled 2.0 min
0.5 oz Centennial (10.5%) – added during boil, boiled 2.0 min
2.0 oz Summit (17.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
2.0 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
1.0 White Labs WLP002 English Ale Yeast Cake
1.0 1000 ml White Labs WLP099 Super High Gravity Ale

The wort is chilling right now, and should be put to bed in the brew shed’s fermentation chamber soon!

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Here’s the Recipe for Eddy’s IPA:

Eddy's IPA Tap Handle

Eddy’s IPA
14-B American IPA
Author: Mark
Date: 7/10/09

Size: 10.32 gal
Efficiency: 77.0%
Attenuation: 78.0%
Calories: 326.29 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.073 (1.056 – 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.016 (1.010 – 1.018)
Color: 13.68 (6.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 7.56% (5.5% – 7.5%)
Bitterness: 51.4 (40.0 – 70.0)

Ingredients:
2.0 tbsp 5.2 pH Stabilizer – added during mash
11.0 lb Pale Ale Malt
11.0 lb Maris Otter Pale
2.0 lb American Munich
1.0 lb Crystal Malt 60°L
1.0 lb Carastan
1.0 lb 2-Row Carapils Malt
2.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.5 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.75 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 5.0 min
2.0 oz Northern Brewer (8.0%) – added during boil, boiled 5.0 min
2000.0 mL White Labs WLP002 English Ale
3.0 oz Ahtanum (6.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
3.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to primary fermenter

I’ll be lighting the burners about 8:30 to get an early start on the day.  I also need to run down and fill a 20 pound CO2 tank during the mash.  Tomorrow will be a busy day!

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Blue Moons Wit Tap Handle

My keg of Blue Moons Belgian Wit is almost gone, so it is time to brew another batch.  I like to have this ale on tap all the time for converting non craft beer drinkers.  It’s always well received by everyone and is a very refreshing summer brew. Stephen and I will be brewing this ale Friday afternoon (I have some comp time coming:) and he’ll be taking 5 gallons of the wit and then trading 5 gallons of his recently brewed Cream Ale to me.  We both win!  With only 5 gallons on tap, I may need to brew this again over the summer and I also need to throw together a batch of my German Hefeweizen.

Last year, I had to use Sterling hops to bitter, because I couldn’t get Saaz on short notice.  I have Saaz for this batch, so I’m back to the original recipe.  I’m also backing off on the coriander just a wee bit for a more subdued spiciness.

Here’s the updated recipe:

Blue Moons Wit 2009
16-A Witbier
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 05/01/09

Size: 10.08 gal
Efficiency: 70.0%
Attenuation: 70.0%
Calories: 290.52 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.065 (1.044 – 1.052)
Terminal Gravity: 1.019 (1.008 – 1.012)
Color: 5.79 (2.0 – 4.0)
Alcohol: 5.96% (4.5% – 5.5%)
Bitterness: 20.9 (10.0 – 20.0)

Ingredients:
12.0 lb Pilsner Malt
12.0 lb White Wheat Malt
2.0 lb Oats Flaked
1.0 lb Rice Hulls
1.5 oz Czech Saaz (5.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.5 oz Hallertau (4.5%) – added during boil, boiled 20.0 min
2.0 oz Bitter Curacao/Bitter Orange (Peel) – added during boil, boiled 15 min
3.0 tsp Fresh Orange Zest – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
0.75 tsp Corriander crushed – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2000.0 mL Starter White Labs WLP400 Belgian Wit Ale

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Blue Flame IPA Tap Handle

It’s time to brew this year’s Blue Flame Imperial IPA.  My 2008 Mark’s Big Foot Barleywine keg blew tonight, so the timing is right.  I have a monster starter going on the stir plate with two vials of White Labs WLP001 California Ale and one vial of White Labs WLP002 English Ale. I started it on Monday, so I have plenty of time to let it ferment out, feed it once and then chill and decant the nasty starter beer.  I’m changing it up just a bit and pulling out .3 pounds of crystal 60 and .3 pounds of crystal 40 and adding a half pound of Carastan in its place.  I liked what the Carastan did to the Mash Destruction IPA, so I thought I try it in one of my annual house ales.

There’s a possibility I may brew this IIPA Friday afternoon, but most likely it’ll be lending aromatics to the neighborhood on Saturday morning:)

Here’s the recipe:

Blue Flame Imperial IPA 2009
14-C Imperial IPA
Author: Mark Ranes
Date: 4/25/09

Size: 5.04 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 80.0%
Calories: 343.56 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.103 (1.075 – 1.090)
Terminal Gravity: 1.021 (1.012 – 1.020)
Color: 10.72 (8.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 10.93% (7.5% – 10.0%)
Bitterness: 222.4 (60.0 – 100.0)

Ingredients:
18.0 lb American 2-row
0.5 lb Carastan
.5 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
1.0 lb Corn Sugar
1.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 90 min
.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 45 min
.5 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 45 min
.5 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30 min
1 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30 min
1.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 15 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient  – added during boil, boiled 15 min
1.0 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 5.0 min
1.0 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 5.0 min
2.0 oz Summit (17.0%) – added during boil, boiled 0.0 min
2 oz Summit (17.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
2.0 oz Nugget (13.0%) – added dry to secondary fermenter
500 mL starter White Labs WLP001 California Ale
500 mL starter White Labs WLP002 English Ale

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Mash Destruction IPA Tap Handle

I recently listened to the March 16, 2009, podcast of The Brewing Network’s, The Jamil Show – Can you Brew It: Green Flash West Coast IPA. This is an IPA I really like, with a strong malt backbone, aggressive bitterness and full of intense hop flavor.  I took the show’s recipe for a six gallon batch and extended it out for ten gallons, trying to maintain the IBU levels, the ABV and color rating.  It will take tons of hops, all of which I have on-hand.  It calls for a malt I’ve never used before, Carastan, so it’s a bit of an adventure, also. The Carastan appears to be very dark for its 30/37 Lovibond rating – much darker than Crystal 40.  I’m just a bit wary of it, but the brewer at Green Flash uses it in their recipe, so I’ll definitely give it a shot.

I’ll be brewing this hop beast on Saturday.  Originally, I had planned on brewing tomorrow, and the starter is ready to go, but tomorrow is the first day of my Spring Break and I just want to veg out.  I have some keg and carboy cleaning that needs to get done, too.  Saturday morning I’ll be lighting the burners about 9:00 a.m.

Here’s the recipe:

Mash Destruction IPA
14-B American IPA
Date: 4/11/09

Size: 10.32 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 79.0%
Calories: 309.1 kcal per 16.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.070 (1.056 – 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (1.010 – 1.018)
Color: 8.45 (6.0 – 15.0)
Alcohol: 7.26% (5.5% – 7.5%)
Bitterness: 95.4 (40.0 – 70.0)

Ingredients:
26.5 lb American 2-row
1.0 lb Carapils Malt
2.0 lb Carastan
1.25 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 90.0 min
0.5 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
0.5 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30.0 min
0.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 30.0 min
0.5 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
0.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
1.0 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 min
1.0 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added during boil, boiled 1.0 min
0.5 oz Amarillo (8.5%) – added dry to primary fermenter
0.5 oz Centennial (10.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
0.5 oz Columbus (15.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
0.5 oz Simcoe (13.0%) – added dry to primary fermenter
0.5 oz Cascade (5.5%) – added dry to primary fermenter
2000 mL Starter White Labs WLP001 California Ale

Notes
Mash in at 150 degrees.

Seven day primary fermentation at 72 degrees.  Mash out at 168 degrees.

Dry hop with mix of five hop blend at 64 degrees for seven days.

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