Racking Mordicai's Imperial Red Flare Ale
Tonight I finally kegged up the Czar’s Pride Russian Imperial Stout and Mordicai’s Imperial Red Flare Ale. The RIS started at OG 1.084 and ended at FG 1.020, for an 8.6% ABV. It’s not as big as I was hoping for, but the hydrometer jar sample tasted roasty and sweet – with a big alcohol front end. It should mellow nicely over the next 6-9 months. The Imperial Red Ale started at OG 1.072 and finished out at FG 1.013, for an 7.9% ABV. It is nice and hoppy from multiple injections of Columbus and Nugget dry hops. I’m looking forward to spending some time with this ale!
I recently blew through a 20 pound CO2 tank in two days. I originally assumed that it was a bad o-ring on one of the keg’s gas-in posts, so I replaced the o-rings on all of the active kegs in the kegerator. While changing the o-ring, I dropped both of my brass 4 way gas manifolds into a bucket of water only to find that they were both leaking. I monkeyed with both of them, trying to tighten up the fittings, but without completely dismantling both of them, I had little luck. Being the Lazy Brewer, it seemed much easier to throw some money at the problem, so I ordered two 4 way manifolds from Northern Brewer. These seem more sturdy and actually fit better on my 5/16″ commercial gas lines. So far I’m pleased. I also discovered a leak in my double CO2 regulator, so I ordered a replacement for that also. Money up front? Yup! But compared to blowing through multiple 20lb CO2 tanks at $35 a pop to fill, it’ll save some bucks over the long run. Plus, I hate this kind of frustration.
Tonight I’m making a starter with two vials of WLP004 Irish Ale Yeast. Saturday I’ll be brewing a 10 gallon batch of Black Widow Stout. The recipe will follow here in the next day or so…
I had three different batches to keg up today – twenty gallons total. There were 10 gallons of Colona (a clone of Corona Mexican Lager:), 5 gallons of Blue Flame Imperial IPA, and 5 gallons of Mark’s Big Foot Barleywine. Originally I hadn’t planned on kegging the Lazy Barleywine, but I took a reading using B3′s refractometer spreadsheet and was generally pleased with what I saw, but the real test would be a hydrometer reading. 
My brewbuddy, Wade, had asked that I take some pictures of my kegging process. I think it is different than the way most people keg their beer in that I use CO2 to push the beer out of the carboys, rather than siphoning into the kegs using gravity. I use one of B3′s Sterile Siphon Starters, attaching a line from my CO2 regulator to the sanitary filter and then push the beer with 1-2 pounds of pressure. The beauty of this is twofold. First, it reduces the amount of oxygen, as well as spoiling agents, the beer comes in contact with, thereby reducing potential oxidation of the beer during the kegging process. Secondly, and more important from the Lazy Brewer’s point of view, the racking process goes quickly because you are not relying on a slow gravity siphon. The beer flies out of the carboy because it is pushed by CO2!
I’ve been kegging this way since I started brewing and it seems to be working. My barleywines, that often age for over a year, show no signs of oxidation. I also like the fact that I’m not introducing any bacterial or fungal stuff from my mouth as I don’t have to blow into carboy to start the siphon.
Although I was really worried about the barleywine finishing way too high, it seems that somewhere along the line, the yeast chewed through most of the maltose. I’m not sure if it was the champagne yeast starter I added a couple weeks back, but the final gravity was 1.031. It seems kind of high, but it is important to remember that this barleywine started with an original gravity of 1.134. This is going to be one big ‘ole barleywine! Here’s the particulars on the barleywine:
Mark’s Big Foot Barleywine
Brewed 02/14/08 (Valentines Day:)
Original Gravity, 1.134
Final Gravity, 1.031
Alcohol by Volume, 13.86%
I also kegged up ten gallons of Colona Mexican Lager. This is a clone of Corona – hence the name Colona. It is always well received by the masses and is the beer of choice for those folks that visit my bar, but are not craft brew drinkers. Often, after couple Colonas, they are willing to try some of the other ales I have on tap. It is a clean lawnmower beer for the summer. The two kegs will lager for another month or so before serving. Here are the details:
Colona Mexican Lager
Brewed 03/02/08
Original Gravity, 1.060
Final Gravity, 1.015
Alcohol by Volume, 5.91%
Finally, I also kegged up five gallons of Blue Flame Imperial IPA. This is the third time I’ve brewed this in the last eight months, and I’m hoping it turns out as good as the first batch. The last time I brewed the IIPA, it just didn’t have the same hop brilliance as the first batch. The sample I tasted from the hydrometer jar leads me to believe this round is as good as the first:) Here’s the info on this ale:
Blue Flame Imperial IPA
Brewed 03/15/08
Original Gravity, 1.096
Final Gravity, 1.021
Alcohol by Volume, 9.96%
Ahh, the beauty of twenty gallons of freshly kegged beer!
