The gravity of the runnings pre-boil was only in the mid-1.030's so I decided to use a light hand with the hop additions... just kidding I blasted the wort with big American hops, including a couple ounces each of pungent Citra and Chinook at the end of the boil. I though the two hops would provide complementary characters with the Citra's big tropical/citrus nose and the Chinook's cattier/resiny hop punch.The fun with this batch will really start when I serve it, gravity-cask style. I shortened and bent the dip tube on the corny keg so that it draws beer from closer to the side (when the keg is lying on its side this will be the bottom). I'll lay the keg down with the out post at 6 o'clock and connect a picnic tap. To the in post I'll attach a gas corrector without tubing to allow air into the headspace to displace the dispensed beer.
The cask should be a fun (and less alcoholic) addition to a Pliny tapping party in a month or so. I'm carbonating the beer with an addition of sugar rather than force carbonating (to stay true to tradition), but I still flushed the keg with CO2 before and after filling to minimize oxidation. I won't add the dry/cask hops until a couple weeks before tapping to ensure they impart the freshest aroma possible.
Second Runnings Pale Ale
Recipe Specifics
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Batch Size (Gal): 4.00
Total Grain (Lbs): 26.69
Anticipated OG: 1.041
Anticipated SRM: 10.5
Anticipated IBU: 40.0
Brewhouse Efficiency: 17 % (65% including first runnings)
Wort Boil Time: 75 Minutes
Grain
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93.7% - 25.00 lbs. American 2-row
3.5% - 0.94 lbs. CaraPils
1.4% - 0.38 lbs. Crystal 20L
1.4% - 0.38 lbs. Special Roast
Hops
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0.50 oz. Columbus (Pellet, 13.00% AA) @ 60 min.
2.00 oz. Citra (Whole, 10.00% AA) @ 0 min.
2.00 oz. Chinook (Whole, 13.00% AA) @ 0 min.
2.00 oz. Citra (Whole, 10.00% AA) Cask Hop
2.00 oz. Chinook (Whole, 13.00% AA) Cask Hop
Extras
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0.25 Tsp Yeast Nutrient Other 15 min.(boil)
0.50 Whirlfloc Fining 15 min.(boil)
Yeast
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Safale US-05 Chico
Water Profile
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Profile: Washington DC
Mash Schedule
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Sacc Rest 15 min @ 143F
Sacch II 60 min @ 149F
Sacch III 5 min @ 156F
Notes
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Brewed 12/19/10
After the first runnings were drained for Pliny the Younger, I added 6 gallons of 160 degree water (with 5 g of gypsum). Drained 1 gallon for Pliny then added 6 oz each Belgian cara 20 and special roast to the mash.
Let sit for ~60 min before running off. Collected 5 gallons of 1.034 wort Half flameout hops added at flameout, half after the chill started.
Chilled to 66, pitched onto ~1/2 of the yeast cake from the pils ale. Shook to aerate. Left at 63 ambient to start fermentation. Good fermentation after 24 hours, moved to ~59 ambient.
12/21/10 Measured fermentation temp at 68.
12/28/10 Down to 1.010, 75% AA, 4% ABV. Right on target. Krausen down, but I'll give it a few more days at 64 to ensure the fermentation is complete before racking.
12/30/10 Purged a keg with a shortened dip tube. Racked the 3.5 gallons of beer into the keg with 3 oz of sugar dissolved in 1 pint of water. Flushed headspace, pressurized. Left at 62 to naturally carbonate for a few weeks before dry hopping. Might be a bit over carbonated, but I figure I'll lose some when I dry hop.
1/26/11 Added dry hops. Purged headspace, left at ambient ~60 F.
2/24/11 Hugely complex hop character, and the cask serving worked really well.
Why not seve the beer out of the "IN" post and use the outpost for displacement? My thought is that even with bending the diptube, you are going to lose a lot of ale by trying to serve out of the "out" with the keg on it's side.
ReplyDeleteHave you had the Stone/Ballast Point/Kelsey McNair San Diego Session Ale? It's a similar 4.2% ABV ale with big hop aroma (i.e. Centennial, Citra, Simcoe, and Amarillo.) I remember it being dry, and incredibly hoppy without too much bitterness.
ReplyDeleteAre the gas and liquid fittings the same for ball lock kegs? I thought the connectors were slightly different sizes. What I did should give similar results anyway, the liquid dip tube on the keg is now just about as close to the side of the keg (if not a little closer) compared to the gas dip tube. With the curved sides of the keg I figure I’ll lose ~1/2 gallon, which shouldn’t be more than a couple pints above the trub/yeast. Not to mention that I would have had to shorten/bend the liquid dip tube anyway because the pressure would force beer through it if it was submerged at tapping.
ReplyDeleteHaven’t had that Stone beer, but it certainly seems like a similar concept. Being light and hoppy both beers should be perfect for drinking as fresh as possible (which is why I passed up a bottle of the SD Session when I saw it a few months after it was released).
You're right that the posts are different, and you can't swap the connectors. If you have the MFL connectors you could still serve the beer by using a gas connector on the gas post and serving beer through that. You also might be able to swap the diptubes and use the gas diptube on the liquid side/post. Some kegs have different sizes, but many do not.
ReplyDeleteI have had good success with 2.5 - 3 gal kegs on their sides. We live in a small condo and the wife would only allow me to use one shelf in the fridge and no separate fridge. I bent and turned the dip tube and probably only lose one pint. If I raise the front of the keg a couple inches my losses are only in ounces. Here is a picture.
ReplyDeletehttp://jeffreycrane.blogspot.com/p/beer-equipment.html
Im curious about brewing an ESB Michael. It would seem to me that authentic English ESB's have alot of bitterness, a little hop flavor, and mild hop aroma. Would it be appropriate to hit an ESB with a heavy bittering charge and then maybe a 10 minute flavor charge and then another say...5 minute flavor charge? In doing so, could one completely eliminate a very late aroma charge as well as eliminating dry-hopping and end up with a nice bitter?
ReplyDeleteCertainly if you don't want a big hop aroma skip the late addition. If it is lacking you can always make a hop tea to add to the bottling bucket or keg.
ReplyDelete