IPA and Blonde
- Thread starter RobertN
- Start date
- Views: 2861
So a typical 5 gallon batch from the stovetop:
In large stock pot, heat 2gal water to 15-160F.
If there are grain additions, put them in grain bag, and then in to hot water
Steep grains ~30 minutes
Remove grainbag
Dissolve malt extract in to the hot water/grain "tea"
Bring mixture to boil
Add bittering hops, being careful of boil over
At 45-55 minutes, add aroma hops(time and amount varies widely by recipe)
At 45 minutes, add Irish moss(helps settle out particulate at end of boil)
Turn off heat at 60 minutes
Set pot in ice bath to cool
Once cool, add to fermenter
Add water to make 5 gallons
add yeast, and install airlock
Typically within 6-12 hours there will be bubbles in the air lock.
In large stock pot, heat 2gal water to 15-160F.
If there are grain additions, put them in grain bag, and then in to hot water
Steep grains ~30 minutes
Remove grainbag
Dissolve malt extract in to the hot water/grain "tea"
Bring mixture to boil
Add bittering hops, being careful of boil over
At 45-55 minutes, add aroma hops(time and amount varies widely by recipe)
At 45 minutes, add Irish moss(helps settle out particulate at end of boil)
Turn off heat at 60 minutes
Set pot in ice bath to cool
Once cool, add to fermenter
Add water to make 5 gallons
add yeast, and install airlock
Typically within 6-12 hours there will be bubbles in the air lock.
RobertBrown
Veteran Member
By the way...thanks for the crash course
So hops are added at the first stage before fermentation begins.
I have tasted some beers that are very hop influenced. IPA's typically have extra hopage..don't they?
Some of the hoppy beers like Magic hat or Arrogant bastard are: in my opinion to bitter. To much hops. I find it distracts from the beer.
A few years ago there was a hop shortage. A friend of mine looked into growing them. He lives in Oregon.
Hops are like any other plant, and they like their weather, altitude, and latitude. This is what makes them so valuable, you just can't grow them anywhere. Hops were once grown in the north east, but a mildew now makes it impossible to do it profitably. Should that happen on the west coast....it would be a beer emergency. We were speculating about organic hops.
Anyway, I was looking at where you live and I suspect you may be able to grow some there.
Where do you get your hops?
So hops are added at the first stage before fermentation begins.
I have tasted some beers that are very hop influenced. IPA's typically have extra hopage..don't they?
Some of the hoppy beers like Magic hat or Arrogant bastard are: in my opinion to bitter. To much hops. I find it distracts from the beer.
A few years ago there was a hop shortage. A friend of mine looked into growing them. He lives in Oregon.
Hops are like any other plant, and they like their weather, altitude, and latitude. This is what makes them so valuable, you just can't grow them anywhere. Hops were once grown in the north east, but a mildew now makes it impossible to do it profitably. Should that happen on the west coast....it would be a beer emergency. We were speculating about organic hops.
Anyway, I was looking at where you live and I suspect you may be able to grow some there.
Where do you get your hops?
Well... There are so many styles of beer, and many variables in those styles.
Typically, you have a bittering hop, which is put in the boiling brew near the beginning; it gives the hop flavor. Aroma hops, which give the beer it's "nose", are typically put in the brew very late in the boiling process. Most aromatics go in the boiling brew in the last five minutes. Some, go in to the brew just as it finishes boiling. There is also dry hopping, where the aromatic hop is put in the partially fermented beer...
IPA's are hoppy for a reason. Hops have some natural preservative characteristics. India Pale Ales were originally brewed in England, and made the long trip by ship to India. The beer was heavily hopped, to help preserve it on the long trip to India.
There are some serious "hop heads" out that, that like heavily bitter beer.... Kind of like hot sauce; there are folks that like the hot sauce that makes your eyes water for a week.
In my area, east of Sacramento, Ca, a lot of hops used to be grown. Styles changed, that hop went out of favor, so locally they changed crops. Sierra Nevada Brewery, a couple hours north of me, has started growing a lot of their own hops.
I get mine, from the brew store a friend of mine started 20 yeas ago in Folsom, Ca. The brew store get rhizomes in every year for folks who want to grow their own...
Actually, what is grown a lot here in the Gold Country of the Sierra Nevada foothills, is wine grapes... There are over 70 small wineries within an hour of my house.
Typically, you have a bittering hop, which is put in the boiling brew near the beginning; it gives the hop flavor. Aroma hops, which give the beer it's "nose", are typically put in the brew very late in the boiling process. Most aromatics go in the boiling brew in the last five minutes. Some, go in to the brew just as it finishes boiling. There is also dry hopping, where the aromatic hop is put in the partially fermented beer...
IPA's are hoppy for a reason. Hops have some natural preservative characteristics. India Pale Ales were originally brewed in England, and made the long trip by ship to India. The beer was heavily hopped, to help preserve it on the long trip to India.
There are some serious "hop heads" out that, that like heavily bitter beer.... Kind of like hot sauce; there are folks that like the hot sauce that makes your eyes water for a week.
In my area, east of Sacramento, Ca, a lot of hops used to be grown. Styles changed, that hop went out of favor, so locally they changed crops. Sierra Nevada Brewery, a couple hours north of me, has started growing a lot of their own hops.
I get mine, from the brew store a friend of mine started 20 yeas ago in Folsom, Ca. The brew store get rhizomes in every year for folks who want to grow their own...
Actually, what is grown a lot here in the Gold Country of the Sierra Nevada foothills, is wine grapes... There are over 70 small wineries within an hour of my house.
dmccarty
Super Star Member
Sounds like the biggest expense would be the extra refrigerator to store the beer in after it is brewed. I'm thinking it needs refrigeration....
I spend 10$ a bottle for my favorite beer (I think it's 750ml). I don't mind spending money on it if it taste good and I enjoy it.
It seems that maintaining the proper temerature here is only feasible during the winter months and even then the range might vary too much as we have seen 85 degree days this January already (very unusual).
Since people have been making beer or somthing similar for about 5 thousand years....how hard can it be?...and now that I know I can't poison myself.....I just might give it a shot, maybe I'll become the next Jim koch...without the start up capitol.
I have often thought about brewing beer but never really did enough research. I'm the type to learn everything, work out every last detail..... before I start.
I memorized the budweiser can not long after I was old enough to drink legally, so I know about the "exculsive beechwood aging process....""produces a taste, a smoothness, and a drinkability you will find in no other beer at any price"
I also remember that Anhauser Busch used rice to make the beer.
Ever use rice in the wort?
No rice in my beer. :laughing:
You don't need another fridge to store the beer unless you keg. I store my beer in bottles in a couple of cabinets and keep a few bottles in the fridge ready to drink. There are two yeast types, ale and lager. The ale yeasts generally ferment at much higher temperatures than lager yeast. If you want to brew lagers, then cold temperatures are needed. If you can make bread, you can make beer. The hardest part for me has been temperature control during fermentation so I don't brew in the summer. The yeast I have been mostly using have to be kept in the 70s' made getting into the he low 80s' When it is warmer in the house, I have put the fermenting bucket in the bath top and covered it with a towel to control the temperature. I would also throw in frozen liter and gallon jugs.
Making beer can be as time consuming and complicated as you want it to be but the process is pretty simple. Watch some You Tube videos, there are a bunch out there, and see how it is done. This Canadian has quite a few beer videos, home brewing the easy way part 1 - YouTube. I liked him because he is not spending a fortune on equipment. I think a concern/fear beginning brewers have is about sanitation. Sanitation is important but it kinda scares ya. After watching this guy in his dirty, dingy, and I assume moldy basement, I figured if he can brew an ok beer, so can I. :laughing::laughing::laughing:
Get Palmer's book and read it. Your mind will likely turn to mush as he gets into some advanced details but then reread the basic chapters. Buy some equipment, a kit and follow the kit instructions. Reference Palmer as needed.
BTW, I have given up on digital thermometers. I have had a couple of them and they all fail, usually quickly. I was using one with brewing, temperature is critical at some stages depending on the brew, and I noticed that the digital thermometer was way off. How did I noticed? With the nice big old fashioned thermometer that came in the kit.
Later,
Dan