Oatmeal, Pumpkins, Funk, and Tamarind

I've never cared for blogs that do not have at least one picture per post. With something like a beer blog I need something...anything. A hydometer reading is even fine. I still do not have a camera right now and it is killing me.

My last post was for my Pumpkin Mole Stout. This was bottled in the past few days and I was shocked to see the hydrometer read 1.010 as a final gravity. It is a bit dryer than I expected, a bit too much heat without enough chocolate, however it is spiced up just right for a pumpkin. It will be interesting to see what comes of this in the next few weeks after some time in the bottle. It is going to be a great holiday brew. Halloween or Thanksgiving? I lean more toward Halloween.

I wanted to rebrew and tweak my Dark Farmhouse Funk recently as well. I love this beer and I am happy that I didn't give too much of it out. I can't wait to see if I get more complexity out of it over time. There were plenty of changes I wanted to make and now  it is less like a rebrew and more like a completely different beer. When I first brewed it I was going for a Bretted Black Saison. This time around it is more like a Belgian Brown/ Bruin. It is only 3 weeks since brew day and the original Farmhouse sat of 4 months. I've got all Fall and winter for this. I used bottle dregs on the first brew. This one has Brett, Lacto, and Pedo in the secondary.

In 4 weeks I have an Art Opening that I wanted to brew for. I did this early in 2011 for an opening and wanted to do the same this year. So I asked Julian Heal to brew up an Oatmeal Stout with me. Art Opening crowds are tricky to brew for. IPAs are great and Pale Ales are not as fun. If I am going to drink it I like it a bit hoppier than your average crowd would like and that is not fun. Dark Beers turn people off. It is weird. When the sky turns black at 7:30pm during the year, stouts and porters are perfect. An Oatmeal Stout sounds light enough for a crowd.

The brew session for out Oatmeal Stout was great. We started at 7pm and finished around 12:30. Jules gave me carte blache on the recipe. It is probably a bit too involved. My goal is to simplify my recipes a bit more. There are 7 grains in this brew and I am sure that at least 1 is unneeded, but when you have six grains, 7 or 8 is fine too.  I was most excited to finally have a stir plate. Up until now, my Mr. Malty yeast starters were pretty good (at least 10-20% close). This one was spot on and blew the airlock off the conical. I can't say that I am pleased with that result, but after a dump and tasting we'll see what we get.

In two more weeks the entries for Farmer's Cabinet Iron Homebrewer challenge are due. Last year I attended with Julian but did not brew. It is a special ingredient challenge with some nice guest beer aficionados (mostly BJCP certified). Last years ingredient was a Smoked Cherry wood Rye. This year we get Tamarind. I am not sure how to work correctly with tamarind. It is so tart and there are plenty of good options to use it with, but when the goal behind the challenge is how well that you use the ingredient, you want it to stand out and not be overpowering. There seems to be a fine line with tamarind. A tamarind Berliner Weisse sounds great, but then you are working with tart and tart. I think Belgians would melt great. The spiciness from the yeast and tartness from the fruit marry nicely in my head. With the brew using a secret ingredient I have a tendency to be secret with my brew for the time being. I look forward to talking about it next week in a post.

Oatmeal Stout
Pale Malt, Flaked Oats, Flaked Barley, Chocolate Malt, Crystal 80, Roasted  Barley, 
Carafa III, Special B.
Galena and Willamette Hops
WLP 004 Irish Ale

Brewing: Pumpkin Mole Stout

Old Photo. I lost my camera in Baltimore last week.

The idea for this beer came out of a desire to make a Pumpkin beer, although I am not a big fan, and to further experiment with some ideas by the "other guy" that blogs on this site. That was a slight jab at Doug. He has been living in Belize and has to drink the same beer all the time. There is not much he can do here, EXCEPT, throw ideas my way about using mole in a beer. If you do a simple search, a few homebrewers have published their successes at using mole. Commercially I have been seeking out New Holland's El Mole Ocho, New Belgium's Lips of Faith Cocoa Mole (which I missed on tap in Baltimore on a weekend trip last weekend. The tap list was 95 deep. I was bound to miss one), and the various others out there that are probably incredibly difficult to get your hands on.

With so much going into this batch, the ideas of using actual pumpkin seemed to be another time sensitive (under 15 mins) "thing" to consider. What the hell though. I picked up a few 1lb boxes of organic pumpkin puree. It seemed to be the best idea based on research. This was only a 3.5 gallon batch by the way (1.074 gravity). I made a nice little concoction of the necessary "pie" spices. The major issue was going to be anything too overpowering with both the mole mix and pumpkin mix. I was looking for more mole with a bit of a pumpkin coming through rather than the other way around. With everything going into it, the mole, was a cheapened version of what it should be. I drew 2 quarts of wort at 20 mins and kept a low flame on it on the stovetop. I added 2oz of cacao powder, ancho chili powder,  and a dash of paprika and red pepper. At 1 min I threw in a deseeded pablano pepper for some extra heat. More chocolate will come in the secondary as I am sure it will be needed.

The recipe of the stout was a slight variation of last years Chocolate Stout, but with more oats, more flaked barley and a Canadian Pale Malt instead of Maris Otter. I used WLP San Diego Strain on this one too. I love this strain and the blow off came with in the first 6 hours. The smell is pretty delightful, but I must admit that the pepper at flame out is scaring me a bit. 

Pumpkin Mole Stout
Pale Malt, Munich, Flaked Oats, Flaked Barley, Chocolate Malt, Crystal 120, 
Roasted Barley, Carafa III.
Fuggle Hops
WLP San Diego Strain
16 oz Pumpkin Puree, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves, All Spice.
Cacao Powder, Ancho Chili Powder, Red Pepper, Paprika, Pablano Pepper

Hoppy Pale Wheat

Hoppy Pale Wheat or Wheat IPA? It is a style that I have not brewed often enough to find what I am looking for in an end result. I can't even say that there are many commercial examples that I have had. A few years ago one of my local bottle shops parted with a 3 Floyds Gumballhead. We never see 3 Floyds in PA (not even in Philadelphia). It was great beer none-the-less. I guess Lagunitas Lil-Sumthin Sumthin weighs in on this category also despite the higher 7% ABV. I am sure that there are plenty of others, but I don't seek out too many of them unless they are on tap somewhere.

Brewing a low ABV hoppy brew gets a bit confusing for me and has been requiring tweaking recipes multiple times before brewing, especially with a grain bill that has very little specialty malts and wheat as the predominate base malt. By the way, the OG on this brew was 1.042. On our Session IPA a few months ago we used a pound of hops, but with a Vienna/ 2 Row base, Crystal 60, and Honey Malts there was plenty for the hops to mellow out with. The grist for this brew was Wheat (50%), 2 Row(45%), Crystal 40 and Caravienne and Simcoe,  Cascade, Amarillo, and Citra for Dry Hopping. Overall 8oz of hop madness. I've also been washing my yeast whenever possible. My 2nd generation Cali Yeast was used for this.

Drowning in Wheat - John Kinsella

They’d been warned

on every farm

that playing

in the silos

would lead to death.

You sink in wheat.

Slowly. And the more

you struggle the worse it gets.

‘You’ll see a rat sail past

your face, nimble on its turf,

and then you’ll disappear.’

In there, hard work

has no reward.

So it became a kind of test

to see how far they could sink

without needing a rope

to help them out.

But in the midst of play

rituals miss a beat—like both

leaping in to resolve

an argument

as to who’d go first

and forgetting

to attach the rope.

Up to the waist

and afraid to move.

That even a call for help

would see the wheat

trickle down.

The painful consolidation

of time. The grains

in the hourglass

grotesquely swollen.

And that acrid

chemical smell

of treated wheat

coaxing them into

a near-dead sleep.

No-Boil Berliner Weisse

I love Berliner Weisses, however the irony is that I have not had many of them. Locally I have loved Nodding Heads Berliner Weisse. It is beautiful, crisp and tart as can be. 1809 is the classic example and it is an amazing beer to use as a comparison against any. When I come to think about I have primarily enjoyed and had only locally brewed examples: Earth Bread and Brewery, Tired Hands, Round Guys and Dock St. Dogfish Head's "Neo" Berliner, Festina Peche is probably the most accessible.

So my Berliner was a shot in the dark. I went for the no boil method and single decoction. This was my first time decocting and I hit my target temp nicely upon return. However, no boil or not, this Philadelphia summer heat is killing me and cooling down with 10 pounds of ice isn't any easier. Getting below 90 degrees is the issue without an extra 20 mins of the hose/ice bath method. I do look forward to attempting a sour mash next time, but it has to be in the Fall or Spring. Berliners aren't just a Summer treat for me. 

I racked after 11 days. I used the White Labs Berliner Weisse blend. I eased into this batch. I read about a lacto starter and dry yeast in conjunction for those who have brewed before and didn't get the tartness that they were expecting. I am in no hurry, so with a few months at a nice basement temp, I have my fingers crossed. I threw in 8ozs of Acid Malt too. It was my first time using it and after noshing on the grains before cracking them, I am hoping that time will really take hold of it.

That Old Tart Spring Again

Rae Desmond Jones

Offering your usual false promises,
You have arrived early this year like a blousy aunt
In a voluptuous taxi of light,

Draped in those bright loose fashions -
Far too tight at your age,
Flashing your heels as you trudge the backyard,
flirting outrageously
As you sway indelicately between the stones.

Despite your long record of hypocrisy & corruption,
& still uninvited, yet you are welcome,

So croon your perfumed defiance into the bitter winds,
Flirt with the exhausted winter flowers
As they rise in rows from the dark trenched earth.

Despite ourselves we are cheered by your cheap rhetoric,
Anaesthetized yet again by your charm & certain of betrayal. 

Berliner Weisse

Pils, Wheat, Acid Malt

Tettang Hops

WLP 630 Berliner Weisee Blend

Tasting: Dark Farmhouse Funk

For months now I have referenced this "Dark Farmhouse Funk" beer that was brewed in a while back. I had all intentions on brewing up a Black Saison. Low and behold I popped into my LHBS and they were out of saison yeasts. It was a Sunday and I really wanted to brew on Monday night. I never write about homebrew stores or owners, but Barry's Homebrew in Fishtown hasn't let me down yet. Granted I did want a Saison yeast, but the recommendations I got back were a bit more up my alley and kicked off my funk and sour brews that I just haven't yet made.

So the Bastonge Belgian strain from White Labs was what I was offered. Read about it. It is the Orval Strain. As for the grain bill, I is fairly complex and fun. Pils malt, Special B, honey, late addition raisins and orange rind and the dregs from two bottles of Jolly Pumpkin during primary fermentation. I mashed low (150) and boiled for 90 mins. I just upgraded my mash tun when brewing this and the extra thick walls hold the heat nice without any insulation and mashing out is quite nice with a false bottom.

The beer itself is dark brown with a nice funk, horse blanket aroma and raisiny, dark fruit upfront taste. It's s lightly acidic with a sweet honey finish. Hops are virtually non existent. I added an ounce of Amarillo at 60 mins hoping that there would be enough funk to hold this beer up. I am pleased as punch for this first attempt.


Dark Farmhouse Funk 
Pils Malt, Vienna Malt, Crystal 60, Honey Malt, Special B, Carafa II
Orange Blossom Honey, 8oz Raisins, Orange Rind
WL520 Bastogne Belgian Ale , 1lt starter (Dregs from JP La Roja)

Tasting: Imperial Black

Imperial Black Death. 11.4% ABV

I aimed pretty high when making this Imperial Black Ale. It was one of the bigger experiments that I have taken on. It was my first time attempting an ABV > than 10% without a pound of extract for safety. It was also my first time fermenting on a yeast cake. I didn't have a real comparison at what I was going for. What I ended up with is a rich, jet black, sweet and pungent ale.

The roasted grains are cut by the pound of Orange Blossom Honey. It wants to be astringent, at least more astringent, but the honey is a bit over powering. It is boozy. There is no doubt about that. It took  longer than expected to carbonate. It wants to be served above 55 degrees. Think red wine. Take it out of the fridge and enjoy something comparable before hand. I wasn't sure how much I enjoyed it until the temperature was right. The Galaxy Hops play a nice encore. Dark, dank beers and grapefruit need a something like Simcoe to roll hand and hand together. I would have enjoyed another two ounces of hops, preferably Simcoe during the dry hopping. The Motueka Hops get a bit lost. Before Dry Hopping it was a bit more mellow. You almost didn't believe that the ABV would climb over 10.5%, and if it did, you would encounter some trouble. It drank too easily. Plums and raisins and other dark fruits surface as it warms. Again, think red white or Imperial Stout. There is more going on then if it was extremely hopped.

Tasting: Single Hop Citra Pale Ale

It is going on almost two solid weeks of above 90 degree days in Philadelphia. Every time I prepare to make a yeast starter, exhaustion sets in and the last thing I want to do is brew. It is pretty sad. Almost pathetic. What is even sadder is that in about a week, the Belgian Pale and Session IPA kegs are gonna kick.

The Citra Pale Ale that Tim and I made is now bottled, carbed and is down to the last few bottles. We split the batch and my other half has been indulging a bit too much without me. Writing this post has been the first time that I have been able to sit down and pick it apart. The hops play a huge part in both the aroma and backbone of this beer. The pound of White Wheat gets pretty cut by the 8oz of Victory. I like nutty Pale Ale when a hop like Citra is so dominant. It is a beautiful golden color, perfect against the room darkening shades to keep the sun out of the house. So it is pretty much a cave beer. We kept the ABV lower on this. 4.8%. A bit astringent, nice carbonation, but over all straight forward Pale Ale. It would benefit from another ounce hops (either late addition or dry hopped). It would be nice to age on any summer fruit. I am thinking peaches and I am thinking that this will happen during the month of July. A year ago I made a Peaches and Cream Ale aged on Vanilla Bean. It was a great beach beer that my non beer drinking family thought tasted like Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.