West of Eden Britannia Ale

I really like British Ales like Newcastle or Bass. They are slightly hoppier than the usual pub fare like Irish Red and come with lots of malty flavor. Here is my interpretation of this style of beers. I used some Caramel Malt and Dark Munich to give it some nice brown color. Not to forget some true Victory Malt for authenticity. Hop schedule include East Kent Golding, topped off with Perle for aroma. Most importantly, I got my hands on some London Ale yeast. To my experience the yeast makes all the difference for flavor and texture, so I'm really looking forward how this one turns out!

BREW DATE: 05/15/2017

BOTTLING DATE: 06/14/2017

GRAIN BILL: 12lbs total

-6lbs Briess 2 row Malt

-2lbs Dark Munich Malt

-2lbs Vienna Malt
-1lb Caramel 40l
-1lb Victory Malt

MASH-IN: 1 hr at 165F, Fly sparked with 175F water.

HOP SCHEDULE:

-60min 1oz East Kent Golding

-30min 1oz East Kent Golding

-5min 1oz Perle

OG: 13.5 brix for 16l wort filled up to 23l => alcohol content should come out at 5.2%.

YEAST: Wyeast London Ale III

TASTE NOTES: Wow this one has tons of malt flavors, some licorice undertones and very subtle but still noticeable hops. Very nice! Unfortunately this yeast doesn't clear very well so the end product is quite hazy. Doesn't subtract from the flavor, but to be real I would have like it to be more clear. Also the head retention isn't quite there. Something the Brits don't really care about anyways, but I kind of like it with a little more head. 

Quite hazy, but still tasty! Keep calm and Carry On!

Fool's Wit #4

My 4th iteration of this West Coast Style Belgian Witbeer. This time I changed the mash-in to a higher temp compared to before (165F), since I had some conversion issues in the previous batch. Unfortunately I couldn't get my hand on Hallertau leaf hops, so I substituted those with Hallertau/Tettnang pellets. See how that goes! Looking forward to this refreshing style beer which tastes superb after a hard workout or some backyard work!

BREW DATE: 03/26/2017

BOTTLING DATE: 04/16/2017

GRAIN BILL: 12lbs total

-4lbs Pilsener Malt

-4lbs Rahr 2-row Malt

-4lbs White Wheat Malt

MASH-IN: 1 hr at 165F. Fly sparked with 175F water.

HOP SCHEDULE:

-60min 1oz German Hallertau pellets

-30min 1oz German Tettnang pellets

-10min 1oz Cascade Leaf hops

OG: 13.2 brix for 12.5l wort filled up to 23l => alcohol content should come out at 3.7%. Pretty light but I think it will come out higher based on previous experience.

YEAST: Wyeast Belgian Witbeer

TASTE NOTES: Came out quite nice, even though gravity was low. This time I got some more citrus flavors compared to previously. The hops are a little overwhelming, something to keep in mind when making light summer beers. 

Fool's Wit #4!