Tag Archives: Homebrewing

Batch #11 – Super Berry Melomel (Mead)

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As you can see, I’m going backwards in batch numbers. No, I didn’t brew this recently — this is actually an older batch that I forgot to number and I’m just now getting to enjoy.

Back in August of 2013 I made my first mead. I’ve never had a mead before but decided to give it a try when I saw an email from the American Homebrewers Association about Mead Day 2013. I didn’t actually make this on Mead Day, but rather the day after (August 4th).

I decided to start with the AHA’s suggested recipe — a Super Berry Melomel recipe from Curt Stock. Though I didn’t use the same ingredients, I followed the same procedure. I did back-sweeten this batch, but would like to see what this would by like dry. Continue reading →

Batch #12 – Windward Amber Ale

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This beer was a carefully planned accident. Let me explain…

For my last few beers I have used the Brewers Friend software to draft my recipes, but I was recently given a copy of Ray Daniels’ Designing Great Beers. Having a better understanding of how the ingredients affect the end product, I decided to create a worksheet where I could create my recipes by hand.

For quite a while now I’ve had a vision of creating an easy to drink pale ale. I even had a name picked out — Leeward Pale Ale. With that in mind, I set out to draft a pale ale recipe. I decided on a grain bill consisting of base malt, crystal malt for head retention and body, and honey malt for a touch of sweetness. (I used honey malt in my Munich lager as a substitute for melanoidin malt, and I was a fan.) I was also planning on using a mixture of glacier and willamette hops for a floral, herby, citrusy note. After a few recipe drafts, and some feedback from the fine folks on Reddit, I had a recipe.

One problem. My local homebrew store doesn’t carry glacier hops… Whoops… Continue reading →

Brew #10 – NernBock, a Traditional Bock

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This beer has been in the making for quite some time. It started back in August when I was inspired to do a bock style beer by the upcoming Reddit homebrew competition for 2013. I did some research on the style and decided I wanted to take a stab at creating my own recipe from scratch. With the help of Brewing Classic Styles, the BJCP style guidelines, and various recipes I found online I created the recipe found below.

Though I did not brew this beer in time for the homebrew competition, I found it to be a good exercise in crafting recipes from scratch. I’ve since received a copy of Designing Great Beers from my buddy, Dan, and his wife, Nikki, and have a much greater hold on how to draft and fine tune recipes. Continue reading →

Brew #9 – Cidre Épicerie (AKA Grocery Store Cider)

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I’m getting close to having my cider recipe down pat. In fact, I think I’ve finally settled on a name — “Cidre Épicerie.” Simply translated to “Grocery Store Cider,” as all the ingredients (except, perhaps, the yeast) can be purchased at your local grocery store.

For about the first month of bottle conditioning, I was concerned that I might have ruined the batch, as I detected some off-flavor in early sampling. However, since first tasting this batch, the off-flavors have mellowed and the results are have been pretty enjoyable! Continue reading →