Original Belgian Ale - Part 1

Original Belgian Ale

A Belgian-Style Ale from Hops, Malts, a Schnauzer
O.G.:  1.084 - 64F
F.G.:  n/a
Estimated ABV: n/a

Ingredients:

• 5.0 pounds Muntons Extra Light Dried Malt Extract
• 2.5 pounds Clover Honey
• boiling hops
• 1.0 oz Summit Hops (leaf)
• flavor hops
• 1.0 oz Crystal Hops (leaf)
• aroma hops
• 1.0 oz Columbus Hops (leaf)
• 1.0 grams (~0.03 oz) Paradise Seeds, freshly ground
• 0.5 oz Sweet Orange Peel
• 0.25 oz Juniper Berries, crushed
• Yeast: WYEAST 3944 - Belgian Witbier
• 0.5 cup Clover Honey
• bottling

Required ingredients for this brew

Instructions:

1. Place malt extract, honey, and boiling hops in brew pot with 2.0 gallons water, bring to a boil, and maintain it for 45 minutes
2. Add 0.5 grams paradise seeds and flavor hops - boil 10 minutes
3. Add 0.5 grams paradise seeds, orange peel, and juniper berries
4. Add aroma hops - boil 1-2 minutes
5. Immediately remove brew pot from heat and cool with wort chiller and 1 gallon ice-cold water
6. Transfer wort to primary fermenter (filter out hops and herbs)
7. Follow standard procedures through bottling process
• include 1 paradise seed in each bottle (sanitize via steaming or microwave)
8. Allow 2 weeks for bottle conditioning before sampling

The wort just before chilling

I've been brewing for over a year now, and felt it was time to design and brew my own recipe. This one features elements similar to the Who's In The Garden Belgian white and Rocky Raccoon honey lager - a very light malt base, high honey content, a mixing of mild hops, and a presence of herbs and spices - but has unique twists as well.

Wort chiller in action - I promise everything remained sanitary!

I decided to use honey derived from clover rather than alfalfa for a couple of reasons. First, I'd never tried it before. Second, clover honey is much more common (the most manufactured honey in the US) and this seemed like an ingredient one should have experience with. Third, clover honey is much sweeter and can give a higher alcohol content. Additionally, the plan is to use honey for the bottling process - something I've only ever read about. It is important to note that as the 0.5 cup honey boils, one must remove the foam as it rises from the boil. Various sources indicate that bottle conditioning will take 10-14 days and other indicate that it will take a full month. I'm planning to test the bottles 14 days in and make a decision based on the conditions that exist at that time.

The brew's herbs and spices

Each of the hop varieties chosen have spicy, earthy character, while the Summit and Columbus hops also have a citrusy quality. The hope is that that these characteristics will mesh well with the spiciness of the paradise seeds and the citrus in the orange peel. So now we come to the juniper berries. Why add them, you ask? Well, mature juniper berries do have a piney, resinous flavor profile, but they also contain notes of citrus. I'm hopeful that the small amount used serve to compliment the brew in a manner fitting to the holiday season.



Assuming I stay on schedule, I estimate we'll be drinking this in February -I'm quite excited to try it!

Elbro Nerkte Brown Ale & We're in the Garden - Tasting

A take on a Brown Ale from The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
O.G.: 1.04
F.G.: 1.01
ABV: ~3%

I tried to like this brew... I really did. Unfortunately, whether due to human error, poor ingredients, or just bad luck this batch turned out very badly. That said, I seem to remember the Elbro Nerkte being quite tasty when I first tried it - though I'm not sure if it has deteriorated with age or I had simply consumed too much of the Belgian White prior to tasting it. In any case, I'm not even going to bother doing a full description of the flavors because, honestly, I don't want to taste it again. I will note, however, that most of the poor flavor fades if a warm bottle is consumed.


An impromptu take on a Belgian white from The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
ABV: Unknown
IBU: Unknown

We're In The Garden

Happily, unlike the Elbro Nerkte, the Belgian White was a smashing success. The beer has a vibrant amber color with a snow white head and an aroma of honey and a touch of hops. The flavor profile starts out sweet with a warm, nutty citrus taste and finishes with somewhat of a sweet bite. The honey and coriander worked together wonderfully in this brew, though with age the honey taste was largely lost - perhaps the coriander remained so potent due to the coriander seed dropped into each bottle?

After passing this brew around my family, lab group, and friend group I can assure you this will be a staple recipe in my homebrew repertoire. I can count the number of people who had any kind of reservations about this brew on one hand and most of them don't care for beer and tried it because I pushed it on them. I have a feeling this Belgian White will be just what a person needs after a long summer day and hope to make quite a bit of it in the future.

We're in the Garden - Part 3

An impromptu take on a Belgian white from The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
ABV: Unknown
IBU: Unknown

Ramius and the brew!

Well, we finally got together to bottle our Belgian White. Hilary, Ramius, and I ran to HopToIt! and picked up some corn sugar for bottling before heading back to my place to get down to business. The bottling process went much more quickly than the Primal Porter since two sets of hands were working, and I was greatly pleased with the pace we made. Really, the only tedious/time-consuming portion of the bottling process was (as always) sanitizing everything. I really need to invest in a bottle tree, as you can clearly see...

Anyhow, we ended up coming out with a final product of 49 bottles, which is consistent with the average of four dozen bottles per 5-gallon brew. We took Charlie's advice this time and put a coriander seed in each bottle to enhance its flavor. I should also be noted that I put the coriander seeds in the microwave for ~20 seconds to kill anything on them to prevent any bacterial contamination. Needless to say, both Hilary and I are extraordinarily excited to taste this brew. The smell itself was intoxicating and quite a tease during the entire bottling process.

The day of bottling. Note the deep amber coloration.

We're in the Garden - Part 2

Well, it has been a month since Hilary and I started this Belgian White. Fermentation continues, though it is slowing to some extent. I'm not sure how much longer it will take, having never used 2lbs. of honey in a brew before. Gotta wonder what the alcohol content will be as well.

I'm about out of the Primal Porter that Tegan and I brewed, so will probably use the second carboy I have to brew something in the mean time. I've been toying with the idea of a Weizenbier, but am not sure yet.

Also, here is a cool change in the make-up of the fermenting beer:

Fermenting Beer on Day 2

Fermenting Beer on Day 9

We're in the Garden - Part 1

An impromptu take on a Belgian white from The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
ABV: Unknown
IBU: Unknown

Ingredients:

• 5.0 pounds Munton's Light Malt Extract
• 2.0 pounds Colorado Light Alfalfa Honey
• 2.0 oz Hallertauer Pellet Hops
• 1 oz for boiling
• 0.5 oz for flavor
• 0.5 oz for aroma
• 1.5 oz freshly crushed whole coriander seed
• used in two 0.75 oz batches
• 0.5 oz dried, ground sweet orange peel
• Yeast: WYEAST 3944
• 0.75 cup corn sugar
• for bottling

Single-Stage Fermentation

Since our Blackhole Red Ale is gone, Hilary and I decided to try our hand at a light and refreshing beer, and a Belgian white is it! The original recipe is for Who's In The Garden Grand Cru, but due to a lack of supplies at HopToIt!, we had to improvise with the ingredients used above. 

Brewing went extraordinarily smoothly. Using the dry malt extract required a bit more stirring than liquid malt extract to ensure it dissolved completely. The coriander was ground to a relatively coarse grain using a mortar and pestle.

While waiting for the wort to boil, Hilary and I indulged in a couple of Hoegaarden wit ales. This was fitting as the original recipe was meant to mimic this brew. Anyhow, the Hoegaarden was delicious and in a little under a month we'll find out just how delicious this homebrew is.

We're In the Garden with fermentation cap and hose