Beer: Rye Whiskey Barrel

This showed up on my porch the other day. My brother got it for me as a Christmas gift and I can't even describe how excited I am to use it! I just came up with a recipe that I think will compliment well with the Rye Whiskey. A while back we made a beer called the Scotch Stout which had peat grains with some Ardbeg Scotch mixed in with it. Well, instead I took out the peat and replaced it with some rye grains and I'm hoping it'll be amazing. We'll see!

If you're interested in getting one, they rotate their barrels and sometimes have a Maple Bourbon barrel available which I can't wait to get my hands on as well. Here is the link: http://www.woodinvillewhiskeyco.com/barrels/

Below is the recipe I formulated!

Original Gravity:

1.087

Final Gravity:

1.024

ABV (standard):

8.21%

IBU (tinseth):

52.85

SRM (morey):

40

Fermentables

Amount	Fermentable	PPG	°L	Bill %
26 lb	United Kingdom - Golden Promise	37	3	73.2%
4 lb	American - Roasted Barley	33	300	11.3%
2 lb	Flaked Barley	32	2.2	5.6%
1 lb	Flaked Oats	33	2.2	2.8%
0.5 lb	American - Caramel / Crystal 120L	33	120	1.4%
0.5 lb	American - Rye	38	3.5	1.4%
0.5 lb	Belgian - Special B	34	115	1.4%
0.5 lb	German - Carapils	35	1.3	1.4%
0.5 lb	United Kingdom - Crystal 70L	34	70	1.4%
35.5 lb	Total

Hops

Amount	Variety	Type	AA	Use	Time	IBU
2 oz	Nugget	Pellet	14	Boil	60 min	45.73
1 oz	Willamette	Pellet	4.5	Boil	30 min	5.65
1 oz	Willamette	Pellet	4.5	Boil	5 min	1.47

Other Ingredients

Amount	Name	Type	Use	Time
1 each	Whirfloc Tablet	Water Agt	Boil	15 min

Yeast

Fermentis / Safale - American Ale Yeast US-05

Beer: The New England 1020 (Update)

It's that time! I bottled the New England 1020 IPA last night and it tasted delicious. The FG got down to 1.010 which is better than I expected. Overall it's a solid 5.8% ABV IPA. I had hoped for a lot higher but lack of attention to detail during mashing results in lower efficiency. I'll post tasting notes once it's done bottle conditioning! 

Beer: Stein Beer

We decided to take a shot at brewing a beer in the stein brewing method. All I have to really say is this was one of the most fun brew days we've ever had. There was just so much awesome crammed into one day! We decided to go with a simple Kölsch recipe to start with and then if it was successful, do something a little more complex. We hit a 1.052 OG which was very close to what we were hoping for. Only issue we had was the Wyeast Kölsch smack pack had a hole in it when we smacked it. And yes we did cook steaks on the rocks and potatoes in the fire. It was amazing.

Hopefully we'll have more pics, but here is what I have so far!

Here is the link: http://imgur.com/a/1csBh

Original Gravity:

1.055

Final Gravity:

1.014

ABV (standard):

5.42%

IBU (tinseth):

24.37

SRM (morey):

4.11

Fermentables

Amount	Fermentable	PPG	°L	Bill %
10 lb	American - Pilsner	37	1.8	90.9%
0.5 lb	American - Carapils (Dextrine Malt)	33	1.8	4.5%
0.5 lb	German - Munich Light	37	6	4.5%
11 lb	Total

Hops

Amount	Variety	Type	AA	Use	Time	IBU
1 oz	Domestic Hallertau	Pellet	3.9	Boil	60 min	16.7
0.5 oz	Domestic Hallertau	Pellet	3.9	Boil	45 min	7.67

Mash Guidelines

Amount	Description	Type	Temp	Time
4.5 gal	170F to warm mash tun and dough in at 161F	Infusion	150 F	60 min
3.5 gal	Bring to boil and sparge as much as needed	Sparge	170 F	10 min
Starting Mash Thickness: 1.5 qt/lb

Other Ingredients

Amount	Name	Type	Use	Time
15 each	Granite Rocks (Fist Size)	Other	Boil	60 min

Yeast

Wyeast - Kölsch 2565

Attenuation (avg): 75% Flocculation: Low Optimum Temp: 56 - 70 °F Starter: No Fermentation Temp: 65 °F Pitch Rate: 0.35 (M cells / ml / ° P) 90 B cells required

Beer: All I want for Christmas is a Brew Kit

Check out this article I wrote for Modern Man Jack!

All I want for Christmas is a Brew Kit — Modern Man Jack

Beer: Stein Brewing

In a couple of weeks we are going to attempt an old school brewing technique called stein brewing. The concept is pretty simple. We are going to be using hot rocks (granite) to heat up the boil kettle. Not many people do it anymore and we just thought it would be a fun day of fire and activities. Sixpoint Brewery did one a little while ago and made a quick video about it.

We are going to make sure to post a bunch of pictures and hopefully get some video of the day! We're sticking with a basic Kölsch recipe and maybe in the future, try out a stout. It'll add some smokey and sweet caramelized flavors that are going to be real nice. Here is another video by Basic Brewing about the method. Cheers!

Beer: The New England 1020 (Update)

I transferred The New England 1020 IPA last night and it tasted absolutely delicious. Still have a little ways to go on dropping that gravity down, but overall very impressed with the Yeast Bay Vermont Ale strain I used. It is sitting at 1.020 and would like to get it to at least 1.012 if I can. If not, oh well! As Charlie Papazian says, "Relax, don't worry, have a homebrew". More updates to come later! Cheers!

Food: Thanksgiving 2014

Thanksgiving was a success! All that planning and it felt like it was over in the blink of an eye. Everything came out exactly the way I wanted. Turkey was a bit dry, but not bad.

The rub consisted of sazon, adobo, garlic, paprika, salt, pepper, and olive oil. I used the chicken stock from the practice chicken I made a few weeks ago. The gravy was absolutely delicious! (Thanks Regina and Barb!) We also had garlic mashed potatoes, green beans, homemade Duffy stuffing, carrots, Puerto Rican pork and rice, cranberry sauce, and pearl onions. For desserts, we had chocolate pudding pie, apple pie, pumpkin pie, chocolate cake, ice cream, homemade whipped cream, brownies, and a variety of cookies.

A couple days later I made another stock with the turkey. Of course, the leftovers made PLENTY of turkey and stuffing sandwiches. My wife isn't a fan of leftovers so I am still trying to consume as much of it as I can by myself. It's pretty difficult. I feel like I've gained 20lbs already. 

 

I also broke out the Apple Pie Ale, as well. It came out great! I don't really have any complaints about it thus far. Very well rounded and delicious. I can't wait to do it again! Cheers!

Food: Puerto Rican Bistec Encebollado (Steak and Onions)

I married a lovely Puerto Rican woman. What does that mean? On top of everything else I absolutely love about her, the cuisine that comes along with her heritage is AMAZING. The first taste of this cuisine was when her mother made the rice. Oh man, this rice. I can't even describe how amazing it is. Just look at it...

I haven't even attempted this yet. There's a science to it. Not too wet, not too dry. The perfect amount of seasoning. My next taste was when I went to her grandmother's house and had the pork WITH this rice. It was ridiculously amazing. THEN we went to Puerto Rico and it was just too much to handle. Mofongo, Fried Plantain, Empanadas (on the beach), Medalla Light (beer), Magna (beer) and so much more. 

Then I had Bistec Encebollado. Only people that have had it can describe it. So what do? Make it when I get home. I've been making it for a couple of years now and keep trying different cuts of meat to see which ones we like. Last night we tried bottom round and it was delicious. Perfect texture for this meal. I first based my recipe off of this recipe.

Total Time: 4-24 hours
Prep: 5 minutes
Inactive: 4-24 hours
Cook: 40 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 lb steak (I've tried many. The "bad" cuts are always the best and most tender)
1 large yellow onion sliced
1 packet sazon (white)

1 packet sazon (yellow)

1 tablespoon adobo
1 tablespoon tomato sauce
2 tbsp garlic minced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1 cup water
1 teaspoon salt

Directions

Prepare all ingredients and place in a ziploc bag with the steak. Set in fridge for 4 hours or over night to marinate. **If you're short on time you can skip this step**

Dump all ingredients into a heavy pan and cook until boiling. Once boiling turn heat to low, cover and cook for 40 minutes or so. Once done meat will be very tender.

Side note:

The New England 1020 IPA is fermenting like crazy! When I left the house this morning there was an extremely thick layer of krausen in the carboy! Super excited. 

 

Beer: Brewing The New England 1020 IPA

So I am a moron. Again, I forgot to take pictures of brew day. I get too caught up in the moment and enjoy it too much. I'm going to dedicate one of my friends solely to taking pictures next time. Anyways, we have fermentation! The picture is a bit deceiving because it is in an extremely dark place and I had to use the flash. The color is a lot lighter... A LOT lighter.

Again, we missed our OG. We were at about 1.043. I added a pound of table sugar that I know will dry it out a bit but I got it to 1.053. We also mashed in a little too high at around 160°F. Next time I am going to focus a lot more on detail so that this doesn't happen again. 

We used a little bit of a Campden tablet to kill unnecessary microbes and fluoride. I've been noticing my town has been adding a lot more recently and it was weirding me out. I pitched the Yeast Bay Vermont Ale Yeast 48 hours later to make sure the Campden tablet didn't kill that too! That would've been very unfortunate. 

We did a whirlpool which was extremely fun attaching this massive paddle to a drill and using it at 180°F. We need to re-do the paddle as it was too big and getting stuck when we would try to pull it out and causing it to come to a dead stop. Completely defeating the purposes of a whirlpool. 

I will update more when I transfer to secondary and dry hop! Below is the recipe we used. Feel free to have at it!

Original Gravity:

1.063

Final Gravity:

1.013

ABV (standard):

6.63%

IBU (tinseth):

141.25

SRM (morey):

5.2

Fermentables

Amount	Fermentable	PPG	°L	Bill %
10 lb	American - Pale 2-Row	37	1.8	72.7%
1 lb	Rice Hulls	0	0	7.3%
0.75 lb	Belgian - Munich	38	6	5.5%
0.75 lb	Flaked Oats	33	2.2	5.5%
0.5 lb	American - Caramel / Crystal 10L	35	10	3.6%
0.5 lb	American - Carapils (Dextrine Malt)	33	1.8	3.6%
0.25 lb	German - Acidulated Malt	27	3.4	1.8%
13.75 lb	Total

Hops

Amount	Variety	Type	AA	Use	Time	IBU
5 mL	Hop Shot	Fresh	2.77	Boil	60 min	51.39
1 oz	Citra	Pellet	11	Boil	10 min	16.28
1 oz	Simcoe	Pellet	12.7	Boil	10 min	18.79
1 oz	Citra	Pellet	11	Boil	5 min	8.95
1 oz	Simcoe	Pellet	12.7	Boil	5 min	10.33
1 oz	Citra	Pellet	11	Whirlpool at 180 °F	0 min	16.48
1 oz	Simcoe	Pellet	12.7	Whirlpool at 180 °F	0 min	19.02
1 oz	Citra	Pellet	11	Dry Hop	7 days
1 oz	Simcoe	Pellet	12.7	Dry Hop	7 days

Mash Guidelines

Amount	Description	Type	Temp	Time
5.3 gal	175F to warm up mash tun, once at 160 dough in	Sparge	150 F	60 min
4.1 gal	Close to boil, then stir mash with water to distribute evenly	Sparge	175 F	15 min
Starting Mash Thickness: 1.5 qt/lb

Other Ingredients

Amount	Name	Type	Use	Time
1 tsp	Gypsum	Water Agt	Boil	60 min
1 each	Whirfloc Tablet	Water Agt	Boil	15 min

Yeast

Default - - -

Attenuation (custom): 80% Flocculation: Med Optimum Temp: 66 - 72 °F Starter: No Fermentation Temp: 68 °F Pitch Rate: 0.35 (M cells / ml / ° P) 102 B cells required

Notes

Pale 2 Row must be RAHR
Vermont Ale Yeast
http://www.theyeastbay.com/brewers-yeast-products/vermont-ale

During second sparge mix up the grain in order to distribute the heat evenly.