Maggie Helles - Friday, November 25, 2022
This is another pilot brew. This batch will tell me what I can brew and what I can't brew.
Ingredients
This has to be good or I will definitely be done with lagers. Will go with Kolsch beers and even go with 75% RO water and 25% spring water. Clear and filter if needed. Done. That will be my goal for 2023.
I think I will let this go a little longer before raising the fermentation temp. I will go 7 full days and then slowly ramp up by 10 F a day. Do what Brulosophy says in his lager method.
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| Summer of 2018 |
11 lbs. Rahr 2 row
8 ozs. Munich 6
5 ozs. Acid Malt ( I am going with lactic acid in my mash water for now on. )
60 g Hallertauer at 60 min.
30 g Hallertauer at 15 min.
WLP830 - 4 L starter with over build and after evaporation got 3.5 L. ( pitched @ 8:30 am )
on Nov. 26. 52F.
Make a 4 L starter with 383 g of DME. Don't forget to save a litre for an over build.
Made this on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 12:30 pm. Should be done by Monday. Do not forget
to remove 1 L for an over build. This is really going good. Cost me around $7 - $8.
I am going to keep this lager strain going until spring or when I think it is done. Need
to get some US-05 to use up my Citra hops. For $10 more, I can buy a sack of Pils Malt.
I am saving this yeast but most likely will toss it and get some WLP029 yeast for my
Kolsch beers. Starting early to see how the water profile is working out and get some
good beer ahead for the summer. I will use the Beaus bottles first since they will keep
longer in storage and start to fill the PET bottles for the summer. Finally getting to
use my CPBF which I haven't used in a long time.
O.G. - 1.046
F.G. - 1.008
% - 4.86
SRM - 3.3
BU - 30.7
Water Profile - The Electric Brewery
CA - 50
MG - 10
S04 - 70
CI - 70
PH - 5.35
This water profile worked fine for the previous lager, so going with the same one. I made a few
years ago a lager style like Creemore Springs and the first one was great. The 2nd one was
horrible. That has been my problem for years and years. One is great and the other one
was not. Can't figure that part out and I guess I never will.
Mash - 6 gallons
Gyp - 1.1 g
CI - 2.4 g
Eps - 2.4
7.5 gallons - Try to keep it at 7.5 gallons. You were at 8 gallons last time.
Boil - 7.5 gallons
Gyp - 1 g
CI - 2 g
Eps - 2 g
Sparge - 5 gallons
.2 ml Lactic Acid
Starter is really going good. Tons of bubbles and foam. Removed 1 litre to a mason jar and saved the rest for brew day.
BREW DAY NOTES
Brew Day - Fine so far. Done at 9:30. Now to clean up. I will aerate and pitch the yeast tomorrow.
There doesn't seem to be a lot of yeast in the flask or the mason jar over build. Not
sure why. Still wondering about that. My Thames Valley over build had more
yeast that this batch did with the 2 vessels combined. Hmmm. If I under pitch I
will soon know it when I keg it. Funny odd malt taste will come out, in a lager more.
Day 1 - Aerated and pitched the yeast at 8:30. Had a hard time getting the oxygen thingy on
the tank. Want to use the bigger stone next time as it goes to the bottom of the
carboy. Next up is an IPA since I don't need to buy anything. Using my Citra hops
up along with my US-05 yeast. Went down at midnight and it has started to ferment.
Very slow though, just beginning.
Day 2 - No difference. 2 days now. I guess it will get more active. 50 F. Re-set it .5F higher.
Seems to be at around 54 F. Checked it at 6 pm and a full head of krausen. Good.
Day 3 - Same but with some sulphur smell which is normal. Will try to go as long as I can
with the fermentation and then raise the temp as quickly as I can. Will have to take
it and put it on the bench with the wall heater on.
Day 4 - Same. Had it set for around 54F but it showed 50F. Hard to see the strip as it shows
different temps. Need another one but they are hard to clean off the carboy as the
glue stays on. May try the stuff that takes off glue, but will do research first.
Day 5 - I am shutting off the fridge on Nov. 30.
Day 6 - On the bench. Heater on - 64 F. Just a degree more I think.
Day 7 - 70 F. Had to turn down the wall heater. Very active, but it is too warm though.
Farting out all sulphur and the rest of the lager by products. If this is like, too
clean with virtually no flavour, I will definitely go back to Kolsch beers.
Day 8 - Not quite done the d-rest. Soon though. I will just wait it out and keg when
there is absolutely not activity. Another week or longer. Usually 3 weeks
after pitching the yeast. That will make it Dec. 16 or 17 depending on what we
are doing. Maybe shorter though so I will have time to clear it and get it ready
for Xmas. That is really not important though as we are not here on Dec. 25th.
SAMPLED ON DEC. 4
While it is still bubbling away, but very slowly I think I will get a sample for a taste.
Have to make sure it isn't astringent or that god awful funny grainy taste. That has
never come up in any search when I described the taste. Odd, I guess it is just me.
Giving it a whirl... Fine, normal I guess. A little sweet but that is normal too. Not
a highly hopped beer even though it is hopped to almost 31. I like it especially
for a beer that had no German Pilsner Malt. It will be even better when I buy that
in Jan. or Feb. I guess Kal's recipes are excellent and the German brewing water
profiles just don't work for me. Should lower the IBU a bit.
Seems to be done. Heater off and shutting the door. Will not get down to the 50's though.
This is the only beer that I like for the end of 2022. Better be good, I think it is.
KEGGED ON DEC. 14
It tasted good when I stole a sample for taste only and it had to age awhile before kegging.
Taste is good. No lager off flavours at all. Gelatin added and will rack and carb up around
Dec. 23. Not serving this until New Years. I have lost around 1/4 of C02 from my tank. I
had it shut off so it really had no reason to be mostly empty when I kegged this. Now I
have to buy some before Xmas. I bought a second case of Holsten in cans. 24 500 ml cans
for $42.50. The absolute cheapest beer in Ontario and good beer. On sale. I can even let
this beer sit until New Years or beyond.
Transferred to a keg on Dec. 21
I need C02 because I lost 1/4 of it and do not know how or why. Hope they have some. They
had lots lined up in their shop. Still $45. Never raised their prices even before, during or after
the pandemic.
The C02 regulator needs an o ring.
It seems to be a little flat with all the pressure from the tank. I don't have one, but I really
gave it a good tighten and the hiss stopped. Have to check it often but once it is carbed up,
I may take it upstairs to the pub fridge with the 5 lb. tank. Taking awhile to carb up.
TASTING ON DEC. 23
Not as good as my previous Helles beers. Taste is fine, but with a good attenuation it does taste
somewhat sweet. I will give a nice hoppy Pilsner a go next year. Not sure of the taste. I have
had a similar beer from Craft Breweries and thought, fine, but not what I am used to. I will
change recipes and go with a Pilsner type beer in 2023. This seems to be losing it's lager taste
now. It is still good, but that lager taste which was here yesterday has faded. Fine, it is still a
clean, but kind of boring lager. Aren't they all? Not a Pilsner which I will be brewing next year.
ANOTHER TASTE ON XMAS DAY
It is okay, not great though. Seems fine, no off taste at all. Kind of bland, but this style is not
a big tasting beer. Pils malt will help, but the fast ferment takes a lot of the traditional Pils
malt taste out of it. Maybe go to day 7 next time? Days 4 - 7 is what I read.
TASTE ON DEC. 28
It is very slowly starting to lose a small part of the harshness. I have done a lot of research on
this and have not come up with a solution. My older brews using less mash water were not
any better than some of my recent brews.
FINAL THOUGHTS ON THIS BEER
I didn't finish the keg as it tasted off. No infection like taste, just no where what a lager should taste like. I don't have an answer for it. Brewing IPA beers for next year. They always turn out fine, but when I brew a bitter or a lager they taste like shit. No more lagers for sure, and will give a bitter a try next fall after Ohio and Nashville and PEI with the Currans. Will buy UK malt and brew a bitter and if that sucks, I will never brew another beer which isn't an IPA. I want to rent a beer gas tank next year so I need to get a bitter that doesn't taste weird. I will start in April with ONE batch and go from there.
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