Brew Dudes Homebrewing Blog

Brew Dudes Homebrew Swap – Exchange #48

On January 31, 2024

In the latest exchange of the Brew Dudes Homebrew Swap, Exchange #48, we’re treated to a glimpse into the world of malt appreciation. Dave, a fellow homebrewer, contributes to this beer adventure by sending a package with Dark Munich malt from Riverbend Malt House. Alongside this specialty malt, he shares a 5.1% ABV experimental dark lager, brewed with 93% dark Munich. Check out what we thought of the malt and the beer in this video.

Dark Munich Malt

Well, when you buy too much of something, brew as many beers as you can with that ingredient. That’s what Dave did. He bought too much Dark Munich malt by mistake, but he turned this misfortune around.

The Dark Munich malt itself has a rich, malty sweetness reminiscent of molasses and dark wheat bread. Tasting the grain, we found hints of brown bread, raisin, and fig-like flavors.

As for the beer, here are our tasting notes:

Appearance: The beer displayed a deep copper color with red notes on the edges, almost bordering on brown.

Aroma: The aroma is full of fruity bread-like notes, reminiscent dark wheat bread. There were also hints of molasses.

Flavor: The flavor profile mirrored the aroma and the maltiness is well-balanced by a subtle bitterness from the hops on the back end.

Mouthfeel: The beer had a satisfying richness without being cloying, providing a smooth and pleasant drinking experience.

Overall Impression: We think this beer is impressive, showcasing the depth and complexity that the dark Munich malt contributed. With its sessionable ABV, we think we would be able to have a few pints of this one.

Jar of Destiny Implications

With two malty lagers chosen for the Jar of Destiny ninth pick, this malt would play nice in both of them. Stay tuned as at least one of the beer will have this Dark Munich Malt in its grain bill!

BREW ON!

Sasquatch Hops SMaSH Review and Tasting

By John Krochune

On January 24, 2024

In Hops, Videos

A viewer from Canada sent us an email about this hop variety, Sasquatch hops. He claimed it was Canada’s only hop so we were intrigued. Since we enjoy brewing with hops, especially ones we don’t know well, we added it to our list of SMaSH brews. Check out this video (sorry about the audio) about our thoughts on this hop from our northern neighbor.

Sasquatch Hops Details

Beyond the information on the Yakima Valley Hops site, we discovered Sasquatch hops own page on the Hops Connect site. Born from the woods of British Columbia, this variety is the only “proprietary, trademarked Canadian hop variety in the world.”

Here in the Americas, we still have many centuries to catch up with our European friends when it comes to producing famous hops. It seems like in the last few decades, hop growers have made up a lot of ground.

We took one ounce of this hop, brewed with them in a 1 gallon batch of beer. Using only Rahr 2-row malt, spring water, and US-05 yeast, we really want this hop to shine in the beer. Our additions were at 60 minutes, 20 minutes, whirlpool, and dry hop.

Our Thoughts

Mike takes the first swig of these beers so his takes are first:

Aroma: Ginger, candy ginger, vanilla-like creaminess, herbal, floral, tea-like, no fruity or citrus notes detected.
Flavor: Cheerios-like quality, hints of ginger and vanilla, creamy, slightly herbal, subtle citrus notes, not overpowering.

What we read from Yakima Valley was a little different:

Aroma: Apple blossom, orange cream, hay, earthy.
Flavor: Floral, citrus, green grassy, cream, caramel, grassy, earthy.

The big takeaway is the creamy/caramel note in the flavor. It makes this hop unique.

Potential Uses:

We think Sasquatch hops are suitable for light-flavored beers, not overwhelming. Mike suggests a take on a Belgian witbier for the herbal spiciness from the hop. Maybe a Canadian Wheat beer? Lastly, a Vanilla Porter to support the other major flavors in that style.

We really liked this hop. If you see it, pick up a packet and brew something tasty.

BREW ON!

Detecting Gypsum In Beer – Brewing Salts Experiment

By John Krochune

On January 17, 2024

In Experiments, Videos

We take another closer look at water chemistry as it applies to home brewing beer. This time, we create an experiment using water and calcium sulfate, also known as gypsum. The set up is just like our last brewing salts experiment, where we tasted water with different concentrations and discussed our thoughts. We also have a bonus experiment at the end.

Let’s go!

Gypsum Experiment Set Up

As we did with sodium chloride and calcium chloride, Gypsum was added to water so we could taste what that compound imparts in terms of flavor and mouthfeel.

We have a control of plain spring water. Then, we have samples with different concentrations:

125 PPM
250 PPM
500 PPM
1,000 PPM

With each taste, we describe what we think of the experience. Mostly, it wasn’t great.

The Outcomes

When we looked at the samples, it was clear that there is a solubility threshold between 500 PPM and 1,000 PPM.

It was clear because the water was not clear.

Here’s the list of our taste observations at different concentrations:

125 PPM: Not very perceptible
250 PPM: Chalky, slightly soapy
500 PPM: More pronounced chalkiness
1,000 PPM: Overwhelming, quite powdery

The main takeaway from this experiment and the last one is how much brewing salts you need to add to your beer. If you are looking to treat your water, you have to add enough brewing salts to get to over 125 PPM.

Mike states that if you are looking to dial in a Chloride to Sulfate ratio, the numbers need to be in the hundreds to make a difference.

Bonus Experiment – Epsom Salt

Mike made another solution – just one – with Epsom Salt (Magnesium Sulfate). Tested at a concentration of 1,000 PPM, this sample helped us compare to the calcium sulfate experiment. Surprisingly, even at the high end of our concentration level, the Epsom Salt has a minimal impact on taste. We’re not sure if we would add this brewing salt to more of our beers but the outcome was still interesting.

BREW ON!

TMCRAFT Mini Keg Growler Review

By John Krochune

On January 10, 2024

In Equipment, Videos

These Brew Dudes love equipment for homebrewing. The wonderful people at TMCRAFT sent us their mini keg growler in silver. We happily gave it a try so we could tell you about it. It’s small but mighty beer dispensing system that can help make your beer portable. Let’s learn more, shall we?

It’s a growler. It’s a keg. It’s a beer draft system!

The Unboxing

Opening the box, it’s apparent great care is given to the way items are packaged. All the components are in different boxes and padded if they are fragile.

The biggest piece is the keg itself. It holds up to 1 US gallon and looks like a shrunken corny keg. The tap connects to a silicone dip tube that sits inside the keg. The regulator fits onto the back of the tap and takes a threaded CO2 cartridge.

Be sure to purchase this specific type of cartridge because the draft system won’t work with any other. It screws into the regulator, which pierces the top of the cartridge and hold it in place. Then, pressure is adjusted by a knob with simple Increase and Decrease instructions. Pressure inside the keg is reported by a small gauge.

The Mini Keg Growler Review

Hey, it works! Even without the right cartridge, we poured beers from the tap. I like that it has a full size tap on top. It’s easier than other systems that have also shrunk the tap head.

The mini keg also comes with a cap so you can use it as a growler. Go to your local brewery and get a fill up. After that, you can add the tap head and dispense! That is, if you don’t want to just pour it out of the top.

The size makes it easy to bring wherever you are going. It can carbonate homebrew beer (I plan to use it for my next SMaSH). Or, you can use it to dispense and bring a little effervescence to a craft cocktail.

Check them out at tmcraftus.com.

Cheers and Brew ON!

Beer Brewing Salts Experiment

By John Krochune

On January 3, 2024

In Experiments, Videos

We do science with Mike in this post. The topic of water chemistry and how it affects homebrewed beer continues to be intriguing. In this experiment, we set up water samples with different concentrations of “brewing salts” – sodium chloride, which is table salt, and calcium chloride. With five glasses in front of each of us, we learn at what concentration (Part Per Million level) can we really detect the added compound in the water. See the video to get the results!

The Set Up and Process

The first experiment is built to help us understand when we can detect table salt in water. Before the camera started to roll, Mike set up 5 glasses of water. Four of these glasses had salt added to them with one left alone as a control of sorts.

The four samples with salt had increasing amounts. Mike measured out the concentrations so that we could know the amounts in parts per million or PPMs for each sample. The breakdown of concentration are as follows:

Sample 1: Plain Spring Water – very little NaCl in it ~1 PPM
Sample 2: 125 PPM of sodium chloride.
Sample 3: 250 PPM of sodium chloride.
Sample 4: 500 PPM of sodium chloride.
Sample 5: 1,000 PP< of sodium chloride.

We tasted each in ascending order to experience the increasing salt amounts and comment on the flavor of the water.

Then, Mike set up the experiment again but swapped table salt for Calcium Chloride. The same PPM concentrations were followed for this second experiment.

Brewing Salts Experiment Outcome

The table salt titration experiment helped us to get a sense of how the increasing concentrations in the water sample would play out in our “tasting flight”. With that experience, it helped us with one of the more important brewing salts to our homebrewing practice: Calcium Chloride.

Our takeaway from the CaCl2 experiment is that we will push for a minimum of 125 PPM of calcium in brewing water. Lesser calcium concentrations below that threshold (50 to 100 PPM) didn’t impart flavor. Thinking about our beer brewing practice, we will start with a minimum of 120 or 125 PPM of calcium in the water to ensure a perceptible impact on the beer’s flavor profile.