Brew Dudes Homebrewing Blog

Comparing Crystal 40°L & 60°L Malt

On May 6, 2020

Mike got his malt experiments going. Here he brewed three beers to make a video where we get to learn more about the differences between Crystal 40°L and Crystal 60°L malts. Take a look at this video!

Malt Experiment Thoughts

Even though we were comparing two malts, Mike brewed a base beer as a starting off point – a foundation to which we could compare the other two beers. The base beer was just a simple beer using Great Western 2-row malt. Then, he brewed one beer with Crystal 40°L malt and one beer with Crystal 60°L malt.

The tasting between the three beers was an interesting process. I learned what flavors the base malt brought to the beer first. Then, I focused on what each of the Crystal malts taste profiles were.

I expected 40 to be “sweeter” than 60 but that really didn’t play out. I don’t think there was much sweetness to the beers with Crystal malt in them. What I found was a milder caramel, burnt sugar flavor in the 40 beer than the 60 beer. The 60 beer had more notes of toast, more of that Mallard reaction, than the 40.

The difference between the two was really quite subtle. This experiment really nailed home that fact that either of the Crystal malts would bring very similar flavor components to your beer. Yes, they were different but just slightly so.

When we start comparing the darker Crystal malts to the lighter ones, then we will detect bigger differences.

BREW ON!

Cloning Hoegaarden From Bottle Dregs – The Tasting

By John Krochune

On April 29, 2020

In Experiments, Videos, Yeast

The process of brewing this beer was discussed a few weeks ago – the cultivating of yeast from a six pack of Hoegaarden. If I believed what I read online, I would have not tried this experiment.

“Probably not the same yeast they use for fermentation,” they said.

“The brewery pasteurizes the bottles before shipping them out,” they said.

Sometimes, and for my homebrewing life most times, you just have to see for yourself. That’s why we brewed us this Hoegaarden White Beer using the bottle dregs for fermentation.

How Did It Taste?

It sounds like hyperbole but it’s really a fact: this beer is the best Belgian White Ale I have ever brewed. Without question, the dregs gave my recipe something that the other witbiers just didn’t have. There was a silkiness to the mouthfeel, a rockiness to the head, and a yeast-derived flavor component that I haven’t been able to get from commercial examples of the same yeast profile.

Now the first two components on my mini-review above didn’t come from the dregs. No – it came from the flaked wheat that made up 50% of the grain bill. Never again will I use malted wheat for a witbier. I have seen the light and it is clear that this style needs to use flaked wheat.

Mike says I should try to brew this beer again using the dregs from the keg. That is an idea I’d like to try and instead of coriander and bitter orange peel, I’d like to brew it with some chamomile and fresh orange zest. I don’t have a direct line to fresh oranges but maybe with enough time, I can zest a bunch of oranges while the brew kettle is boiling away.

BREW ON!

Mosaic SMaSH Showdown – Cryo vs. Regular

By John Krochune

On April 22, 2020

In Hops, Videos

Here’s something that you haven’t been waiting for but you may still be interested in learning more. This post gives us the showdown between Cryo vs. Regular hop pellets. We brewed two simple beers the same way with the only difference being the hops. Check out this video to see and hear our thoughts:

What Did We Think?

Well, it is clear that Cyro hops are what they claim to be – more intense in terms of flavor and aroma. The Mosaic character seemed fresher and more powerful in every component – the aroma, the flavor, and the aftertaste.

Comparing the Cryo beer to the beer brewed with just regular pellets gave us a good understanding of what this processing allows for homebrewers to do. You can definitely use half the amount of Cryo hops in your recipes.

If you’re really looking for the best application, use Cryo hops late in your brewing process. These types of hops are made for the whirlpool portion of your brew day. Add them after flameout for maximum results and awesome taste.

BREW ON!

Muntons BIB Update

By John Krochune

On April 15, 2020

In Beginner, Equipment, Videos

Now that we’re two weeks into fermenting with the Brewery In A Bag from Muntons, Mike thought it would be good to provide an update. Here we are with the check on how the bag is progressing with this video:

That Bag is Swole

So after adding water and sealing up the bag, the yeast took off inside with the malt extract mixture. The mylar bag became swollen and Mike was able to have it stand on its own. You can tell that there is enough space for sediment to sit below the spigot, so, in theory, each pour should be clear of the yeast and other particulates at the bottom of the bag.

We continue to wait, following the instructions that came with the bag. Then, we will be able to taste the beer that is fermenting in this thing. Mike’s comment to me last week was, “If I were going to tell someone an easy way to start to brew, this BIB would be it. There no need for equipment – it’s all self contained.”

I think we agree it would be a good place to start, but to stay? I guess we’ll find out.

Brew on!

Check out the tasting video!

Yeast Harvesting Hoegaarden White For Clone Recipe

By John Krochune

On April 8, 2020

In Experiments, Videos, Yeast

I love White Ales in the spring time. They taste like victory. Even though 2020 has been a weird year, I still wanted to brew one of my favorite styles. Because I have not been happy with the Belgian Wit yeast strains available commercially and I have more time on my hands, I decide to harvest yeast from a six pack of Hoegaarden and use it in my clone recipe of the famous brew. Watch me talk about the recipe and the process.

Hoegaarden White Clone Recipe

So I brewed a 5 gallon recipe but I will provide the recipe so you can configure it to your setup/needs.

Ingredients:

50% Belgian Pilsner Malt (I used 4.5 pounds/2 kg)
50% Flaked Wheat (I used 4.5 pounds/2 kg as well)
1 oz (27 grams) of Saaz hops 3.1 %AA – added with 60 minutes left to go in the boil
1 oz (27 grams) of Saaz hops 3.1 %AA – added with 15 minutes left to go in the boil
1 oz (27 grams) of Bitter Curaçao Orange Peel – added with 5 minutes left to go in the boil
.5 oz (14 grams) of crushed Coriander seeds – added with 5 minutes left to go in the boil

Instructions

For this recipe, I followed a step infusion mash process. It was the first time I’ve ever followed this procedure. I added 9 quarts or 8.6 liters of tap water that I treated with a Campden tablet at 130°F (54°C) to the entire grain bill, which brought the mash temp to 122°F (50°C) and held that temperature for 30 minutes.

Then, I added another 9 quarts or 8.6 liters of water that I heated to 160°F (71°C) to bring the mash temp up to 150°F (65.5°C) and held that for 60 minutes.

I sparged with enough hot water to collect 7 gallons of wort for a 75 minute boil.

Yeast Preparation

I took the dregs of 6 bottles of Hoegaarden and added it to a sanitized glass jug that was filled with a liter starter made with Fast Pitch canned wort. Since I am working from home nowadays, I was able to swirl it pretty regularly. After 3 days when the activity started to die down, I refrigerated the starter for 2 days. I removed the starter from the fridge and decanted. Once I had about an inch left, I poured in another can of the Fast Pitch canned wort and started the fermentation process again.

Two days later, I brewed my Hoegaarden clone and poured the entire starter into my fermentor (after it was chilled). My beer started to ferment in 12 hours and it smelled great.

This beer should be a good one – BREW ON!