Biergarten Table Update

The benches and table have been made. I have started to fill in the sides and cracks. I will sand early this week and then stain. Below are some pics.

Biergarten Table Started

I am making a biergarten table for the Friday night Oktoberfest Kick-Off party. I don't have any specific blueprints, but based on conversations with some folks familiar with wood working, I determined I could use a 3/4" sheet of plywood with framing support on the bottom and metal folding legs. I am making one table at 2'x8' and two benches at 1'x8'. I made the first two benches this past weekend. I will make the table later this week. The sanding and staining will be done this weekend. Below is a pic of the first bench. I'll put up more pics later this week.

American Amber Ale brewed and now fermenting

The amber ale was fermented this past weekend. Last year, due to the Oktoberfest lager failure, I had to bring out different beers for the party. One of the beers was the amber ale. It was wildly popular at the event, so I decided to make it again. Last year I followed a simple extract recipe. This year I decided to do an extract recipe, but I changed the specialty grains, hops, and yeast. I made sure to use three great American hops: Columbus for bittering; Cascade for flavor and aroma; and Centennial for flavor and aroma. I really think this hop blend will improve an already popular beer. I used the Whitelabs California Ale yeast, which is a good well rounded yeast that can be used for a variety of American beers. It is a clean yeast, which will allow the grain and hops flavor to come through. This beer will not go into a secondary and will be kegged the week of Oktoberfest, after a 2-3 week fermenation. It will be second tap at the Oktoberfest Kick-Off event. I think the beer will be a nice complement, due to its similar color to the Oktoberfest lager, and the fruity and hoppy flavor will be a contrast to the smooth tasting lager. The beer should taste similar to a pale ale, but with a bit more character.

Kölsch Style brewed, fermented, and now lagering

My cousin and I made a batch of this last year. I really want to nail down a great recipe for this, so I made a few changes this year. I simplified the grain bill and used good German hops. I also made sure to have a large healthy liquid yeast specifically made for this style of beer. I cooled down the wort in my sink with the ice bath and wort chiller, but it required more chilling in the freezer. The yeast was pitched the next morning and it fermented well for a couple weeks. I transferred it and dropped the temperature to 35 for lagering. The beer should be ready to keg and carbonate in the middle of September. It will not likely be at the Oktoberfest Kick-Off event, but it will be available for sampling if people visit the brewery.

Oktoberfest brewed, fermented, and now lagering

This years Oktoberfest lager was brewed back in early June. It fermented in my new (bought it used) temperature controlled freezer. I changed the grain bill a bit, in an effort to get an even more authentic beer. I changed yeasts this year to Whitelabs, after I had a bad batch of Wyeast last year. The yeast last year resulted in a ruined beer, which required me to present my back-up IPA as the beer for my Oktoberfest Kick-Off event. It all worked out, but it made nervous about trying the Wyeast again. The beer was transferred to the secondary and lagered at 35 degrees all summer long. In the past I was not able to get my temperature controlled fridge down to 35, so I am anxious to see how the freezer will improve lagering. I have sampled the beer at different times, and each time it has tasted good. I will keg this beer during the week of Oktoberfest and it will be the main beer at the Oktoberfest Kick-Off event this year.

2009 Beers to Date

Urban Circulator Doppelbock
-I made some changes to my 2008 recipe and let this lager a bit longer. The end result was a much clearer beer, but the flavor fell out a bit. It also got lower scores at the Bockfest contest. This recipe still needs some work.

Joie de Vivre Belgian Pale Ale
-This beer was a relatively simple extract recipe, but the hop additions and the use of a good Belgian yeast produced one of my most popular beers of the year. Based on the taste and the Belgian/French connection I couldn't resist giving it the name "Joy of Living."

Goathead Wheat Weizenbock
-After drinking one of these at Hofbrauhaus last year I knew I had to give it a try. It is basically a hefeweizen, brewed like an ale, with a hefeweizen yeast. However the addition of specialty grains add some color and flavor, getting it closer to a doppelbock. Also, the strength of the beer (around 8%) is closer to a doppelbock. The beer seemed to get better after a couple months in the fridge. It has a lot of flavor and a nice color. I would like for it to have more of a German hefeweizen taste, with more banana and clove.

G.G. Josie's Secret Batch Pre-Prohibition Pilsner
-In honor of my great grandfather Joseph I made my second version of this fine pilsner. Little was changed with the recipe, but due to a better mash/lauter I was able to get more alcohol out this year. Last year due to an inefficient process, I only got 3% alcohol, and this year I got 6%. This beer is popular among a wide group of individuals visiting my brewery, and I think it could easily be ready for production. This an excellent post-lawnmower beer.

Wee Heavy #22 Scotch Ale
-When you find something that works, don't change it! That is how I feel about this beer, I have made it three times and have not changed the recipe. This is my favorite beer. Although this year I had to use White Labs instead of Wyeast for the yeast, so the smoky smell (not flavor) from Wyeast was missing. Otherwise it was a very smooth, sweet tasting, and malty beer which is great as a dessert or with a cigar on a late night.

Wheat-ees Hefeweizen
-This is my third attempt at a hefeweizen, and I made some more changes to the recipe. Unfortunately the store was out of wheat and only had white wheat. The end result was a lighter colored beer with a lighter taste. The beer is also not as cloudy as I like. The beer has a very clean taste, and the banana is apparent. I wish the flavor was a bit stronger, and I would like for the clove to come out in the flavor. This beer is very refreshing on a hot summer day.

LONG DELAY

This poor blog has been neglected, but as most of you know, the brewing has not stopped. In 2008 I made a total of 12-14 beers, depending on how you count. The beers in order were:
1. Urban Circulator (Doppelbock)
2. House Pale Ale
3. Old 49er Steam
4. G.G. Josie's Secret Batch (Pre-Prohibition Pilsner)
5. 200 ML (Kölsch Style)
6. WHEAT-EES (Hefeweizen)
7. Wee Heavy #22 (Scotch Ale)
8. AAA (American Amber Ale)
9. OPA (Oktoberfest India Pale Ale)
10. Ghost of Christmas Present English Barleywine
11. Santa's Oatmeal Cookie Stout
12. Griswold's Yule Log Spiced Christmas Ale

The beers not making the list are the Oktoberfest lager, which had some bad yeast and contamination. It was very unfortunate, but luckily I had an IPA ready, as I knew the Oktoberfest was really iffy. The cider made in the fall was also not a success.

The Christmas beers were a success yet again, and everyone loved the gift packs. It was a good way to end the year and start 2009.