Next Batch: Nut House Brown Ale

[gitano]

Cooking along smartly this morning. One of the things this recipe doesn't specify is the Original Gravity (OG). I set this batch to 1.060, and I expect it to finish (FG) at about 1.015-ish, making the ABV (alcohol by volume) about 6%-ish. However, this is supposed to make "5 gal". I have made several of these, both 'kit' and 'a la carte', and NONE of them have made 5 gallons! NONE. This one is barely 4. That's a TWENTY percent 'error'. How about going to the gas station and paying for 5 gallons of gas, and getting 4... I could make the volume 5 gallons, but I would have to add water. (In this case, almost a gallon.) Doing so, lowers the OG significantly, and therefore, also the ABV. It's unlikely I could get 4% ABV if I had added the necessary water to make 5 gallons. :frown



I haven't made this recipe before, so I'm hoping it turns out tasty. I'm sure it will be "ok", but I'd like it to be GREAT! We'll see.

News at ll.

 Paul

[Jamie.270]

Looks like it could be tasty.


 Actually tho, I'm still wondering how this came out in the end,...


 http://www.thehunterslife.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20653

"My birthday is coming up next month, so I'll crack a bottle on my birthday and let you know the verdict.

Paul

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[gitano]

Glad you asked!

First: It tasted "good", but not as good as the first batch.

Second: I put it 'out of sight', which means I forgot about it, until I was going through my brewing refer a few weeks ago. Which makes it approximately 16 months old. Hmm... Most of the Grolsch bottles' washers had failed, and so were flat. However, I had been intending to set up a "Corny Keg" system for dispensing beer, AND, carbonating. Keeping the story short, I got a couple of Cornelius kegs, a bottle of CO2, and associated hardware. I dumped the birch beer in one of the kegs and charged it with CO2. After a few days, the beer was carbonated.

I wasn't better than it was a year ago, but it wasn't worse either.

I THINK the reason for this batch not being quite as good as the last, is because I may have "overheated" the sap when I was boiling it down. It has 'that' taste just a little.

The bottom line is that it is unlikely that I will make any more birch beer. It's good, but it's just too labor-intensive. I don't think you should have to work that hard for your beer.


Paul

[sakorick]

Eric wants to fly to AK!