568. Jackie O’s Berliner Weisse

I brought a growler of this home from Athens for Jeff Fortney, since it wasn’t available on tap until Monday. As I was being tormented via Elli by long and arduous mountain bike rides on Sunday and Monday, the daily visit to Jackie O’s made all things better. Previous visions of delight include Brad Clark’s Raspberry Berliner Weisse,  Bourbon Barrel Smoked & Portered, OPA, and Bourbon Barrel Aged Impy Razz. There’ve been others, but we’ve kept them a secret. We’re like that.

Jackie O’s Berliner Weisse pours a hazy bright straw with a thin white head that quickly disappears; when we had it on tap at Jackie O’s, the white head was mousse-y and hung around enough to lace the glass, but here it is a ghost-like presence. The nose is bright lemon zest and pith with a delicious lactic piquancy underneath—there is more lemon than lactic in the nose, while the flavors in the beer are the exact opposite, with more lactic than lemon. Flavors open with a touch of lemon in the front before giving way to a bright lactic vitamin C tablet twang in the middle. There is a touch of wheat gumminess 

on tap at Jackie O’s

on the tongue, and a touch of chewy yeastiness, but the beer finishes bright and clean with lingering tartness. The body is thin while the carbonation is a bit low; again, it was brighter on the palate on tap, but the clean lactic tartness more than makes up for it here. This is how a Berliner Weisse should taste; while it is not as delightful as last year’s Raspberry Berliner Weisse, it is a damn fine beer. I could drink this beer all day long; it leaves small rosettes of sweat on my cheeks and is a delight to drink. 

Tart cherries!

I’m glad we scored a growler to take home!  

We also tried mashing some tart cherries in with the beer to see how it tasted since we missed the Raspberry Berliner Weisse so much. It was good, but not as good as either the original Berliner Weisse or the Raspberry Berliner Weisse—somehow, the tartness of the cherries canceled out the lactic sourness of the beer. Thus, flavors were good, but less dynamic. Oh well. Still, a fun experiment. We also wondered why Jackie O’s didn’t offer any syrups along with the Berliner Weisse when we had it on tap—I know they have in the past.But again, not much to be done about it now. Oh well, part II.

From the description in the picture above: “Tart & funky wheat beer.”

ABV: 5.0%

(6/28/2013)

Brett Has Been Brewday

Again with the Brett beers. Bigger pitches have improved the overall flavors of the first two second round beers of the Great Brett Yeast Experiment—the custersianus is tart and citrus, while the claussenii features earthiness and some game-y barnyard—an interesting inverse when compared to Saccharomyces, which tends to produce more flavors when stressed by lower overall cell counts. But Brett has to be different. Just like someone else I know. Oh well.

148. Brett Has Been
Mash:
4 lbs. MFB Special Aromatic
4 lbs. Weyermann Pilsen
2 lbs. Breiss White Wheat
1 lb. Acidulated Malt
½ lb. steel cut oats

Mash @ 150° F for 90 minutes w/ 4 gallons RO water & 2 g. gypsum; collected 2 ¾ gallons @ 1.080
Batch sparge @ 166° F for 20 minutes w/ 4 gallons RO water & 2 g. gypsum; collected 4 gallons @ 1.024

Collected 6 ¾ gallons; added ¾ gallon RO water, brought to a boil (60 minutes), & added:
w/60 to go: 1 ½ Magnum pellet 10% AA

w/10 to go: 1 oz. Mt. Hood pellets 5.2% AA
.9 oz. Magnum pellets 10.0% AA

Let stand for 30 minutes, chilled, split batch into two 6 gallon carboys, and pitched:
148a. yeast from 141a. ECY19 Brettanomyces custersianus
Brewed: 6/28/2013
Secondary w/ fruit: 7/26/13 @ 1.002; added 5 lbs. of  sour cherries
Tertiary:
Bottled:

OG: 1.048
FG:

148b. yeast from 141b. WLP645 Brettanomyces claussenii
Brewed: 6/28/2013
Secondary w/ fruit: 7/26/13 @ 1.004; added 4 lbs. of Integration Acres pureed paw paws
Tertiary:
Bottled:

OG: 1.048
FG:

148c. collected the remaining ½ gallon between 141a. & 141b.
Secondary w/ fruit: 7/26/13; added 1 0z. frozen wild grapes, 1 0z. frozen mulberries, and ¾ oz. fresh elderberries
Bottled:

FG:

Tasting Notes:

Ohio Brew Week Beer Judging 2013

Ohio Brew Week is back, which means it was time to pack the van and head to Athens to judge some beer. In addition to the usual cast of miscreants (i.e. Jeff and Jeffrey), we added two other members to our indubitable squad, Mike Nereng and Jon Vanderglas (of last year’s Vander-dance fame). I guess they thought the van ride would add to the mystique of the weekend.

Friday night began where all things should begin: Jackie O’s. The best commercial beer of the weekend was Jackie O’s Hop Rye-Mosa, which was the Hop Ryot spiked with orange and grapefruit juice & zest. It was magical. After dinner, we decided to hit the town to sample some other wares. We found some Indigo Imp at the appropriately named Broney’s. I got the Firebrand, a Belgian IPA, and Jeffrey got Jester, the Pale Ale. Mine was better, but both of us lost. You think that after a couple of years they could clean up some of the fermentation issues, but I guess not. Afterwards, we rolled to the J Bar, where we saw the biggest human being any of us had ever seen in our life. He looked like he could pick up and snap NFL players like twigs. (A side note: we did spend the rest of the weekend looking for Gigantor, but we never saw him again. Sad.) Anyway, I couldn’t stomach the chemical peanut butter smell of Listermann’s Peanut Butter Porter with Jelly, so I had the Jungle Honey Pale Ale. After these couple of beers, we voted unanimously to return to Jackie O’s to close out the evening. Which we did.

Saturday morning came, as it is wont to do, and with it came our beer judging responsibilities. I was on 12. Porters in the morning, which was an easy albeit unexciting flight with fourteen beers and two sets of judges—we rolled right through them and moved on to lunch. In the afternoon, I was paired with Jeff Fortney for Belgian Pale Ales and Saisons, which was a pleasant and delicious flight, especially since we got all of the good beers. Another fourteen beer flight with two sets of judges. I may have been a bit too harsh on Matt Aerni’s saison, but since it won the flight, I’m guessing he’ll forgive me.

This year’s “Worst In Show” sampling was cut short by an invite to the craziest beer tasting I have ever attended, easily topping the previous Dark Lord vertical sampling that held the title. We all got to sample something like twenty New Glarus beers that most of us never even knew existed, and for many of them there were multiple vintages to try. It was, put bluntly, an embarrassment of riches from which we all supped. We hung around so long we missed the free dinner and the awards ceremony, but it was totally worth it watching the habanero salsa almost kill Vanderglas. My beers did not fare as well this year as last: Charnel House Quad got second, even with another year of aging on it!

Jeffrey is a winner!

And my American Wild Ale did not even place. Jeffrey’s English Barleywine, Kittens on Ice, however, won the flight and got 3rd in BOS judging.

The rest of the evening was a bit more sedate than last year: Jackie O’s for dinner, followed by more beer samplings at other establishments, including Tyranny IPA by Lagerheads Brewing at the Red Brick Sports Pub and Cosmic IPA by Willoughby Brewing at Pigskin. Cosmic IPA was very well done, and I look forward to trying more from Willoughby; even so, we ended up back at Jackie O’s to close out the night once again. 

Sunday morning we had brunch and spicy bloody maries at Casa Nueva; Jennifer Hermann from Market Garden Brewery joined us for breakfast, while Jason Brewer from Listermann Brewing joined us for drinks. And then the mountain biking began...

[Update: I would be remiss if I didn’t point out the ping pong played at Pigskin. Watching people dodge the errant ping pong ball was both awesome and hilarious, and chasing the ball across the floor of a crowded bar was equally amusing!]

(6/22/2013)

567. White Birch Berliner Weisse

White Birch Brewing is located in Hooksett, New Hampshire, which makes it our first non-Smuttynose beer from New Hampshire. Crazy, hmmm? Always breaking new ground. That work as this week’s rationalization?

This German-style sour wheat beer pours a cloudy dull gold; there is a thin white head that quickly reduces to a ring, although it is a consistent ring. The nose is a mix of gummy wheat with a touch of fruitiness and vitamin C tablet followed by that unsettling and yet beguiling musty garbage smell I associate with Lactobacillus. Flavors open tart with fresh bread dough in the front; the middle brightens and lightens with a blooming citric tang and bite—the beer opens considerably on the tongue from front to back—while the finish is clean with a touch of apple. The body is both bright with some slight gumminess—the combination of malt, Lactobacillus, and carbonation gives the beer a lively turbid yeastiness that is quite enjoyable. Solid overall as a Berliner Weisse; I would like it a bit more effervescent, but that’s splitting hairs. They do get the sourness right, which is saying something for the style!

From the bottle: “At White Birch Brewing, our goal is to create great beer for the enthusiast. Each batch is brewed and bottled by hand at our brewery in Hooksett, New Hampshire.

Napoleon’s troops referred to Berliner Weisse as the ‘Champagne of the North’ due to its lively and elegant character. Today this style is described by some as the most refreshing beer in the world. Our approach was to brew this beer with Lactobacillus for an authentic interpretation of a classic summer refresher.

Crafted in small quantities to be savored for any occasion. We hope you enjoy this unique beer.”

ABV: 5.5%
Bottled: Summer 2013

(6/17/2013)

Rockit Cup American Weissbier Brewday

So no time like the present to get started on the new Rockit Cup, specifically since I plan on making at least a couple different versions. I’ll hold out on laying claim to any more yeast varieties until I am ready to brew the next one, however—I’m all about giving others a chance to choose. Can you feel the kindness, my friends? Plus, with all the yeasts options available, it ain’t like we’re gonna run out.

149. Rockit Cup American Weissbier with WLP510 Bastogne
Mash:
5 lbs. Breiss 6-row
3 lbs. Breiss Flaked Maize
2 lbs. Breiss White Wheat

Mash @ 152° F for 60 minutes w/ 3 gallons of RO water & 2 g. gypsum; collected almost 2 gallons @ 1.076
Batch sparge @ 166° F for 20 minutes w/ 4 gallons RO water & 2 g. gypsum; collected 4 gallons @ 1.032

Added ¾ gallon to bring to 6 ¾ gallons; brought to a boil (60 minutes) & added:
w/60 to go: 1 oz. Cluster leaf 7.6% AA

Chilled, racked to carboy, and pitched WLP510 Bastogne

Brewed: 6/16/2013 @ 66° F; slow rise to 72° F over first 48 hours
Secondary: 7/6/2013 @ 1.006
Bottled: 7/20/2013 w/ 3.5 oz. table sugar

OG: 1.048
FG: 1.006

Tasting Notes (12/12/2013): You’ll need to forgive the tardiness of these notes—I’ve been brewing enough that a few beers have fallen by the wayside. This is the third of four beers I made with 30% corn, and this one—via the yeast—is probably the most surreptitious of the lot. It pours a slightly hazy dull straw with a thin white head—it looks a lot like a lager, although that impression ends once you smell it, as the nose is quite Belgian. A subtle Belgian, but Belgian nonetheless. The nose is slightly phenolic mixed with fruit and floral—I get pear and apple, along with perfume-y bread crust and flowers. Oh, and a touch of creaminess behind the other aromas. Flavors start with bread dough, hints of bread crust, and sweetness; the apple and pear appear soon after, so it is a bit like a morning pastry, albeit in a good way. The middle has a bit of roughness to it via the Cluster—there is a bit of gritty, grainy bitterness that mixes with the sweetness and slight gumminess in the middle. There is a slight phenolic bite in the final third, although the body hides it a bit; while dry, there is some residual sweetness in the finish. The finish is a bit rough and rustic—I get some mineral grit and graininess, and more of the rough hop bitterness. While the carbonation is bright, the malt body still makes itself felt on the tongue. Even with the unevenness, this is a drinkable and enjoyable beer. I like the Belgian yeast character mixed with the American grain bill, and it certainly has a rustic feel to it, although not quite into the realm of farmhouse beers. This beer is further confirmation that corn is worthy of more experimentation next year, although I might still like the version made with Wyeast 1056 the best.

Rockit Cup Rye Pale Ale Recap

So after last month, I believed that things couldn’t get nuttier. Wrong. Way wrong. Super duper wrong. Thirteen different beers and brewers this time, including several newbies. Welcome to the family, kids. 

Our winner! Picture gleefully
stolen from here.

All told, our lucky thirteen brewing the Rockit Cup Rye Pale Ale included myself, Jeff Fortney, Brian Gallow, Jon Vanderglas, Travis Lewis, Wes Davis, Matt Young, John Hoke, Chris Bauman, Jeff Schell, Gus Stathes, Todd Clingman, and Tony (sorry, Tony, I don’t remember your last name). As with the Rockit Cup Single Hop IPA, a lot of palate confusion and difficulty ascertaining the subtle differences, even more so since all of these beers were intended to be the same thing. Since we needed to simplify, everyone ranked the their Top 5, with the results being: 

1st: Brian Gallow
2nd: Gus Stathes
3rd: Jeff Schell

Brian was the clear winner—of the twelve people judging, he got eleven Top 5 votes. Who missed out on that one? Way to go, Darren. As for how I voted, I had Brian in first, but I had kicked out Gus’s beer in getting down to my Top 5—Gus’s version had a fantastic nose, but the body was less distinct with none of the rye spiciness and much less hop flavor in comparison to the other versions. Instead, I had Jeff Fortney’s beer in 2nd (he ended up tied for 4th) and Jon Vanderglas’s beer in 3rd (he ended up tied for 4th). I had Jeff Schell in 6th—his was the last beer out to get down to the final five. And how did my beer fare? To quote my own blind tasting notes, it was “flabby, thin body, slightly gummy, doughy, and under-carbonated.” So you can see how much I loved it. For me, it was one of the first beers off the table. In my defense, it had only been in the bottle a week—yes, I bottle condition everything—and I had ridden my bike to the meeting that night. But those are just excuses, which have no place in the Rockit Cup. I was in 8th. Take that, Tom.

Thanks to all that participated! August’s Rockit Cup is a Choose Your Own Yeast American Weissbier, with details posted here. Get brewing!

(6/15/2013)

August Rockit Cup: Choose Your Own Yeast American Weissbier

This is another single-variable Rockit Cup extravaganza, with yeast being that variable. As to the recipe, it is based on a historical recipe I found here; I’ve already brewed one version with another on the way, and I think it well worth experimenting with different yeasts to explore the possibilities to be found in corn. I told Jeff Alworth (of Beervana fame) that I would pass along bottles from those of you who are interested in participating.

August Rockit Cup: Choose Your Own Yeast American Weissbier
OG: 1.049 @ 70%
FG: 1.012
IBU: 31.4
Color: 2.8 SRM
ABV: 4.9 %
(I calculated using WLP 300 Hefeweizen, so FG numbers will vary)

5 lbs. Breiss 6-row
3 lbs. Breiss Flaked Maize
2 lbs. Breiss White Wheat

Mash @ 152° F for 60 minutes [Update: if the fluid in the mash tun isn’t clear after 60, feel free to extend the mash to get full conversion; my more recent version required an extra 15 minutes]

60 minute boil

1 oz. Cluster @ 60

Choose your own yeast adventure

Ferment @ 68.0° F

Carbonate to 2.0 volumes

Here’s to corn!