Bottling & Pondering

Tonight I bottled the O Tannenbock Spruce ale. It is here where I appreciate brewing in 1-gallon batches, as I only had to sterilize 5 22-oz bottles.  Clean-up was a breeze as well.

I never took a hydrometer reading, so I don't have a sense for the ABV.  The overall flavor was quite sweet, perhaps due to the 3 oz of maple syrup used to prime the bottles.  The spruce flavor was not apparent. If it's not great, I won't be wasting a large batch!!

Tasting the unfinished beer also made me ponder what Simcoe hops are.  Apparently it is a relatively new (2000) American hop, from the Yakima Chief Ranches of Sunnyside WA.  It has a very distinct aroma of citrus, grapefruit and pine and is likely a good complement to the spruce bough.  It is mostly used as an aroma hop, but due to its low"alpha" acid cohumulone makes this a good bittering hop.  Noble hops tend to have low cohumulone acids.

Beer's Tasted - Old Fisherman's Ale

Found a limited quantity ale from De Struise Brouwers in Belgium, called Pannepot, 2010 vintage.  This quad ale had a rich, dark color and weighed in at about 10% ABV.  With a malty nose, it is brewed with spices and tastes of burnt caramel and raisins with hints of honey and vanilla.  A very good sipping ale that would pair well with sweet appetizers or desserts like creme brulee.  Like many Belgian ales, it is not overly hoppy with its Bramling Cross, Hallaertau MF hops.

Beer Advocate had this to say about De Struise Brouwers..."Set up by two friends and a Brother-in-Law who started brewing beer in a barn at a local farm. Went commercial in 2003, but with no capital the beers were brewed on the Brasserie Caulier Plant. In February 2006, the decision was taken to move production to the Flemish SA Deca Brewery in Woesten-Vleteren (working) parts of which date from 1917. Exports its beers to Canada, Denmark, Italy and the USA with plans for China, India and Australia in the beerline."

Spruce Boch

Thanks to Maureen, and the folks at the Brooklyn Brew Shop, I have a new approach to brewing -- fermenting in 1 gallon batches. The whole premise behind this method is that people who live in cities typically don't have the space for brewing in large, 5-gallon batches. I like this idea for several reasons:

• Fewer bottles to wash out, sanitize, fill and cap
• Less beer on-hand, especially when the batch was not so great or just plain tired of it
• I don't drink enough beer to go through 5-gallons (and most of my friends don't drink)
• Not as much heavy lifting

Of course with all things good, there are a few downsides to this approach:

• Takes the same amount of time and equipment 
• Have to use smaller amounts yeast and hops (I'm hoping to store and freeze these, respectively)

The first 1-gallon batch I'm attempting is from the Brooklyn Brew Shop's Beer Making Book. This book has 52 seasonal recipes organized by Spring/Summer/Autumn/Winter. From the winter section, I decided to brew O Tannenbock Spruce Ale, a dark and piney beer inspired by our fore fathers who were rumored to have brewed with molasses and spruce. This recipe sounds like the perfect winter ale.  I had to forage for the spruce sprig, worrying that our (still hanging) Christmas wreaths might have been treated with some preservative.  I was able to find a sprig at the Presumpscot Elementary school.

The Mash
1 3/4 c water
1.5 lbs pale malt
0.1 lbs carapils malt
0.2 lbs flaked barley

60 minutes @ 152-degrees, sparge with a gallon of water @ 170-degrees.  Recirculate the liquid through the grains once.

Simcoe (L) and Chinook (R)

The Boil
0.12 oz Chinook hops, divided in half
0.04 oz Simcoe hops
1 six-inch long sprig of spruce
1/2 c molasses

Begin the boil.  Once the foam subsides, add half the Chinook hops (I used pellets).  Add remaining after 30 minutes, the Simcoe hops (I used dried flowers) after 50 minutes, and the spruce sprig after 55 minutes.  At the 60 minutes mark, add the molasses and stir to dissolve.  Cool to 70 degrees in an ice bath, about 30 minutes.


Pitch the Yeast
1/2 packet of English ale yeast, Safale S-04

Collaboration with Rob Tod of Allagash, Portland ME

This went into a 2-gallon plastic pail for the primary for a week, and into a 1-gallon glass jug for the secondary.

As I write this, I'm enjoying a Very Speciale Belge.  A collaboration between Rob Tod of Allagash Brewing here in Portland, ME and De La Senne Brewing of Brussels.  This is an excellent Belgian style that is somewhat non-traditional in that it has a fairly high hop rate.  An A+ ale that I highly recommend, although the availability is limited.

Advice for the weekend, provided by my brother Jim. "Don't sweat the petty things, and don't pet the sweaty things."