Brew 21 - Gardener's Gloves (Back by Popular Demand!)

Brew 21 - Gardener's Gloves (Back by Popular Demand!)

Brew Day: 30/06/2021

Bottle Day: 14/07/2021


The last batch was a real win. Much loved by all who tried it and I quickly ran out of beer. I really enjoyed making this beer and the refinement of the original recipe really gave it an edge.

I've recently upgraded my brew kit again and a new digital boiler means I can truly brew in a single vessel. This is a bit of a trial of the new kit so using a tried and tested recipe makes sense to me. I've not brewed in a while either so I'm hoping I'm not too rusty.

I start the mash with 23 litres of strike water, 1/2 campden tablet and 2tsp of Burton crystals. I set the boiler to 65 deg C and let it hit temperature. This doesn't take long at all. In goes the malt bill inside its bag and a 90min mash begins. 

I notice that the boiler fluctuates in temperature, perhaps a little too much malt, but I'm able to stir the mix well and keep temperature as consistent as possible throughout the boiler. 60 mins in and I have a realisation that the oats aren't in the bag! I quickly add them in, hoping that a 30min mash is better than not adding them.

At 90mins, I add 5 litres of extra water and bring the temperature up to 73 deg C where it sits for 15mins. Pre boil gravity comes out at 1.040 - not great but onto the boil.

The boiler coped really well with the boil and a strong rolling boil was achieved fairly quickly. 60min boil with following additions:

  • 4g Northern Brewer @ 60mins
  • 25g Simcoe and 25g Amarillo @ 30mins
  • 1/2 Protafloc tab @ 15mins

I run the wort out of the boiler at 0mins and then add: 

  • 25g Mosaic, 35g Citra, 10g Simcoe and 10g Amarillo @ 0mins with whirlpool
I use ice to cool the wort but it is quite hot today (ambient temp). Post boil gravity is up to 1.044. I end up adding the yeast the following morning once the wort is closer to 20 deg C.

Dry hop is added on day 4 (04/07/2021) to include: 

  • 88g of Grapefruit peel
  • 80g of Orange peel 
  • 40g each of Citra, Amarillo and Simcoe
Bottling day arrives 2 weeks later and the brew is smelling incredible. The extra Grapefruit and Orange has clearly had and effect. 

I want this beer to be well carbed. 128g of table sugar added to 400ml and then into the bottling barrel. I managed to lift the vast majority of the brew away from the sediment and then began bottling. All very uneventful thankfully. 16 litres out of this one, so more beer at a lower ABV. 



This batch went down very well and the new brew kettle offered me a quicker brew day which is win-win. I lined up this brew with the previous batch, in a blind taste test, you could tell a difference. The previous batch had a stronger ABV and the boozyness was evident. However the newer batch was definitely fresher and the additional orange and grapefruit zest provided this brew with a real kick. On the whole, I think it would be worth toning down the citrus but sticking with this level ABV, making the beer a lot more sessionable. The bottles I gave out were very well received and this beer will definitely make an appearance again before long. Beer score: 4.5/5.

Notes

Malts: Crisp Extra Pale Malt, Crisp Cara Malt. 
Hops: Northern Brewer, Simcoe, Amarillo, Mosaic, Citra.
Adjuncts: Grapefruit Zest (88g) and Orange Zest (80g) - added with dry hop on day 4.  
Yeast: Fermentis Safale US-05 Yeast (Dried yeast)
Original gravity = 1.044
Gravity on 04/07/21 = 1.010
Final Gravity = 1.008
ABV = 4.7%
Batch size: 35 bottles (6x330ml, 1x660ml and 28x500ml) = 16.6 litres




 

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