Brew 13 - American Lager

My father-in-law only likes lagers like Kirin, Bud, and Sapporo. Last time he was here a year ago my brewing skills were not what they are now, and he didn't enjoy my homebrew very much, although he was polite and drank it.

For a while it looked like he would be coming back this year to visit so I decided to try to brew a Kirin clone.

My only other attempt at a Lager resulted in a bitterness that the owner of the local homebrew shop attributed to tannins from the malt husks. I can't for the life of me figure out how you are supposed to do a decoction mash without getting those tannins, but didn't want to repeat the experience and did a more basic step mash.

I didn't exactly want a Kirin beer, I like it well enough, but I prefer a Helles or all-malt lager like a Grolsch, so I reduced the 1.5 lbs of rice called for in the recipe to 1 lb and added some bitterness.

Well, the beer is now almost 2 months old and it is a bit sweeter than i like but not too bad. It turns out that my father-in-law won't be coming for a visit, but that is ok, at least I will enjoy it, and as the heat builds it is a good time to have a lighter beer on tap.

Final gravity is high at 1.014 instead of a targetted 1.010.

The process follows; it is the last brew I will do with my keg mash tun, I converted to a 10 gallon cooler and I like it a lot more.

Mash Strategy

Dough in at 150, observe drop to 130 wait 20 min.
Add soupy Rice
mash 135 to 145 for 45 min
Decoction to 150 to 155 for 20 min
Decoction to 160 wait 10-20 min
Start Sparge

12:56 PM 3/28/2009 water @ 150, ph = >6.2
12:59 PM 3/28/2009 Added 8 lbs of grist, mash at 142,
1:02 PM 3/28/2009 added 2 qts cold water, mash at 135
1:17 PM 3/28/2009 1 lb of Rice added, mash at 130
1:21 PM 3/28/2009 Sparge water is distilled, ph < 4.6
1:34 PM 3/28/2009 1 gal Decoction @160 added mash raised to 135
1:40 PM 3/28/2009 1 gal Decoction @170 added mash raised to 140
1:52 PM 3/28/2009 1.25 gal Decoction @180 added mash raised to 145
2:07 PM 3/28/2009 Mash ph = 5.4
2:07 PM 3/28/2009 Temp check: 140
2:25 PM 3/28/2009 1.25 gal Decoction @212 added mash raised to 150
2:32 PM 3/28/2009 1 gal decoction @212 added mash raised to 155
2:53 PM 3/28/2009 1 gal decoction @212 added mash raised to 158
2:50 PM 3/28/2009 started heading sparge water
3:03 PM 3/28/2009 Started Sparge
3:16 PM 3/28/2009 2.5 gal
3:33 PM 3/28/2009 7.75 gal, started boil

3:56 PM 3/28/2009 60 min hops added
4:46 PM 3/28/2009 10 min hops added w Irish moss

4:50 PM 3/28/2009 wort chiller inserted
4:56 PM 3/28/2009 Flamout, hops added
5:08 PM 3/28/2009 Wort chilled to 75

Brew 8 - Pilsner

It has been a couple weeks since brewing a czech-style pilsner, and the beer is fermenting comfortably at 52deg (F) in my chest freezer.

This was another brew that I am very thankful I had brewing software for. I have several recipes for Pilsner, and this one was very basic using primarily 2-row instead of imported malt, but I thought the hops looked low.

I loaded the recipe into Beer Tools and saw that the bitterness was about 30% lower than the range for the style, so I boosted them up to be within the range. Here is the recipe:

Here are my brewing notes:

5:54 PM 8/22/2008 Burner started under Mash/Lauter Tun

Strategy: Mash in at 140(F), observe drop to 128
Recirc/Heat to 145(F)
Single Decoction to 150 (F)
Recirc/Heat until 160(F)

5:59 PM 8/22/2008 Temp = 158, replace water and recirc.
6:10 PM 8/22/2008 Dough in @ 141
6:14 PM 8/22/2008 Temp = 132
6:34 PM 8/22/2008 3 recirc. @ 1 qt ea + dir heat - Temp ~ 145
6:35 PM 8/22/2008 Start 1st Decoction
6:51 PM 8/22/2008 Decoction ph = 5.0, mash ph = 5.4
6:51 PM 8/22/2008 Mash temp = 145
6:59 PM 8/22/2008 recirc. + return decoction + direct heat
7:00 PM 8/22/2008 temp @ 150
7:04 PM 8/22/2008 2nd decoction
7:13 PM 8/22/2008 temp uneven 152 - 160
7:24 PM 8/22/2008 end 2nd decocotation
7:26 PM 8/22/2008 Direct heat + recirc.
7:32 PM 8/22/2008 temp @155
7:35 PM 8/22/2008 Starting sparge water heat - 6 gallons
8:05 PM 8/22/2008 Water at 180
8:11 PM 8/22/2008 Started Sparging, 1st runnings at ?? (hydrometer is broken)
8:40 PM 8/22/2008 Started boil
9:15 PM 8/22/2008 2.5 oz of Saaz hops
10:00 PM 8/22/2008 Added Irish Moss
10:05 PM 8/22/2008 put immersion chiller in
10:12 PM 8/22/2008 added .5 oz of Saaz hops
10:17 PM 8/22/2008 stopped boil, started chill
10:24 PM 8/22/2008 temp = 130
10:58 PM 8/22/2008 finished cleanup, beer in primary at 75 degrees, temp controller set at 70 degrees.

The mash tun spout was positioned over a 6 qt enamel pot with a burner under it, and when recirculating I would heat the wort up to 160 and then pour it over the grain bed.

When applying direct heat, I would also draw the bottom fluid off so it didn't heat up too much, the fluid was coming out at around 160, and then pour it over the grain bed.

My decoctions must have been too small since the temperature rise was a lot lower then I expected.

The next morning I purchased a new hydrometer and took a gravity reading, it was 1.050, I have no idea what the original gravity was. 1.050? 1.052? the target was 156 so it came in lower than expected.

I pitched from a 750cc starter and the primary started to ferment almost exactly 24 hours after pitching, 36 hours after pitching I dropped the temp to 60(F), 48 hours after I dropped to 55(f) and then to 50(f) where it bubbled away.

After 10 days, I transfered to secondary then slowly raised the temp. to 63(f) for 2 days (diacetl rest), then 1-2 degrees per day, I lowered the temp to 38(f) where it has been for 2 weeks now.  I used a 5 gallon corny keg for secondary, it is a very nice fermentation vessel for secondary fermentation and I plan to use them from now on.

The beer was very clear, somewhat thin and a little bitter when I tasted it during racking, we will see how it ends up after lagering is complete.  I purchased some Malto Dextrose so I can add a little body if needed.

Tasting: Hinano Tahiti

I generally prefer ales or heavier lagers like winterbier or dopplebocks, but those don't really go very well with Asian food, and we eat a lot of that. Our old standby with Asian food has always been Kirin, but I have been looking for something else. I really liked the Hite Max I tasted a few months ago, but when I spotted the Hinano Tahiti beer I had to try it.

Tasting: Chilled to ~35 degrees (f) from a pilsner glass.

Appearance: 3/3 Very light, crystal clear with tiny bubbles that continue to rise long after the pour.
Head: 3/3 Thick but light head with nice lacing down the glass.
Aroma: 2/3 Malt with subtle hops..
Flavor: 3/3 nice light malty flavor with subtle hop finish.
Mouth feel: 3/3 Very smooth medium body with light carbonation and pleasant aftertaste of malt.
Overall: 2/3 A good beer, light but not watery, well balanced and tasty, I think I will have a side-by-side tasting once I have a few more good lagers I have found.
Buzz: 1/3 Mild buzz after 1.5 glasses.

Tasting: Ayinger Altbairisch Dunkel

I picked this beer up last week since I wanted to try more lager varieties. I had this during the superbowl, so I didn't take time to photograph the beer in a glass.

Tasting: Chilled to ~50 degrees (f) from a pint glass.

Appearance: 3/3 beautiful deep red/brown color, clear.
Head: 3/3 fluffy, light head that lasts for the whole glass.
Aroma: 3/3 Pleasant toasted malt aroma.
Flavor: 3/3 Rich, slightly sweet toasted malt,.
Mouth feel: 3/3 Medium carbonation, medium body, smooth, aftertaste is a mildly sweet, faintly nutty.
Overall: 3/3 Very pleasant dark lager, a toasted Oktoberfest.
Buzz: 3/3 Mild buzz after 1 glass.

Another Munich-style lager that tastes great. Munich is on the list for a future trip to Europe!

Tasting: Prime Max (by Hite)

I picked this up in a Korean grocery store in Orange County. It is brewed by Hite and imported from Korea. The label caught my eye with "all malt and fine cascade hops"

Tasting: Chilled to 40~50 degrees (f) from a pint glass (I should have chilled it more).

Appearance: 3/3 crystal clear light lager color.
Head: 2/3 Small head disappears quickly.
Aroma: 2/3 Very light malt, no discernible hops.
Flavor: 3/3 Very balanced lager, great taste.
Mouth feel: 3/3 medium bodied, light fizz, slight malt lingers.
Overall: 2/3 a good lager for the price ($1.99/22oz), a great session beer.
Buzz: 1/3 slight buzz after 2 glasses.

I was really impressed by this beer. It delivered on the label although I expected a bit more hops in the aroma, it was a solid beer.

Tasting: Orion Premium Draft Beer

One of our friends is from Okinawa and they brought a local beer for us on New Years. Orion is "the" local beer of Okinawa, and is imported (as opposed to being brewed in the US like Kirin).

Tasting: From a small 5oz glass typical of Asian Restaurants.
Appearance: 1/3 VERY light color.
Aroma: 1/3 Very light malt, no discernible hops.
Flavor: 1/3 I don't know whether this should be classified as a light beer, but it tasted very light.
Mouthfeel: 2/3 Smooth, light mouthfeel
Aftertaste: 2/3 Light fiz, then a light malt finish that lingers.
Overall: 1.5/3 Better than the big 3 US lagers, but not great. I would not be surprised to find there are high concentrations of rice or corn extract.

Tasting: Kirin Light

Last night my friend Jack and I had sushi and the only beer they had on offer that I hadn't had yet was Kirin Light. Kirin is brewed "under the supervision of" their brew masters by Anheuser Bush in Los Angeles.

Tasting: From a small 5oz glass typical of Asian Restaurants.

Appearance: 3/3 light coloring appropriate of a light lager.
Aroma: 1/3 Nothing special.
Flavor: 2/3 This beer reminded me of Miller Light (which is not bad for a light beer, but not great).
Mouth feel: 2/3 Very carbonated.
Overall: 2/3 A decent light beer.
Buzz: 1/3 None whatsoever after two 12oz bottles.

Tasting: Spaten Munich Octoberfest

I have noticed that not many American Craft brewers brew lagers, they are more difficult, take longer, and there is lots of big-brand competition could be some of the reasons, I am not sure. I think that it may be an opportunity for our brewery (should we ever get that far), so I was interested to try a good Octoberfest beer.

I went down to my local BevMo and took a look around. I found several good beers including Spaten Munich's Oktoberfest. What a great beer, I am trying to figure out how to taste and log beers I try and found this guide to tasting beer online from: RateBeer.com. I added a bit to it, and simplified it.

Tasting: Enjoyed (after initial tasting) with some great potatoes pan fried with Ham; worthy of an Octoberfest feast.

Appearance: 3/3 Honey rich color, with rich light head.
Aroma: 2/3 Light Malty Aroma, very light hops, I gave it a 2 because there was nothing notable, it is good though.
Flavor: 3/3 Rich malt, light hops.
Mouthfeel: 3/3 Smooth, rich mouthfeel, light carbonation
Aftertaste: 3/3 Light fiz, then a pleasant malt that fades quickly for a clean finish.
Overall: 3/3 An amazing beer, my favorite lager so far.
Buzz: 2/3 good buzz after 1.5 12 oz bottles.

This was an amazing lager, I think I will try an Oktoberfest as my second all-grain brew.