Home Brewing Recipes

Home Brewing Recipes - Mead

2010-04-03T05:23:00.000-07:00

I am taking the next step in my home brewing adventure to include home brewing mead. Yes, mead. Nectar of the gods. Mead is widely considered to be the ancestor of all fermented drinks.

I like the sound of that, don't you?

Mead has been called honey wine, and honey beer. It can be made to be a sparkling drink, a carbonated drink, or a still drink. I am going to be making the carbonated style. Bottling and carbonating for up to 18 months will work much better for me with my storage capabilities.

So, mead is the next madness. Stay tuned for details.

Home Brew - Cider

2010-03-13T06:37:00.000-08:00

A product that you Home Brew has a certain mystique to it. I have been perfecting a Cider Home Brew for a few months now. I haven't gotten it to where I really want it yet, but it is a delicious Home Brew work in process.

I popped open a couple of bottle last night, taking the first chance to sample the cider after it having been in the bottle for a couple of weeks. I am finding that what I Home Brew tastes better after it has settled for up to 4 weeks of time. Most Home Brew recipes tell you that you can start drinking your beer, or cider after it has been in the bottle for 7-10 days. As I continue to learn the process of Home Brewing I am extending that time out to 2 - 4 weeks. For some reason this gives me a better flavor. I actually have some beer that was Home Brewed last year that I am just drinking now. And, believe it or not, it isn't a big beer either. Just a run of the mill stout.

Regardless.

The cider was wonderful. It was dry, which is what I was going after. And it had a huge alcohol kick, which I was going after also. But it did lack a lot of the apple flavor, and it needed a little more sweetness. I am thinking that when I do this Home Brew again, I am going to increase the amount of sugars in it. This time around I used 1lb of honey, 1lb of brown sugar, and 1lb of molasses. The next batch I Home Brew I will use 2lb of honey, 1lb of brown sugar, and forget the molasses, adding 1lb of milk sugar. That will give me the same amount of fermentables, but more sweetness with the milk sugar as milk sugar is not a fermentable.

What say you, audience?

Partigyle Brewing

2010-02-23T15:59:00.000-08:00

So a friend and I got to talking about Partigyle Brewing a couple of weeks ago and decided that we had to give it a try. Of course we did this over a really good cigar. A Gurkha Black Dragon if I am correct. A beautiful example of a medium-bold style of cigar. It was luscious.

Anyway, back to the brew. A partigyle brew is where you brew a high gravity/alcohol beer, and then do a second, a third, and possibly even a fourth running using the same grains. The gravity/alcohol content will not be the same as you go into the second and further running, but, you will still have some good beer.

We decided to brew a dopple bock. We used 15lbs of grains, and a liquid yeast that we added to a starter. I am going to bottling the second running tomorrow, and using the yeast to make another starter as I move the highest gravity beer into a secondary fermenter.

After I am done with all of that, you have just got to know that I am going to have another good cigar. Maybe a Punch Gran Puro this time.

Home Brewing Recipes - More Cider

2009-12-29T04:44:00.000-08:00

I liked my home brewed cider recipe so much that I thought I would try it again. The taste was good with a nice mixture with the cinnamon and orange zest. The only criticism I have of it was that it was super carbonated.

When I say super carbonated, I mean that if you opened it a little too aggressively it would geyser everywhere leaving you nothing to drink. The same thing would happen if you tried to open it when it was too warm. Not a good thing.

So for this time I am going to pull back on the fermentable sugars, and change up the yeast a bit. So here is the second recipe:

5 gallons of apple cider. This time it will have bee UV pastureized, but with no added preservatives.

1 cup honey
1 lb brown sugar

Cinnamon. I am going to used powdered this time as opposed to sticks.

Orange zest.

Cote du blanc yeast. I am going to use 2 packets in the primary, and then a second when I go to the secondary.

I will let you know how this turns out when it is ready. And that will be in quite awhile, because it is going to sit in the primary for a good 2 weeks, and the same in the secondary. Bottling will take it out to a 6 week process, and hopefully will produce some real fine drinking cider.

Home brewed Bread

2009-12-13T16:40:00.001-08:00

As any Home Brewer knows, Home Brewing Recipes are constantly changing, and being tweaked. We are always looking for that specific taste. Not too hoppy, not to malty. With just the right after taste, and the correct look in the glass. Experimentation is the mistakes are made, and conversely where the victories are.

The question is always what do you do with those mistakes. You could drink them, but sometimes that is not an option. The taste might be off, the beer might be flat, whatever. Throwing the beer away is never an option. And you can only eat so many brats soaked in beer, right? Bread is the next best option. Yes, Beer Bread.

Bread is basically flour, yeast, and water. Beer is basically malted grains, yeast and water. Get the connection? so I started looking for a really good recipe for beer bread. The first couple of experiments were pretty much disasters. The dog liked them, but no one else. My first breads were hard and flat. They didn't raise enough. As a matter of fact they didn't rise at all. consequently they were like beer biscuits. I made phone calls to friends who are chefs, I looked on the internet and I finally came up with what I think is the ultimate Beer Bread Recipe. And here it is:

3 cups all purpose flour

Pince of salt

1/3 cup sugar

can/bottle of beer

package of dry yeast

when the beer is warm, add the yeast and let sit for a good 30 minutes until the yeast is re-hydrated.

mix the dry ingredients.

add the liquids, stir well, cover, and let sit for an hour.

Pre-heat your oven to 325.

bake bread for a good 45 - 60 minutes. Depends on your particular oven.

I will let you know what happens as I keep perfecting this recipe.

L8R

Home Brewed Cider Recipe

2009-11-27T11:08:00.000-08:00

Well, today I bottled the cider now to be known as "The Out Cider". Long story, not worth the talking about.

Here is the recipe that I used:

5 gal unpasturized apple cider. You need to have a cider with no preservatives.

2 cup Orange Blossom honey.
1 cup Maple syrup.

I initially put in 4 cinnamon sticks and added 8 more when I transferred to the secondary. Next time I am going to add 8 right from the start.

mix it all up, and put into your primary with champagne yeast.

This needs to ferment for 2 weeks.

Transfer to the secondary. Here I added 2 tblsps of orange zest.

Let sit in the secondary for 2 more weeks.

Bottle using 2/3 cane sugar and 1 lb of lactose.

You have just made your first Home Brewed Cider.

Making your own Holiday Cider

2009-11-19T15:16:00.000-08:00

I took the leap about a month ago to make a hard cider for our family over the holidays. Right now, it is too late to make for Christmas, but you might be able to squeeze out New Years.

The recipe is this:

5 gals of cider with no preservatives. I used unpasturized, but that is near to impossible to find.

Cinnamon Sticks. I used 3 in the primary fermentor, and put about 8 in the secondary. Next time I will start out with the entire package.

2 cups honey
2 cups maple syrup

dissolve the honey and syrup in 1 gallon of cider.
Add the rest of the cider, the cinnamon sticks, and use a champagne yeast.

let stand for 10-14 days.

Rack to the secondary. Here I added 2 tblsps of orange zest.

Let stand for 10-14 days.

Bottle using 1 lb of lactose, and 2/3 cup of cane sugar dissolved in 2 cups boiling water.

Let condition for 4 weeks.

Enjoy.

Brewing mistake, or is it?

2009-11-12T17:03:00.000-08:00

Today I bottled what should have been a Classic American Amber. Also to be known as Dodd's Brewing American Classic Amber.

But it didn't come out the way I expected. And I know that it is because of the hops that I used, and the fact that I re-used my yeast from my last batch. And not that the beer didn't taste good, it did. But it didn't have the Big Amber taste that I was going for.

We named this batch 'Nectar of the Dodd's". I do so love being the brewer.

Anyway, this batch came out with a lighter taste, a lower alcohol taste, and very little hop at all. I am looking at this batch as a brew my friends who like commercial beers will like.

Neophytes.

Dodd American Classic

2009-10-22T11:01:00.000-07:00

We got to taste the American Amber recipe that we brewed a couple of weeks ago, and bottled last week. And the consensus is that this is a brew that we are going to do on a regular basis and keep in our stable of beers.

It didn't take on the characteristics of the red that we expected, but stayed a really nice beautiful amber color. Hence the name: Dodd American Classic Amber.

Thank you, thank you very much.

Red Batch #2

2009-10-21T05:17:00.000-07:00

Still haven't gotten a name for this brew. Today I am going to change the grain bill around a bit.

10 lbs 2 row
1 lb crystal 60l
1 lb black patent malt

used 2 oz Cascade bittering
1 oz willamette for flavor.

Doughed in at 170 degrees and held at 156 degrees for 90 minutes.

I used the yeast from my first batch of red that I bottled today.

Reusing yeast

2009-10-17T07:14:00.000-07:00

One of the more expensive ingredients of any homebrew is your yeast. I have been reading a lot lately about reusing the yeast that is left over after you rack your beer from the primary.

I have always wondered what I could do with the slurry, or trub that was left over. And even though my worms like it in the compost pile, I always thought that it was a waste to just toss it after just one use.

That all being said, my next brew is going to be a Imperial Stout that I will be using the yeast from what is in my primary right now. I will rack off the the wort, and then pour my stout on top after it has cooled. I will let you know what happens.

L8R

Relax Have a Homebrew

2009-10-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

Did the major oops in that I bottled a batch today that had only been in the primary for a week. I was wanting it to stay for at least one more. Oh well, I am not going to be worrying about it now.

All Grain Red Ale

2009-10-08T08:19:00.000-07:00

This all grain Red Ale can also be known as an American Amber. Here is the recipe:

8lbs 2 row malt
1lb munich malt
1lb caramunich malt.

I doughed in at 165 degrees, with the grains already in the mash tun. This brought my temp right down to 149.7 degrees.

I let it sit for 30 mins, and then added 2 qts 165 degree water again to bring the temp up. I then let it sit for 1 hour.

Collected my wort and set it to boil.

I am using Centennial hops that a friend grew as bittering, and finishing with Willamette.

I will let you know what it tastes like in a few weeks.

L8R

Homebrew Recipes

2009-06-20T08:10:00.001-07:00

What does any homebrewer really need? An idea for a new beer recipe. And that is what I hope to compile here, ideas for new beers.

Homebrewers fall into a couple of categories: extract brewers, and all grain brewers. Extract brewers use either kits, or make up their own recipes using canned malt extract, while all grain brewers produce their own extract. Each category makes some really good beer, and neither is better than the other. Though most extract brewers go to all grain after awhile of brewing because of the control that they have over the beer that they make. I fall into the inbetween category right now, I am an extract brewer who is going to all grain this coming fall when I start brewing again. In the time between now and the fall I will be gathering the tools that I will need to produce my first batch of all grain. I will take pics, and talk to you about my journey, along with figuring out what my first all grain recipe will be.

This should be fun.