American Wheat Redux

It's been awhile since I last updated, took a much needed vacation to Mexico AKA land of the Mexican Light Lager. It's good to be back in a country who's climate support a wide variety of beer styles. Came home to find Maibock, American Wheat(American Heffer) and a IIPA ready for consumption. So it is definitely great to be home.

American Wheat has been one of my favorite styles as long as I can remember. Boulevard Wheat being the standard "Micro Brew" where I grew up, then moving out to Chicago where Gumball Head takes the style to new heights. I have a standard German Hef recipe that I am quite fond of. Last month I tried to convert it over to an American Wheat with some success. Aiming for the hoppiness and body of Three Floyd's Gumball Head, I was right where I needed to be for Bitterness and Aroma. Fell flat in the flavor additions. Body was nice and light but I felt it could use a slight lift in the sweetness. Two recipe's below have a slightly beefed up grain bill, the first recipe has a shifted hop bill, second has an all together new hop bill.

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American Heffer 2.0

VOL: 5.5 Gal

OG: 1.052
PG: 1.042
FG: 1.013

ABV: 5.2 %
IBU: 40
COLOR: 5.9 SRM

Mash at 154F 60 minutes. Boil 90 minutes.

German Wheat Malt 5lb 0oz 43.5 % 1.4
US 2-Row Malt 4lb 0oz 34.8 % 1.3
US Carapils Malt 1lb 0oz 8.7 % 0.2
US Rice Hulls 8.00 oz 4.3 % 0.0
US Caramel 40L Malt 8.00 oz 4.3 % 3.6
US Caramel 10L Malt 8.00 oz 4.3 % 0.9

US Magnum 14.4 % 0.25 oz 17.2 Loose Pellet Hops 90 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.7 % 0.50 oz 10.0 Loose Pellet Hops 20 Min From End
US Cascade 6.0 % 0.50 oz 4.7 Loose Pellet Hops 20 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.7 % 0.50 oz 5.4 Loose Pellet Hops 5 Min From End
US Cascade 6.0 % 0.50 oz 2.6 Loose Pellet Hops 5 Min From End
US Amarillo 5.0 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Loose Pellet Hops In Hop-Back
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Loose Pellet Hops Dry-Hopped
US Cascade 6.0 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Loose Pellet Hops Dry-Hopped
US Amarillo 5.0 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Loose Pellet Hops Dry-Hopped
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American Heffer 2.1

VOL: 5.5 Gal

OG: 1.052
PG: 1.042
FG: 1.013

ABV: 5.2 %
IBU: 74
COLOR: 5.9 SRM

Mash at 154F 60 minutes. Boil 90 minutes.

German Wheat Malt 5lb 0oz 43.5 % 1.4
US 2-Row Malt 4lb 0oz 34.8 % 1.3
US Carapils Malt 1lb 0oz 8.7 % 0.2
US Rice Hulls 8.00 oz 4.3 % 0.0
US Caramel 40L Malt 8.00 oz 4.3 % 3.6
US Caramel 10L Malt 8.00 oz 4.3 % 0.9

US Summit 18.0 % 0.33 oz 25.8 Bagged Pellet Hops FWH
US Cascade 4.5 % 0.33 oz 6.5 Bagged Pellet Hops FWH
US Summit 18.0 % 0.25 oz 21.5 Loose Pellet Hops 90 Min From End
US Summit 18.0 % 0.34 oz 9.6 Loose Pellet Hops 20 Min From End
US Cascade 6.0 % 0.34 oz 3.2 Loose Pellet Hops 20 Min From End
US Summit 18.0 % 0.34 oz 5.2 Loose Pellet Hops 5 Min From End
US Cascade 6.0 % 0.34 oz 1.7 Loose Pellet Hops 5 Min From End
US Amarillo 5.0 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Bagged Pellet Hops In Hop-Back
US Summit 18.0 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Bagged Pellet Hops Dry-Hopped
US Cascade 4.5 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Bagged Pellet Hops Dry-Hopped
US Amarillo 5.0 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Bagged Pellet Hops Dry-Hopped
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Bridges Russian Imperial Stout

What follows is the prototype for this year's Bridges Holiday Beer. Making a BIG 10% Imperial Stout which will get 5 months of age on it before it ends up in the clients hands. Hopefully they will age it some more but this should give them a head start. I have never brewed this style but have brewed high ABV beers with success. I am dropping my mash efficiency to 60% to accommodate for the huge amount of grain in my tun. Going to Ferment this one at 65F in the lager fridge. Beer Tools puts my FG at 1.026 but I am thinking of racking to secondary between 1.30 to 1.035 to keep it a little sweet and thick. Any constructive criticism will be taken seriously.

Bridges Russian Imperial Stout

5 Gallon
60% Efficiency
1.082 Pre Boil Gravity
1.105 Original Gravity
1.026 Final Gravity
10.6% ABV
100 IBU
0.98 BU:GU

20 lbs UK Pale Malt
2.5 lbs UK Roasted Barley
2 lbs Wheat Malt
1 lb Special B
1 lb UK Chocolate Malt

1.5 Oz. Magnum 90 Min
2 Oz. Liberty 10 Min
2 Oz. Liberty 10 Min

Single Infusion Mash at 154F for 90 minutes. Ferment at 65F with 20 grams of Safale S-04 English Yeast.

Brew Day Pictures - Double Brew Day - Rye PA 2.0 & American Wheat

Brew Day Pictures - Double Brew Day - Rye PA 2.0 & American Wheat

Things I have been doing differently.. or answering Blake's questions

The great thing about Home Brewing is the option to keep things as simple or complex as your time and ability allow. Also the option to experiment with different methods, as you are only disappointing yourself or maybe a few drinking buddies.

To Answer "@Fermentus" question, I nixed the FWH cause I was adding my 0 minute hops when my wort chilled to 180F. I read about this in Ted Danyluk's blog and thought it was worth checking out. This would be similar to doing whirlpool hops or using a hop back. I always add 0 minute hops as soon as the flame is off. You can read Ted's blog for more info. Ted's Homebrew Journal.

According to the Bries web site, flaked rye adds a more subtle Rye flavor. Everyone who tried my previous Rye PA liked the level of Rye flavor. Since this is a paler brew, I subbed out some of the Rye Malt grist percent for Flaked Rye. I am hoping this along with the Willamette hops brings a unique flavor to this beer. We will see.

The German Hefeweizen AKA LITTLE HEFFER! Only has a Hallertau charge for bittering and one at 15 minutes for Flavor/Aroma. The American Heffer has american yeast, american hops and similar grain bill. I like using a small amount of Special B in my wheats.

I am sure the American Wheat will be a kick ass beer. The Rye PA 2.0, we will see. I am not sure the paler beer can hold on to the Rye. I am keeping it under temp control for the first few days, as the original Rye PA had some alcohol esther, especially as it warmed. Thanks "@beersys " for making that clear to me.

Double Brew Day part 2 - Rye PA 2.0 and American Heffer Recipes

Looks like Friday's weather is going to be perfect for a double brew. Starting the day off with Rye Pale Ale 2.0 and following that with a Hoppy American Wheat with the same grain bill as my German Hefeweizen. With my new burner this should go much faster than before as I can get liquid to boil much much faster. Recipes follow and as always any constructive criticism or advice will be considered.


Rye Pale Ale


Expected Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.048 SG
Expected OG: 1.060 SG
Expected FG: 1.014 SG
Apparent Attenuation: 75.0 %
Expected ABV: 6.1 %
Expected ABW: 4.7 %
Expected IBU (using Rager): 34.9 IBU
Expected Color (using Morey): 5.5 SRM
BU:GU ratio: 0.58
Mash Efficiency: 70.0 %
Boil Duration: 90.0 mins
Fermentation Temperature: 68 degF


Fermentables
Ingredient Amount % MCU When
US 2-Row Malt 9lb 0oz 66.7 % 2.9 In Mash/Steeped
US Rye Malt 2lb 0oz 14.8 % 1.3 In Mash/Steeped
US Munich 10L Malt 1lb 0oz 7.4 % 1.8 In Mash/Steeped
US Flaked Rye 1lb 0oz 7.4 % 0.5 In Mash/Steeped
US Rice Hulls 8.00 oz 3.7 % 0.0 In Mash/Steeped


Single infusion Mash at 152F.

Hops
Variety Alpha Amount IBU Form When
US Magnum 14.0 % 0.50 oz 29.4 Loose Pellet Hops 90 Min From End
US Willamette 4.5 % 1.00 oz 5.5 Loose Pellet Hops 15 Min From End
US Willamette 4.5 % 1.00 oz 0.0 Loose Pellet Hops At turn off

Ferment with Safale US-05

American Heffer - American Wheat Ale

Expected Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.035 SG
Expected OG: 1.043 SG
Expected FG: 1.011 SG
Apparent Attenuation: 74.9 %
Expected ABV: 4.3 %
Expected ABW: 3.4 %
Expected IBU (using Rager): 23.6 IBU
Expected Color (using Morey): 5.5 SRM
BU:GU ratio: 0.54
Mash Efficiency: 70.0 %
Boil Duration: 90.0 mins
Fermentation Temperature: 68 degF


Fermentables
Ingredient Amount % MCU When
German Wheat Malt 5lb 0oz 51.8 % 1.4 In Mash/Steeped
US 2-Row Malt 3lb 0oz 31.1 % 1.0 In Mash/Steeped
US Carapils Malt 1lb 0oz 10.4 % 0.2 In Mash/Steeped
US Rice Hulls 8.00 oz 5.2 % 0.0 In Mash/Steeped
Belgian Special B 2.50 oz 1.6 % 4.2 In Mash/Steeped

Single Infusion Mash at 154F for 60 minutes

Hops
Variety Alpha Amount IBU Form When
US Magnum 16.0 % 0.25 oz 16.8 Loose Whole Hops 90 Min From End
US Simcoe 13.0 % 0.50 oz 5.1 Loose Whole Hops 5 Min From End
US Cascade 4.5 % 0.50 oz 1.8 Loose Whole Hops 5 Min From End
US Simcoe 13.0 % 0.50 oz 0.0 Bagged Pellet Hops At turn off
US Cascade 4.5 % 0.50 oz 0.0 Bagged Pellet Hops At turn off

Ferment at 68F with Safale US-05

Imperial India Pale Ale with Honey Malt Recipe.

5.5 Gal

OG: 1.079
PB: 1.059
FG: 1.013
EFF: 70%
ABV: 9%
IBU: 171
Boil: 90 min
Ferm Temp: 68F

15.5 lb 2 Row Male
11 oz Honey Male
2 oz Chocolate Malt
2 lbs White Sugar (at flame out)

Mash Grain at 130F 30 Minutes, 149F 60 Minutes and 165F 10 Minutes. 2.5 tsp of Gypsum for Chicago water.

Recirculate Mash until sufficient clarity. Sparge to 8gal.

US Magnum 14.2 % 0.50 oz 17.6 In Mash
US Magnum 14.2 % 1.50 oz 75.6 90 Min From End
US Horizon 10.9 % 0.50 oz 20.5 60 Min From End
US Cascade 6.0 % 1.00 oz 12.6 30 Min From End
US Summit 18.5 % 0.75 oz 22.9 25 Min From End
US Cascade 6.0 % 0.50 oz 3.0 15 Min From End
US Summit 18.5 % 0.75 oz 11.4 10 Min From End
US Ahtanum 4.5 % 0.50 oz 1.6 5 Min From End
US Amarillo 5.0 % 0.50 oz 1.7 5 Min From End
US Simcoe 13.0 % 0.50 oz 4.5 5 Min From End
US Ahtanum 4.5 % 0.50 oz 0.0 At turn off
US Amarillo 5.0 % 0.50 oz 0.0 At turn off
US Simcoe 13.0 % 0.50 oz 0.0 At turn off


One unique thing I did with this batch was recirculate 10 gallons of the mash. This provided a MUCH more brilliant clarity and set up the mash bed well before sparging. It only took me an extra 30-45 minutes and I believe this will impact the beers outcome greatly. Thanks to @hopfentreader and La Brewer blog for posting about this method.

I am keeping this restrained in my lager freezer, hopefully keeping the temp at 68F for the first three days of fermentation. After this I will let it rise up to dry the beer out to really showcase the hops.

As always constructive criticism and comments are welcome. Let me know if you brew it. Shouts out to Fermentus for brewing my Rye Pale Ale recipe and converting some fizzy beer lovers.