(no subject)

[inahandbasket]

Considering my next beer to brew...
which sounds better as a fall beer?
After this one I'm going to try a holiday-type brew, spicy christmas-like.


Red King Ale
Killian's Red is anemic compared to this. A nice brown-red ale and quite tasty.
Lots of hops, lots of malt. Plenty of flavor.
(recipe)

An Oatmeal Stout
Dark, rich, smooth. Think guinness but with flavor.
(recipe or recipe)

Try a cider...
Takes a long time (month+), I only have 1 fermenter so it'd be tied up. difficult.
(recipe)


I think I'm leaning towards the red ale, then a holiday brew, then in winter a dark stout.
opinions?

Comments

[oceanic.livejournal.com]

Dad used to brew Oatmeal Stout all the time and loved it. I personally am more of a Killian's-With-Oopmh fan. But I'm sure both will be good. What kind of holiday brews are you thinking about doing?

[inahandbasket]

me no know.
Some kinda brew with lots of spices.
Like this with a little ginger thrown in too.

[oceanic.livejournal.com]

Mmmmm...

The "Winter Solstice Red Ale" here looks good. But really, I was only an occasional spectator in the brewing process, so I don't know whether some ales are easier to make than others, or whatnot.

[inahandbasket]

sounds awesome, noted below.

[inahandbasket]

hot damn that does sound good...
(posted for posterity)

Winter Solstice Red Ale

The blend of vanilla and cardamom with the fairly high hoppiness gives this brew a crisp,
full-bodied spiciness like a good Christmas cookie.

Ingredients:

1/4 lb. 50� Lovibond crystal malt
1/8 lb. roasted barley
1/8 lb. malted wheat
4 lbs. amber unhopped malt extract
2 lbs. amber unhopped dry malt extract (DME)
Northern Brewer hop pellets (8 alpha acid
units)
Willamette hop pellets (4 alpha acid units)
10-14 grams fruity ale yeast (or a liquid
culture such as Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale
yeast)
1 vanilla bean
12 whole cardamom seeds
4 oz. cheap vodka or pure grain alcohol

Step-by-Step:

Two weeks before brewing, chop vanilla bean into several pieces and coarsely grind the
cardamom seeds, then put them in a jar with the vodka. Soak in a dark place until ready to use.

Steep the grains in two gallons of water as it begins to heat up. Remove them at 170-176
degrees F. Add extracts (put aside 1 cup of the dry malt extract for priming), boil a total of 45
minutes. Add the Northern Brewers at onset of boil, the Willamette 15 minutes later. Proceed
with your normal fermentation. At bottling time, prime with the cup of DME you set aside and
add in the potion you made a few weeks earlier (straining out the chunks, of course). Age three
to four weeks.

[bluewillowtree.livejournal.com]

This sounds awesome, so i vote for cider first, then this.

[inahandbasket]

but, but cider hard and prone to explode! and time consuming!
*sigh*

[bluewillowtree.livejournal.com]

Well, ok, prone to explode is bad...*sigh indeed* The other choices sound tasty too. I change my vote to the King Red Ale.

[inahandbasket]

This sounds like a kickass dark beer.

NOSFARATU'S RETURN

5 gallons, extract/specialty grains

Mark diSimone
Brew Masters Ltd.
Rockville, Md.

"This beer is silky smooth and has a great chocolate character. Its 10 percent alcohol is totally hidden. It is ranked number one in our 18-year history."

Ingredients:

6.6 lbs. gold unhopped malt extract
2 lbs. orange blossom honey
1 lb. chocolate malt
1 lb. pale chocolate malt
1 lb. Vienna malt
0.5 lb. cara-pils malt
0.5 lb. crystal malt, 56° Lovibond
1 lb. Munich malt
2 oz. Perle hops (8% alpha acid), for 20 min.
1 oz. crystal hops (3.2% alpha acid), for finishing
Wyeast 1742 (Swedish ale)

Step by Step:

Steep grains in 2 gals. of 170° F water for 30 minutes. Remove grains. Add malt and honey to the grain water. Bring to a boil. Add Perle hops and boil for 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 oz. crystal hops. Add to fermenter. Add water to 5 gals. When temperature is below 80° F, pitch yeast. Ferment for seven to 10 days. Place in secondary for seven to 10 days. Prime with corn sugar. Bottle at 1.014. Let age three to four weeks.

[jjjiii]

I will have to take notes, as I have some desire to experiment with brewing in the home.

[inahandbasket]

I'm going to do a full write-up soon, as [Unknown site tag] has requested one, so keep your eyes peeled.