Wee Heavy Brew Day!

[GrainReaper]

I figured I would post up my wee heavy recipe and a few pics of the loooong brew day.

First off let me tell you that this is no run of the mill beer, but a rather huge wee heavy! at 12.5% alcohol this is no bud light!

I brew this one to save for special occasions and gatherings, not everyday enjoyment.

Ok, first the recipe, its an all-grain recipe that is deceptively simple, yet once brewed has amazing depth of flavors and complexity.



GrainReapers Wee Heavy:

BJCP Style and Style Guidelines
-------------------------------

09-E Scottish and Irish Ale, Strong Scotch Ale (Wee Heavy)

Min OG: 1.070 Max OG: 1.130
Min IBU: 17 Max IBU: 35
Min Clr: 14 Max Clr: 25 Color in SRM, Lovibond

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (Gal): 5.50 Wort Size (Gal): 5.50
Total Grain (Lbs): 22.30
Anticipated OG: 1.124 Plato: 28.92
Anticipated SRM: 17.7
Anticipated IBU: 33.3
Brewhouse Efficiency: 83 %
Wort Boil Time: 120 Minutes

Pre-Boil Amounts
----------------

Evaporation Rate: 15.00 Percent Per Hour
Pre-Boil Wort Size: 7.86 Gal
Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.087 SG 20.87 Plato

Formulas Used
-------------

Brewhouse Efficiency and Predicted Gravity based on Method #1, Potential Used.
Final Gravity Calculation Based on Points.
Hard Value of Sucrose applied. Value for recipe: 46.2100 ppppg
% Yield Type used in Gravity Prediction: Fine Grind Dry Basis.

Color Formula Used: Morey
Hop IBU Formula Used: Rager


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
98.7 22.00 lbs. TF Golden Promise Pale Ale Ma UK 1.037 3
1.3 0.30 lbs. Roasted Barley America 1.028 450

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.75 oz. Goldings - E.K. Whole 4.75 6.6 35 min.
1.00 oz. Phoenix Whole 10.00 26.6 45 min.


Yeast
-----

WYeast 1728 Scotish Ale


Mash Schedule
-------------

Mash Type: Single Step

Grain Lbs: 22.30
Water Qts: 20.20 - Before Additional Infusions
Water Gal: 5.05 - Before Additional Infusions

Qts Water Per Lbs Grain: 0.91 - Before Additional Infusions

Saccharification Rest Temp : 154 Time: 90
Mash-out Rest Temp : 212 Time: 10
Sparge Temp : 170 Time: 10


Total Mash Volume Gal: 6.83 - Dough-In Infusion Only

All temperature measurements are degrees Fahrenheit.

*****Collect 1 gallon of the first runnings and kettle caramelize down to 1 pint, add back into the pre-boil volume*****



So now you know the recipe for this fine ale, lets get to the pics shall we?

Doughing in (putting the grains into a premeasured volume of water at a specific temp) in prep for the 90 minute mash process this recipe calls for. (Mashing is the process that enzymes on the grains convert the starch in the crushed grain into simple sugars for fermentation.)



The Grains are all doughed in, ready... set... wait an hour and a half!



After the mash is completed one gallon of the first runnings (highest sugar content is in the first runnings) is boiled down into one pint of caramelized goodness. This adds a lot of the color and depth to the finished beer.





The full volume of wort is collected from the grain by repeatedly adding water to the grain and letting the sugars leach from the grain and collected in my Keggle, now to boil for two hours!



When adding the bittering hops at 60 minutes to go in the boil and the flavor additions, I use a mesh bag and cpvc coupler (called a hop spider) to allow the hops to add bittering and flavor without the issue of all the hop trub at the bottom of the kettle after the boil


All boiled up, chilled down to 55 degrees in prep for its 60 degree fermentation for 10 days, then the temp is dropped to 55 degrees for another 10 days of fermentation before letting it bulk age in an oak barrel for several months.



All fermented out, now to rack into the barrel to age for several months.





The brewday is extremely long when I make this beer, the batch you see above took 12 full hours to brew, 20 days to ferment, 3 months in the barrel, and then bottle aged. the beer is ready to be enjoyed at one year from brewing.

[Richrail]

Very nice, I just transferred a Porter into my secondary and in a week I'll be adding 16 oz. of Jameson. I do partial grain since I don't have room to do all grain . But its all good. For summer time I do a cream ale with orange zest in the primary boil and add vanilla at bottling. My special occasion beer and a Belgian Triple at 10.5% Yum.

[GrainReaper]

Very nice, I just transferred a Porter into my secondary and in a week I'll be adding 16 oz. of Jameson. I do partial grain since I don't have room to do all grain . But its all good. For summer time I do a cream ale with orange zest in the primary boil and add vanilla at bottling. My special occasion beer and a Belgian Triple at 10.5% Yum.

Mmmmm porter.... Whiskey porter at that! and also I love a nice tripel! My usual summer beers to brew are a Bavarian hefe, English mild, and some huge hopped IPAs for when the mood strikes!

I have a damned fine saison that someone has converted to partial mash I could share if you like that style of beer.

[GrainReaper]

Here is the tasting notes on my beer, done objectively and in a blind tasting against two others.



Wee heavy tasting:

Aroma:
heavy malty nose, with hints of raisin and marmalade, some alcohol noted in aroma as it warms
No hint of hops

Appearance.:
Inviting leather brown in appearance, head quickly subsided and when swirled in a snifter there was some subtle legs to the beer hinting at a higher alcohol level than might be expected in a typical wee heavy, small bubbles rise in the glass in streams

Flavor: the first sip is dominated by caramel and malt flavors, followed quickly by dried fruit notably raisin and prune, there is a nice oaky flavor in the background that meshes well with the beer. The finish is a lingering sweetness balanced with a nice alcohol warmth that reminds me of a nice port wine.

Mouthfeel:
Full bodied and chewy, no hot alcohol burn noted at serving temp of 58 degrees.
Lingering sweetness with a dryness that almost verges on tartness. This I attribute to hops bittering, oak aging, and dark roasted malts. Nice moderate carbonation that is between an English ale and an American amber.

Overall impression:
Dessert like in its mouthfeel and sweetness, a big chewy malt bomb that is quite pleasing to just sip..... something I would enjoy with a bold cigar after a hard day,

[Richrail]

I have a damned fine saison that someone has converted to partial mash I could share if you like that style of beer.[/QUOTE] I would love that. My son does a saison.

[GrainReaper]

Here is a pic of the beer

[GrainReaper]

I have a damned fine saison that someone has converted to partial mash I could share if you like that style of beer.

I would love that. My son does a saison.[/QUOTE]

You on any homebrew forums?

[Richrail]

nope.

[GrainReaper]

You are missing out!

[GrainReaper]

Very nice, I just transferred a Porter into my secondary and in a week I'll be adding 16 oz. of Jameson. I do partial grain since I don't have room to do all grain . But its all good. For summer time I do a cream ale with orange zest in the primary boil and add vanilla at bottling. My special occasion beer and a Belgian Triple at 10.5% Yum.

What portion of the grainbill do you mash? All the specialty grains, then use extract to replace the base grain? Or are you brewing extract with steeped grain? Full volume boil or partial volume boil then top up to your full volume?