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Recent YouTube Videos
IPA with 2023 Fresh Hops! (Homegrown Chinook)
I harvest my 2023 crop of Chinook hops and put those to use (along with some Warrior and my 2022 harvest) to a brew a Wet Hopped IPA.
I Fermented Belle Saison HOT!! (and won a medal)
I split a batch of Saison fermented with Lallemand Belle Saison. I fermented one warm (room temperature of 72°F [22°C]) and one warmer. My target was around 85°F [30°C] but due to a heat controller mishap, the beer reached up to 102°F [39°C] during active fermentation! In this video I evaluate both batches and share competition results. One of the beers won a medal in the 2023 Dominion Cup competition.
Norwegian Kveik Blonde Ale! (w/ Eitrheim & Stalljen)
I put two unique dried Kveik yeast strains from Norway to the test, Eitrheim and Stalljen, to brew 10 gallons of a SMaSH Blonde Ale. The grain bill was 100% Murphy & Rude Pale/2-Row Malt with a touch of Centennial hops. I shared this beer at the 2023 Mid-Atlantic States Homebrew Campout (MASHOUT).
3 Beers from 1 Brew Day!! (Saison, Kölsch & Single)
I brewed 11 gallons of wort and split it up to ferment with 3 different yeasts. I used Lallemand’s Belle Saison to make a Saison, Lallemand’s Köln to make a Kölsch (style), and Lallemand’s Abbaye to make a Belgian Single. All 3 beers came out unique. I entered all 3 into the same competition (2023 Dominion Cup in Richmond Virginia). They all scored 35+ and the Saison won a Bronze medal.
Brew 5 Gallons All-Grain with a 5 Gallon Kettle?!? (Irish Red)
Common advice for BIAB is to use a Kettle 2x or 3x the size of your target batch. For a low gravity beer, can you actually get away with a kettle the same size as your target volume? I put that to the test in this video were I produce 5.5 gallons of wort to yield 5 gallons of finished beer. The beer is a sub-5% Irish Red. The basic process is a mash that maxes out my kettle, followed by a dunk sparge, followed by topping up the fermenter with 2 gallons of water. It is a process that could be used to brew 5 gallon batches of low-gravity beer (4% to 5% ABV) or 3 to 4 gallon batches of mid-gravity beers.
West Coast Pilsner Collab!! (Wort Hogs + Dynasty)
Yet another video on brewing a Hoppy Lager, a West Coast Pilsner! I brew a second commercial collaboration. This time it is with Dynasty Brewing in Ashburn Virginia for The Wort Hogs homebrew club’s 30th Year Anniversary.
The beer turned out great! The grain bill is near 100% Pilsner malt with a touch of Chit Malt (and Aciduated Malt for pH adjustment). Simcoe hops in the boil with a generous dose of Simcoe and Citra hops in both the whirlpool and dry hop. Fermented with a clean lager yeast from Jasper Yeast Labs in Dulles Virginia