This first batch is based off of the recipe for Ballard’s Wassail Special Strong Ale. Don’t ask why I picked a 4-week, double-fermenting winter ale for my first beer.
Description:
This full-bodied brew enters with a large rocky light beige head perched on an attractive tawny beer. The aroma is complex with a delightful mixture of sweet malt, dried fruit, and spices balanced with a nice dose of hops. Juicy malt caresses the palate and reluctantly finishes dry and bittersweet.
Original Gravity: 1.062; ABV: 6.0%
Directions: (strikethrough is where I deviated)
Heat 1 gallon of water to 155 160 F. Add 12oz. British 55L Crystal Malt, 1oz. British Black Patent Malt.
Remove the pot from heat and steep at 150 155 F for 30 minutes.
Strain into the brew pot, and rinse the grains with 1/2 gal of 150 F water.
Bring that to a boil. Remove from heat and add 7lb Muntons Extra Light Dry Malt Extract, 2oz. Fuggles @ 4% 4.9% AA (bittering hops).
Add water ’til the total volume is 2.5 gal, then boil for 45 min.
After 45 min, add 1 oz. East Kent Golding hops, and 1 tsp. Irish Moss.
After 13 min., add 1/2 oz. East Kent Golding hops, let boil 2 min.
Remove from stove and chill 20 min. Strain the wort into the primary fermenter and add cold water to get 5 1/8 gal. Once it reaches 70, pitch the yeast (Wyeast 1275 Thames Valley )
Ferment at 68-72 in the primary fermenter for 7 days, then siphon into the secondary fermenter.
Fermentation is complete when target gravity reached, and beer clears (about 3 weeks).
Boil 1 1/4 cups Muntons Extra Light Dry Malt Extract in 2 cups water, stir into beer immediately before bottling.
Let stand in bottles for about 4 weeks. Store at cellar temp.
Potential mistakes:
I took the yeast out when I got up at 7:30 this morning. Little did I know that it would be after 4:00 when I finally got to pitch it. Hopefully it’ll be fine.
Siphoning the beer out of the brew pot with loose hops does not work at all. At all. Next time, hops get their own bag so I can just take ‘em out when it’s time. Should’ve learned that lesson while brewing with Ben, but I only had one mesh bag, so…
In all of the panic after I realized that I hadn’t sealed the spout of the primary fermenter, I may have touched something that hadn’t been sterilized and then touched something that was. I don’t think anything bad happened, but we’ll find out in about a month.
I also forgot to add the Irish Moss ’til well after I should have, so the beer may end up cloudier than it otherwise would.
Predicted Outcome:
Because I added an extra half oz. of hops at the end, I think that this will be a dark, strong ale with a slightly hoppier aroma than one would expect. At least that’s what I was going for. I didn’t use the same yeast that the recipe
called for, but I have no idea how that will affect the outcome. Complete Joy said that every molecule in the beer will pass through the yeast, so yeast has a big effect.
Posted by alexthegraham 
