Lionheart Brewing Company

I will admit it, I am a coffee addict.  I absolutely love coffee and enjoy each and every cup I drink throughout the day.  I have also been known to enjoy a coffee porter or two from time to time, however with that being said I have never experimented coffee in any of my homebrews.  Traditionally coffee finds its way into darker beers usually porters and stouts as the darker malts used in them tend to compliment the roasty, coffee notes.  Recently, I have been reading about brewers experimenting with coffee in other non traditional beers such as IPAs.  I decided that I would experiment with a small batch of my Pale Ale and attempt to infuse it with some coffee flavors.

After doing some research online it appears that the two most common ways to extract the good coffee flavors without the bad (astringent) is by one of the following methods.  Cold brew.  This process calls for grinding up the appropriate amount of coffee and placing it in cold water for 24 hours, after which the coffee is seperated and the coffee is added to the beer usually before bottling or kegging.  The second option, is to do a coffee bean dry hop where whole coffee beans are crushed slightly and added to the secondary or keg directly.  When brewing a porter or a stout option one is available, however when attempting to add coffee to a pale ale, realistically the coffee bean dry hop is the only option in order to preserve the classic Pale Ale color profile.

Below are my tasting notes after adding 22 grams of slightly crushed Columbian finca villa loyola coffee beans and 1 oz of whole leaf Chinook Hops to a 2.5 gallon keg.  The coffee beans were left in the dry hop for two days prior to being removed, the hops were left for the full 7 days.

Rich’s Coffee Pale Ale 2.0(WLP023) Tasting Notes:

Appearance: Pours a deep orange with shades of brown.  A one finger slightly off white head dissipates slowly leaving the glass rimmed with lacing. (No discernible visual difference between this and the regular Rich’s Pale Ale.)

Smell: Mild cocoa, fresh flowers, orange and lemon notes are complimented by a sweet malt and fruit.

Taste: Smooth clean sweetness  serves as a basis for the coffee notes which cut right through immediately as the beer hits the palate.  Mild and restrained, but definitely noticeable the flavors work wonderfully with the fruitiness of the Burton Ale Yeast.  Much less bitter than the SafeAle-05 batch which allows the interplay between the citrus and floral hop aromatics and the coffee to take center stage.

Mouthfeel: Moderately carbonated, nice interplay of hop aromatics and malt sweetness with a slight edge towards the hops.

Drinkability & Notes: This beer is absolutely fantastic, and has to be one of my favorite beers brewed ever!  Im having a hard time believing that something as simple as adding a few grams of coffee to a dry hop could have such an amazing impact on the final beer.  The coffee flavors meld beautifully with the malt sweetness and the subtle citrus and floral hop aromatics.  The fruitiness of the Burton Ale yeast puts this beer over the top for me as pulls all the flavors together into one absolutely delicious sip.  I will definitely be experimenting with additional coffee bean dry hops in the future, and am considering brewing 10 gallons of the Coffee Pale Ale for my wedding as I believe that the flavors of this beer will be enjoyed by a wide audience, not just the beer connoisseurs.

Rich’s Pale Ale 2.0(US-05) Tasting Notes:

Appearance: Pours a deep orange with shades of brown.  A one finger slightly off white head dissipates slowly leaving the glass rimmed with lacing.

Smell: Strong orange and grapefruit, piney and resinous, subtle floral notes accompany a slight malt sweetness.

Taste: Smooth clean sweetness with a mild hop bite on the initial sip, complemented nicely by a moderate hop medley of citrus and pine.  Finishes with a hint of herbs and orange, a lingering bitterness and hints of carmel round out the flavor profile.

Mouthfeel: Moderately carbonated, feels somewhat thin, nice interplay of hop aromatics and malt sweetness with a slight edge towards the hops.

Drinkability & Notes: This being the second version of my pale ale I was able to tweak the recipe, specifically in the addition of a touch more crystal malt in hopes of achieving a better balance.  This version is definitely more balanced than the first and the hop aromas align closer to those found in some of the popular commercial examples of the style.  In the first recipe I used CTZ and Summit which were a bit too aggressive in both bitterness and aroma and pushed the beer towards the upper limits of the Pale Ale range. These tasting notes are from the SafeAle-05 fermented batch, which is evident by the extremely clean fermentation. There are no noticeable yeast flavors, however upon tasting the gravity samples there was a noticeable difference in the bitterness between the US-05 and the Burton Ale WLP23 versions, with the US-05 being much more bitter.  I will provide tasting notes for the WLP23 fermented batch in the near future, which I suspect will be a bit more complex.

Unfortunately, I had brew day problems that forced me to completely drain my mash tun mid mash (never switch dip tubes in a rush) and subsequently caused my mash temperature to drop into the 130 degree range.  As a result this beer finished slightly higher in alcohol than anticipated as well as slightly thinner.  The additional 2-4 gravity points that would have resulted from a proper mash temperature would have really set this beer off, as I prefer my Pale Ale’s to have a slightly maltier mouthfeel.  With that being said I believe this recipe is much more balanced than the first, with a great blend of malt and citrus/pine hops aromatics, and based on the reactions from my friends and family will be a contender for first kegs to kick at my wedding later this year. 

I’ll preface this post by saying I’m not the biggest hophead out there, in fact I tend to migrate more towards big malty beers when I’m looking for a high alcohol punch.  However, this year I was able to get my hands on several pounds of the popular citrusy/pine hops, namely Simcoe, Amarillo, and Citra, that are mainstays in many of the big commercial IPA’s and double IPA’s.  Additionally, as I continue down my “beers to brew” checklist, I decided that now was as good a time as any to give a double IPA a shot.

When brewing a double IPA there are several things to consider in the recipe formulation, the first and most obvious is the hop schedule and varieties.  For this recipe I went with three hops, specifically Belma, Simcoe, and Amarillo.  Belma is a new hop this year offered exclusively from HopsDirect.  On the site it is described as “a clean hop, imparting flavors of orange, grapefruit, tropical, pineapple, strawberry and melon.” However, after reading reviews of fellow brewers it seems like the hop falls somewhat short in the aroma intensity department, described by many as a “mild aroma” and another as a “cheaper Magnum”.

For that reason, coupled with the extremely low price of $5 a lb I decided to use the Belma for my main bittering additions.  I used a First Wort Hop to produce a smoother bitterness as well as additions at 20 and 15 to hopefully catch some of the flavors described previously.  I finished out the hop bill with additions of Amarillo and Simcoe at 10 and 5 minutes respectively as well as a huge 6 oz hop addition during my whirlpool.  These additions should contribute the classic citrus/pine aromatics that define American double IPA’s.  It is important to note that I added the hops to the wort upon chilling to 165 degrees, as at this temperature a greater percentage of the hop compounds are transfered to the wort, delivering an aromatic hop punch to the final beer.

Another important aspect of the recipe is the corn sugar addition.  This will dry out the beer somewhat while contributing to the overall alcohol strength that defines the style.  A double IPA shouldn’t be a malt monster, the dextrose provides the extra fuel for the yeast to get you to the sweet spot of around 1.016-1.104 FG. Lastly, one needs to consider the amount of wort that will be lost to the hops during the brewing process.  I calculated a loss of roughly a tenth of a gallon per oz of hops added during the brew.  In the recipe below I calculated my numbers for a 7 gallon batch with 10 oz of hops, and wound up with just over 6 gallons into my carboy on completion of the brew day.

Timber Ridge Double IPA

Batch Size: 7 Gallons

Original Gravity: 1.084
Est. Final Gravity: 1.016
ABV: 9.1%
IBU: 106.3
Color: 8.7 SRM
Boil Time: 90 Min

84% American 2-Row
7.6% Corn Sugar (Dextrose)
4.7% Carapils
3.5% Crystal 40 Malt
.9% Crystal 120 Malt

2 Oz Belma (11.3% AA) First Wort Hop
1.25 Oz Belma (11.3% AA) at 20 min
1 Oz Belma (11.3% AA) at 15 min
1 Tbsp Irish Moss at 15 min
1 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at 10 min
1 Oz Simcoe (12.2% AA) at 5 min
2 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at Whirlpool (165 deg)
2 Oz Simcoe (12.2% AA) at Whirlpool (165 deg)
2 Oz Belma (11.3% AA) at Whirlpool (165 deg)
2 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at 7 Day Dry Hop
2 Oz Simcoe (12.2% AA) at 7 Day Dry Hop

Pitched onto a washed yeast WLP 023 Burton Ale Yeast Cake

Mash:

60 minutes at 152 F (Saccharification Rest)
10 minutes at 165 F (Mash Out)

Collected 6 gallons of wort in carboy.

German Hefeweizen (Proper Pitch) Tasting Notes:

Appearance:  Pours a slightly hazy straw yellow.  One finger, pillowy, snow white head lingers long after the initial pour.

Smell:  Mild notes of wheat, clove, banana and citrus are present.

Taste: Grainy, wheat flavors dominate the initial sip, juxtaposed nicely by the sweetness of the Pilsner malt. Slight hints of herb and citrus on the finish.  Finishes with a strong residual banana burst and a ever so slight hint of clove.

This is my second iteration of my Pale Ale recipe (version 1 can be found here).  For the most part I kept the grain bill the same, a mix of American 2-Row with some Vienna for color and maltiness.  I did however modify both the type of and amount of Crystal Malts in the grist.  I swapped out the C-120 for C-80 in the second version and also upped the overall percentage of crystal malts to 6.4% of the total grist vs. 4.% in version 1.  As I discussed in my tasting notes for my original recipe (tasting notes) the first version was slightly more hop forward, so I’m hoping the slight increase in the Crystal malts will work to make the second version a bit more balanced.

The main area that I focused on re-working for the second version was the hop profile.  I was fortunate enough to get my hands on 1 lb packages of Amarillo and Simcoe, two of the more popular hops, and wanted to incorporate them into my Pale Ale as they are known to work amazingly together. I used a backloaded hop schedule of 60, 20, 5, and 0 minutes to capture the the classic American citrus hop flavors associated with these hops. I also added some Chinook at flame out in an effort to introduce some pine and fruity notes to give the beer multiple layers of hop aromas.

I decided to do a split batch fermentation as I am planning on brewing this beer for my wedding and still in full out experimentation mode.  I decided to use Safale 05 for its clean fermentation for one batch. This traditional yeast choice for an American Pale Ale should serve as a good contrast to the second batch, which I decided to ferment with White Labs Burton Ale strain.  For this batch I am hoping the fruity notes from this strain will provide a nice interplay with the fruity/citrus hop aromas and contribute to the overall malt flavors in it.

I will be looking to see how the different yeast strains effect the perceived hop flavors as well as bitterness. Since I would up brewing 11 gallons I am also planning on dry hopping a small amount of the second version with some coffee beans in addition to the Amarillo/Simcoe/Chinook additions.  Stay tuned for tasting notes on  all three versions of Rich’s Pale Ale 2.0.

Rich’s Pale Ale 2.0

Batch Size: 12 Gallons

Original Gravity: 1.064
Est. Final Gravity: 1.016
ABV: 6.3%
IBU: 42.3
Color: 8.7 SRM
Boil Time: 90 Min

75.3% American 2-Row
18.3% Vienna Malt
4.1% Crystal 80 Malt
2.3% Crystal 40 Malt

1.25 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at 60 min
1 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at 20 min
1 Oz Simcoe (12.20% AA) at 20 min
1 Tbsp Irish Moss at 15 min
1 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at 5 min
1 Oz Simcoe (12.2% AA) at 5 min
1 Oz Chinook  (13.1% AA) at 0 min
1 Oz Amarillo (9.8% AA) at 7 Day Dry Hop
1 Oz Simcoe (12.2% AA) at 7 Day Dry Hop
1 Oz Chinook  (13.1% AA) at 7 Day Dry Hop

Split Batch Fermentation

6 Gallon: 3.2 L Starter of White Labs 023 Burton Ale Yeast
5 Gallon: 1 Pack Safale 05

Mash:

60 minutes at 152 F (Saccharification Rest)
10 minutes at 165 F (Mash Out)

Ferment at ambient air temperature of 62 F

Notes:

Lost 1 gallon to hop matter.

Due to a mis-configuration in Beer Smith I pulled more wort than I should have, thus the 90 minute boil.  A 60 minute boil would be appropriate for this beer and I will use one for future batches.

Update: Make sure that you use a blow off tube when using WLP 023 Burton Ale Yeast!!

My fiance and I will be getting married this October at the German Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.  I will be brewing all the beer for our wedding, so needless to some of my brewing this year is going to focus on fine tuning the beers for our big day.  The plan is to brew four 10 gallon batches of moderate alcohol beers and serve a 2.5 gal keg of either the Cognac or Bourbon Lets Grow Old Together Ale, depending on which tastes better, throughout the evening.  While neither my fiance nor I are particularly German, we have fully embraced the venue and are planning an Oktoberfest themed wedding with Brats, Spatzel, and of course a good ol’ German style Hefeweizen.

The recipe is fairly straight forward for a German Hefeweizen with a 3:2 wheat to barley grist ratio.  I added a small amount of Vienna Malt for color and some added complexity to the overall mouthfeel.  I selected traditional German hops in Hallertauer Mittelfrueh for its mild bitterness and herbal flavor contributions.  A great Hefeweizen is made by the yeast and the mash schedule as they contribute to the production of the classic banana and clove flavors.  I wound up using WLP351 Bavarian Weizen described as imparting “moderately high, spicy, phenolic overtones reminiscent of cloves.”  and a traditional Hefeweizen step mash schedule of 111, 126, 151, and 168 degrees.

The Experiment

My original thought was to experiment with several different Hefe yeast strains, however I had to change my plans when a trip to my LHBS turned up only one Hefe strain.  After a bit of research I discovered that the yeast pitch rate can directly influence ester production that gives the classic clove/banana flavors of a hefeweizen.  Although this is somewhat of a contested thought (many people believe the risks of under-pitching outweigh any potential rewards) I decided to give it a try.  Generally speaking there are three ways to create a more banana flavored hefeweizen.  The first is yeast strain selection, the second is temperature, and the third is pitch rates.  The hotter a hefeweizen ferments (66-68 Deg plus) the more banana flavors will be produced, similarly if the yeast is under-pitched and thus stressed during the ramp up phase of fermentation it will also produce these flavors.

Since I ferment my beers in a fairly stable cool basement (ambient temperature 62 Deg.) and WLP351 is described as producing clove forward hefeweizens one would assume with a proper pitch of yeast I would finish with a clove forward hefeweizen with little to no banana flavors.  Since I wanted to brew two unique beers from one batch I decided to pitch one carboy with the proper yeast rates and the second with 40% less yeast in an effort to create a more banana forward less clove flavored beer.  However, like many things in life, the best laid plans often go awry.  After spending a week diligently growing the proper amount of yeast required for my experiment I wound up with a much more efficient mash than usual (79% vs the usual 72%) and in turn a much stronger OG than I had planed for.  After some debate I decided to add sanitized water to my final volume so that I would still be at my planned OG of 1.048, albeit with 12 gallons instead of 11.

While usually I would be thrilled with a more efficient brew-day, my carefully planned yeast pitch experiment went by the wayside.  Since I didn’t have time to grow additional yeast I wound up under-pitching both 6 gallon batches.  The first carboy was under-pitched by 25% and the second carboy was under-pitched by 55%.  While the increased efficiency caused my experiment to lose its control I’m still looking forward to the results.  By some accounts under-pitching 25% will have little to no overall impact on the final flavor profile of the beer so I am still hopeful I will finish with two distinct hefeweizens, one clove forward and one banana forward.  Check back for the results in a few weeks.

German Hefeweizen

Batch Size: 12 Gallons
Original Gravity: 1.048
Est. Final Gravity: 1.010
ABV: 5.0%
IBU: 12.6
Color: 4.7 SRM
Boil Time: 60 Min

66.7% Wheat Malt
27.3% Belgian Pilsner
6.1% Vienna Malt
1 lb Rice Hulls

1 Oz Hallertaur Mittelfrueh (4% AA) at 45 min
1 Tbsp Irish Moss at 15 min
1.25 Oz Hallertaur Mittelfrueh (4% AA) at 20 min

4.11 L Starter of White Labs 351 Bavarian Weizen Yeast

Step Mash:
15 minutes at 111.2 F (Feurilic Acid Rest)
10 minutes at 126 F (Protein Rest)
45 minutes at 150.8 F (Saccharification Rest)
10 minutes at 168 F (Mash Out)

Carboy #1 25% Under Pitch: 2.75 L
Carboy #2 55% Under Pitch: 1.135 L

Ferment at ambient air temperature of 62 F

India Pale Ale is one style that has experienced a renaissance among American Craft brewers, with the momentum clearly excelerating as the number of variations continues to grow. The transformation of the traditional IPA began with the birth of the double IPA,  as in true American fashion, brewers began pushing the limits by brewing stronger, hoppier, and bolder IPA’s. Recently new IPA variations have emerged including the Black IPA, Belgian IPA, and Rye IPA as brewers strive to meet the American consumers love affair with the almighty hop.

One lesser known IPA variation, the Wheat IPA, happens to be one of my favorites even though few commercial examples exist, the most popular probably being Anaheuser-Busch’s Shock Top. My preference for wheat IPA’s stems from the wheat’s contribution to the malt profile of the beer and in my opinion, the superior balance that it provides with the traditional citrus hop IPA flavors. The West Coast recipe below is the third iteration, one that I feel strikes the best balance of the three, while still allowing for a delicious interplay of wheat and citrus flavors.

I am satisfied the grain bill has achieved a balance of wheat and sweetness that can stand up against the 60 IBU contributed from the hops, however I am planning on modifying the hop bill this year.  While I love Falconers Flight, the fact that it is a proprietary blend of several hop varieties of unknown proportions has led me to reconsider its use in the recipe.  Moving forward I plan to eliminate it completely from the hop bill and experiment with different ratios of Simcoe, Amarillo, and Belma hops in order to allow for better duplicity moving forward.  Don’t get me wrong the recipe is great as it currently stands, so good in fact that if I was every able to open a brewery of my own this would be one of my flagship beers.  This makes the use of Falconers Flight potentially problematic, thus my reasoning for seeking out the alternative hop combinations.

West Coast Wheat

Batch Size: 11.5 Gallons
Original Gravity: 1.057
Final Gravity: 1.014
ABV: 5.7%
IBU: 59.1
Color: 6.2 SRM
Boil Time: 60 Min

52.2% American 2-Row
32.6% Wheat Malt
9.8% Munich Malt
2.2% Crystal 15

1.25 Oz Magnum(14% AA) at 60 min
1 Tbsp Irish Moss at 15 min
1.4 Oz Falconers Flight (10.5% AA) at 15 min
.75 Oz Summit (17% AA) at 15 min
1 Oz Citra (13.4% AA) at 5 min
2.6 Oz Falconers Flight (10.5% AA) at 1 min
2 Oz Citra (13.4% AA) at 1 min
1 Oz Summit (17% AA) at 0 min
4 Oz Falconers Flight (10.5% AA) Dry Hop (7 Days)

2 Packs Safale American Ale US-05 Dry Yeast

Mash at 15 for 60 minutes raise to 168 for a 10 minute mashout.

For detailed tasting notes of this West Coast Wheat recipe, click here.

In the hyper competitive landscape that is the craft beer industry brewing great beer will only take you so far. It is critical for the long term viability of the product to develop a strong brand that the consumer can readily relate to. Successful branding can be the difference in a customer selecting one particular brewery’s product over another. Successful branding makes a connection with the consumer, often times through the establishment of positive connotations such  as  reliability, quality, or status. To put it bluntly, branding is big business.

When surveying the hundreds of craft beer brands currently available there appears to be several common approaches to branding and hundreds more truly unique or hybrid approaches. For this article I would like to take a closer look into three particular branding strategies that are common place in the industry, and I believe to be extremely effective.

Theme Based

This strategy involves creating a theme for the brand and integrating it into every aspect of the company. The theme is integrated into the individual beer names and often times special release series product lines. Furthermore, it takes front and center on all logos, packaging, labels, and associated text for each of the companies products. This overarching theme provides the unifying element for the brand and promotes the companies message to consumers in a clear and consistent message across all product lines.

Examples: Flying Dog Canine Theme, Heavy Seas Brewing Co. Pirate Theme

Location Based

This strategy relies on using local information, wether it be geography, lingo, or landmarks to make an emotional connection with the consumer. This approach can be extremely powerful as it capitalizes on the consumers pride of place. Successfully linking a brand to a local identity also provides the opportunity for the brewer to capture additional drinkers who may not be as familiar with craft beer, but are able to associate a positive connotation of location with the product. Brewers employing this branding strategy also have the opportunity to tap into the extremely hot local food/drink renaissance currently underway.

Examples: Flying Fish New Jersey Turnpike Exit Series, Cigar City Brewing Company Local Tampa Culture

Brewing Philosophy Based

This strategy utilizes the brewers brewing philosophy or approach to brand the product. This approach seems to gaining popularity particularly among American brewers specializing in the production of wild or sour beers. Marketing the technique and hand crafted aspect of the product, particularly the quality and mix of ingredients allows the consumer to believe they are getting a truly unique product. Often times this approach is linked to higher premiums on the products as they require more time and ingredients to produce, thus they are brewed in limited quantities.

Examples: Dogfish Head Off Centered Beers for Off Centered People, Ancient Ales Series, Extreme Brewing Jolly Pumpkin Open Fermentation,Barrel Aging, and Bottle Conditioning, Crooked Stave  Brettanomyces Beers

Essential Components

This may or not be considered a branding strategy but I believe it is important none the less. The product model for the majority of the commercial craft breweries goes something like this. The staples, these are the brewers year round offerings, usually sold in six packs, seasonal offerings usually fall into this category. Big beers, usually marketed in some type of series, these high alcohol beers are usually sold in 22 oz bombers and command a hefty premium. Barrel Aged beers, a subset of the big beers series, have become increasingly popular in today’s market place with many brewers offering a bourbon barrel or wine barrel aged product in their product lineup. The newest trend among today’s brewers is the collaboration series, where two or more breweries team up to create a beer, often times with each of the participating brewers incorporating their hallmark brewing styles.

Lionheart Brand

While I am no where close to opening a brewery anytime soon, I have spent some time thinking about how I could potentially brand Lionheart Brewing.  My approach to branding would utilize the theme based strategy, specifically medieval royalty and nobility.  Lionheart is most commonly associated with generosity and courage, two traits of King Richard I of England, also known as Richard the Lionheart.  It was also a nickname given to me in high school by a friend of mine, and a name I thought would make for a good name for my brewery.

My Lionheart brand would consist of medieval based themes for my standard six pack and seasonal offerings.  My big beers would be branded as a “Nobility Series” and would be associated with famous Kings and Queens throughout history that embodied the characteristics of that particular beer.  I think that this approach could also be integrated with a tagline that plays into the courage aspect of Lionheart, almost as a challenge to drinkers to consume the product, similar to the approach Stone Brewing takes with its Arrogant Bastard beers.  Something along the lines of  ”Lionheart. Is it in you?” Obviously these are still half baked ideas, however the take away is that branding is an extremely important part of a brewery and should be thought of early on in the process as it can have long lasting implications on the overall success or failure a brewery.

If you frequently read my blog it may seem like I’m addicted to using port in my homebrews, rest assured this is not the case. In fact I had the unfortunete experience of dumping my Kate The Great Clone (recipe) several months ago due to a nasty acetobacter infection in my brewhouse. That recipe called for extended aging on port soaked oak cubes, so as a result of the spoiled batch I had a bunch of port soaked hungarian oak cubes lying around that I wanted to put to good use. I used a mix of the port for my raisin reduction for the winter dubbel (recipe) and decided to add 1.4 oz to the second keg of Saision #5, (recipe) brewed with a healthy dose of Columbus, Citra and Styrian Golding hops.

Four months ago I added 1.4 oz of port soaked oak cubes to the keg.  It is worth noting that these cubes had been sitting in the port wine for nearly 3 months prior to being added to the keg, and the total weight includes the saturation of port.  If I had to estimate it looked like roughly .75 oz of dry oak cubes.  The port adds a much more subtal layering of fruity sweetness that melds well with the subdued citrus hop notes of the aged saision.

My initial reaction is that I prefer the more subdued port accent notes found in this saision, as compared to the dominant role the port plays in the winter dubbel flavor profile.  It also blends well and provides a nice contrast to the spicy belgian yeast aromatics that have really began to come into their own after a few months in the keg. My major takeaway from my recent experience using port and oak in homebrews is that like many things in brewing less is more and port additions are best used as subtle accents to add additional flavor complexities, as opposed to being the lead flavor which can cause the beer to taste cloying.

Originally brewed on 9/15/2012 and kegged on 10/4/12 with 1.4 oz Port Soaked Hungarian Oak cubes.

Port Oak Aged Saison #5 Tasting Notes:

Appearance: Beer pours a deep burnt orange almost crystal clear. A towering two finger pillowy off white head lingers long after the initial pour.

Smell:  Subtle notes of port, vanilla, sweet orange. Moderate belgian phenols shine through the initial nose.

Taste: A mix of mild citrus, vanilla, and tannins on the initial sip. A sweet fruitiness is present making the beer taste less dry than the un-oaked version. Finishes smooth with port and oak flavors giving way to a clean finish of pepper and floral hops aromas.

As the doldrums of winter press on in the Northeast and I start to dream of the days when it will be warm enough to brew again, I thought I would crack into my recipe vault in search of some spring time seasonals for those of you lucky enough to either brew inside or live somewhere nice and warm.  Over the past two years or so dark versions of the popular beer styles have gained increased popularity especially the Black or Cascadian IPA and more recently the Black Lager.  Midnight Wit is my take on this concept, with the key to the recipe being the use of Weyermann’s Dehusked Carafa II during the last 10 minutes of the mash to get you the dark black color without any roasty astringent flavors.  Such flavors would clash with the fresh citrus and Belgian yeast aromatics that come to define the style.

As my memory serves this beer was extremely enjoyable and very close in flavor profile to a Hoegaarden minus the color of course.  It was while drinking this beer that I for the first time realized the effect color can have on perceived notion of taste and mouthfeel.  The light bodied wit beer appeared to taste heavy on the first sip, only after taking a few additional sips did I realize that it was in fact light and dry, and that the dark color had left my mind expecting a heavier fuller beer.  Nonetheless for those of you lucky enough to be brewing in preparation for spring I would encourage you to consider this recipe for a unique twist on a classic seasonal favorite.

Midnight Wit

Batch Size: 11 Gallons
Original Gravity: 1.052
Final Gravity: 1.011
ABV: 5.3%
IBU: 16.1
Color: 19.3 SRM
Boil Time: 60 Min

30.6% American 2-Row
30.6% Belgian Pilsner
28.5% Wheat Malt
5.1% Carafa II (Added during the last 10 minutes of mash)
2.6% Flaked Oats
2.6% Flaked Wheat

2 Oz Hallertaur Mittelfrueh (4% AA) at 60 min
1 Tbsp Irish Moss at 15 min
2 Oz Styrian Goldings (2.6% AA) at 5 min
.75 Oz Orange Peel, Bitter at 5 min
2 Oz Coriander Seed at 5 min

3 L Starter of Wyeast 3944 Belgian Witbier

Mash at 150 for 60 minutes raise to 168 for a 10 minute mashout.