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Fuggle Yes! Belgian Strong Ale

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loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
2,582
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8 oz Carapils
8 oz Caramel 20L
6 oz Caramel 40L
3 oz Caramel 120L
2 oz Chocolate Malt
-Hold at 155 F 30 minutes in 4 gallons water.
Add 6 lbs Amber LME & 6 lbs Golden LME, water to 5 gallons, and bring to a boil.
Add the following hop schedule:
2 oz Fuggles for 1 hour.
1 oz Fuggles and Whirlfloc for 15 minutes.
1 oz Fuggles for 10 minutes.
2 oz Fuggles for 1 min
2 oz Fuggles Dry hop 2 weeks before bottling.

SG 1.096
Added 2 liter, 3 day old starter of Wyeast 1388.
Next day, gravity is 1.04?!
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
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Nov 9, 2012
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Day 2
Gravity is 1.014?!
The target was 1.016! A two liter, 3 day old starter blows through it every time!
 

Jim H

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jun 8, 2013
434
2
18
NYC
That is pretty surprising. What is your method for the 2 liter starter?
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
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Add the following to a 2 liter flask:
1300 ml of Ozarka spring water
1 cup of light golden malt extract
1 tsp of GoFerm
1 cross shaped stir bar

Boil the flask for 30 minutes while carefully preventing boil overs. The last 20 minutes, loosely cover with tin foil. Allow to cool to room temp, then add an activated smack pack of Wyeast 1388. Add tin foil cover.

Place on stir plate for 3 days before pitching.
This method also blew through a 1.1 gravity Scottish ale in 3 days. Works for me!
 
Last edited:

Jim H

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jun 8, 2013
434
2
18
NYC
Hey, I thought you were farming your yeast? Got tired of it?

On a more serious note, what's the gravity or brix on that malt extract? I think I need to add more sugars and more total volume to my starters. My current BOMM is going faster than most of my past ferments, but not as fast as yours, and I think the reasons are the sugar and volume differences.
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
2,582
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Texas
I had several smack packs left over from a large order I made Pre-yeast bank.

Actually, my beer starters differ from my mead starters. Beers starters have the below mentioned cup of light golden dried malt extract while my mead starters have honey added to a gravity of 1.04ish instead. Everything else is the same. Hope that helps get your ferments up to speed.
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
2,582
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Day 4
Gravity is holding steady. I took a sample and chilled it to taste. Mmmmm. Tasty. Big malty flavor perfectly balanced by hop bitterness and Fuggle floral aroma. All it needs is suds!

I decided not to dry hop as I can only screw it up from where it's at. I predict this will be a hit at Christmas!
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
2,582
21
38
Texas
Day 14
Tried a bottle of this. Fully carbonated. Pours with a nice, long lived 2 inch head complete with Belgian lace. A bit darker in color than I had hoped, but still a nice amber color. This is one complex beer despite only using Fuggle hops. A little more time in the bottle will allow it to come together better. It is really very good now though.

Mead, melomel, cyser, metheglin, pyment, beer... Is there anything Wyeast 1388 can't do?
 

EbonHawk

NewBee
Registered Member
Apr 24, 2014
491
0
0
Dothan, AL, USA
That's a fuggle-load of Fuggles, my friend! Wow. I like Fuggles. I like it a lot, but that's a LOT of Fuggles. I don't think I've ever brewed with more than 4 or 6 oz of hops, and I thought I really like hops.
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
2,582
21
38
Texas
It's really getting good now. I still have a few bottles tucked back. I'll open one in the next few weeks and post a tasting.
Here is the label:
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1405039968.363152.jpg


Better brewing through science!
 

loveofrose

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Nov 9, 2012
2,582
21
38
Texas
Month 10

Mmmmmmmm, Fuggle Yes!

This is just wonderful. A nice 1 inch head with Belgian lace. A big malty, caramel backbone with a hint of toasty chocolate in the finish. And Fuggles. Wonderful tasty Fuggles all over the place. Complex and a bit vinous. The 10.7% don't hurt either!

Prost!


Better brewing through science!
 
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