Saturday, December 11, 2010

Johnny Red's Quaff (Strong Scotch Ale)

Well, while we're on the topic of Irish and Scottish Ales, I might as well share with you folks a recipe for the granddaddy of the category...the Strong Scotch Ale.  This is one beast of a beer thick in malt character and warming with it's high alcohol content.  A great winter quaff, in this case dedicated to my partner in crime Jonny Red.  So here we go...

Jonny Red's Quaff

OG: 1.081
FG:  1.021
ABV: 8.9%

Fermentables
-9 lbs Briess 2-row
-1 lb Caramel Wheat Malt
-1 lb Briess Caramel 40L
-0.5 lb Gambrinus Honey Malt
-0.25 lb Briess Caramel 120L
-0.25 lb Crisp Pale Chocolate Malt
-4 lbs Briess Golden light LME

Hops
-2.5 oz Fuggles 4.5% 60 min
-1 oz Fuggles 4.5% 15 min

Yeast
White Labs Edinburgh Scottish Ale (WLP028)

We struck the 12 lbs of grain with 3.5 gallons of 168F water to attain a mash temperature of 154F.  After a 60 minute mash, we sparged with 3 gallons of 175F water.  Carbonated to 2.25 volumes of CO2, boiling 2 cups of water and adding 3.3 oz of corn sugar, cooling, then priming.  Mmm...caramel...


-Myles and Carla

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Heather and Honey Scottish Export Ale

The Black IPA recipe turned out more like an American Brown Ale.  We'll give it a shot again soon, but meanwhile, here's what's fermenting...

-Chocolate-Coffee Robust Porter
-Cherrywood-Smoked and Oaked Old Ale
-A surprisingly "to style" Northern English Brown Ale
-An equally "to style" American Brown Ale


And in bottles...

-Old Speckled Hen Clone (Extra Special Bitter)
-Jonny Red's Quaff (a strong scotch ale brewed to style that came out superb)  
-A Dry Stout, dry-hopped with Cascades and...

A Scottish Export Ale (80/-) brewed with Heather, the recipe for which we will now share.


Heather and Honey Scottish Export (80 Shilling)

OG: 1.065
FG: 1.013
ABV: 6.8%

Fermentables
-9.5 lbs Briess 2-row
-0.5 lb Briess Munich 10L
-0.5 lb Gambrinus Honey Malt
-0.25 lb Crisp Pale Chocolate
-0.25 lbs Briess Caramel 120
-1 lb Briess Caramel 40
-1 lb honey (added at end of boil)


Hops
-0.8 oz Northern Brewer 8.8%AA  60 min


Yeast
-11.5g Safale S-05


Others
-Dried Heather tips, 0.5 oz additions at 30, 15, 5 minutes, and in the fermenter.


For those of you who've been following the bunker, this next part should seem pretty straightforward.


We struck the grains with 3.75 gallons of 172.4F water to reach a mash temperature of 158F.  Mashed for 60 minutes, then sparged our grains with 2.5 gallons of 175F water for 20 minutes.  After combining the first runnings with the sparge, we boiled for 60 minutes, with the single bittering hop addition.  However, halfway into the boil it was heather time!  This stuff smells so gloriously honeyish and aromatic!  Additions at 30, 15, 5 minutes, and "dry-heathering" lent this brew an amazing complimentary taste to the already sultry Scottish Export flavor.


Primed with 2.1 oz corn sugar for 1.75 volumes of CO2.


Definitely one we'll be repeating!


-Myles