Quality is the Measuring Stick, not Crazy. Cheers for Session Beers. ps-still make crazy, I love it, too

Session Beer--  An enjoyer of a session beer can have several pints of them over a reasonable time in one sitting and still leave in a sober or close to sober condition.


I enjoy a well crafted session beer most of the time and the occasional ridiculous strength beer to expand the palate and imagination.  Through my personal experience, it appears that a large segment of enjoyers of craft brews places the supersomething beers on a different tier of existence than well made session beers.  It's no wonder some people look upon lovers of good beer as snobs.  We need high-gravity, super hoppy beers, but we also need to know how to make exemplary session-strength beers as well. 

I would propose a hypothesis that a high proportion of those who are constantly clamoring for superhoppy, superstrong, or superdark have, in fact, underdeveloped palates.  I should interject that I also enjoy superbeers.

I recently made a well bodied, but lighter version of my stout and I find it absolutely delicious.  It has enough roasty character to be tasted throughout a session, but it's not the black death against which many craft beer lovers would automatically compare it.  I can make black death, but that's the superlative, not an evening with a mug in hand.  One of my friends often falls prey to mass produced cheap beers, but asked me to bottle several liters for him to enjoy over Thanksgiving.  He and I both very much enjoy the coffee undertones and mouthfeel of the oats, flaked barley, and wheat.  This is a win, my friends, because I have not compromised quality and still pulled someone away from cheap beer.

Last night, I opened a bottle of my Hallertauer Amber which is slightly less than 5% alcohol, but balanced in favor of late hop additions.  It's absolutely fantastic and the hops are a present and pleasant flavor.  Again, it's a sessionable beer and it's wonderful.

One of the best beers I've had was a pilsner served at the bar at the Trump Towers in Chicago.  It had a light body which was thoroughly flavorful and a delightfully spicy hoppy edge.  Brewers of masterful lighter beers demonstrate infinitely more talent than those who can make a dime-a-dozen stout which oozes from the bottle or a beer which has been drowned in hops.  It's far more difficult to hide behind a more delicate beer than motor oil.

In short, we need our superbeers (I, too, am a fan), but we also need to make sure that we are able to appreciate them as part of a variety.  Imagine if the creator of the aforementioned heavenly Pilsner developed an IPA or a Stout...

A Couple Bottling Tips (Just bottled my Bride Ale)

These are just a few ideas to help with the bottling process.  If you've bottled a few times then you probably won't need these, but they're great if you're new to it.  Enjoy!

Tip #1:  The Easy, Inexpensive Bottling Gun.

I learned this tip from Paul Young at My Old Kentucky Homebrew.  Take a plastic tube which fits into a portable keg dispenser faucet and enjoy!  I add the boiled sugar water into a keg, blanket it with CO2, push it with 5 psi, and dispense through the homemade bottling gun.  I've used the Blichmann bottling gun on hundreds of growlers at my first brewing job and this works perfectly.  The obvious benefit of the Blichmann bottling gun is that you can blanket the bottle with CO2 through the gun, but when you're carbonating with sugars you have to have air in the bottle for fermentation anyways.



Tip #2:  Holster the Gun

This is something I learned from my first brewery.  Keep a bottle of sanitizer so that the bottling gun has a sanitary holster as you move about your bottling processes. 

Tip #3:  Dishwasher Tray

Bottling trees cost money and take up space.  As long as someone else in your household won't stab you for it, simply roll the bottom rack out of the dishwasher and make sure it's off of its wheels.

Tip #4:  Put the Caps in Sanitizer

This is another trick I learned at my first brewery with growlers.  You don't know where the caps have been or what bacteria may be lurking in your bottling area.  Use just enough sanitizer to cover the caps and be sure to dry any unused caps when you're done so they don't rust on the edges.



Flexibility and Growth in a Brewing Rig

It's tempting to make a shiny, fixed brewing rig.  Hard lines and control panels are extremely sexy.  Someday I will have this sort of rig, but I am constantly adjusting, experimenting, and improving the setup to accommodate new ideas and slight improvements.  It is because of this that I have a frame made from slotted angle steel and braided lines.  When I no longer require somewhat regular changes to my setup I'll weld a custom frame and install hard lines.

Twice now I have taken pieces of angle steel and reconfigured the frame itself.  It's essentially a large Erector set and can be changed with wrenches and a hacksaw.  It's also great when you want to move a hot liquor tank burner, pump, or wort chiller.  The possibilities are endless and easy.

I recently raided my local hardware store for 1/2 inch valves, fittings, tubing, and hose clamps.  From this I have created a ridiculous web of possibilities for liquid transferrance.  My goal is to make it "as simple as possible, but not simpler."  Thank you, Einstein.  After tightening all the clamps once, though, it is inevitable that the rubber will give some and hot temperatures will loosen the connections.  The first few times this method is used you will have to be on the lookout for tiny leaks and crank the clamps back down.  It's also important to be able to move water from the hot liquor tank through all the lines in order to push wort and keep air out.  After only one use I already have plans for adjustments.

In short, it's extremely beneficial to be able to adjust and develop your brewing rig to your methods.

The Gudger & Ferguson Step Mashing Method (a more affordable HERMS system)

Most all-grain brewers employ a single temperature mashing method.  This mash is a single temperature rest between 148F and 158F, depending on the brewer's preference of fermentability and mouthfeel.  This is also known as the Infusion Mash.  There are three other common mashing methods which incorporate the use of multiple increasing temperature rests.


Both Decoction Mashing and Step Mashing below often utilize the following temperature rests:
        97F - Acid Rest
        120-134F - Protein Rest
        148-158F - Normal Saccarification Rest (Infusion Mash Temperature)
        170 - Mash-out Temperature

1)  Decoction Mashing is a process by which a specific amount of the mash is removed, boiled, then returned to the whole mash in order to raise the temperature of the whole mash to a predetermined amount.  Below is a sample Decoction Mashing schedule:

2)  Step Mashing -- RIMS (Recirculating Infusion Mash System) is similar, but involves carefully heating the mash to these temperatures with direct heat.  This means either a brew kettle over a heat source is used as a mash tun or it is directly exposed to an electric immersion heater.


3)  Step Mashing -- HERMS (Heat Exchange Recirculating Mash System) involves warming the mash through a medium such as water by way of a copper, or other, coil.  This takes the direct heat away from the mash itself.


Decoction, RIMS and HERMS have drawbacks :

--Decoction Mashing involves pulling grains out of the main mash, which can be awkward and messy.  It also means boiling some grain in the decocted portion, which can impart some harsher flavors from the husk of the grain.  Boiling also denatures enzymes necessary for mashing.

--RIMS applies direct heat to the mash which can result in off-flavors and requires constant stirring.  A brew kettle which is employed as a mash tun also loses heat, particularly with smaller batch sizes.  My version of HERMS solves all of these problems.

--My system is a HERMS, but saves a lot on the cost of a typical setup.  It's also easy to try out with usual brewing equipment you may already have without spending money.

I have recently tested a new method which is similar to Decoction and Step Mashing, but without any of the detrimental effects of either one.




The Gudger & Ferguson Step Mashing Method (AKA, the simplest form of the 3) HERM System)

 My method warms the mash efficiently to each increasing temperature by circulating the mash from the mash tun, through a copper coil placed in a pot with heated water, then back into the top of the mash tun.  This is normal all-grain circulation, but it includes the warming apparatus.  I have created this warming apparatus by filling the brew kettle with water which is warmed to each progressive temperature with a burner and running the mash through a copper coil which is placed into the kettle.

This process worked beautifully the first time and achieved each incremental temperature quickly and efficiently.

I envision a permanent version of this which could be heated with an immersion chiller and regulated with a thermostat control (I have the Johnson Controls A 419).  I searched the US Patent Office database, however, just to discover this exact device is already patented and utilized by a construction company in Ashland, TN for another application.  You can still utilize the principal, though.

I hope this gives you something to think about and if you have tried this already or have feedback on the design, please leave me a message.  Enjoy!