6 replies to this topic

[Area Man]

Well, something happened and my post didn't show up. So here goes again:
 
 Besides a beer I did with California Common yeast, this will be my first true lager. I tried my hand at a helles today.
 
8lbs Pilsner
2lbs Plumage Archer
.5lbs wheat
 
 Hallertauer and Tettnanger to approx. 20 IBU. 
 
 Had a fantastic brewday....40 minute fly sparge, 90 minute boil, good music, good friends. Got it to 58 with groundwater, and will pitch a healthy dose of 34/70 once it hits 48.
 
Can't wait to pull a liter of this!

[Big Nake]

Nice. Did you just get a new fridge or other way to ferment cooler or did you just not have a desire to make a lager until now? Also, what is Plumage Archer? Never heard of it. Cheers and I hope it comes out just as you envision.

Mmm, a bit of Google-Fu:

Plumage Archer is a historical barley variety, first bred in 1905 and revived by Crisp Malting Group as part of their Heritage Malt line. It was created by crossing Plumage, a Danish landrace, with Old English Archer and went on to dominate UK malt production for much of the 20th century. Known as a broad-eared variety with “large grains of excellent malting quality,” it is an ancestor of Maris Otter.

This seems reasonable considering a number of people have been using some type of 'pale ale malt' in their helles lately and reporting good results.

[Area Man]

My fermentation fridge can only hold one, so I've always been loathe to let one sit that long. I typically brew every 2-3 weeks. But I have a number of projects that have been on the back burner for a while, so I figured this would be a good time to try a couple while I'm doing other stuff, esp. while our ground water is relatively cool. It gets into the 80s in the summer.

 

 Plumage Archer is interesting...I bought a sack on a whim. It's quite "grainy," and leaves a distinctive flavor behind. Not one I'll buy in quantity again. I only used it here because I only had 8lbs of Pilsner, and the only other base malt I had was Golden Promise.

[djinkc]

Cool, I need to do one again.  It's been a long time.

[pkrone]

My fermentation fridge can only hold one, so I've always been loathe to let one sit that long. I typically brew every 2-3 weeks. But I have a number of projects that have been on the back burner for a while, so I figured this would be a good time to try a couple while I'm doing other stuff, esp. while our ground water is relatively cool. It gets into the 80s in the summer.

 

 Plumage Archer is interesting...I bought a sack on a whim. It's quite "grainy," and leaves a distinctive flavor behind. Not one I'll buy in quantity again. I only used it here because I only had 8lbs of Pilsner, and the only other base malt I had was Golden Promise.

 

Sounds tasty.   I did a helles last fall that was a pils/Golden Promise blend along with some carahell.   It was really nice.

[Area Man]

Fermented it at 50 F for a week, then ramped it up to around 65 over a week and a half for a two-day rest. Been at 40 F since.

Initial samples are good. Very clean, flavor leans toward malt sweetness, but still quite crisp. No corn, no sulphur. She’s at 38F and carbing up now. I see a hoppy Pils in my near future.

[Poptop]

AreaMan, definitely post final results with PIC's!!!