67 replies to this topic

[SchwanzBrewer]

I just ordered the ingredients. I should be brewing Cream Ale next weekend.Cheers,Rich

[Deerslyr]

I order pre crushed from austin homebrew because im lazy, dont want to go to the lhbs, and dont have a grain mill myself they have the flaked maize. I crushed for a 10 gal batch at my friends house and my arms were killing me!What about the cream ale yeast? I don't have any problems using 1056 and I'm certainly not brewing for competition.Cheers,Rich

Use a neutral yeast that attenuates well.

[SchwanzBrewer]

Use a neutral yeast that attenuates well.

1056 it is.Cheers,Rich

[Deerslyr]

1056 it is.Cheers,Rich

What did you end up ordering for your grain bill and hops schedule? Just curious.

[Big Nake]

I like this version I made with 1056 and I think that WLP001 would be nice too. Someone else mentioned the WLP080 Cream Ale Blend and I'm curious about how a beer would come out with that yeast. If anyone makes this beer (or similar) and use WLP080 (and you normally use 1056, US-05, etc.), please report back on how the beer comes out with WLP080. Cheers.

[SchwanzBrewer]

What did you end up ordering for your grain bill and hops schedule? Just curious.

8 lb pale ale malt2 lb flaked maize (corn)1oz mt hood at 60I have the mt hood on hand already. I also bought the grains for my next batch of MLPA. Austin Homebrew is great because you can make a grain bill and they will separate everything out for each one, plus they will crush it for free, which I like because I don't have a mill.Cheers,Rich

Edited by rcemech, 14 May 2010 - 07:54 AM.

[Big Nake]

8 lb pale ale malt2 lb flaked maize (corn)1oz mt hood at 60I have the mt hood on hand already. I also bought the grains for my next batch of MLPA. Austin Homebrew is great because you can make a grain bill and they will separate everything out for each one, plus they will crush it for free, which I like because I don't have a mill.Cheers,Rich

Rich... you and I may be the only AG brewers here who don't have a mill. I have been brewing for 10 years and still no mill. My LHBS (both of them) either sell precrushed, prepackaged stuff or will crush it for free. If you order from some of the online guys, they will too (as you know)... Austin, Midwest, Williams and a few others. Your cream ale should be nice. Check the AA% in the Mt. Hoods when they arrive. Mine were only 3.9 or something so I had to bump it up with some Tettnanger that I had. Cheers.

[SchwanzBrewer]

Rich... you and I may be the only AG brewers here who don't have a mill. I have been brewing for 10 years and still no mill. My LHBS (both of them) either sell precrushed, prepackaged stuff or will crush it for free. If you order from some of the online guys, they will too (as you know)... Austin, Midwest, Williams and a few others. Your cream ale should be nice. Check the AA% in the Mt. Hoods when they arrive. Mine were only 3.9 or something so I had to bump it up with some Tettnanger that I had. Cheers.

They are 5.5%, but they are 1.5 year old pellets that have been vacuum sealed and frozen for most of that time. I bought a bunch of different pellet hops from hopsdirect.com a while ago.My buddy has a mill and he said I could use it anytime I wanted, but its a hand cranked mill, and milling 16-18+ pounds for some batches is not fun at all.Cheers,Rich

[Deerslyr]

8 lb pale ale malt2 lb flaked maize (corn)1oz mt hood at 60I have the mt hood on hand already. I also bought the grains for my next batch of MLPA. Austin Homebrew is great because you can make a grain bill and they will separate everything out for each one, plus they will crush it for free, which I like because I don't have a mill.Cheers,Rich

I like your recipe. I think that you will enjoy this one a lot.

[Humperdink]

Rich... you and I may be the only AG brewers here who don't have a mill. I have been brewing for 10 years and still no mill. My LHBS (both of them) either sell precrushed, prepackaged stuff or will crush it for free. If you order from some of the online guys, they will too (as you know)... Austin, Midwest, Williams and a few others. Your cream ale should be nice. Check the AA% in the Mt. Hoods when they arrive. Mine were only 3.9 or something so I had to bump it up with some Tettnanger that I had. Cheers.

Geez, send lou a ham -> Send ken a mill.

[SchwanzBrewer]

I like your recipe. I think that you will enjoy this one a lot.

No reason to reinvent the wheel. Especially since i'm still a noob and haven't done enough batches to know what kind of results I'll get. Really the only beer I know well enough to make a judgemtn on is MLPA. I've made it 3 times as an extract and once as an AG (which I messed up the grain bill - it turned out more like MLPA LIGHT). I'm trying to build up around 10 recipes that I will know very well and can tweak or have as a reference, mostly from the major categories like pale ale, IPA, stout, and so on. Cheers,Rich

[Big Nake]

milling 16-18+ pounds for some batches is not fun at all.

I'm sure that JayB will be along any second so I'll share his story with you guys... he was at our LHBS this week and hand-milled a 5 pound bag of something (Munich?) and then a 55-lb bag of Belgian Pils. By hand. A 55-lb sack. By hand. Ouch. JayB... I feel your pain Amigo. But as you said, thankfully they had homebrew samples to keep you interested.

[chadm75]

My Black Dog Cream Ale:OG: 1.048FG: 1.010SRM: 4IBU: 13ABV: 5.19.75 lbs. 2-Row.66 lb. Crystal 10L.25 oz. Columbus (60 mins)1 oz. Cascade (1 min)Safale 05 (ale) & 23 (lager)Mash at 152Ferment at 68Kegged in the Taproom and am enjoying every pint!

Okay boys, this is getting creepy! We must all on the same wavelength here or something. I just got done milling the grains for my Black Dog Cream Ale and while my mash water is heating up, I jump on the board to see what's shakin' and what's the topic....CREAM ALES! My recipe is above.The wife and I have been in Myrtle Beach for a week of vacation so I've been out of the loop.

[jayb151]

I'm sure that JayB will be along any second so I'll share his story with you guys... he was at our LHBS this week and hand-milled a 5 pound bag of something (Munich?) and then a 55-lb bag of Belgian Pils. By hand. A 55-lb sack. By hand. Ouch. JayB... I feel your pain Amigo. But as you said, thankfully they had homebrew samples to keep you interested.

Ken! You're lettin' the cat out of the bag! Ok guys, I'm JayB and I don't have a mill. I've got about 55 lbs of random grain sitting around in the basement and it's all stuff I milled by hand. I can't afford to buy a mill. It would cut into my brewing cash! If it's between having a mill, and brewing beer; I'm brewing beer!

[SchwanzBrewer]

Ken! You're lettin' the cat out of the bag! Ok guys, I'm JayB and I don't have a mill. I've got about 55 lbs of random grain sitting around in the basement and it's all stuff I milled by hand. I can't afford to buy a mill. It would cut into my brewing cash! If it's between having a mill, and brewing beer; I'm brewing beer!

+1A mill is down on my list of brewing stuff to buy. I want thermomters for the HLT and BK, A brew stand, a ferm chamber, faucets for the fridge, more kegs, more carboys, a conical, a plate chiller...The list could go on for a while. And I can only get so many things at a time, or I have to save up a couple months.Cheers,Rich

[Big Nake]

+1A mill is down on my list of brewing stuff to buy. I want thermomters for the HLT and BK, A brew stand, a ferm chamber, faucets for the fridge, more kegs, more carboys, a conical, a plate chiller...The list could go on for a while. And I can only get so many things at a time, or I have to save up a couple months.Cheers,Rich

+1 to both of you guys. I know I have had the locals tell me, Dude, why on Earth do you not have a mill? but you know what? I agree... $100+ (or whatever they cost) buys a lot of ingredients and the LHBS and online places will mill my grain for nothing! Plus, I don't think I've ever had an issue with keeping precrushed grain sealed up in my cool, dry, dark basement. My base malt rotates quite quickly but some of my specialties may hang around for awhile. I may get to it someday, but for now... let the suppliers have all the grain dust! Cheers.

[SchwanzBrewer]

I just tapped the cream ale. Interesting If anything I would say it tastes like a full bodied budweiser. That's as close as I could get in description. Well I am off today and I am going to enjoy this beer at my friends house while watching the world cup.Cheers,Rich

[chadm75]

I just tapped my BDCA last night and it's smooth as can be. Rich, that's a pretty good description but I would add that mine is a bit sweeter (10L) and spicier (Columbus & Cascades). It's pretty damn delicious and perfect for a 95 degree day which is expected here in the STL tomorrow....."it's not the heat, it's the humidity!"

[johnpreuss]

I've never used the WLP 080, but I know I'm going to make this beer with some WY1272 American Ale II. I like the yeast profile and I'm gonna repitch for an IIPA.

Jay - How did this turn out?? I'm planning that APA with 1272 this week but in this would be a great beer to follow up with. I have these darn family gatherings at the end of the summer and need a nice beer I will enjoy and the BMC crowd will like as well.

[Kunsan90]

I brewed one last weekend with a grain bill and yeast choice that's done well in comps and when friends come over to drink; the latter is more important right? I split the base grains between 2 and 6 row, add enough flaked corn to make it 20% of the grain bill, then throw in a little cara-pils. I've used different yeasts over the years, but I've been using WLP029 in the last 3-4 and they've turned out really good. As far as hops go, I've used Hallertauer in the last two, and Perle in the past.-K90