The Witches Brew

Holy crap this beer is amazing!!!

I decided to take advantage of the opportunity that the heat was offering and make another batch of the Berlinner Weisse. It does best if it sour mashes at +90*F heat. LIke now we have now. I did 10 gallon yesterday while Josh watched. The fastest all grain brew day eveh! 2 hours and change from start to finish, including clean up. I heated 15 gallons (a full keg) to 145*F then pumped 8 inot my MLT. I added 10 lbs of Pils and 10 lbs of wheat then put another 5 gallons (a total of 13) into the mash. I added one ounch of Cascade into the mash and slowly raised up the temp over an hour to 154 while I recirculated the entire time for a nice clear mash. At the end of the hour I slowly pumped off into my fermenter. I didn't even cool the wort as it wentinto the fermenter, I wanted it around 100*F. Josh helped me lift the whole thing into a swamp cooler (a trash barrel filled with cold water. Granted the water isn't very cold right now but it had me down to 100*F by the time I cleaned up and ate dinner.) I tossed in two pounds of crushed pale malt in a couple of hop sacks and that's it. By this morning it smelled f'ing horrible, in a really great way. All the lactobacillus on the grain are just goin' ta town, souring that mash like Jack Daniels would be proud of. I'll give it till Saturday then add Fermentis 06 to finish it off. An incredibly fast, easy beer to make, should be ready to drink in three weeks, and will be rightous by the end of August.

PTN

So when is the party?

Probably nothing till Masstoberfest. I'm pretty well commited weekend wise thru August. Ive got at least three BBQ's between now and then, between weddings and family events, Bertha is spending the summer quite warm. BUt I'll put something together, you can take that to the bank.

PTN

Masstoberfest will be a party to remember! Should we put the date in stone now?

Paul you must have a really great wife to let you keep that on the porch! Mine wont go near the basement since I brewed one of these! Thanks again for everything. btw didya getcher box?

I've got the best wife of all time. You know you have a keeper when you don't even have to explain that the cellar is too cold for those three carboys in the dining room.

PTN

Yup, i've met her and she's a good one Paul!

Big John has a good one too.

Hey, I made a very important discovery. Lactobacillus loves the heat. It sours the beer like nobody's business when it's 90+*F. Unfortunately, beer doesn't like the heat nearly as much as the lacto does and when I popped the top off the fermenter the smell of acetone (nail polish) nearly knocked me over. This was not something that would improve in time. This was bad. Beyond bad. If you held your nose it tasted great, but I hate having to hold my nose when I drink so all ten gallons went onto the compost pile. Damn.

PTN

Ouch! Was that after you pitched the yeast?

Which brew was this Sire that went belly up??