We're Going To The Belly Dimension Pale Ale

Name c/o my youngest son. My 42nd batch.

Recipe

Batch size: 5 gallons

Grain bill:

  • 6 lb Gambrinus ESB
  • 1 lb Malted Wheat
  • 6 oz Crystal 60 (all I had on hand)
  • 2 oz Roast Barley

Hops:

Yeast: Wyeast 1056

Brew Day

September 30, 2012: I could really get used to my kids being self-amusing w/the neighbours, I really could. Started at 12:30pm (!) by grinding barley and bringing the strike water to temp. I was aiming for a mash temp of 68-70 C, but hit 66.5 C instead...oh well, the more fermentable mash will go well w/the lower ABV. I went with a short mash as well -- 30 minutes. This helped my overall time considerably.

The FG was 1.035 -- not at all the 1.045 I'd hoped for. By my calculations, though, that's about 72% efficiency, which is quite reasonable...I may need to adjust my expectations (which were about 85% or so.)

Bottling

October 20, 2012: 1.006 FG, which makes it 3.7% ABV. Sample tastes okay; some hop flavour, but it's almost like a mild or a bitter...which aren't really my favourite.

Tasting

October 29, 2012: First taste, and yeah it's young. Citrus-like tartness, but some malty sweetness too. The hops come through a lot.