Irish Curse Ale

O.G. 1.053 -- F.G. 1.014 -- 5.1% ABV

23 IBU

The Malts:
15 golden promise
2 munich II
1.5 40L crystal
.5 roasted barley
.5 carapils

The Hops:
2 oz EKG 5% -- 60 min
1 oz EKG 5% 30

Efficiency -- 84%
7.29.11 -- Pitching SA-04 today. Ambient temperatures around 63, which is as high as I would like it to get. This will be a challenge.
8.3.11 -- Gravity at 1.023. I have done well at keeping the ambient temperature between 59-63 for the most part (hall box spiked to 68 today). Hydrometer sample tasted very clean, and I feel I am out of the danger zone, but I will still keep it cool.

8.11.11 -- 1.017

8.20.11 -- 1.014 kegged (green keg for storage) laundry room cool box. Sample tasted damn good (roasty, smooth, malty)
9.10.11 -- The bucket of Irish Curse from the hall is on tap and very good. The cool fermentation worked very well to make a beer that is very clean tasting with a hint of roastiness. The color is a bit dark, but we shall see if that lightens up a little as the keg settles out more.

Don Juan Saison 2011

Don Juan Saison '11

1.063 -- 1.009 -- 7% ABV
1.063 -- 1.000

27 IBU

I've tweaked this recipe a little since the last time, which should not even matter since it seems that so much went awry last time I made Saison that it is not good baseline data -- though the beer was very good.

This go-round

10# Pils
3# Wheat Malt
3# Rye Malt
3# Munich
3# piloncillo (in boil)

2.75 Styrian Goldings (5.4%) -- 60 minutes
1 EKG (4.5%) -- 15 min (with whirlfloc)
1 Saaz (3.1%) -- 1 min



I used the following mash schedule, and things worked well:

30 min @ 122

60 min @ 140

20 min @ 158

5 min @ 168



Notes:



7.5.11 -- Pitched yeast in both beers. Hall fermenter a tad warmer. Both temps in mid 60s.
7.13.11 -- Fermenters spent three days at 62-65 ambient (bucket in laundry room / sleeping bag cool box -- carboy in hall cool box). The laundry room one did spike to 72 ambient on one of the first nights. They then spent three more days at 75-80 ambient, and then were placed upstairs where ambient is 90+. Gravity down to 1.010 (bucket /started in laundry room). I later checked the carboy, and it was exactly the same.



7.18.11 -- Gravity at 1.009. I am glad it is still moving a little since the temperatures have been much lower than normal for this time of year. Upstairs has hovered around 80 ambient instead of the 90+ which is normal.


Funky Don Juan Notes:


7.22.11 -- still at 1.009. The chosen half (actually closer to 4 gal) is getting funked with the dregs of a bottle of Goose Island Matilda 2010, and then dry hopped with an ounce of Saaz.
8.28.11 -- Racked to secondary -- 1.005.
12.20.11 -- Gravity at 1.004. Not as funky as last year's (at this point).  I may need to add more sugars so the brett can have something to eat.
12.24.11 -- added .5 pound malto-dextrine.  I did not recalculate the gravity, but I suppose this added about two extra points.  I will wait until the gravity re stabilizes before bottling (no hurry).
1.29.12 -- Gravity reads 1.002, which means the brett chewed through the malto-detrine pretty well. Funk us still subdued, which means I am already seeing the difference between adding the brett post terminal and along with the original yeast.  I am still going to wait for this to stabilize, and to also to see if the funk increases before I bottle. I am also thinking of culturing up some more brett to add at bottling.
3.4.12 -- Gravity 1.001. Brett more noticeable, but still more subdued than last year's example. Looking to bottle this next week.
5.7.12 -- Bottled at 4 volumes CO2 -- Final Gravity - 1.000