okay, onto the subject at hand, beer. need i say, "i love it," one more time? probably not, but i will anyway. i love beer.
there are some things that happened between now and the last beer i last brewed, most noteworthy a trip to italia. ahh, a beautiful place. a laid back place where mcdonalds are few and far between. the cashier isnt concerned about getting your change back to you in the shortest amount of time possible. and even though i cant understand her, i know shes not talking about work related issues. yes, i would say italy is incredible, but its not. i have seen it with my own eyes. it exists. it is real.
italy is not a huge beer drinking nation. they love their vino and grappa and apperitifs and digestifs. italy is much too cool to be caught drinking a beer. however, being an american tourist, i ordered beer at every opportunity. i must say, although limited, the selection delighted my senses. nastro azzurro, one of the best lagers i have had, though my experience is limited to budweiser and miller light. nastro azzurro, a smooth, balanced beverage with a hint of that bitterness, endowed by that wonderful plant, humulus lupulus, otherwise known as hops.
another beer i had, http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/252/808, was delecatable. a german, bavarian specifically, beer that did not stop pleasing the palate. it was what i imagined my dunkelweizen would taste like. alas, my brewing prowess did not allow for the presence of these melodic flavors to grace the surface of my tongue. i need some more vienna or munich next time.
once again, my notes fail me. why do i even take them? i started off so well. ingredients, mash schedule, hopping schedule, and then yeast. every time. why i have strayed from this, i will never be able to tell.
i do know this:
one hop addition of 1 oz. of Spaltz pellets at 60 minutes
electrojazz session
solid water
"extended spirit"
Unify
8.75 lbs. total grain bill.
"have begun to research 'decoction' methods of mashing-not quite there yet
i have decided to do a rest (acid) @ 111[degrees Fahrenheit]- this supposedly develops ferulic acid, which in turn produces 4-vinyl guaiacol which is responsable for clove flavor 20 min.
then 150 for 30 min
then 168 (mashout) 10 ish minutes
-1 pint starter
-ferment @ below 65"
this grain bill was ridiculously light. i know that. i was thinking that i needed more room for water, as i would have a three step mash. plus, a hefeweisen isnt supposed to be the most alchoholic beer. now, 2-3 and a half weeks later after bottling, i must say the beer is turning out pretty good. there is a strong banana nose, typical of the yeast strain i used, but there seems to be little to no clove presence as is typical of the style. perhaps the hops is masking this? the beer does have a twinge of bitterness that comes from its youth. this will mellow out in another week or two. maybe there will be some clove there when that happens.