In Production

On Sunday, I got a whim, and decided to start Batch Four. It will be a Heffeweizen, named for a German word that means "with yeast." I cleaned my equipment, and started the flame, and brewed up a wort in just over an hour. It is a simpler recipe, with a short fermentation period. The amount of grain was less than the other recipes I've used so far.

After brewing the Heff, it had a brownish color, like cola. I put it in the fermenter and sprinkled dry yeast right into the wort. There is a traditional yeast that is used in Heffeweizen, although other kinds of yeast can be used. The final flavor will be influenced by the yeast. I chose the traditional wheat beer yeast. I am looking forward to the specific flavor of hef that I first detected in a Hefeweizen that I tasted at McMenamin's in Vancouver, Washington, three years ago. It was a banana-like flavor in the background, and I was told that the yeast I chose would be most likely to reproduce it.

The yeast went right to work, and started releasing carbon dioxide almost immediately. Within twelve hours, it was bubbling away, and even after two days, it was still going. There was a sudsy froth on top, about an inch worth. The bubbles are like soap bubbles, not the tiny foam of regular beer. It was like a bubble bath kind of sudsy. By Tuesday morning, the brew was swirling with life, and the liquid was taking on a golden color. The gas was coming more slowly, but it was still very active.

I'm going to let it ferment until next Sunday. I bought the ingredients for a pale ale to start on Sunday, and I will be bottling Batch Three, the Red Ale, on Saturday night. That will leave the secondary fermenter open for the hef to go in, and that will make it possible to begin Batch Five. I have it all planned out.

I think I found out the reason for the inconsistent carbonation of the brown ale, which I believe to be not fully mixing the beer after adding the bottling sugar. I'm drinking it now, and it is tasty. It is a clear brown, the color of coffee, and has a decent alcohol content. Two bottles will deliver a nice little buzz. I stress over the carbonation, mostly because anyone I share it with might not like it if it doesn't foam up.

In summary, I now have just under a case of Batch One still in bottles. It is a delicious and full-bodied Amber Ale, with a good head on its shoulders. I have gotten to like the flavor of Batch Two, the Brown Ale. In a week, Batch 3 will be in bottles, but it needs to age two or three weeks before it can be consumed. Batch Four is fermenting, and Batch Five is still in the form of ingredients. I figure it is only a matter of time before I reach the point of being self beerficient.