Monday, November 24, 2008

cranberry-orange or orange-cranberry?

The final flavor will be the judge. So far, it smells great. Super great. This is one beer I am psyched about!

Here's the recipe:
  • 1 3/4 lbs crystal malt 40
  • 3.3 lbs Thomas Cooper Light Malt Extract
  • 3.3 lbs Thomas Cooper Wheat Malt Extract
  • 2 oz Kent Goldings Hops, 4.9%
  • 1/2 oz Saaz Hops, 5.8%
  • 11g Nottingham brewing yeast
  • Peels of 5 pretty good sized navel oranges
  • 2 qts 365 Organic cranberry juice
... and here's the steps:
  • Heat water to ~150°F
  • Start sanitizing necessary equipment (fermenter, hydrometer, airlock, strainer)
  • Add crystal malt
  • Rinse necessary equipment
  • Add heat, mine was about 190°F–200°F for 15–20 minutes
  • Take out grains, add malt extracts
  • Bring wort to boil
  • Add 1 oz Kent Goldings hops
  • Boil vigorously for 30 minutes
  • While boiling wort, wash and peel oranges with vegetable peeler
  • When 30 minutes is up, add orange peels and remainder of Kent Goldings hops to wort
  • Boil vigorously another 30 minutes. Enjoy the aroma; holy sweet god damn it's so good!
  • Add Saaz hops
  • Boil for 5 minutes
  • Put the brewpot in the ice water in the sink
  • Add cranberry juice
  • Add 2–3 gallons water to fermenter
  • Start the yeast according to packet directions
  • Stir wort and cool to about 100°F
  • Add cooled wort to fermenter; add more water if needed
  • Measure original gravity: 1.044 is what I have got
  • Add yeast
  • Put on the lid, add water to air lock, put it away, and begin waiting
I am more excited about this beer than any of the other three so far. Seriously, the orange and hops combination is one of the best smells ever smelt by man. This man, anyway.

UPDATES:
  • Final gravity is 1.018
  • Bottled on December 6, 2008.

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