Verkenbrau 3.1

Batch 4
Verkenbrau 3.1 (Red Cap)
American Pale Ale recipe derived from Verkenbrau 3.0
5 gallons
OG 1.045
FG
Ingredients used:
7.3 pounds pale malt extract from homebrew store in Tigard
½ pound American Crystal Malt 10L
1 pound corn sugar for the boil
2 oz. Cascade Hops (1 oz for boil, ½ oz. for finishing, ½ oz. for aroma)
2 teaspoons irish moss (last 30 min of boil)
1 activator smack pack of Wyeast Labs American Ale II 1272

5/2/09 - First trip to home brew store in Tigard. The proprietor said they’ve been there for 15 years. Overall it’s great. She was a little crazy but the prices were great. They’ve got all five Breiss bulk malt extract flavors for $1.95 /lb. The yeast is a couple of bucks cheaper & they offer both Wyeast & White Labs. She also has used White Labs yeast that she said is great if you use a starter culture. Those are only $3.00, although the variety is limited. Very nice experience. Will definitely head out there again. Thanks to Patty Callaghan for the recommendation.
5/3/09 - On to the brew….brought 3.5 gallons of water to a boil with the crystal 10 in my grain sack. Removed the sack when it came to a boil, pulled it off the heat, added the extract & the sugar, returned to boil. Once boiling, added 1 oz. of the Cascade hops. At about 30 minutes I added 2 oz. of Irish moss. With 15 minutes remaining I added ½ oz. of the Cascade hops & sanitized my plastic fermentation bucket, strainer, cork & fermentation lock. Last two minutes of the boil I added the remaining ½ oz. of Cascade hops & took off the heat. I cooled the wort in an ice-bath for the first time. The wort chilled considerably in about twenty minutes. I transferred the wort to the fermenter with one frozen gallon of FM spring water. Added another gallon of tap water to bring the total volume to 5.5 gallons. The temperature dropped to 74 right away, so I fished out the chunk of ice & pitched the expanded yeast package.
5/4/09 – 6am fermentation is already very active. Chilling the wort right away & using the activator pack definitely made a huge difference in the quick start. Would still like to try a starter culture next time.
Finished product after bottle conditioning was fantastic. Lighter bodied & less hoppiness than the previous version. Everyone that has had it loves it.