Bourbon County Clone- Barreling Project

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DanielBarker
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thanks, kyle

thanks, kyle

Kyle
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Count me in.

Count me in.

DanielBarker
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still looking to get 15 more

still looking to get 15 more gallons signed up for this.  If you're interested, let me know!

DanielBarker
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I didn't necessarily have

I didn't necessarily have anything lined up, but that's never stopped me.

adman
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Wednesday would be great. 

Wednesday would be great.  Were you thinking of brewing anything? 

DanielBarker
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Adam, I will be off work on

Adam, I will be off work on Wednesday and Thursday of next week.  Would either of those days work?

adman
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Awesome.  Daniel (or any

Awesome.  Daniel (or any other alchemists in this thread), would you be available during the week next week to let me into the brewhouse?  I'd like to get this brewed next week, as I am likely to have a lot less time for brewing in the coming weeks and months.  The sooner I can get it into the fermenter, the better.

Thanks,

-Adam

DanielBarker
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The specialty grains and hops

The specialty grains and hops have arrived and I believe that the price for brewing this batch will be only 14 dollars.  That should leave you plenty of money to sink into the massive amount of 2-row you'll need.  Those wanting to brew this batch soon, let me know and I can get your packages prepared earlier than the rest.

adman
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Daniel,

Daniel,

Any word on when the ingredients will be in? 

-Adam

DanielBarker
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I don't see why you couldn't

I don't see why you couldn't borrow the community mash tun at the brewhouse.  There are several others for use there, Lucas', Niilo's, Dave's, and maybe another?  We can default to Lucas' mash while the community one is gone, as he left it for others to use.

Sean Colleran
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Rather than using a super

Rather than using a super thick mash and dicking around with my whole sparge process, maybe I'll just make 2 batches at the same time.  Anyone willing to let me borrow their MLT for a day? 

adman
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Daniel,

Daniel,

Check out this place's price on Willamette: $6.99 a pound.  I've ordered from there before, they ship fast, and their shipping prices are reasonable.

Just a FYI.

-Adam

adman
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Daniel,

Daniel,

I'll try to get a feel for what's been causing my efficiency issues before I make this batch, since it's such a big beer.  Syrupy consistency or not, I'm very much looking forward to making this, and trying it over the next several years.

-Adam

DanielBarker
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By the way, this recipe is

By the way, this recipe is calculated with 70 percent efficiency in mind.  I have on occasion run the grains through again.  If you're using appropriate mash temperatures and holding them consistent at an hour and you're using good ratios for your mashing and sparging then you should be good.  Can you give us details on those parts of your methods?

 

I'm not sure when it's going to go in the barrel.  I'll set up those times whenever I get a feel for when people can brew this.  I also didn't want to give a deadline without having the ingredients ready.  It should be done as soon as possible so as not to lose any character from the barrel while it's sitting full of cleaning fluids.

 

The end product will indeed be syrupy.  I tasted my batch that finished at 1040 and it was syrupy.  But it feels just like Bourbon County, motor oil consistency.  Make sure you're into that kind of beer before you brew this.

adman
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Bill,

Bill,

Last three batches have been milled at the brewhouse. I don't know if we need to tighten the mill gap or if there's something else going on.

adman
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Daniel,

Daniel,

Did you have to crush your grain twice to hit your numbers? I've been disappointed with my efficiency on my last two beers, and I'm trying to figure out what in my process is letting me down. My mash tun is big enough to do this in one go, so I'm happy to be the guinea pig as far as that is concerned. Looks like next week is the earliest you'll be getting the specialty grains, right?

Also, with a grain bill this big and a mash temp this high, are you at all concerned that the finished product will be too sweet? Or have your test batches been finishing low enough so they're not too syrupy?

Finally, when do you plan to put this in the barrel and approximately how long are you thinking of aging it?

Sorry for all the questions. Definitely psyched to be a part of this brew.

-Adam

DanielBarker
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depending on the price, I'll

depending on the price, I'll be getting all the specialty grain and hops and letting people pay me for them, picking them up at the brew house when they need them.  For base grain, you're on your own.  If it's too costly for me to purchase solo, I'll be doing pre-sales, meaning you pay me first and when I collect enough payment I'll go ahead and submit the order. I'll let you know later today.  I'd prefer payment in person but you could also paypal or chase p2p me. 

DanielBarker
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recipe finalized.  Niilo

recipe finalized.  Niilo spoke with one of the Fulton GI brewers and he suggested a few changes to the malt bill.  I've changed it accordingly.  The new recipe is now up as the first post on this thread and I've added a few additional notes.  Grain will be ordered sometime soon. 

adman
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Daniel,

Daniel,

Have you finalized the recipe for this?  If I can free up my bondy barrel fermenter, I could maybe try and brew this this week.

-Adam

DanielBarker
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Brewed this again the other

Brewed this again the other day, and it's way easier to mash less and sparge more.  You get the same efficiency without having to boil off as much.  I'll post details soon, but please know that ingredients will not be here this weekend.  ETA is now Monday. 

Sean Colleran
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Alright, I think I have this

Alright, I think I have this figured out.  Will just have to adjust my sparge technique a little.  Count me in.

I do want to do another tasting up on the roof, but we should probably wait until the weather is a little more predictable.

DanielBarker
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I'm sure you could borrow the

I'm sure you could borrow the brewhouse mash tun or someone else's mash tun if you wanted to do the beer at home so as to be available to family.  Don't want your equipment limitations to keep you from doing the beer.  I don't see it being a problem as long as it's returned in a timely manner.

p.s. let me know if you want to do a beer tasting at your place some time again now that the weather is great!  I'd love to do another sour tasting night except this time on outside on a roof with a view!

 

Sean Colleran
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I think it was 1.096.  The

I think it was 1.096.  The online efficiency calculator I use said I was at 75%.  However, my grist ratio was around 1.25 quarts per pound.  I would have to go significantly lower for this beer, and I have no idea how that will affect my efficiency, or if my simple braided hose will be up to the task.  Let me think about this one and cruise around the HBT forums before I commit.

DanielBarker
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It's what I have to do to get

It's what I have to do to get good efficiency on big beers.  I sparge a lot extra and then boil it down to condense the sugars.  If you expect to be able to hit your numbers then do whatever has been working for you.  What was your og for the old ale?

 

If everyone else is getting high numbers without doing that then maybe I need to look closer at my mash and consider mashing with less and sparging more instead of mashing in with a ton and sparging with a ton.

Sean Colleran
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Why did you have to boil down

Why did you have to boil down from 13 gallons?  I usually aim to extract exactly 6.5, which I did with Dave's old ale and got pretty good efficiency.  Am I supposed to collect a ton of wort on these giant beers?

DanielBarker
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I wouldn't be super excited

I wouldn't be super excited about this as I think it will throw off your numbers for FG.  The yeast is more likely to blow through the uncomplex sugar than the malt sugar.  I suppose if one or two people want to use it, that's fine.  However, I don't want to modify the overall recipe.  I'd really prefer all grain.

 

I had to boil down from 13 gallons.  This doesn't take as long as you might think as long as you split up the runnings into two boiling pots.  I used my pot and jim's because we have the widest pots, giving you the biggest surface area contact with the air, speeding boil-off.  A two-pot boil combined with the exhaust fan in the brew house helps the boil go quickly.  My suggestion is to immediately start heating the first 2 gallons of wort that you get, sort of like Dave did with his old ale. 

Bill said:

I know sacrilegious for some but maybe we use sugar to boost the ABV instead of so much grain?  just a thought...

DanielBarker
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Sean, I used two mash tuns

Sean, I used two mash tuns and split the grain up 50/50.  I hit my numbers that way, but I'm not convinced it's necessarily the best method.  If one were to use as low a grist ratio as dave is suggesting then mashing will be a lot easier.  However, what is the number you're referring to dave?  Is it 1/1.25, grain/quarts, or do you mean that you used .8 quarts per lb of grain?  I think it'd be wise for the first few people to track the numbers they got from their mash/sparge in order that we find out the best method for getting good extraction.  In past big barrels, a lot of people have missed their target.  I'd like to avoid that on this barrel if at all possible.  Normally I would just check out people's suggestions on hbt but the opinions there and in the professional literature tend to be pretty widespread.  Some suggest going for a lower ratio, others a higher. 

 

I'll be printing up worksheets with different fields to fill out when you brew your batch.  I'll hand them out with the specialty grains (which I'll order as soon as I taste the current test batch after it's primary fermentation has died down).  I would expect the grains to be here by this weekend, so if you want to brew it on Saturday that should hopefully be arrangeable.  I'd like to get this one taken care of asap instead of having it sit around a long time. 

 

Sean, let me know for sure if you want me to sign you up. 

David
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I'm curious about grist ratio

I'm curious about grist ratio. When we did the breakfast stout...recipe called for adding water and grain to create a gristo ratio of around 0.8. My efficiency wasn't bad - as I recall it.

Sean Colleran
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I'm interested, but I'm not

I'm interested, but I'm not 100% sure my 10 gallon MLT will accommodate 27 pounds of grain.  Maybe with a super thick mash (i.e. 1 quart per pound), but then I'd be risking a stuck sparge.  What kind of MLT did you use for the test batch?

ksaberni
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Sign me up for 5 gallons

Sign me up for 5 gallons

Kevin Saberniak

David
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I have 5 gallons of this brew

I have 5 gallons of this brew in a bourbon barrel. Its been in there early september. It is starting to get good barrel character...but I think I might let it go longer and then make a batch that isn't as high of a gravity and blend it. I think that the mouth feel on this beer is just a tad bit too chewy for me...but a great beer overall. If I make it again, I think I'll do a lower gravity and use US-05 to avoid the banana esters, along with a cooler fermentation.

DanielBarker
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You're absolutely right to

You're absolutely right to ferment at a lower temp and avoid 04. Those guitar esters don't make it a bad beer but they do depart a bit from CBS. I might brew 5 fresh gals and remove 5 to serve at stout night. Would anyone take issue with this?

adman
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No objections here. I'd love

No objections here. I'd love to taste how its come along by the time stout night rolls around. 

ksaberni
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I would love to try the

I would love to try the Bourbon County at Stout Night!

Kevin Saberniak

DanielBarker
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ok then, I'll plan on brewing

ok then, I'll plan on brewing up a substitute batch prior to stout night so that we can have it available.  I've dubbed it the anti-goose, along the lines of the anti-christ.  We can call it the "darker" version of bourbon county, its evil arch-nemesis.

DanielBarker
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This is ready to come out.  I

This is ready to come out.  I'm setting a provisional date for June 29th.  That's over two six weeks from now.  You may want to consider brewing a small fresh batch of stout to mix this down with to your preference.  It may be slightly over oaked depending on what you like.  But most importantly, this dried out a lot more than expected over time.  The body is way thinner than the true bourbon county.  I'll be making a small 3 gallon batch to blend with.  

JimChochola
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This may be a weird question

This may be a weird question but it was so dang long ago: did I brew for this barrel? Looks like I can make the 1st for emptying (I'll help even if I didn't brew for it).

DanielBarker
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jim yes you brewed

jim yes you brewed

JimChochola
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JimChochola

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Thanks!

Will be there on the 1st!

To: jwchochola@hotmail.com
Subject: DanielBarker commented on Bourbon County Clone- Barreling Project

adman
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Jim,

Jim,

I think the tentative empty date is June 29.

-Adam

JimChochola
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JimChochola

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Wehre'd I get the 1st of June?

To: jwchochola@hotmail.com
Subject: adman commented on Bourbon County Clone- Barreling Project

DanielBarker
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I accidently posted the 1st

I accidently posted the 1st of june initially but re-edited it to reflect the date I had in mind, June 30th.  

DanielBarker
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How many people could make it

How many people could make it tomorrow around 6:30 or at least leave a carboy to collect their beer?

adman
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I can't make it, but I have a

I can't make it, but I have a clean/sanitized keg at the brewhouse.

JimChochola
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JimChochola

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Well. Shit. I can't make it but I have a clean carboy on the shelf.

Sent from my mobile device.

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<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div>Well. Shit. I can't make it but I have a clean carboy on the shelf.</div><div><br>Sent from my mobile device.</div><div><br>On Jun 29, 2013, at 11:28, "CHAOS Brew Club" &lt;<a href="mailto:reply+119f921a93cfaac94272bbb06c1612e8@chaosbrewclub.net">reply+1...@chaosbrewclub.net</a>&gt; wrote:<br><br></div><blockquote type="cite"><div>

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How many people could make it tomorrow around 6:30 or at least leave a carboy to collect their beer?</p>
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DanielBarker
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Well reschedule this. Not

Well reschedule this. Not too many people
around it sounds like.

Kyle
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sounds like this as well as

sounds like this as well as all our other barrels should be scheduled to be emptied asap.

adman
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Has anyone tried their BCS

Has anyone tried their BCS clone now that it's out of the barrel?  I just tried mine after it's been in the fridge on gas for a few days, and it's borderline undrinkable. Huge yeast autolysis off-flavors. I might donate it for stout night and call it Marmite (or vegemite) Stout. Very disappointed, as the beers that went into the barrel tasted (for the most part) outstanding.

Kyle
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There's no way dude. We

There's no way dude. We sampled it as we emptied it and I didn't taste any off flavors. It was also carbed as served at Solidarity for Charity Beer fetival that me and Eric participated in and I didn't taste it there either. It's possible that you got the bottom of the barrel maybe and the flavor was more prevalant there, but I doubt it. I'll try one of my bottle conditioned bottles this weekend and report back.

adman
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Once things at the brewhouse

Once things at the brewhouse settle down, I'll bring some of mine over there so you can taste it. Maybe it is just from the bottom of the barrel, but, like I said, mine is borderline undrinkable. I'm glad that the rest of the barrel was good.

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