Brew Day: Starting the Summer HefeWiezen

Summer is right around the corner so today was the day I had the free time to start my summer hefewiezen being that it is Memorial Day and having the day off from work.

My Recipe was a basic hefewiezen I found online at HomeBrew Talk

The Brew Sheet:
Type: Extract w. Specialty Grains
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Time: 60 min   
Ingredients:

Amount       Item                                                                         %                               
5.00 lb         Wheat Dry Extract (8.0 SRM)       Dry Extract     83.33 %
1.00 lb         Cara Hell                (2.0 SRM)       Grain              16.67 %

Hops
1.00 oz      Tettnang [4.80 %]    (60 min)         18.2 IBU

Beer Profile:
Est Original Gravity: 1.045 SG
Measured Original Gravity:  12% BRIX = 1.039 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.012 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.30 %

I got to use my early B-Day present from my AWESOME girlfriend : The Refractometer

Anyway after the primary fermentation I plan to add something stuff during the secondary ... you will have to stay tuned and see...

Pictures

Watermelon Wheat

Batch #: 8
Brew Type: Extract Kit with Specialty Grain
Style: American Wheat
Date Brewed: 6/20/2010
Date Bottled: 7/18/2010

Ingredients
Amount       Item                                                   Type             %
6.60 lb         Wheat Liquid Extract  (8.0 SRM)     Extract        86.84 %
1.00 lb         Wheat, Torrified          (1.7 SRM)      Grain         13.16 %
Hops
2.00 oz    Hallertauer [4.80 %] (60 min)   32.8 IBU
1.00 oz    Tettnang [4.50 %] (60 min)    15.4 IBU
Yeast   
1 Pkgs    American Hefeweizen Ale (White Labs #WLP320)
Secondary:
5.00 lb    Organic Watermelon (2.0 weeks)

Measured Original Gravity: 1.044 SG
Measured Final Gravity: 1.009 SG   
ABV: 4.56%


Photo Album

Background:
This was my second time adding fruit to the beer during the secondary fermentation.  My inspiration for this one came from both the Amer. Craft Brewing Scene and from my friend Craig who got me hooked on homebrewing.  The craft brewing influences Hooker Brewery's Watermelon Ale and 21st Amendments Hell or High Watermelon Wheat both which used the artificial watermelon flavoring which in my opinion can be at times to sweet for me.  My friend Craig had previously done a Watermelon of his own and used sugar to sweeten it.  My goal was to try and only use the watermelon in hopes the natural flavor came through without sweetening it.

Thoughts:
I was pleasantly surprised with how well this batch turned out.  Unlike the my Raspberry Ale where all the color was drawn out of the berries when I went to bottle it the watermelon pieces retained their color and tasted almost normal yet imparted a nice finish to the beer.  Almost 1 year later the taste still holds up and makes a nice refreshing drink.

New Blog

I decided that it is time once again to try blogging on a almost regular basis.  Hopefully this will be a more successful endeavor then it has been in the past.

This new blog will follow my adventures in homebrewing, a hobby which I have been doing for almost 2 years.

I started brewing back in October of 2009 I have been documenting my brew sessions through pictures and posting them on my Facebook account.  While this has been a way of sharing my process, it hasn't been a way to provide a background on why or how I think things turned out in the end.

My aims for the blog are as follows:

• General musings from someone new to the hobby
• Give my thoughts on the batches that I have done in the past
• Give some background into why I tried certain experiments
• Occasional thoughts on Craft Brewing in the news
• To have fun

So if you are interested in brewing or have tried one of my beers then I hope you find this blog entertaining.

So go grab a cold homebrew or Craft Beer and sit back and enjoy while you read

Relax, Don't Worry, and Have a Home Brew

-c