Oktoberfest, August 27 2010

Oktoberfest, August 27 2010

Another year goes by and yet I don't fly.

While many homebrewers would find Belgium as a premium beercation, I would prefer an extended intoxication at Oktoberfest in Germany.   As an educator, October is not a practical time for a vacation.  The fall is typically a teacher's tax season, leaving virtually no window of opportunity for a distant beer binge.  For now, I've got to make this happen locally (always replicated and never duplicated as far as I know).  I'm running a bit late this summer but hopefully this will turn out just fine for a fine Oktoberfest brew towards Halloween time.
I changed a few aspects from last year's batch that I hope will solve some of the judging issues where the beer fell shy.  To toot my horn, last year's Oktoberfest won our club-only competition and was sent to nationals where it went to second-round.  Nationals were in the mid-west and the judging comments described the beer as being flawless but slightly lacking in a bigger malt profile and hops.  My guess, this is simply the fact of competition; you gotta make your beer stand out.  Another well established homebrewer in my club remarked that they haven't had an Oktoberfest like this since he was in Germany.  I gotta be doing something right here!

BJCP Category 3B. Oktoberfest
5 Gallons, All Grain, Step Infusion Mash, 90 Minute Boil

4 lbs. German Pilsner
5.5 lbs. Vienna
1.5 lbs. Munch
1 lb. Caramunich
0.75 lb. Caravienne
4 oz. Melanoidan

Protein Rest at 126°F for 20 minutes
Saccharification Rest at 149°F for 60 minutes
1g Calcium Carbonate added to 5 gallons of 170°F sparge water
Fly-sparged at 165°F for about 50 minutes

1 oz. Hallertauer 60 min.
1 Whirlfloc tab 20 min.
0.25 oz. Hallertauer 10 min.

White Labs WLP830 German Lager Yeast  Vial (Thanks, Kara!) to 900ml starter

Currently in ferment at 52°F

OG: 1.061 @ 68°F
FG: 1.013 @46°F
ABV: 6.5% (temperature corrected)

Image Source:
User: Senator86. Mass Krug. Digital image. Oktoberfest. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, 24 Sept. 2006. Web. 3 Oct. 2010.

Evaluation: Took this beer to the QUAFF evaluation panel last night.  It needs a bit more body to accentuate the malt profile.  It was suggested to keep the protein rest under 10 minutes to avoid the breakdown of body-building proteins.  Since my last visit with the panel, I've already employed this strategy.  

QUAFF Raffle

Sampled some good homebrews at the QUAFF Oktoberfest picnic and also won a gift card to Blind Lady Ale House in the raffle.

QUAFF Oktoberfest

A very chillindamos picnic weekend. QUAFF knows how to do it right. They reserved a large area at a local park and invited other clubs to join us. They also had a band and held a great raffle with lots of goodies from local breweries and pubs.

Oktoberfest, July 14 2009

Some year I would like to make it out for the world's biggest beer party, Oktoberfest. The image below shows the Lowenbrau biergarten tent sourced from Wikipedia. The image was sourced, not the tent. Oh, and c'mon, that's a friggin' tent! Eat your heart out Mountain Hardware, next time I buy a backpacking tent, I'm calling Lowenbrau to find out where they got this one.

This brew will max out the space in the kegerator. Otherwise, I'd be making more lager! On Thursday, we leave for the big island of Hawaii so this batch will get two weeks before considering racking to a secondary. The previously brewed pilsner and vienna lager are now in secondary fermentation along side this brew and yesterday's vienna agave lager. When all four are nearing the end of fermentation, I may consider a day or three for a diacetyl rest. After the short warming period, I'll begin the process of decreasing the temperature to about 38°F for lagering.

Oktoberfest, Brewed July 14 2009

5 Gallons, All Grain, Multi-Step Infusion Mash, 105 Minute Boil

3lbs. Munich
3lbs. Vienna
2.25lbs. Domestic 2-Row
1.75lbs. Pilsner
0.5lb. Caramunich
0.5lb. Caravienne

Mash:
122°F for 30min.
146°F for 30min.
155°F for 15min.
Raised to 168°F for Mashout

1oz. Hallertauer 60min.
0.25oz. Hallertauer 10min.
Whirlfloc tab 10min.

Pitched on Vienna yeast bed

OG: 1.054 @ 74°F - Corrected 1.056
FG: 1.016 @ 38°F - Corrected 1.015
ABV: 5.38%

UPDATE July 31: Racked to secondary, current gravity is 1.015 @ 65°F, raised to 65°F for 3 days for diacetyl rest

Kegged 9/27

Below is all four lagers crammed in the kegerator. Though a keg can squeeze in, I've never managed to include a fifth carboy in there with having two primaries. A 3 gallon would fit but certainly not another 5 gallon.