Category: Technical

  • Advent Calendar 2025

    1 – Scruffy – Mexican light lager

    Mexican light lager, rich, full flavor, and smooth finish. It has a light hop character, a slightly malty backbone, and notes of orange blossom honey and hops. 4.4% ABV.

    2 – Glenn Howald – 3 eyed ale – West Coast IPA

    5.9% ABV, 64 IBU

    light end west coast IPA. Slightly malty with fruity notes

    recipe stolen from Clawhammer Supply (second time I have brewed it)

    https://www.clawhammersupply.com/blogs/moonshine-still-blog/three-eyed-ale-homebrew-recipe

    Recipe QR Code:

    3 – Sarafina  – 13B British Brown Ale – House of Nico Brown

    6.6% ABV, 27 IBU, 34.8 SRM

    An easy-drinking, pleasant, not too hoppy British Brown Ale. This one has a bit of caramel in the malt and more floral and berry in the hops.

    It may be re-christened in the future and show up on tap at a nearby brewery..

    Brewer: Sarafina

    Style: 13B British Brown Ale – House of Nico Brown

    ABV: 6.6%, 27 IBU, 34.8 SRM

    Notes: An easy-drinking, pleasant, not too hoppy British Brown Ale. This one has a bit of caramel in the malt and more floral and berry in the hops.

    It may be re-christened in the future and show up on tap at a nearby brewery.

    4 – Dave Frombach –  26A Belgian Trappist Single

    Brewed with Belgian pilsner malt, a touch of Belgian aromatic malt, and Belgian clear rock candy. Used Saaz hops and Lalbrew Abbaye yeast. 6.9% alc/vol……Cheers!!!!

    5 – Enid – Old Ale

    6 – Corey – American Porter

    7 – Sarafina – Kentucky common

    Silver Medal –  Lights Out 2025

    5.6% ABV, 27 IBU, 19 SRM

    Historical beer with corn in the grist. It is usually highly carbonated. My recipe had only one pound of corn and some corn sugar.

    8 – Enid – Raspberry Lambic

    Gold Medal (Fruit & Spice) – 2024 Queen of Beer

    9 – Scruffy – American Barleywine.

    Around 12%ABV

    10 – Sarafina – Big Brew Red Ale

    8% ABV, 34 IBU

    I mixed 3 gallons of oat-infused water with 4 gallons of Rainy Dayze big brew wort to create this brew.

    Nectaron, Manadarina Bavaria, and Sterling hops.

    Cheers to the Holidays!

    11 – Glenn Howald – Simon Says Stout

    Irish Stout – PFS Same Recipe Challenge 2025

    3.7% ABV, 29 IBU, Lallemand Nottingham yeast

    (This was only 18 of the 24 required bottles, so you may have my mexican dark lager (labelled) instead. Information is below)

    My notes and the PFS recipe

    Mexican Dark Lager – if you got a labelled bottle

    Graf Vienna Mexicana – 6.0 % ABV, 26 IBU, 12.5 SRM

    recipe available by request to WSB and PFS club members. Contains corn.

    Tettnanger and Styrian Goldings in the boil and Motueka at flame out for aroma.

    Mangrove Jack Bohemian Lager M84

    12 – Corey – Kölsch

    13 – Jeff Walker – Winter Spice Ale

    Based off of Bill’s original Smoked Scotch Ale recipe.  mostly 2-row with Pale Wheat, Munich type 2, Crystal, Caramunich, and a dash of Peated malt.  Hops are Northern Brewer and Saaz.  Omega Scotch ale yeast – OLY-015. O.G of 1.092 and F.G of 1.015.  10.1% ABV

    14 – Tim Putaansuu – Blackberry Wheat Ale

    7% ABV

    My wife noticed all the black berries on the road side while helping with a 5k run I was participating in.  She went back and picked nearly 6 pounds of them, which we froze.  Brewed up this wheat beer and dumped in all the blackberries close to end of fermentation.  It took off for a while and came down to a bit high final gravity of 1.015.  I decided to let it sit while I was on vacation for a couple weeks and when I got back, it had somehow fermented down to 1.004!  Something on those black berries was hardy enough to eat through the complex sugars!

    I think I let it sit long enough that it won’t do anything more in the bottles, but I’d open it over a sink, just in case.

    Winter Advent Day 14

    Brewer: Tim Putaansuu

    Style:  Blackberry Wheat Ale

    ABV: 7%

    Notes: My wife noticed all the black berries on the road side while helping with a 5k run I was participating in.  She went back and picked nearly 6 pounds of them, which we froze.  Brewed up this wheat beer and dumped in all the blackberries close to end of fermentation.  It took off for a while and came down to a bit high final gravity of 1.015.  I decided to let it sit while I was on vacation for a couple weeks and when I got back, it had somehow fermented down to 1.004!  Something on those black berries was hardy enough to eat through the complex sugars!

    I think I let it sit long enough that it won’t do anything more in the bottles, but I’d open it over a sink, just in case.

    15 – Tyler Schuldt  – Big Brew Belgian Quad – 14.2%

    In my hubris I committed to 16 gallons from the Rainy Daze big brew wort share, which obliged me to split my share into two brews. My barleywine stalled, as I understand did everyone else’s. This Belgian happily churned it’s at through the sugar to produce my strongest beer yet. 

    16 – Jeff Walker / Nicole Rodman – Marzen Lager

    Mix of Pilsner, Munich, and Vienna malts, splash of Carapils.  Hopped with Hallertau Imperial L17 Harvest Yeast.  O.G of 1.056 and F.G of 1.012.  5.78% ABV

    17 – Kyle Roberts – Red Ale 5.4%

    18 – Oggie – “Raison D’ Rye. 

    Big, Bold and sweet at 13.6%.  Brewed NY Day 2021

    19 – Nicole Rodman – Russian Imperial Stout

    Oly Brew original recipe.  Used 17lbs of 2 Row as the base, and 1/2lb barley, Black Patent, and Crystal 120L.  Mostly Magnum and Willamette hops, fermented with Imperial A10 darkness yeast.  O.G. of 1.092 and finished on 1.016.  10.0%abv

    20 – Oggie – “Ginger Citrus Witbier.

    Brewed with Candied Ginger, Orange and Lemon in the primary.  Bright and effervescent at 6.9%

    21 – Tim Putaansuu – Russian Imperial Stout

    Event Horizon

    12% ABV

    Brewed Between 2020 and 2023Named after the boundary of a black hole where not even light can escape.  So named when I first siphoned from primary to secondary and the room dimmed noticeably.  Time seems to slow down when you get close to it.  Information is theorized to be lost within it.

    This batch is from the keg originally kegged in 2020 then subsequent year’s batches that were left over after bottling were added to the keg.  Making for a well aged and robust Russion Imperial Stout.

    22 – Ryan Davies – Figgy Pudding Stout

    This is a milk stout base style, but instead of using lactose, I used malto-dextrine so it’s lactose free while trying to keep the sweetness. To that, I added figs, chocolate, fresh orange peel, and vanilla.

    23 – Enid – Plum Brett

    24 – Tim Putaansuu – Christmas in a Bottle (Bourbon Aged Edition)

    Recipe from BYO Magazine. 

    8.5% ABV

    Based on a strong Old English Ale recipe with spices added.  In particular, for a 5 gallon batch:

    1 Tsp Cinnamon

    0.5 Tsp Ginger

    0.25 Tsp Nutmeg

    0.25 Tsp Allspice

    This year, I did a Jameson Whiskey barrel treatment.  Merry Christmas!

    Extra – Bob Zormeir – Bière de Garde – Amber

    Bière de Garde (“beer for keeping”) is traditionally brewed in the northern region of France, where France meets Belgium. These beers were originally brewed  as farmhouse ales during the winter and spring, to avoid temperature problems with the yeast during the summertime. Typically, beers of this style are of a copper or golden color, and are a sort of cousin to the Belgian Saison, except you would want to cellar them rather than consuming them immediately.

    This beer was a first experiment for me, and I if I do it again I would dial way back on the Caramunich Malt or delete it, replace it with Vienna and use some Carafa to get the color. Probably ditch the Honey as well, sub more Vienna. I’m fairly happy with the yeast but I expected somewhat better attenuatiuon, even though the Caramunich ;probably didn’t help.  I could also have used a Belgian Abbey style or even use something more neutral. ABV for the style is 6 to 8.5, so I’m on the low end, partly due to a new Brewzilla brewing system that I’m still trying to get used to. Mid to low on IBUs for the style, middle on the color.  

    Bière de Garde
    Batch Size: 6.50 gal
    6.6 ABV
    22.4 IBU
    13.7 SRM

    Ingredients
    12 lbs 8.0 oz Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) 
    3 lbs Munich Malt (9.0 SRM)  
    3 lbs Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) 
    1 lbs 8.0 oz Caramunich Malt (56.0 SRM)  
    8.0 oz Biscuit Malt (23.0 SRM) 
    8.0 oz Honey Malt (25.0 SRM)
    1.00 oz Northern Brewer [8.50%] – Boil 60.0 min 20.2 IBUs  
    2.00 oz Saaz [3.75%] – Boil 3.0 min 2.2 IBUs 
    1 pkg Lalbrew Farmhouse 

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  • Glassware for Beer

    Enid is sharing her presentation on glassware for beer.