Won my first competition!

[SteelManCM]

For the AHA Big Brew on National Homebrew day, a local brewery hosted homebrewers to bring their rigs in to the brewery and brew. At the end of the brew day, there was a competition, so we were told to bring in three 12 oz bottles of the beer we want judged.

I felt really good about the Caramel Porter that I had just taken to a wedding the weekend prior, and since I had stashed some to keep for myself, I took it to the competition. I got great feedback from the wedding and no leftovers (which means more to me than comments from those being nice).

Now, as the winner of the competition I get to brew alongside their head brewer on their pilot system. The Caramel Porter will be served at the brewery during one of their Small Batch Tuesday events (each Tuesday, they have a small batch). This will be advertised as "Ales of the Dead Caramel Porter".

We are very stoked about this and are riding Cloud 9 for the foreseeable future!

Without further ado, the winning recipe:

Recipe: Caramel Porter
Brewer: Ales of the Dead
Style: Robust Porter
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 11.56 gal
Post Boil Volume: 10.56 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 10.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 9.80 gal
Estimated OG: 1.055 SG
Estimated Color: 43.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 29.8 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 73.1 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
16 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) Bel (3.0 SRM) Grain 1 73.2 %
2 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 2 9.1 %
1 lbs 15.0 oz Black (Patent) Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 3 8.8 %
1 lbs Munich Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 4 4.6 %
15.0 oz Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 5 4.3 %
52.00 oz Caramel (Boil 60.0 mins) Flavor 6 -
3.50 oz Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 7 29.8 IBUs
0.50 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 8 -
1.0 pkg London Ale Yeast (Wyeast Labs #1028) [12 Yeast 9 -

Fermented in primary for two weeks, bottle conditioned for six.

 

[unionrdr]

Congrats on the win! I'd love to be able to brew on a pro system just once! Are you getting some different flavor from the Belgian 2-row vs US?

 

[SteelManCM]

Thanks! That's the really exciting part, the pro system.

As for the 2 row, not really. It was what the LHBS had in a 50 pound sack when I went shopping.

 

[bacgabe]

Awesome. I will have to try that recipe out! I hate I could not make it to that big brew event. Congrats on your win!

 

[eluterio]

congrats!!

 

[LAHammer]

Congratulations! Very classy to share the winning recipe.
Thanks

 

[Cyclman]

Congrats, I love messing with Robust Porters, it is a great canvas to play with

 

[SteelManCM]

Thanks, everyone! I really wasn't expecting much, I know that I like the beer, but this was my second All Grain brew. That in itself led to worry for both the wedding and the competition!

 

[mdbrewer1]

Congrats on the win!

How did you make the caramel you used?

 

[SteelManCM]

Easily, these come in 13oz bags, 4 bags = 52oz

Kraft Caramels

Yes, I know that the listing shows it as an 11oz bag, but when I went in to purchase mine, they were 13oz.

 

[Gavin C]

Fantastic stuff here. Graet labels BTW. Recipe looks very good. I've got a bunch of 1028 in the fridge. Might have a crack at this one. Never used caramel in a brew.

 

[mdbrewer1]

Easily, these come in 13oz bags, 4 bags = 52oz

Kraft Caramels

Yes, I know that the listing shows it as an 11oz bag, but when I went in to purchase mine, they were 13oz.

Well that's easy enough. I didn't know if you had gone through the process of creating your own.

I love tweaking porters and stouts. I might be giving this a shot to have available this fall/winter.

 

[mdbrewer1]

Also, that's an awesome label. What does the QR tag take you to?

 

[SteelManCM]

@Gavin C, thanks! They went through many revisions prior to the design I used.

@mdbrewer1, I might in the future, but there was already enough stress about this brew. My second All Grain, making it for a wedding, it was part of a double brew day since I was making two different styles for the wedding...

I find that Porters lend themselves to be a great base for really flavorful dark beers.

The QR takes you to my blog, of course!

 

[BierGut]

Sweet dude! That's super cool getting to brew on their system and serving it to the public.

 

[bbohanon]

Looks really good and congrats!
Many thanks for the recipe!
I may give this one a go for a colder winter brew myself! This also looks like one that may be a go-to for some oak spirals to add some vanilla and oak notes to it.

 

[Dixon9717]

Congrats that's awesome.....

 

[SteelManCM]

@BierGut, I can't wait to brew this on their system! You know I'm going to stay at the taproom until every drop is gone

@bbohanon, Oak and Vanilla would be great! Hmm....and now a new brew with a new name just popped into my head, THANKS!

@Dixon9717, Thanks!

 

[1977Brewer]

Looks really good and congrats!
Many thanks for the recipe!
I may give this one a go for a colder winter brew myself! This also looks like one that may be a go-to for some oak spirals to add some vanilla and oak notes to it.

I was thnking the same thing. I've been mulling recipes for a good winter beer.

 

[bbohanon]

Reviving as I am attempting the Caramel Porter as my Memorial Day 10Gal brew.
Will be floating some oak spirals in the fermenters post fermentation as well to get that vanilla/oak character to it as planned.

Using the same grain bill as the one posted and will be leaving it in the fermenter for 4 weeks total before kegging. Will leave in the keg for approx 8 weeks to age it out.
Hoping it turns out as well as SteelMans did!

The only sucky part is the unwrapping of those 5 bags of caramels...I fear I will eat more than 10 oz of them before they make it to the brew pot.

 

[SteelManCM]

@bbohanon, That was definitely the worst part! For how it tasted, though, I'll gladly go through unwrapping each one. Although, I will admit....I bought more than I needed and got my son to "help" unwrap. Just made sure I had my 52 oz and he got the rest!

I'm honored to have you brew my recipe!

 

[bbohanon]

@bbohanon, That was definitely the worst part! For how it tasted, though, I'll gladly go through unwrapping each one. Although, I will admit....I bought more than I needed and got my son to "help" unwrap. Just made sure I had my 52 oz and he got the rest!

I'm honored to have you brew my recipe!

Wife guilted me into helping finish the deck resurfacing/staining project last weekend but tomorrow is go day for me on this one.

Will be milling up the grain and unwrapping caramels tonight. Already had the starters ready for last weekend so I am locked and loaded.
Thanks much and I am honored you shared this recipe with us!

 

[Freddyj123]

I love porters and this looks so, so good! Congrats on the win and your labels look bomb! I'll have to have someone help dial this down to a smaller batch that I can try to brew!

 

[bbohanon]

Finally got it brewed this weekend..some pics of the mash recircing (which smelled so yummy I wanted to jump into the mash):

and the bowl of unwrapped caramels I put into the batch..

The only bad thing about this was that I had to stir for quite a while before I knew I had all the caramels dissolved into the wort. I added all of mine at flameout and was stirring for about 15 mins before I could run the spatula across the bottom of the brew kettle and not have it come back up with globs of caramel on it.
I knocked the wort down to right at @100 deg with my duda plate chiller (which I am still not very thrilled with) and dropped both fermenters into my temp controlled freezer overnight to knock it the rest of the way down to pitch the yeast. I noticed there was a layer of white foam on the top when I popped the lids to pitch the yeast the next morning that looked like congealed cold break which is odd. It was not krausen nor an infection, I think it was more due to the dissolved caramels to be honest as the beer tasted very sweet and caramely.

All 10 gallons are now fermenting happily away in both fermenters and I am really stoked about this one...Tastes awesome and should be a solid fall/winter beer. Not sure if I am going to toss the oak into this one yet or not. Its going to be really good without it.

Will post pics of the final product once it gets kegged and carbed.

:rockin::fro:

 

[SteelManCM]

Make sure you cold crash this one,and ENJOY!

Seeing that makes me want to brew it again...

 

[bbohanon]

So I am not sure how this batch is going to turn out..I had a layer of white chalky scum on the top of the beer in the fermenter that looks like an infection which is not good. I think I picked it up either in the chiller or from the caramels as the fermenter buckets are practically brand new and I sanitize very well...I also did my grain grinding inside my brew shed as it was raining that day which could have attributed to the infections as the chaff from the grains can cause issues like this.

I racked under it into kegs as it tasted ok so I will let it go and see what happens.
Will need to spend a saturday and boil some oxy clean followed up by a boil of star san through my gear to knock any nasties out..I am due for a brewhouse cleanup day anyhow so no biggie.
Just hope the beer turns out ok as it really looks like a good one. If this batch does not work out and ends up being a dumper, I will re-brew this down this line at some point.

 

[Hello]

Hey, did the brewery release your beer yet? Which one is it?

 

[mdbrewer1]

Have you tried the Saranac Caramel Porter? I tried one a couple weeks ago and could barely finish it. The sweetness overpowered everything by the end of the glass. Is this comparable?

 

[LoneTreeFarms]

So I am not sure how this batch is going to turn out..I had a layer of white chalky scum on the top of the beer in the fermenter that looks like an infection which is not good. I think I picked it up either in the chiller or from the caramels as the fermenter buckets are practically brand new and I sanitize very well...I also did my grain grinding inside my brew shed as it was raining that day which could have attributed to the infections as the chaff from the grains can cause issues like this.

I racked under it into kegs as it tasted ok so I will let it go and see what happens.
Will need to spend a saturday and boil some oxy clean followed up by a boil of star san through my gear to knock any nasties out..I am due for a brewhouse cleanup day anyhow so no biggie.
Just hope the beer turns out ok as it really looks like a good one. If this batch does not work out and ends up being a dumper, I will re-brew this down this line at some point.

this might just be a waxy layer, a couple years ago I made a batch of skittle wine for the wife and the layer of waxy white crap on the top got scraped off three or four different times. hopefully that's all your seeing here. as I chilled the batch it formed a crust. apparently a lot of candy uses an edible wax to preserve it? cheers and I hope this works out for you.

 

[bbohanon]

this might just be a waxy layer, a couple years ago I made a batch of skittle wine for the wife and the layer of waxy white crap on the top got scraped off three or four different times. hopefully that's all your seeing here. as I chilled the batch it formed a crust. apparently a lot of candy uses an edible wax to preserve it? cheers and I hope this works out for you.

Hope this is it..I will be running my brew house through a deep cleaning this weekend or next anyhow as I usually do it every 5 batches to keep things cleaned out and all but hopefully this batch is not ruined. It did not smell funky or anything and tasted like what I would have expected..just that layer of white crap on the top that I was not expecting to see.
Will update here in a week or so once the first keg carbs up and I dare to take the first pull.

 

[SteelManCM]

@bbohanon I didn't get a white layer on top. Please do keep us updated.

@mdbrewer1 This is not an overly sweet brew. Most of the sugar ferments out, leaving a hint of taste and a nice, silky mouthfeel.

@Hello, not yet. They have an anniversary party they are cranking up for. They said I should be able to brew it in July.

 

[Hello]

@bbohanon I didn't get a white layer on top. Please do keep us updated.

@mdbrewer1 This is not an overly sweet brew. Most of the sugar ferments out, leaving a hint of taste and a nice, silky mouthfeel.

@Hello, not yet. They have an anniversary party they are cranking up for. They said I should be able to brew it in July.

Which brewery?

 

[SteelManCM]

Draft Line in Fuquay

 

[AdamGrant09]

Draft Line in Fuquay

Would you recommend a tour/visit?

I've been to Aviator several times, but never Draftline.

 

[joetownhound]

SteelManCM congrats on the win. Have to say that it look like a great recipe to brew, already put it into my Beer Smith recipes to brew later. Also love your blog and all of the DIY post that you is doing. Have to steal a few of your mods that you have posted there. Keep up the great work bro I will be following your blog closely by bookmarking it on my computer. I would also like to know what program that you is using to make your labels with? :rockin:

 

[SteelManCM]

@AdamGrant09 I definitely encourage a visit. They have some GREAT brews. Their Scotch Ale is the best I've had. If you're local to the area, they are hosting an "event" tonight. We are trying to establish a homebrew club and they are giving us the space to do it. You will be able to see their setup then. 30 bbl system, 3 fermenters. I'll be there between 7 and 7:30. Meeting starts at 7:30. Come on by!

As far as a comparison to Aviator goes, They both have good beer. I like Draft line's atmosphere better than Aviator's. The head brewer at Draft Line is very approachable and is a good guy just to sit, drink beer, and have a conversation with.

@joetownhound Good, I hope you like drinking it as much as I did. Thanks for the feedback on the blog. Please do steal as many mods as you would like. That's why the blog is there. I use Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator to make the labels. I print them out on regular computer paper using a color laser printer. I use glue sticks as an adhesive.

 

[unionrdr]

Might I ask how much the laser printer set you back? I'm interested in one myself. Mu ink jet do-everything printer/copier/fax/photoprinter is getting feed jams.

 

[SteelManCM]

To be quite honest, I use the one at work. Now that I am starting a new job next week, I find myself in the market. Here are the contenders:

Dell Color LED Printer - $159.39

Brother Color LED Printer $189.98

HP Color LaserJet M252dw - $224.84

I'm leaning toward the HP, honestly. Brother has always done well for me, too. Dell has historically used Lexmark to make their printers and that would kill that idea.

 

[unionrdr]

I like the HP laserjet myself. Looks darn good to me. I could use a new one, besides an upgrade. I might just get this one myself!

 

[bbohanon]

So update..After a week in the keg on the gas, I pulled the first glass. Tasted good, nice chocolate, malt and coffee notes. I also got some of the caramel hints to come through. Its a really good beer and looks/tastes clean and smooth. Not sure if I caught this before it went totally sideways, but so far no ill effects from what looked to be an infection in the fermenters. Still needs another few weeks for it to really come together as I can tell its still a bit young, but as long as it stays healthy in the keg, its going to be stellar in 3-4 more weeks.

Some pics of the first clean pull of this one:

Still going to run everything equipment wise through the cleaning cycle this coming weekend once I get the flagstone project we have ongoing completed as I want to brew up a cream ale for the back half of summer, but maybe racking under the layer of yucky-ness from the fermenter to keg may have saved this batch.

Also, props to ebrewsupply on the glass..I ordered most of my e-brewery components from them and they sent me about 3 beer glasses which I love!