Recent content by j616s

Just a note on getting this to ferment down. I've got extremely accurate temp control, a tilt hydrometer to keep track of things for when to change temps, and a temp controlled stir plate for my starter. I followed the recipe to the letter to the extreme and didn't have any issues getting this...

If you're talking about Saq's original recipe, that's the pre-2014 recipe. It's sublime. You get a lot more complexity going on a lot earlier in the life of the beer. Complexity that compliments the yeast really well. I've found that that recipe reached a stage I'd consider drinkable quicker...

I have the KegKingdom mark II that looks the same. Works really well. The plastic threads of the Mark I was a pain for stripping when you put fittings on them but the Mark II is near perfect. My tip is to unscrew rotate the head so the exit port (the side on) exits between the top two sets of...

If all your kit (blowoff & flask) are sanitary as well as the water, you should be ok. You'll want to add it back sooner rather than later. This is a pretty high ABV beer. It's not an environment particularly compatible with life. You want to re-introduce the yeast while they're still healthy...

Yes. Re-add the yeast. You need every cell you can get to get those last few points down Your gravity sounds good to me. Don't worry too much about taking too many samples. The last few points will take a lot longer and the krausen will drop more or less completely while it keeps going. Keep an...

I think your starter should be ok but if it's hanging around a little longer then there's a rule of thumb on Brewer's Friend you can use Do you mean decoction or do you mean the boil-down mentioned in previous posts on the two Westy threads? A decoction involves boiling down the thick part of...

Won't adjusting just the base malt have an affect on the flavour profile? Particularly with bready European pales

I've read on the two westy threads of people trying this or suggesting this before. I seem to remember the conclusion being that there simply isn't much sugar left in the grist after the westy. I guess you can always try collecting second runnings and then decide if its worth going ahead then...

Think its worth saying that this recipe has worked well for a large number of people including myself. Any problems are likely down to the individual brewer, their kit, any adaptations they may need to make for their kit, and any issues in things such as pitch rate/temp control. The recipe...

The recommended pitch rate is a *slight* under-pitch to very slightly stress the yeast to get the right profile. But too much under/over can cause the yeast to stall out before its finished. From what I understand from previous posts, pitch rate is extremely important in this beer. Check out the...

You might find the round-up of the pre-cursor to this thread at the top of page 3 helpful. Lots of info on bottling including details on re-pitching etc.

I've heard people try parti-gyle with this beer before with varying success. There just isn't much sugars left in the grain after the sparge in this recipe. But let us know how it goes for you if you try :) Closest beer to this you might be able to get hold of easily is the ABT12. The brewers...

The clone of the pre-2014 version of the Westy contains 7 different malts + syrups & boildown! You can certainly tell from the flavour going in to the fermenter.

My wife and I brewed Saq's revised recipe for the pre-2014 Westvleteren 12 on Sunday. Pretty much went without a hitch. We ended up with a SG of 1.085 going in so added 2/3 of a pouch of Simplicity we had left over from priming the previous batch. This put us bang on 1.090. Very full mash...

Bottled ours last night along with 3 other beers (long story. Our home brew club is having a "will it brew?" competition with bizarre ingredients. We pulled dried blood, like you'd use in British black pudding, out of the hat. We split the batch to try different concentrations. It..... sort of...