50 Gallon Cantillon Turbid Mash ... and pizza, mostly photos.

[ChugachBrewing]

Here we go. Big brew day. Turbid mash, 45 gallon yield, to add on to the 15 I brewed last week. You can google the process, here are the photos. See you in two years.

Ps. I have no idea where that child came from.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Part 2. Hell of a mash.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Throwing hops around like a boss, lots of ones from 2001 harvest. Good for lambics.
Lower down the keggle is full of Faro, the big one is the Lambic

 

[ChugachBrewing]

A few shots of the chill. This barrel previously had saison in it, a quick shot of the kegs I just filled a few days ago.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Final chill, fill, and as promised, a pizza. Best G-D pizza you'll ever eat. I promise. I don't toot my own horn too much about stuff, but this is legit.
Where else can you find this kind of structure and crumb?

 

[sockmerchant]

Good effort!

 

[badlee]

Beer poetry in images

 

[spenghali]

That perfect crust and no cooling rack? How long before it turned to soggy crust?

 

[ChugachBrewing]

An impossible outcome, given the following:
1. The stone on which said pizza cooked dried and crisped the bottom to a crunchy perfection.
2. The pizza was consumed by the brewer within 8 minutes.
QED

 

[ChugachBrewing]

I wonder when it'll take off...

 

[Hopper5000]

so why did you decide to ferment in the barrel?

 

[BenWillcox]

Probably because that is THE Traditional way to do Lambic. Lambic is coolshipped, and then racked to barrels. It is fermented and aged in the same vessel with no racking.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Everything about this brew was as pure as I could do it, save for the fact that my coolship didn't hold the entire amount of wort. I've got 3 gallons in it, to add to the bugs that are obviously already in the barrel.

As for the Faro, I pitched my 'house yeast' I obtained from the coolship last Fall, since I know it's good stuff.

Blowoff tube just got launched again...

 

[Coff]

This is fantastic...

 

[lowtones84]

Yeah, great stuff! I hope to be doing the exact same thing someday! As for now I am limited to planning 3-6 gallon batches of lambic that I will blend down the road. Good luck on all of this!

 

[levifunk]

good work!

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Thank you much. Hopefully it will be worth the time. AHA Conference 2015!

 

[bellmtbbq]

Awhhh Hell, we need to work out a trade on the spontaneous stuff.

 

[Hopper5000]

ah didn't know that, well good luck!

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Update: Primary Fermentation has completed. Barrel bubbles seldom. Only 1 year, 11 months to go. Unless I get evicted. Landlord thinks its a commercial operation.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Here's a photo of all the barrels, just for fun. This weekends task is moving a *full* 60 gallon barrel from one side of the room to the other. Then, making a wooden frame to stack barrels - recently obtained two more.

Fermentation updates - Faro seems to be done fermenting, the lambic in the barrel has slowed. As temperatures warm for summer, I predict slightly more activity.

Also going to put in a "vinnie nail" this weekend for easier sampling.

1 year, 10 months to go.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

"yay, i have some friends!"

 

[levifunk]

This pictures are so sexy that I want to take them out to a fine restaurant.

Also, How did you move a FULL barrel?!?!

 

[smokinghole]

I was wondering that myself. Its not like you have a forklift you can cradle the barrel with in your basement. I am thinking a chain hoist some straps, and a frame built to hang the barrel from, with wheels of course.

 

[TNGabe]

Wow, I spend a lot of time just staring at my carboys and bottles. I'd probably end up sleeping down there. Soon, I hope to have some barrels. I've got the room and the supportive spouse, I just need to find some wine barrels and figure out how I'm going to brew 60 gallons.

 

[Rivenin]

a ton of smaller ones haha, that would take me 2.5 days with double batch days.. you're insane and i approve of all of this

 

[ChugachBrewing]

With regard to moving barrels, my good friend is one of the worlds top powerlifters and is coming to help. Another friend is about his size and between the two of them it should get done. Ill post a photo if he they get it in the air.
Barrel fill takes a full day, see above photos.
I've almost slept down there... think I'm gonna put in a couch soon for these warm summers - good place to cool off.
Re: the barrels I have a grest source and a supportive spouse.

 

[smokinghole]

With a couple straps they should be good to lift the barrel full. It's only like 500lbs so with two dudes it's entirely doable. I was thinking of a way to do it solo.

 

[Rivenin]

Teach my wife the ways! Lol kidding... I currently have a carboy with lacto and one with Brett... she's very supportive just wish I had a barrel... just jealous!

 

[Xpertskir]

About to fill a barrel next weekend. How many gallons of head space did you allow for blow off?


We are thinking we will put 45 gallons in, and then top off after the majority of ferm slows.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

I actually filled this last one to the brim, or very close to it. It definitely blew a bit off, and I probably need to top off sometime soon. It still bubbles occasionally so I'm sure the blanket is there.

All I can find for nails are 304 grade in town. Anyone got some extras they'd be willing to trade/send? I'm looking for 6-10 of them, rather than ordering a pound online. Gracie.

 

[TNGabe]

All I can find for nails are 304 grade in town. Anyone got some extras they'd be willing to trade/send? I'm looking for 6-10 of them, rather than ordering a pound online. Gracie.

What do you need? Isn't 304 foodgrade stainless?

 

[mo_feezy]

Can you post details on the turbid mash? (assuming you did that)
This is awesome. Way to set the bar.

 

[IslandLizard]

A few shots of the chill...

Very cool and informative thread. The pix tell it all, well most of it.
Can't wait for those 2 of the world's strongest men to show up. Lifting those barrels sounds awfully dangerous.

2 questions:
I wonder what that "half keg" is for on the bottom of the pole. What did you do with the other half? Art project?

You mentioned using a coolship to chill, but I only see a plate chiller. Do you have pics of your coolship?

 

[levifunk]

Very cool and informative thread. The pix tell it all, well most of it.
Can't wait for those 2 of the world's strongest men to show up. Lifting those barrels sounds awfully dangerous.

2 questions:
I wonder what that "half keg" is for on the bottom of the pole. What did you do with the other half? Art project?

You mentioned using a coolship to chill, but I only see a plate chiller. Do you have pics of your coolship?

This is funny because answering 1 questions answers them both. The half keg is his "coolship".

 

[ChugachBrewing]

That's the "other half" of the coolship. Might turn it into a light or something (art project?).

The mash schedule was based off of Cantillon - from Brewing Techniques magazine, May-August 1997, as well as a LOT of other reading I've done on the topic.

I don't know - IS 304 food grade? I thought 316 was a higher grade and is in all the info out there. I'm not sure though.

Barrel move got delayed - one of the guys had an engagement. I'll post photos if they get it done. Other wise, I might use rollers to roll the rack to where I want it.

 

[BigBeer4All]

Amazing, love the process and your brewing style.

Will definitely look into said cantillon article for more detailed turbine mash descriptions.

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Nails are in. Thank you LeviFunk, very, very much.
Lambic kinda tastes like pineapples right now.

 

[SavoryChef]

I may have missed it, but what are the nails for?

 

[ChugachBrewing]

Tasting without contaminating. Unofficially noted as a "vinnie nail"


https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/installing-vinnie-nail-barrel-393161/
http://discussions.probrewer.com/showthread.php?23357-Hole-for-quot-Vinnie-Nail-quot