I bottled Phat Pliny and Mac’s Bavarian Hefeweizen last Saturday (April 7, 2012).  Phat Pliny weighed in at 10.1% ABV.  Yes, you read that correctly and it’s not a typo.  PHAT PLINY IS 10.1% ABV.  I was looking to give Pliny a little boost, but I didn’t expect this much of kick.  It tastes quite good also, although it’s a little difficult to assess the flavor before carbonation.  It is the ultimate hoppy beer, but also has a nice malty taste.  Hopefully the carbonation won’t dry it out too much.  There are 48 x 12 oz bottles, and tasting day is Saturday May 5th.  Bob Waddell and Mike Matulich are already whining, afraid that they won’t get any of it.  The need not worry; if they’re nice I’ll let them split a 12 oz bottle (just kidding dad, there’s plenty for you guys).

I also bottled Mak’s Bavarian Hefeweizen last Saturday (poor planning on my part – bottling two batches of different beer on the same day was a lot of work).  This brew has a nice fruity flavor with no hoppiness (the hallmark of a German style hefeweizen).  It’s cloudy with a nice light golden color.  It is 6.4% ABV, a little high for a German hefe, but the alcohol is not noticeable (the flavor that is, not sure about the effect).  Again, we’ll see how it holds up to carbonation, but it should be a nice refreshing summer beer, available for drinking in early May (Saturday May 5th, same day as Phat Pliny) just as the weather starts getting hot.  I ended up with 50 x 12 oz bottles and two growlers.  There is a little extra priming sugar in this batch, as German hefe is typically a highly carbonated beer.

I brewed a Dunkelweizen on Tuesday April 10, 2012.  It was a good day to brew  – nice cool weather, no one to bother, and a day off of work.  I had some trouble getting the ingredients I wanted, so I had to revise the recipe at the provisions store.  I based the recipe on my hefe, with some dark grains substituted and/or added.  Not sure how it will turn out, it might taste just like Mak’s Bavarian Hefeweizen as I had to settle for third choice on the grains (the Dark Wheat and Dark Munich were unavailable).  I really had an efficient mash though, (90% as calculated by my ProMash software), so I’m looking forward to seeing how it turns out.  Right now it’s in the primary fermenter, with a lot of the yeast/krausen in the pot of water next to the carboy (good thing I used a blow-off hose instead of an airlock!!).

Next up is a cherry wheat concoction for summer vacation (July).  I’ll brew that at the end of this month or the first week of May.  I guess I need to sharpen my pencil and come up with a recipe pretty soon.  My dilemma is whether to ferment with the pureed fruit or to just put flavor concentrate in the beer at bottling.  Hmmmm, maybe I’ll flip a coin – there’s pros and cons to either method.

That’s it for now.  I think I’ll go open a bottle and relax with a good brew.

Cheers