I was trying to figure out what to brew next and complaining to Suzanne that I wasn't inspired by anything. Nothing sounded good. It was like being hungry but not wanting food.
So, I decided I should do something appropriate for the season, and apples came to mind. Yeah! I've never done anything with apples, so that should be interesting.
After some Googling, I decided I would need a lot of apples...like 9 lbs worth. Half would be cubed (that's the pic above) and steeped at the end of the boil, and half would be shredded and go in during secondary.
I started with a basic brown/amber ale and added some Molasses; I'm going for a 'candied apple' effect, but hopefully not too sweet or overpowering...
2020-11-17: Not bad! When I kegged this I was worried the cinnamon was going to overpower everything, but it has mellowed out a bit while carbing. I don't know that it makes me think of apple, but it's definitely a winter-y spiced ale.
2020-12-30: After aging a bit more this is quite nice. It definitely needed a month or so to mellow out.
Beer Info
| Name | Apple Ale |
| Style | Amber and Brown American Beer |
| Est. OG | 1.053 |
| Est. FG | 1.010 |
| Est. ABV | 5.6% |
| Volume | 5.25 gallons |
| Efficiecy | 72% |
| Boil Length | 60 minutes |
| Est. IBUs | 29.3 |
| Est. Color | 16.6 |
Results
| Actual OG | 1.053 |
| Actual FG | 1.004 |
| Actual ABV | 5.5% |
| Packaged On | 2020-11-08 |
| Carbonation | Keg - 12 PSI @ 34F |
Fermentables
| % | Name | Color | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 84.8% | 2-Row (US) | 2 | 8 lbs 12 oz |
| 7.3% | Molasses | 12 oz | |
| 6.1% | Crystal 40L | 40 | 10 oz |
| 1.8% | Chocolate | 450 | 3 oz |
Mash
| Step | Type | Time | Target | Strike | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Infusion | 60 | 154F | 164F | 14 qts |
| 2 | Sprage | 10 | 168F | - | 4.65 gallons |
Boil
| Time | Name | Amount | AA% | IBUs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | Molasses | 12 oz | - | - |
| 60 | Willamette | 1.5 oz | 4.2% | 23.3 |
| 15 | Irish Moss | 1 tsp | - | - |
| 10 | East Kent Golding | 1.27 oz | 5% | 5.45 |
Fermentation Steps
| Step | Time | Temp |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | 10 Days | 68F |
Fermentation Ingredients
| Name | Step | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| US-05 | Primary | 1 pkg |
Notes
- Steep 4 lbs 7 oz of cubed apples for 30 mins after boil.
- Actual mash temp 152.4F
- Added apples at flameout, steeped for 15 minutes, then began chilling, steeped while chilling, then drained for 10 minutes before removing.
- Shredded 4.5 lbs apples, added to water with 2 cinnamon sticks, brought to ~180F and then let cool. Racked beer on top for secondary (2020-10-25)