Red Ale

This beer was my first all grain brew. I hoped to create a beer similar to Oerbier from De Dolle Brouwers. I guessed at the grain bill just from what I could taste in Oerbier. I guessed at the hops as well. Though looking back I do not know why I put two ounces of 6.3 AAU Cascade hops into a beer that is supposed to feature the malt and yeast character. Overall the brew went fairly smoothly. Because I party-gyled this, making a Table Beer from the second runnings, I am not sure if I can accurately calculate the mash efficiency.



Notes:
9/28/2008: 4:00 PM Pitched starter made from Oerbier sediment into 4 gallons wort.
9/29/2008: 10:00 AM (18 hours) – Airlock releases every few seconds.
9/30/2008: 3:30 PM (48 hours)Top Cropped ½ cup yeast. SG: ~1.030.
10/3/2008: Racked to secondary. ~1.013.
10/26/2008: Bottled with 4.5 oz honey.

I forgot to measure the OG before pitching but from the Pre-Boil OG I calculated 1.088. That gives an astonishing 91% attenuation and over 10% ABV. The attenuation seems wrong given its a grain only beer mashed at 158 F (I was aiming for 150 F).

The beer pours a deep clear red (although my awful photography fails to show this) with a off white head that quickly subsides. I can't decide exactly what it smells like. Malty. Fruity. Yeasty. The first sip immediately tastes grainy that changes into hop bitterness, which dominates the flavor throughout. There is some great malt and yeast flavors hiding behind the bitterness. The beer is very green right now and definitely needs some aging.

Overall I was happy with this as a first try at all grain brewing. The beer turned out alright but not great. The grainy flavor likely came from a hot mash and/or not monitoring the mash pH. I will likely tweak the recipe for lower alcohol, attenuation and bitterness.