The Last Brew

Initially I was thinking that this was a bit of a sad day of posting, but at the same time it is positive as well.  Since I have said that this was the last batch that I would brew until transitioning to all grain it may be the last brewing post for some time.  Then again, it marks the bottling of the last brew of a two year learning process that I have enjoyed so much that I want to take the next step up the ladder.  Much to do between now and then, but I am already looking forward to that next brew day.

Continuing on . . .

As usual I boiled about ¾ cup of corn sugar in 2 cups of water, cooled it, then added it to the bottling bucket before racking the beer over. Maybe with going to all grain I will start to prime more specifically to each beer, but that is for another day.  That was all after rinsing the sanitized bottles (sitting since the night before) and bottling equipment and allowing them to air-dry a bit on the dishwasher rack.

It all settles out

There was again no change in my bottle choosing.  I grab a case plus (gives me and early taster) one of 12 oz. bottle and then go with bombers and 750s from there.  A good mix of sizes and fewer bottle to ultimately fill is a good thing for me.  I like having the option of mixing six packs for friends with 12 oz. bottle or simply handing out a bomber here and there.

The final hydrometer reading left it with a specific gravity of about 1.0101 which was pretty much the exact same as when it originally went into secondary.  It was about at 6.56% ABV going into secondary and this latest reading before bottling had it at 6.47% ABV.  Since I don’t exactly have a lab doing my testing I would say that is within my margin for error.  If asked I will probably call it 6.50%.

Filtering the green

The pellets used for dry hopping settled out pretty well and I did not really have to filter it again, but I did anyway to avoid any large chunks in the bottles.

The sample had an aroma that was much the same as before with a slightly sweet profile and some spicy notes and a bit of fruitiness.  The flavor was pretty much in line with that of before as well with a really nice bitterness and hop flavor to it.  I would say that both the aroma and flavor were bigger than when it went into secondary though.

The tasty payoff

As with the Maple Porter, the official release will happen during Syracuse Rob’s visit in a few weeks.  I will sample between now and then just to know what to expect at that time.

Stay tuned for the official review!