gold dust pale ale
brewed: 03/05/15
pitched: 10/03/15
bottled/kegged: 30/03/15
subsequent batch info: n/a
ingredients:
4.17kg joe white traditional ale
280gm joe white crystal medium
190gm joe white wheat
190gm dextrose - added after being under gravity - not part of original recipe
10gm magnum (pellets, 13 aa%, 60 mins)
60gm el dorado (pellets, 14.3 aa%, 5 mins)
40gm el dorado (pellets, 14.3 aa%, dry hopped after fermentation complete, for 3 days)
1.0 tablet whirlfloc
0.5 teaspoon yeast nutrient
1 vial wln4000 clarity ferm
11.5gm DCL yeast US-05 - american ale
process:
batch size: 20L
steps: 1
mash: 66C : 60 mins
boil: 60 mins
chill method: no chill
ferment temp: 16C
d-rest: 19C
chilled: 2C
estimated OG: 1.046
actual OG: 1.044
estimated FG: 1.008
actual FG: 1.005
estimated %abv: 5.0%
actual %abv: 5.2%
ibu: 36
brewing notes:
09/03/15 - this beer is the first test beer i made at the hop and grain's new shop location! as well as this, it was a test run to determine my efficiency for a 60 minute mash and boil. basically it's terribly inefficient but this will be needed for demonstration purposes. with all my other batches, i'll aim to stay to 90 minutes unless this becomes more beneficial for time saving. additionally, to keep it fast, i no-chilled the beer which means the bitterness could be slightly higher; never bothers me!
this beer was named as such as it will be showcasing the 'el dorado' hop (city of gold, the king covering himself in gold dust etc). pretty unexciting an unoriginal but until now i wasn't really going to keep this beer. i'm really interested in the hop though so will no doubt have this beer on tap at home or in the shop. i'm also going to be sampling the wln4000 clarifty ferm product which is supposed to reduce chill haze! not bad.
24/03/15 - i believe the clarity ferm has stolen a few points from the gravity of this beer - as it was supposed to finish at 1.008 but finished at 1.005 so it's slightly thinner than what i would have liked but it was still tasting VERY nice tonight. am excited to carbonate it up in the keg and get it cranking.
30/03/15 - kegged tonight after a long cold crash (6 days). really want to see how clear this beer is off the bat as it's had an extended cold crash and also clari-ferm.
tasting notes:
24/03/15 - had a taste of this guy before and after dry hopping and i believe it is the dry hopping with el dorado which brings about the watermelon-ness and candy flavours i've read about. it's very unique and a little strange but the more you sip the better it gets. i'm VERY pumped to get this one on tap asap and see how it goes once carbonated.
02/04/15 - had my first taste tonight and while under-carbonated slightly, it is tasting REALLY interesting. a lot of strong upfront mandarin-citrus notes and even hints of aniseed from the hops. interesting. i'll say now that i would have liked more flavour from the hops, and realised i didn't put in a flavour addition per se. it is very much a strong bitterness, with the aroma mask that follows. lovely, not perfect, but i'm enjoying it. i think i'll have to see how it develops over the next few weeks and then have another play with it for future batches. i've read nothing but sweet, candy, jolly rancher, watermelon in reviews about this hop and i'm not getting any of it. i've read that mount rainier hops illicit what i'm smelling so i wonder if it was those by mistake. will see if it ages differently. it's lovely, just not what i expected.
09/04/15 - have been tasting this guy over the past few days and today it has started mellowing out. the hop flavours i was noticing before seemed to have mellowed a lot and it is now a lot more balanced to my palate. there is a clear distinction between the bitterness hop addition, and the aroma additions. this beer didn't really have a specific flavour addition as mentioned above however since it was no-chilled, this extended the aroma hop time in the hot liquor which has meant some flavour has come through. the strong upfront bitterness is there, but not as harsh as before and the aroma is very evident also. i think in a week's time it will be nice and balanced even more so than today. if this is el dorado then it is truly a new-world hop. i've never tasted anything like it but it really does lend itself to more playing, and i think it would pair nicely with a much fruitier hop such as cascade or even centennial.
11/05/15 - have had this periodically over the last few weeks and have been slowly more impressed with this beer. i definitely still think that it would pair nicely with another hop, as it has a nelson sauvin quality to it; not something i personally like on its own, but still think it would do fabulously with another more citrusy variety, or even paired with another new world hop such as mosaic (berry-like sweetness for my tastes) or bramling cross from england. lots of good ideas for future uses. am happy with this beer no doubt, but wouldn't do the same one again for future batches. the hop character has mellowed out a lot now and it has made this beer a lot more drinkable. pretty alright in my books.
brew day / beer pictures:
pitched: 10/03/15
bottled/kegged: 30/03/15
subsequent batch info: n/a
ingredients:
4.17kg joe white traditional ale
280gm joe white crystal medium
190gm joe white wheat
190gm dextrose - added after being under gravity - not part of original recipe
10gm magnum (pellets, 13 aa%, 60 mins)
60gm el dorado (pellets, 14.3 aa%, 5 mins)
40gm el dorado (pellets, 14.3 aa%, dry hopped after fermentation complete, for 3 days)
1.0 tablet whirlfloc
0.5 teaspoon yeast nutrient
1 vial wln4000 clarity ferm
11.5gm DCL yeast US-05 - american ale
process:
batch size: 20L
steps: 1
mash: 66C : 60 mins
boil: 60 mins
chill method: no chill
ferment temp: 16C
d-rest: 19C
chilled: 2C
estimated OG: 1.046
actual OG: 1.044
estimated FG: 1.008
actual FG: 1.005
estimated %abv: 5.0%
actual %abv: 5.2%
ibu: 36
brewing notes:
09/03/15 - this beer is the first test beer i made at the hop and grain's new shop location! as well as this, it was a test run to determine my efficiency for a 60 minute mash and boil. basically it's terribly inefficient but this will be needed for demonstration purposes. with all my other batches, i'll aim to stay to 90 minutes unless this becomes more beneficial for time saving. additionally, to keep it fast, i no-chilled the beer which means the bitterness could be slightly higher; never bothers me!
this beer was named as such as it will be showcasing the 'el dorado' hop (city of gold, the king covering himself in gold dust etc). pretty unexciting an unoriginal but until now i wasn't really going to keep this beer. i'm really interested in the hop though so will no doubt have this beer on tap at home or in the shop. i'm also going to be sampling the wln4000 clarifty ferm product which is supposed to reduce chill haze! not bad.
24/03/15 - i believe the clarity ferm has stolen a few points from the gravity of this beer - as it was supposed to finish at 1.008 but finished at 1.005 so it's slightly thinner than what i would have liked but it was still tasting VERY nice tonight. am excited to carbonate it up in the keg and get it cranking.
30/03/15 - kegged tonight after a long cold crash (6 days). really want to see how clear this beer is off the bat as it's had an extended cold crash and also clari-ferm.
tasting notes:
24/03/15 - had a taste of this guy before and after dry hopping and i believe it is the dry hopping with el dorado which brings about the watermelon-ness and candy flavours i've read about. it's very unique and a little strange but the more you sip the better it gets. i'm VERY pumped to get this one on tap asap and see how it goes once carbonated.
02/04/15 - had my first taste tonight and while under-carbonated slightly, it is tasting REALLY interesting. a lot of strong upfront mandarin-citrus notes and even hints of aniseed from the hops. interesting. i'll say now that i would have liked more flavour from the hops, and realised i didn't put in a flavour addition per se. it is very much a strong bitterness, with the aroma mask that follows. lovely, not perfect, but i'm enjoying it. i think i'll have to see how it develops over the next few weeks and then have another play with it for future batches. i've read nothing but sweet, candy, jolly rancher, watermelon in reviews about this hop and i'm not getting any of it. i've read that mount rainier hops illicit what i'm smelling so i wonder if it was those by mistake. will see if it ages differently. it's lovely, just not what i expected.
09/04/15 - have been tasting this guy over the past few days and today it has started mellowing out. the hop flavours i was noticing before seemed to have mellowed a lot and it is now a lot more balanced to my palate. there is a clear distinction between the bitterness hop addition, and the aroma additions. this beer didn't really have a specific flavour addition as mentioned above however since it was no-chilled, this extended the aroma hop time in the hot liquor which has meant some flavour has come through. the strong upfront bitterness is there, but not as harsh as before and the aroma is very evident also. i think in a week's time it will be nice and balanced even more so than today. if this is el dorado then it is truly a new-world hop. i've never tasted anything like it but it really does lend itself to more playing, and i think it would pair nicely with a much fruitier hop such as cascade or even centennial.
11/05/15 - have had this periodically over the last few weeks and have been slowly more impressed with this beer. i definitely still think that it would pair nicely with another hop, as it has a nelson sauvin quality to it; not something i personally like on its own, but still think it would do fabulously with another more citrusy variety, or even paired with another new world hop such as mosaic (berry-like sweetness for my tastes) or bramling cross from england. lots of good ideas for future uses. am happy with this beer no doubt, but wouldn't do the same one again for future batches. the hop character has mellowed out a lot now and it has made this beer a lot more drinkable. pretty alright in my books.
brew day / beer pictures: