NBC 2014 CAT 18 GOLD - (Belgium Strong)

[magnethead]

Are we gonna see some more 2014 beer recipes now 

Name: Trapattoni
Apparantly if you like big beers, this is quite nice, It was my first and probably last (I can't stomach them or handle the alcohol
This was an 'experiment' just to say I made a 'big beer' so pretty much beginners luck for it to turn out so nice.
Can you spot someone trying to use up ingredients below to reach a bigger gravity? 


3Kg  Pilsner  47.8%
0.5Kg Abbey Malt   8%
0.23Kg  Caramunich Malt 3.7%
0.17Kg Aromatic Malt 2.7%
0.07Kg Chocolate Malt 1.1%
1Kg  Extra light Dry Extract  15.9%
0.5Kg  Dark Dry extract  8%
0.5Kg Candi Sugar (Clear)
0.3Kg Candi Sugar (Dark)
2g  Seeds of Paradise (Coffee grinder into the last 5 min of Boil)

25g Magnum (60mins)
30g Hallertauer Mittelfruch (15mins)

Trappist Ale yeast (WLP500)

OG 1.090
FG 1.012


Process: Simple as always! (The making beer part, not the maturation)

MASH at 68c for an hour with 20L (Mash PH 5.6)
Sparged out with 10L I think ....(Got 18L into the Primary)

Fermented for 2 and a half weeks.......It turned out at 10.5% Alc (Note, the mouthful(my limit) I tasted after fermentation tasted devine!!)

THis was before my Keg setup, so everything went into bottles with a teaspoon of Sugar.......after 4 months I checked and they were completely FLAT.....Think all the trappist yeast tapped out! I had given the bottles a turn regularly during the 4 months but nothing. (Note: Some knowledgeable lad on Beoir said to me after that I should have recylced some of the yeast from the TRUB, because they would be a bit more tolerant?)

Anyway I made up a solution 100ml of Champagne yeast and (I think) I syringed in 3ml of yeast solution into each bottle...Opened another 4 months later and there was a 'small head, but generally flat'

Got pissed off, put them all in boxes and forgot about for 2 years     Remembered them at the back of the shed, and thought about the Keg setup I had since acquired...Opened all the Bottles and dumped them into a Keg for a Charge.
Rebottled them and brought them to a homebrew meet.

Partridge9 got all excited  and convinced me to enter the beer into the NBC Comp, so I have him to thank for getting a medal

Moral of the story: Even if you think your beer is crap, someone else might like it     (And Big Beers take lot's of TIME to mature)

Oh, and it was in the top 6 beers of the 2014 comp too, the 'results' talked about lot's of 'complexity' ..

[Bubbles]

Well done on that beer! I stewarded on the "Strong Belgian" table and I got to taste it. I do remember the judges were absolutely raving about your beer and it was the clear winner of the category on the day.

[irish_goat]

Funny after all that hassle with the bottling that you still come out with a great beer.

[magnethead]

haha yeah, I think the Big beers with all that Alc onboard can handle all the  transfers/microbes you throw at them and they can obviously take a kickin  you don't need to baby them like the 4% er's