This will be our third attempt at a West Coast IPA, after our first two batches come out somewhat lacking. After plenty of research, we're confident we've found the reason for this - too much sulfate in our water profile that lead to an aggressively bitter finish and stripped out nearly all hop aroma and flavour.
Here's a quick run down from our latest brew day - our Cerveza Piñata Mexican Lager. We had a friend join us for this one, so we didn't capture as many photos as we normally would.
Third time's a charm, or so the saying goes, and it certainly was for us in this case. Our 3rd attempt at creating this iconic beer, and we feel like we've really nailed it this time. Although we can't take all the credit (refer to the original Recipe post for more detail on how the recipe we used came to be), we're certainly very pleased with how it turned out, and think this is the closest we're going to be able to get to replicating the original Stone & Wood Pacific Ale.
For homebrewing enthusiasts, having a personal kegging setup is often considered the ultimate goal. The advantages of kegging over bottling are well-established, with significant reductions in cleaning time and oxidation risk being the most notable. Additionally, the sheer enjoyment and ‘cool’ factor of serving your own beer from a tap at home is an experience that shouldn’t be underestimated.
Our second attempt at a Mexican lager and we're going for a slightly different approach and recipe. Although we're including the crucial ingredient in a Mexican lager - some kind of corn derivative like maize, we're going for a slightly darker beer than the usual pilsner malt base like we did in our first mexican lager (which turned out great).
This is our third attempt at trying to replicate this iconic beer, and we're hoping this attempt will be the closest and best one yet. Check out our previous post with the full recipe details that were apparently shared by an ex-Stone and Wood brewer.
It's actually been a little while since we blew through the keg of this one, however we had a couple of bottles from this batch sitting in our kegerator that we decided to enter along with our Mr Rice Guy Japanese Rice Lager into the 2024 NSW Homebrewing Competition.
We were pretty pleased with how this one turned out, and we actually decided to enter it into the 2024 NSW Homebrewing Competition where it claimed 3rd place in the pale lager category, which we're incredibly proud of, with a combined score of 73/100.
Another (brew) day under our belt - here's how it went.
We actually brewed this beer several months ago but negated to post it at the time (for a couple of reasons), but after recently entering this beer into the NSW Homebrewing Competition where it claimed second place in the pale lager category, we figured it's definitely worth sharing.
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We first looked at KegLand's Hop Bong just prior to it's release way back in 2022. It may have taken us a while, but we finally got our hands on one, so here's our hands on review based on our experience with it so far.
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Thinking of designing a dedicated space for your homebrewing adventures, and looking for some inspiration or ideas? This was us a couple of years ago when we were designing a new house. We were able to include a few brewing related additions to our design, in particular in the garage where at least part of it was going to be used for brewing. These inclusions have been paying dividends for us since we moved in, so we thought we'd share our experience on this.
Here's the run down from our latest brew day - our Flying Horses American Amber Ale. You can check out the link to the recipe at the bottom of this page.
Although it's the end of winter and spring just sprung, we're definitely in the mood for something hoppy and malty whilst the nights are still quite cool, so an amber ale seems to be in order. Our first attempt at an amber ale, dubbed Headspace, turned out great, so our next iteration of an American Amber Ale is quite similar but with a slightly adjusted grain bill and hop schedule, since we like to continuously change things up and keep it interesting.
In a previous blog post, we shared our anecdotal experience with excessive sulfate levels in beer, particularly in hop forward styles like IPA's. You view the article here, but in summary, we found that a number of our beers, all of which featured loads of hops added late in the boil and at dry hop, were completely lacking in hop aroma and flavour. On top of this, they had a harsh, astringent bitterness that overpowered everything else, and a strong malty sweetness. In short, these beers just weren't any good, and we ended up dumping a couple of them.
This would have to be one of the best pale ales we’ve ever made. There’s a few things we’d adjust slightly if we were to make it again, but overall we’re very pleased with how it turned out. A slight tweak in our water profile, namely moving away from the Brewfather hoppy profile and trying a reduced level of sulfate appears to have netted us some real improvements in hop aroma and flavour.
Back in August 2022, we got our hands on Keg King’s Apollo Titan fermenter, and it’s been our go-to fermenter ever since. The stainless steel construction is top-notch, and the small opening at the top gives us a reliable seal every time.
Our latest brew day was for our Mr Rice Guy - Japanese Rice Lager recipe. Here's how it went
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We're on a mission to try out all the different types of lagers, and next up is a Japanese rice lager. We're big fans of Japanese lagers, especially Asahi. If we can make something similar, we'll be very happy.
Let's face it, brewing beer is a delightful blend of art and science, but nobody wants to spend eons stirring like a medieval alchemist. Enter the KegLand Premium Stainless Steel Drill Powered Mash Stirrer & Mixer (KL32247) - a bit like the superhero of your brewing toolkit.
Our inaugural attempt at crafting a sour beer has yielded delightful results that exceed our expectations. Utilizing Philly Sour yeast proved to be a winning choice, aligning closely with the experiences of others who have explored its capabilities.
Here’s a quick update to wrap things up – unfortunately, this brew didn’t make the cut (i.e., we ended up pouring it down the drain). It’s only the second time we’ve had to do this, but life’s too short to settle for subpar beer.
There's no disputing the importance of water when brewing your own beer - being the single biggest ingredient, it's critical you're using quality and good tasting water when making your beer. Unsurprisingly, if you're water quality and taste is poor, then this will likely have a detrimental impact on your beer.
We've had a couple of attempts at brewing the Stone & Wood Pacific Ale, and whilst our attempts have been OK, we're still not quite there in terms of accurately replicating this awesome beer.
Here's the rundown from our latest BrewZilla Brew Day for our Pacific Pale Ale
We've produced a couple of beers that haven't turned out recently - more specifically, they are way too bitter and really lacking any hop punch or aroma. We're thinking the culprit here may be excessive sulfate levels in our water profile (using the Brewfather Hoppy water profile), so for our next batch we're going to make a fairly simple "Pacific Ale" recipe - aptly named as a nod to the original Stone & Wood Pacific Ale that features galaxy hops and wheat malt.
The RAPT Pill from KegLand is an incredibly popular piece of homebrewing equipment, providing an affordable and easy to use way for brewers to monitor the progress of their fermentations. (If you're after more detail on exactly what the RAPT Pill does, check out our RAPT Pill Review).
We're big fans of Brulosophy, and every year they conduct a survey amongst the homebrewing community to gain various data points, and then share the results publicly via their website. It's pretty neat and a great way to gain some insights into trends in hombrewing.
This one has been on our to-brew list for some time now, so it's finally time we had a go at our first sour beer.
