Doin another Amber Ale

[Gymrat]

I haven't named it yet.
The half an ounce of chocolate malt was a few grains I have left sitting in a bag that I wanted to get rid of.

BeerSmith 2 Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Munich Amber
Brewer:
Asst Brewer:
Style: American Amber Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 5.70 gal
Post Boil Volume: 5.20 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.048 SG
Estimated Color: 14.3 SRM
Estimated IBU: 33.5 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
9 lbs Munich 10L (Briess) (10.0 SRM) Grain 1 94.4 %
8.0 oz Caramunich II (Weyermann) (63.0 SRM) Grain 2 5.2 %
0.5 oz Chocolate Malt (450.0 SRM) Grain 3 0.3 %
1.00 oz Sterling [7.50 %] - First Wort 60.0 min Hop 4 33.5 IBUs
1.0 pkg Yeast (Lallemand #BRY-97) Yeast 5 -


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, No Mash Out
Total Grain Weight: 9 lbs 8.5 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 12.91 qt of water at 164.8 F 150.0 F 75 min

[Kealia]

IMO you can never have enough amber on hand.

[MadBrewer]

I just used that Bry-97 on a IIPA this week. Have you used it before do you have any comments on it?

[mashani]

Cant go wrong with this.

@MadBrewer, my own experience with Bry-97 is that it's slow to get going (I had something like 48 hours of lag with a full pack pitched in 2.5 gallons), but once it started going it blew the lid off my fermenter... and it made tasty beer. But the lag bugs me because of my bretty house, so I've been sticking with other yeasts that get started very quickly for beers I want to keep clean.

[Gymrat]

I have the same experience. But it seems to attenuate better than 05 so it is my American Ale yeast of choice.

[Gymrat]

Scratch that...I had bubbles in my blow off bucket 3 1/2 hours after pitching my yeast today. I pitched at 58F.

[mashani]

Interesting... I wonder why it lags like mad sometimes and not othertimes...

[MadBrewer]

I pitched 2 packs of the Bry-97 into 5 gals of a 1.076 IIPA on Wednesday about 11am. I went with 2 packs because the best by date on the packet is 2 years after the date of manufacture so that put my yeast at 50% viability according to Mr. Malty. I oxygenated and pitched at about 66*, I had airloc activity the next morning so somewhere overnight it got started, maybe 18 hours of lag time I would guess, which is about average for me maybe just slightly more. I'm very curious to the final beer as I am pretty much a dry yeast user and this will open up some more variety. I love US-05 but it's nice to have something else in the options.


I have heard about the long lag times, yet the Danstar website indicates it is a fast starter and has a vigorous ferment. I wonder if the 2 year best by date is a contributor to the longer lag times, people might be pitching less viable yeast than they realize. 2 year shelf life, you might not be pitching the freshest yeast. Normal lag time is a good thing, super fast starts are not necessary or even ideal, but extended lag time isn't either.

[mashani]

I bought my BRY-97 when it first came available, so it should not have been old. I wonder if somehow some of the packages just have (or had) "dud" yeast. At the pitch rates I use for most ales (close to commercial pitch rates) I should just have 3 generations of growth before active fermentation starts. That's pretty much optimal for most ales. Exceptions being wheat beers and Belgians where you want them to be more estery (you will lose all banana/pear/dark fruit esters at the pitch rates above).

[MadBrewer]

Hmm...maybe it's just an inconsistent yeast. I haven't used Danstar yeasts very much. I used Notty a couple times in the past and Windsor once. I'll be dry hopping the IIPA I used the Bry-97 in maybe tomorrow so I'll be able to get a little sample taste.

[Gymrat]

BRY-97 is a very clean yeast. Perfect for American Ales. Pesonally I prefer Nottingham in IPAs because of how well it attenuates. It really dries a beer out so those hops can shine.

[gwcr]

I've used BRY-97 once and it took almost 4 days to get started, but finished very well. Couldn't tell any difference between US-05, so I went back to that just because it starts quicker and makes me feel better...

Must be the weekend for Ambers. That was my Saturday brew day too!

[Dawg LB Steve]

Although they say you don't need to make starters with dry, the last APA I made a starter and this took off between 8-12 hours, when I used it the first time I used dry and it lagged about 30 hours. I will, at least now, rehydrate if I don't make starter with dry.

[RickBeer]

I only use dry. Rehydrated a few batches, saw no difference in the outcome (I go 18 days on everything before cold crashing), so I just pitch, wait 15 minutes, then aerate again. No difference that I see.

[Gymrat]

I have had the same experience Rick. Then I read an entire thread on the AHA forum full of really experienced brewers. All said the same thing.