You choose what I brew Sunday

[Beer-lord]

For all those playing along with this silly little game of choosing what I brew this weekend, you have until tonite to decide for me. Then, I'm on a mission!

[Beer-lord]

Thanks to all for playing along.
NATCA Jack IPA wins. I'll be brewing it Sunday.
More Hops Matter will have it's second chance in a few months or so.

[Beer-lord]

What a GLORIOUS brew day! Weather was sent from God and went very smoothly and I seemed to know what I was doing. Hit all the numbers and got a beerection because things went so well.
Afterwards some great friends came by and we did the BBQ thing and drank lots of new beers (some from Ashville) and had a great time. Life is very good and I'm immensely thankful for what I have.
Thanks for playing this little game. I will know soon enough if this beer meets all the praise. I had to make a few minor grain and hop adjustments but it shouldn't affect the final outcome.

[Rebel_B]

Sweet!

[Beer-lord]

Did the dry hop today and checked gravity. ALL the numbers were right on with my recipe...1.071/1.015 and 7.3% ABV. Gonna let these sit until Thursday then crash and keg Saturday. The teeny tiny taste I had was somewhat malty and I didn't perceive any bitterness but it was such a small refractometer sample so not enough to get a real taste. I'm curious what the high alpha German Herkules bittering is like. The spicy, black pepper and melon is what first drew me to this recipe on Beersmith's cloud.

[Beer-lord]

This was put on gas Saturday and last night I took a small sample and was surprised at how it was almost carbed. It's been set on 12 for 5 days but was cold crashed and put at 36 right away so it was ready to accept C02.
It was clearer than I expected and pretty good for an early taste. I think it will be a good beer but (here I go again), it tastes like a beer I made.
Yea I know, we all make our beers with OUR water and they we can all usually tell a Stone beer from a Sierra Nevada, yada, yada, yada but I might be getting tired of that along with just being an a-hole. So I'm hoping the RO water and starting from scratch will bring a new dimension to my beers but it will likely take the rest of the year for me to work things out and that means I gotta brew more.
I think in 2-3 weeks, this beer will be a fantastic beer. It's right on the cusp of what BJCP says a double or imperial is (1.070 I think) and 7.3% (though I think they say 7.5% but who cares?) and I'm already looking forward to brewing this one again and seeing how this German Herkules hop shows itself.

[Kealia]

Like all your beers (except maybe that V1 of More Hops Matter) I'm sure this will be good. When are you starting to use RO water? Your water certainly could be the common denominator in the process and it has served you well. But I understand wanting to change things up, too. Coming from the guy that recently stepped away from BIAB with a new mash tun and a new shiny conical fermenter.

[Beer-lord]

Next weekend (4/10) I'm doing 11 gallons of Drop Kick Nate. I loved it, will brew it often and it's just an easy going beer. And since it's somewhat recent, I should be able to see what differences RO brings to the table. I'll start with using RO 100% and maybe split it 50/50 or so on some beers in the future.
1 keg is for a crawfish boil a friend puts on each year (and the twins do all the hard work of cooking them) and the other will be for me. I may decide to to a bit different dry hop to each just for fun.

Regarding my beer, everyone who's seen my numbers, which are now 1 year old, has mentioned that my water is very good for many of the styles I brew so this could come back full circle.
However, my wife loves, loves, loves the taste of the RO water and we use it for drinking and ice tea lots.

[Beer-lord]

2 days later I already see some improvement. Not much aroma but the flavor is coming out. It's at 37 degrees so warming it up definitely made it more enjoyable. Maybe a bit too much bitter up front but I don't mind that at all. However, it does hide some of the flavor when colder. The 2 1/2 day cold crash definitely cleared this beer very well. I've never had a beer with this much hops be so clear after only 6 days in the keg. (the pic doesn't really show how clear it is and it is 80% clear)
I find myself almost yearning for the tiniest bit of sweetness to show up at the end. I'm so looking forward to see how my RO filter will make my beer better. I think I've done all I can with what I've already done and could live with it but I know it can be better.

[Kealia]

This MUST be an April Fools joke because you are never happy with your beers!

That picture just begs to have somebody reach out and grab that glass! I'll say congrats even though I voted for MHMV2.