Holiday Graff (because I'm feeling spooky)

[mashani]

Never made one of these. But I have a bunch of jugs of Trader Joes spiced apple cider (oranges, orange and lemon oil, cinnamon, allspice like mulling spices) that I was gifted. And I had a 2# bag of Amber DME I got super cheap from my LHBS, but had no idea what to use it for.

So... For 2.5 gallons. Partial volume boil:

2oz 120L Crystal, steeped
2oz Maltodextrin (body, head, as I still don't have any carafoam, and this has got lots of non malty goodness)
2# Amber DME
0.5 # Orange Blossom honey @5. Lid on @5 to keep brett out just in case it still is awake.
1 Gallon Trader Joes Spiced Apple Cider @Fermenter (as in I just took out of fridge, opened, and dumped into the fermenter after the wort went in, and then topped up to 2.5 gallons with cool water)

1/8oz Magnum @30
1/2oz East Kent Goldings @flameout, 20 minute lid on hop stand (if Graff is fictional English beverage, then *this belongs in it*... and it's candy aroma should enhance the beverage... you can't go wrong with EKG as a finishing hop in anything IMHO).

Cooled, added to fermenter, topped up with cider and cool water to just above 2.5 gallons. Pulled small sample out of spigot. OG was right at 1.062.

IBUs should be around 12 or 13. Which is enough. I don't want this to be "bitter" just not "too sweet".
SRM is ???. Somewhere in the teens.

Pitched full pack of S-04.

It should ferment out fast just like beer, enough malt is in there to make yeast happy. Should not take forever.

Will it be good or spooky? That remains to be seen.

[BigPapaG]

The month of Halloween... A Spooky Holiday Graff...

From a gifted batch of spiced cider... Who'ld a thunk it?

What a month... What a brewer!

[mashani]

It is unlikely ready to drink by Halloween... but who knows. I'm going to guess it will be in really good shape by Thanksgiving though.

I have no idea how I am going to carb this. English suggests light? But all the sugar/adjuncts make my inner Belgian want to carb the crap out of it to kick up the mouthfeel.

Any suggestions?

[BigPapaG]

I have no idea how I am going to carb this. English suggests light? But all the sugar/adjuncts make my inner Belgian want to carb the crap out of it to kick up the mouthfeel.

Any suggestions?

Well, since it's gonna taste like a mix of light beer and cider, I would probably use a light carb as opposed to heavy or still.

I think it might be somewhat blah as a still beverage and if carbed high, you might bring in too much cidery bite.

While the cider, light malt, hop and yeast components scream English... And the adjuncts scream Belgian, it's still predominantly a cider and I would treat it as such.

YMMV.

Just grab a good Stephen King novel and settle in for some good reading. While enjoying that graf.

[Brewbirds]

OMG jpsherman let me know if you see this thread!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Mashani, Hi Big PAPA just passing through..............for the moment.

[mashani]

I'm glad it excites you so much LOL. I can't say you should use this as a reference point because I've never made such a thing before. True ciders and true meads yes, but never a malted cider. What I can say though is that the smells coming out of the fermenter are fooking awesome. If that means anything. Probably not since "devil farts" coming out of the fermenter often turn into great beer. So fooking awesome might = horrific. I dunno LOL.

[Brewbirds]

The excitement is because in addition to being a brew artiste you are also a mind reader.
jpsherman and I are kicking something like this around for our RCE brew.

here is a link I found and sent him earlier

http://brewingtv.com/episodes/2012/9/18 ... -graf.html

We won't copy cat you but we'll sure be following this thread.

[mashani]

@BrewBirds:

FYI: as far as I am aware this is one of the first (if not the first) Graff recipes on the Intrawebz:

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=117117

That recipe will be more cider like then either this one I made (which will be a bit more like a dry spiced ale with hints of apple) or the Gunslingers you linked to.

I think the Gunslingers recipe has way too much hops if you want it to even remotely resemble a cider. It just depends on what you want. Also, if you are using spices you certainly do not want that much hops for bitterness or hops with that intense of an aroma/flavor IMHO. That's why I chose to use EKG here, just for very mild balancing bitterness, and mild flavor/aroma contributions which will be mostly slight spice and candy sweet (vs. *grapefruit!*). I don't know if you are considering spices, but if so keep that in mind.

[Brewbirds]

Thanks Mashani, we're still kicking ideas around so far.

It was just a coincidence seeing this thread when I did.

What got us started talking about this was that BB2 and I are surrounded by apple orchards. At breakfast the other day I said I wondered if you could mash grains in apple juice instead of water of if there would be PH issues.

[mashani]

Apple juice is acidic and would make things in the mash go wonky without you adding a bunch of calcium carbonate or baking soda. Which might lead to other stuff getting out of whack at the quantities you would need. So, I would think mashing in the juice is probably a bad idea and it's best as an addition later.

[jpsherman]

Thanks Mashani, we're still kicking ideas around so far.

It was just a coincidence seeing this thread when I did.

What got us started talking about this was that BB2 and I are surrounded by apple orchards. At breakfast the other day I said I wondered if you could mash grains in apple juice instead of water of if there would be PH issues.

I think I would prefer to do a partial boil and pour it onto cold juice, topping off with more juice.

[mashani]

Thanks Mashani, we're still kicking ideas around so far.

It was just a coincidence seeing this thread when I did.

What got us started talking about this was that BB2 and I are surrounded by apple orchards. At breakfast the other day I said I wondered if you could mash grains in apple juice instead of water of if there would be PH issues.

I think I would prefer to do a partial boil and pour it onto cold juice, topping off with more juice.

That's what I did here, except I chilled a bit before I mixed it with the cold juice. Just trying to avoid pectin haze there that's all.

[Brewbirds]

See how I correctly answered my own question at the end there.

I oughta just bake a damn pie and get the whole apple thing out of my system.

[jimjohson]

Thanks Mashani, we're still kicking ideas around so far.

It was just a coincidence seeing this thread when I did.

What got us started talking about this was that BB2 and I are surrounded by apple orchards. At breakfast the other day I said I wondered if you could mash grains in apple juice instead of water of if there would be PH issues.

I think I would prefer to do a partial boil and pour it onto cold juice, topping off with more juice.

That's what I did here, except I chilled a bit before I mixed it with the cold juice. Just trying to avoid pectin haze there that's all.

Just curious, why not use some peptic enzyme?

[mashani]

Just curious, why not use some peptic enzyme?

I looked at it on my LHBS shelf. But since I don't make a lot of fruit beers or wine, I decided I didn't want to spend $8.75 on a bottle of something that I'd only use a little bit of and then was going to sit around for a year without me ever looking at it again.

Otherwise it would be a good option.