On July 27 I brewed a batch of red ale. While it was fermenting I attended the Biennial Conference on Chemical Education at Grand Valley State University near Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Here’s the recipe for the red ale.
- 7.5 lb (3.4 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt.
- 45 g chocolate malt
- 6 oz (170 g) special roast
- 14 oz (400 g) crystal 40 deg L malt
- 2 oz (57 g) crystal 10 deg L malt (could have used 1 lb xtal-40, but ran out)
- Strike water 3 gal (11.4 L) at 168 F (75.6 C) mash in was 152 F (66.7)
- Sparge with 4 gal at 172 F (77.8 C)
- When boiling started, 1 oz (28 g) of Fuggle hop pellets (4.8% alpha acids) added in a bag. Boiling carried out in a stainless steel kettle with a tube screen over a gas flame, 1 hr.
- Chilled with a copper immersion chiller.
- Cast into an Ss Technologies Brew Bucket
- Original Extract: 11.1 Brix
- Pitch Safale 04.
At the BCCE, I presided over a symposium called Chemistry of Fermented Beverages. Attendance was terrific; 63 chemists packed the room. We had to move to a bigger room. Wiley, my publisher, had a booth at the exhibition. There was a lot of interest in the book. No sales, of course. Professors don’t buy books, they make students buy books. My daughter and I also helped out at the booth of MicroLab, Inc, run by our friend John Amend.
On the way back, my daughter and I took in the Frederik Meijer sculpture garden, which was both a great garden and a great art show. After all the walking around, we had dinner and beer at Founder’s Brewing in Grand Rapids. They gave us a sampler of their outstanding beers. We didn’t get to tour the place, but our server, Molly, told us that they have three brewhouses. It seems that when they expand, they don’t get rid of the old equipment. The next day we drove to Dearborn and took in the Henry Ford Museum. It’s a must-see for scientists, engineers, and other technical types. I wouldn’t have minded a little more about how the stuff worked, but the HF considers itself a historical, rather than a sci-tech museum.
All this time, the ale was in the fermenter. On Aug 10 I bottled it. The yield was 49 12 oz (355 mL) bottles plus 2 16 oz (473 mL).
Tasted it today, Aug 19. The ale came out pretty well. It’s been a good August.