I was out at a local, historical landmark this weekend called the Jean Bonnet Tavern. They have been selling beer and food since about 1762 and it is a cozy place for either lunch or dinner. Being a historical place, they usually have at least one "period" type beer on tap. I was able to enjoy a Yard's George Washington Porter. So, I thought it would be fun to post George's original recipe. Basically, it is just hops and molasses and I added a few things that I would do.

To Make Small Beer:

Take a large Siffer [Sifter] full of Bran Hops to your Taste.

Boil these 3 hours then strain out 30 Gall[ons] into a cooler put in 3 Gall[ons] Molasses while the Beer is Scalding hot or rather draw the Melasses into the cooler & St[r]ain the Beer on it while boiling Hot.

Let this stand till it is little more than Blood warm then put in a quart of Yea[s]t if the Weather is very Cold cover it over with a Blank[et] & let it Work in the Cooler 24 hours then put it into the Cask - leave the bung open till it is almost don[e] Working - Bottle it that day Week it was Brewed. F for 7-10 days. Cool and consume.

Things that I would add to the recipe:

Barley Malt

Chocolate Malt

Biscuit Malt

Roasted Barley

I kinda' like the idea of letting your wort cool down to blood level (98 degrees). That is my usual pitching temperature, so it fits right in. I honestly don't think that I would use a wood barrel, nor would I make 30 gallons. I would make 3 gallons and just might make this one in the near future.

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Technorati Tags : Beer, Homebrewing, President, Washington, Jean, Bonnet

Simple little recipe that tastes similar to Newcastle Brown Ale. Personally, I like to add an ounce or two of biscuit malt to add a little more complexity.

Ingredients

2 oz 60L Crystal Malt

2 oz Chocolate Malt

1 oz Black Malt

6 lbs Light DME

6.5 HBUs Target Hops (Bittering) I usually use 1 oz of Fuggles Hops

1/2 oz East Kent Goldings (Flavor)

British Ale Yeast

Instructions:

Put the specialty grains into the muslin bag and steep in 150 degree water for 20 minutes. Pull the bag out, allowing it to drain freely into the brew kettle. There is no need to "squeeze" the bag. Squeezing the bag will only release tannins that will harm your beer.

Add 170 degree water to the brew kettle to bring the total volume to 2.5 gallons. As you add this water, run it over your bag of grains to sparge ("rinse") the rest of the grain water out of the bag.

Bring kettle to a boil, then remove it from the burner. Stir in the Dry Malt Extract (DME), and put Target (Bittering) hops in a muslin bag (tied closed) and add into the kettle.

Return to heat and boil for 45 minutes. Add the 1/2 oz East Kent Goldings to the muslin bag and boil for 15 minutes.

Cool to room temperature, add water to bring total volume to 5 gallons. Stir vigorously to incorporate air into the wort. Pitch (add) your yeast.

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Technorati Tags : Beer, Homebrewing, Recipe, New, Castle

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Ingredients:

1 lb. Vienna malt
0.5 lb. dark Munich malt, 10° to 12° Lovibond
0.25 lb. malted wheat
1 lb. lager malt
4 lbs. unhopped amber malt extract syrup
1 oz. Perle hop pellets, for 60 min.
0.5 oz. Hallertauer hop pellets, for 20 min.
0.5 oz. Spalt pellets, for 20 min.
0.125 lb. coarsely cracked (not ground) light-roast coffee beans
1 broken cinnamon stick
14 g. dry lager yeast or liquid culture
3/4 cup corn syrup

Step by Step:

Heat 1.5 gals. of water to 132° F, crack and mix in malts and malted wheat. The mash should settle at 121° F. Hold 30 minutes, then remove 3 qts. of liquid from the mash and boil it 15 minutes. Stir heated mash back into the mash tun. This should raise the whole mash to 137° F or so. Hold another 30 minutes, then remove 3 qts. again and bring to a boil. Boil this 15 minutes, add it back to the mash tun, raising the whole to about 152° F. Hold here for 60 minutes, then lauter and sparge with 2 gals. of 168° F water. To this runoff (about 3 gals.) add extract syrup and bring to a boil. Add Perle hop pellets, boil 40 minutes. Add Hallertauer and Spalt pellets, boil 20 minutes.

Remove from heat, set in ice water to cool, and add coffee beans and cinnamon stick. Steep at least 15 minutes, then chill and top off to 5.25 gals. with pre-boiled chilled water. At 75° F pitch dry lager yeast or a liquid culture (I've had great luck in this recipe with Wyeast 2308 Munich). Seal and ferment for two days at 65° to 70° F, then place in a cooler (50° to 55° F) for a week. Rack to secondary and, if possible, place in a cold place (40° F or below) for three to six more weeks. (Otherwise, maintain at 50° F for three or four weeks.) Prime with corn sugar and bottle. Age cold (40° to 50° F) six to eight weeks, space permitting.

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Technorati Tags : Beer, Homebrew, Vienna, Lager

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You still have time to start planning and gathering together your ingredients to make your Octoberfest beer. I usually brew mine in late March or early April and let it age until September, but you can make it now and have it ready for October. This recipe will make a 5 gallon batch.

Ingredients:

2 Bierkeller Liquid Amber Malt 3.5 pound cans

1 pound amber dry malt extract

8 ounces 10 degree crystal malt

6 ounces chocolate malt

1 ounce Cascade hops 5.5 alpha

1 ounce Hallertauer hops 4.5 alpha

3/4 ounce Tettnanger hops

1 packet dry yeast or Wyeast no. 2206

1/2 cup of corn sugar to prime

Procedure:

Crush grains and step for about 1 hour.

Strain and pour liquid into brewpot.

Add additional water and begin to boil.

Slowly add the dry malt and liquid malt.

Make sure that you stir the malts so that they don not burn on the bottom of the pot.

Once the wort begins to boil, add the Cascade hops. After 30 minutes, add the Hallertauer hops. At the end of another 30 minute period, add the Tettnager hops for 1 minute.

Chill wort and add the yeast.

Primary ferment for about 2 weeks at 45 to 50 degrees and about another 2 weeks at the same temperature for the secondary.

Rack one more time and ferment for another 2 weeks at 35 to 40 degrees.

Bottle and keep stored at about 40 degrees.

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Technorati Tags : Beer, Homebrew, Octoberfest, Recipe

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