Sunday, November 27, 2011

Sending SMOKE Signals

Once again I find myself writing a blog while drinking flat, room-temperature beer out of a graduated cylinder, and in no way is that sad! I just took another sample of the Smoked Amber Ale to see how the gravity was looking and to give it a quick taste. I was so happy that I just had to give an update!

First off, the beer tastes amazing. Definitely still pretty smokey, but it's not nearly as pronounced as it was before. As I've said multiple times, I'm sure this won't be everyone's favorite. I actually met another homebrewer last night at the Auburn Alumni bar here in Chicago, and even he said that he's not a fan of smoked beers. Oh well, more beer for me! From my perspective, though, I'm still happy because this beer did exactly what I wanted it to, and I can only see it getting better in the next few weeks.

The other reason I'm so happy (and the reason this sample is in a graduated cylinder) is that I took a gravity reading and it came down more! It's still not where I was hoping it would get to originally, but considering the state of this beer a week ago, I'll take it. It came down to 1.015 from 1.018, a change of .003. While that may seem relatively insignificant, it means that this beer has come up from 3.67% ABV to 4.06% ABV (again, remember that Bud Light is 4.2%). Breaking the 4% threshold is more than I thought this beer would come to, and I'm pleased that it has.

So, how does the future of this beer look now? Much better. In a week I'll bottle it, then two weeks later it will be ready for consumption! I expect the smokey flavor to mellow out even more over the next few weeks, so don't be too freaked out by that. I'm really happy because this beer will most definitely be ready for Woodfest VI, the occasion that this beer was brewed for. Perhaps in another post I'll elaborate on exactly what Woodfest is, but for now all you need to know is that it's a bonfire. I don't know if I'm going to do a label for this one, but if I do, I'll let you know.

Now, I'm going to go back to my graduated cylinder! Until next time!

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