Brewed this West Coast Pale Ale up on February 28. I’ve read and heard that West Coast Pales are supposed to dry and hoppy. That is what I’m going for whatever the reality may be. I’m not sure if Northern Brewer fits the American bill, but that is what I had on hand for bittering.
Recipe:
- 12# two row
- 0.5 oz Northern Brewer
- 1# LDME
- 4 gallon freezer bags full of home grown Cascade and Nugget hops
I had 7 gallons in the tun which maxed out. Got about 5 gallons in the kettle. My initial pre-boil gravity reading was 1.040 at 127 degrees. Put 1.5 gallon in tun for “sparge”. Got about the same amount back. Added 4 gallon freezer bags full of cones. Got 5 gallons in the fermontor. OG = 1.056. Pitched Omega West Coast ale yeast. House smells piney.
Update (3/14): I check the gravity and have a reading of 1.002. I added 1 oz of Cascade pellets for dry hopping. At the moment, not thrilled about the taste. Got some esters. May have fermented at over 68 degrees.
Update (3/20): Bottled 40 bottles (2 bombers). Still had estery characteristics but was also very bitter.
Brewing Something Up 