Oh My Giddy Aunt, English IPA

Looks like my posts are not in chronological order for some reason, but, meh.  My day starts out at 6:00 a.m.  (Why can I not sleep in on my days off?)  Anyhow, I'm racking to secondary onto 1 ounce of UK Phoenix hops.  The gravity after 1 week primary fermentation is 1.030 placing ABV at 4.75%.  Seems like it is a bit high yet, considering it has another week or two to go.  (I mashed at 155F)  Another 1-2 weeks in secondary on the dry hop to see where it will finish up.  Current aroma: toffee/caramel notes with floral and spicy notes from the hops.  Current flavor profile: mildly sweet, malty, caramel/toffee with moderate hops bitterness, some hops spiciness, and bitter cocoa/coffee notes.  (At 7:00 a.m. this actually quite appealing!)  Well, now the clean up begins. 
CHEERS!   

Oh My Giddy Aunt, English IPA

Time to try brewing a new style.  I'm going to go simple on this one, a sometimes simple is better.  My mash bill consists of Gambrinus ESB Malt and Bairds Carastan Malt.  I'll use a single variety of hops for the entire batch.  British Phoenix.  First brew with these hops and I am very interested in the flavor profile.  Should have some spice, floral, and chocolate notes, which should pair well with the toffee notes from the Carastan Malt. 
CHEERS!

Oh My Giddy Aunt, English IPA

I'm going to rack to secondary on Saturday.  I wanted to see what UK Phoenix hops flavor and aroma profile is as some say yay, and some say nay.  The hops smelled great going into the boiling wort.  I'll dry hop in secondary with 1 ounce of hops, so that will make 3 ounces total at 10.2 AAU.  IBU's should be around 51 or so.  I'll take a gravity reading after racking.  Stay tuned.
CHEERS!

Oh My Giddy Aunt, English IPA

Brew day is over.  Projected OG 1.071.  Measured: 1.066.  I ended up with about a quart of leftover wort, hence the lower OG.  Must have over measured somewhere.  Color is a beautiful orange/amber.  I used Gambrinus ESB malt and Bairds Carastan Malt.  Hops is 100% UK Phoenix.  I will dry hop with Phoenix as well. 
CHEERS! 

SMaSHing German Blonde with a Perle Necklace

This beer is taking longer to ferment than planned.  I've never used Kolsch yeast before so I checked for some advice on brewing forums.  The yeast is still suspended in the beer after 3 weeks and I still have some minor airlock activity.  I was thinking with a low gravity brew like this, 1.044, that it would have fermented quickly.  Advice from the forums is to let it go longer until it clears, then bottle.  Some say that when using this yeast it takes 7-9 weeks to complete.  Some go ahead and keg with cloudiness.  I just checked the gravity to see where we're at.  1.010!  That places the ABV at 4.5% which is right where I want it.  It's settled.  I will bottle today!  Aroma of pilsner malt and herby/spicy notes from the hops.  Flavor is very reminiscent of American Pilsners, but has more body, is quite smooth and clean, with a balanced and slightly lingering hop bitterness at 24 IBU's.  This beer is much lighter than I am used to but should be quite refreshing during those hotter summer days.  And for those friends and family of mine that like American Lagers, this will be right up your alley!  Off to bottle!
CHEERS!   

SMaSHing German Blonde with a Perle necklace

Racked to secondary today.  Gravity reading 1.014 placing ABV at 3.9%.  Aroma is slightly yeasty  / bready but pleasant.  The flavor of straight pilsner malt is nice, smooth, slightly malty, and reminiscent of a lager.  Perle hops provide a light, sweet floral aroma and flavor on the palate.  At 24 IBU's this will be a most quaffable brew after mowing the lawn or working in the yard.
One more week to clear up in secondary, then into the bottle it goes.
CHEERS! 

SMaSHing German Blonde with a Perle Necklace

Brew day complete!  Measured OG at 1.044 making 84% efficiency.  7.5 pounds of Weyermann Pilsner malt and 1 ounce of Perle hops make for a darn delicious smelling brew!  The Kolsch yeast is dropped in and awaiting airlock activity.  This should be a good summer brew to enjoy after a hard day of work outside.  I was also influenced by my brother-in-law to make a "lighter" style brew.  So I agreed and told him in the craft beer world it is called session beer.  (Also I am awaiting my hops order for my ESB.)  Only four weeks away from the final result of this one!
CHEERS!