Fools' Gold Ale
Brewed: 1/30/2010 Kegged: 2/14/2010
I really like
Boulder Beer Company's Buffalo Gold and so I designed a beer
based on information I got at the company's website. The
information was basically the hops and grains used, so it might take
awhile to get close. The website says Buffalo Gold uses light
caramel malt and 2-row with nugget, willamette and cascade hops. I
could not find nugget at either of my LHBS's, so I went with columbus
hops instead.
Fools Gold is golden colored on the malty side of a well-balanced beer with a nice body and just a hint of caramel sweetness.
My first batch turned out good, but not quite what I had in mind. The cascade "citrusy" taste seemed to dominate. It could have been just a touch darker with a bit more caramel as well. My next attempt was to move cascade to be only aroma and columbus into the bittering range. Actually, my LBHS had nugget this time, so I tried that out. The main flavoring hops was willamette in batch 2. I will also go a bit darker on the crystal, using 25 instead of 10.
Connor helped me with the artwork on the label.
| Fools Gold Ale --- cost $16.83 |
| Style | Blonde Ale | Batch Size | 2.40 gal | |||
| Type | Extract | Boil Size | 1.92 gal |
Recipe Characteristics
| Recipe Gravity | 1.058 SG | Estimated FG | 1.015 SG | ||||
| Recipe Bitterness | 29 IBU (Rager) | Alcohol by Volume | 5.63 % | ||||
| BU : GU | 0.498 | ||||||
| Recipe Color | 8.0 SRM |
|
|||||
| Actual OG | 1.060 | Measured FG: | 1.017 | ||||
| ADF: | 71.7% | Measured ABV: | 5.76% |
Ingredients
| Amount | Item | Type | % or IBU |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 lbs 8.0 oz | Briess Pilsen Light LME (2.0 SRM) | Extract | 77.78 % |
| 6.0 oz | Caramel/Crystal Malt - 15-18L (17.0 SRM) | Grain | 8.33 % |
| 4.0 oz | Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) | Grain | 5.56 % |
| 4.0 oz | Caramel/Crystal Malt - 48-64L (55.0 SRM) | Grain | 5.56 % |
| 0.25 oz | Nugget [12.20 %] (45 min) | Hops | 22.2 IBU |
| 0.25 oz | Williamette [5.50 %] (15 min) | Hops | 2.6 IBU |
| 0.25 oz | Williamette [5.50 %] (5 min) | Hops | 1.6 IBU |
| 0.25 oz | Cascade [5.50 %] (1 min) | Hops | 2.6 IBU |
| 0.25 tsp | Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 min) | Misc | |
| 2.0 oz | Sugar, Table (Sucrose) (1.0 SRM) | Sugar | 2.78 % |
| 1 Pkgs | SafeAle American Ale (Fermentis #US-05) | Yeast-Ale |
Mash Profile
Steep grains as desired (30-60 minutes)
Remove grains, and prepare to boil wort
http://www.fermentis.com/FO/pdf/HB/EN/Safale_US-05_HB.pdf
Bring 1 gallon water to 155F. Add specialty grain in muslim sack to water and steep for 45 minutes keeping temp between 155 and 165. Do not let steeping temp exceed 168. Remove grain sack and let drain into wort.
Add LME, bring wort to boil and add hops at appropriate time intervals. Cool in ice bath to less than 80F, and then add to fermenter. Top off with water to 8.5 liters. Aerate and pitch yeast as usual.
Ferment 2-3 weeks.
Batch prime with 2.25 oz table sugar.
| Date | Note |
| 01/21/2010 Thur | Have this on the schedule for my next beer. Groundhogs' day. |
| 01/29/2010 Fri | Changed the recipe slightly after going to the LHBS. They had nugget hops this time, so I decided to get those instead of columbus. Also, am adding just a bit of table sugar in an attempt to get better attenuation. |
| 01/30/2010 Sat | Brewed 'er up. Process went smoothly. Used yeast nutrient and hydrated the dry yeast for about an hour before pitching. Was going to leave hop sack (with cascades) in for the whole ferment, but used the electric mixer which snagged the sack. After I got the sack out, I really aerated the wort well with the mixer. Pitched at about 64 degrees and put right into the conditioning cooler. 1.060 OG. Poured sample back in fermenter. |
| 02/02/2010 Tues | Fermentation still going strong. Had a little over-flow and clog. I opened the cooler this morning loosened the cap to a noisy "pop". The temperature strip has been around 64 the whole time and at 1.060, I am a bit surprised to be getting this much kraussen. Did the couple of ounces of table sugar cause this? Anyway, the little yeasties are still working hard. |
| 02/03/2010 Wed | Well, when I made that post early yesterday, I thought the overflow was done, but I had more when I got home last night. No clog, but the ooey gooey mess was coming out. Temp still holding steady. I think the hot and heavy fermentation is now over. I'll take it out of the cooler tonight. |
| 02/14/2010 Sun | Bottled up with 2.25 oz sugar boiled in about 1.5 cups of water. Got 2 liter bottles and 21 12 oz bottles. The LB was half filled with the very last of the bottling bucket plus about half the sample tube. Need to try to remember to drink that one early. The FG was 1.017, which I am ok with even though I would like to actually hit a predicted FG at some point in my life (should have been 1.015). I do not like to make predictions based on the bottling sample, but I really think I nailed the intended beer. We will see in about a month for sure. The color was a perfect gold. |
| 03/04/2010 Thur | Moved into conditioning cooler. |
| 03/06/2010 Sat | Put 3 into beer fridge. |
| 03/09/2010 Tues | Decided to try one. Taste seems about what I remember from before. Still has a citrusy hop taste. Still not like buffalo gold. |