"Zorn-Vort" Maibock

The Story: Brewing is always better with a friend. This beer was a collaboration with my friend Bill, who is from the first generation of American homebrewers. I think with the mass influx of new brewers and beer lovers, we can still learn a lot from the generation that started brewing in the dark days of draft beer, they challenged the status quo and brewed their own before anyone ever heard of Extreme Beer.

The Brew: Utilizing Bill's awesome MoreBeer brew sculpture and cooled conical fermenator, we wanted to brew a kick ass lager. For the Spring Monterey Competition and Festival, a Maibock was natural, but we wanted to hop it up a bit more. It has the classic character of a German Maibock

Ingredients:
Malt: (60%) Golden Promise, (27%) Vienna, (10%) Munich, (3%) Caramunich
Hops: (First wort hopped) Cascade, Saaz, Hallertau Mitt., French Strisselspalt
Yeast: German Lager
Specs: 1.069 OG, 7.4%abv, 30IBU

Saison Du Monterey

The Story: Saison means season in French and I think that is a perfect name for a style of beer. Afterall, we remember certain beers we've had based on our experiences, and the seasons play a big role in that. Maybe it's that crisp Pilsner or Pale Ale on a Summer day, or a nice roasty Stout or high-octane Barleywine on a cold winter night. The seasons are ingrained in our lives and our beers...naturally.
 
The Brew: So for my last season in Monterey, late spring and summer, we went back to the classic Belgian roots and made a hoppy pale saison  with classic ingredients. Although it's hopped up a little more than most, it's not in Belgian
IPA territory. That's the beauty of using traditional noble hops, in my experience they provide a much more refined and subtle complexity to moderately hoppy beers than your typical IPA hops. This is a jazzed up hoppy Belgian summer ale for the geerbeek in all of us.

Ingredients:
Malt: American 2-Row (75%), White Wheat (15%), German Munich (7%), Honey Malt (3%)
Hops: Cascade (Bittering); Styrian Goldings, French Strisselspalt (Late Hopping)
Extras: Turbinado Sugar, Wyeast Nutrient, Irish Moss
Yeast: Belgian Saison Blend (WLP565), Dry Belle Saison
Specs: 1.053 O.G., 6.2%abv, 27IBU

UPDATE: Won People's Choice 2013 MASH831 Spring Monterey Homebrew Invitational

Romping Rye India Pale Ale

The Story: There are a ton of great beers out there, and good IPAs are pretty easy to come by, on the West Coast especially. For the upcoming Monterey Spring Homebrew Competition and Festival I helped organize, we decided to do a special ingredient showdown. I've been a part of these over the past few years with herbs, spice, fruit, etc. But I wanted to go a little more mainstream to really see where brewers went with a unique but fairly classic ingredient. Rye seemed natural, it's been used in brewing for centuries and contributed a wonderful spicy quality in various styles and intensities... and not just in Roggenbier.


The Brew: Leaving Monterey soon, I had a stock pile of wonderful Aroma hops to contribute to this brew. The key was the right balance of malt backbone and character with the rye and hop aspects, I think we hit it on the mark with a bit more malt character than I would call for in a standard IPA.

Ingredients:
Malt: (73%) American 2-Row, (13%) Malted Rye, (3%) Crystal 40, (2%) Crystal 60, (3%) Victory, (2%) Honey Malt
Hops: (First wort hopped and Dry Hoped) Cascade, Columbus, Galaxy, Galena, Palisade
Yeast: California V (WLP051), Cali (WLP001)
Specs: 1.062 OG, 6.7%abv, 70IBU

A West Coast Christmas: Honey Ginger IPA

I’m a sucker for seasonal beers, and the best time of year for seasonals has to be the Holidays, and Christmas in particular. This year I wanted to deviate from some of the usual suspects such as Belgian Bier De Noels, Holiday spiced Winter Warmers, and other big Christmas offerings to try something a little more West Coast. What’s more West Coast than IPA? Well, I don’t know but I do know I wanted to do something a bit more than imperializing it. Luckily, I had a pretty great recipe of Honey IPA and with a little inspiration for Randy Mosher’s Radical Brewing the addition of Ginger seemed perfect. He advocates the use of East Kent Goldings exclusively, which I was a bit reluctant about but it was definitely worthwhile. I hope you enjoy this spin on a “Christmas IPA.”

Recipe is best viewed by Right-Clicking on Image and selecting "Open in New Window."

Autumn Collaboration 2012: Oaked Imperial Pumpkin Ale & English Bitter

The Story: When you're asked what you would like to serve at a beer festival, especially a homebrew festival, what should you bring? For me there are a few approaches: something "extreme" in style, something "unique" in technique, or just a crowd pleaser. To fit those approaches into a single brewday and collaborate with the other festival organizers I advocated the use of Parti-Gyle brewing. This traditional English method produces a big (higher alcohol) beer from the first wort runnings and then a smaller (lower alcohol) beer from the second or third runnings, effectively brewing two distinct beers from one grist (grain profile). Additional grains, different hops, yeast and other additives can be added to produce drastically different results while optimizing your use of base malt profile.

The Beers: To keep with the Autumn Theme, we decided on an Imperial Pumpkin Ale with a twist (Aged in a 5gl Medium Toast American Oak Barrel- for only 3 days). Aiming for a good amount of lightly toasted biscuity quality to compliment the flavors of pumpkin pie while being mildly sweet and showcasing the delicate flavors of real Oak (rich vanilla undertones). And then a crowd please: English "Indian" Bitter to the tune of 60 IBUs of East Kent Golding, Challenger hops and served from a Pin, which is a 5gl variety of English Cask.

Ingredients:
Malt: American 2-Row, German Munich, Caravienna, Belgian Biscuit, Crystal 60 (Extra for Bitter: Maris Otter and British Amber malt)
Extras: Pumpkin pie spices and Brown Sugar for Pumpkin
Hops: Perle, Styrain Goldings to 30 IBU and East Kent Golding, Challenger  to 60 IBU for Bitter
Yeast: California/Dry English (Pumpkin) and English (Bitter)

Specs: Imp Pump-1.077OG, 8.9%abv, 30IBU; Bitter-1.052, 5.8&abv, 60IBU

***UPDATE: This brew won Judges Choice at the Monterey Autumn Charity Festival!***

Monterey Autumn Brewer's Comp and Fest: A Beer Charity to benefit Wounded Warriors

One of my recent beer goals was to become a Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP), beer judge. While there are many paths to take in earning this certification, I believe some of the best opportunities for learning are through teaching. This interest in teaching others about the BJCP and beer judging in general lead me to want helping or organizing a sanctioned competition. With the help of a friend of mine, Marc, who had been a longtime homebrewer also in the Coast Guard, we thought the Monterey area could use the excitement of a major homebrew event like a competition. Along with the Bottoms Up homebrew shop owner, Duane, the team set out to create something that would be great for both homebrewers and the community-at-large.


Through several weeknight planning sessions and brewdays we had settled on the idea of a BJCP sanctioned homebrew competition and a homebrew festival to top it off and announce the winners. The festival would have to be a non-profit affair because of alcohol public serving laws; so we thought of creative solutions to this requirement. Charity seemed a natural fit to help the community. The proximity of Veteran's Day made the choice of charity fairly easy; Wounded Warriors is the benefactor of the festival which will take place next Saturday!

On a personal note, I also recently received my BJCP Tasting exam scores and have become a Recognized Certified Beer Judge!

This post is dedicated to all the volunteers for these great events and more importantly every American Veteran out there. Happy Veterans' Day!

Flying Ace Summer Wheat Pale Ale

The Story: Being at the Naval Postgraduate School has been a unique experience for a variety of reasons but second-to-none is the opportunity to meet fellow students who come from an incredible diversity of backgrounds. While the Coast Guard has afforded me several experiences in isolated locations with great cultures, I didn't ever think I'd have a single class with an US Army Artillery officer, Colombian Navy officer, and some of our Navy's elite pilots who will soon report to the Test Pilot School in Maryland. This brew was an introduction to brewing process for some of my friends, who just happened to be members of that later select group.

The Beer: Inspired by the idea of taking American Pale Ale in a direction toward summer. This beer features a healthy portion of American Wheat and Light Caramel for a slightly hazy blond color with some character and considerable mouth feel. To balance the wheat but not overpower it, the German Noble hop Tettnanger was used for a mild bitterness and a fairly new variety similar to Cascade called Ahtanum was used for flavor and aroma (in whole leaf form as well!)

Ingredients
Malt:American 2-Row (49%), German Pilsner (14%), American Wheat(30%), Crystal 20 (7%)

Hops: Tettnanger, Ahtanum
Yeast: Pacman (Generation 4)

Specs: O.G. 1.048, 5.3abv, 22ibu

Valentine's Hefeweizen

The Story:Although I like to think I enjoy almost every style of beer, my wife does not share my love for variety. One style she has never past up is a classic German Hefeweizen. It has become a yearly tradition to brew her a Hefeweizen for Valentine's Day as a small token of thanks for putting up with my brewing obsession. 

The Beer: Cloudy golden yeast filled goodness, aroma of wheat with spicy phenols of clove, banana, and bubblegum, medium mouthfeel with a full texture finishes dry and refreshing.

 

Ingredients: 

Malt: German Pils & Munich, American Wheat

Hops: Tettnanger

Yeast: Hefeweizen (WLP003)

Extras: Honey

Specs: O.G. 1.048, 5.0abv, 13ibu

West Seattle Ale

The Story: While visiting relatives in West Seattle, WA I had a few lazy days and looked to take advantage of my brother-in-law's wine equipment in the basement. Formulated an idea for a Red ale that could hold up in the Pacific Northwest. I aimed for a session beer somewhere between Rogue DeadGuy Ale and Greenflash Hop Head Red. The creation was such a hit, I had to brew it on my full setup back in Monterey, CA...the beer was similar but the name stuck. Makes me want to go back to Seattle and drink visit my relatives. 

The Beer: Pours a brilliant dark Amber,great nose of citrus (Amarillo dryhop), medium rich smooth mouthfeel, finishes crisp with a little hopkick to keep you interested.

 

Ingredients: 

Malt: American 2-Row, American Carmel, German Munich & Caramunich, Belgian Biscuit, Canadian Honey Malt

Hops: Columbus, Willamette, Liberty, Amarillo

Yeast: Rogue Pacman Yeast

Specs: O.G. 1.055, 5.9abv, 52ibu

Holiday Spiced Porter w/ Pumpkin

The Story: One of the first beers I homebrewed was a Pumpkin Porter inspired by Dogfishhead's great introductory book, Extreme Beers. Although every fall I brew a version of this a pumpkin beer, this is a late season addition brewed specifically for the SF Beer Week's Charity 'Small Batch Big Thirst' Event.

  

The Beer: Chocolaty Robust Porter in the English tradition, whole spices help jump out of the glass for a Christmas time aroma, rounded flavors begin and the spices help accentuate a long finish.

 

Ingredients: 

Malt: American 2-Row, American Carmel, German Munich & Caramunich, Belgian Special B & Belgian Biscuit, English Chocolate & Roasted Barley

Hops: Columbus, Willamette

Yeast: London Ale (WLP013)

Extras: Honey, Brown Sugar, and whole spices (allspice, clove, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg)

Specs: O.G. 1.066, 7.2abv, 40ibu

My Favorite Fall Treat, Pumpkin Porter

Greetings,

My favorite time of year is Fall and i can't think of a more fitting way to enjoy the season than brewing a delicious Pumpkin Ale. I have tested several commercial examples and homebrewed a few in search of the right balance of spice, malt, bitterness, and alcohol. As many of you already may know, this is one style of beer that has been bastardized more than most, with spice bombs that taste more like a bad pie than a rich, creamy, festive Brew. That being said, a few commercial style's that inspired me were "Dogfish head Punkin" and "Southern Tier Pumking."

I think this year's version really hits the mark on all of those categories. A dark brown porter weighing in at 7.5% abv that is meant to be sipped and savored as we enter the cooler months. You may think there is a lot going on in this recipe, and there is! but please don't be discouraged the proportions really work well together.

Grain: 11# 2-Row
.75# Crystal 120
.5 # Roasted Barley
.33# Belgian Aromatic
.33# Chocolate Malt
.25# Black Patent

Hops: 1oz. Perle(8.1%) @ 60
1oz. Willamette(4.8%) @ 20
1oz. Willamette(4.8%) @ 10

Additions: 2 # Canned Pumpkin (in the Mash)
2# Honey (@10 to knockout)
.5# Light Brown Sugar (@10 to knockout)
1 tsp Irish Moss (@15 to knockout)
Spices: 1 tsp Allspice, .5tsp Cinnamon, .5tsp Nutmeg, .25tsp Ground Ginger

Yeast: English Ale 002

O.G. 1.072
F.G. 1.015
ABV 7.5

Mash at 156 for 60 minutes

Happy Halloween and Cheers!
-J.B. Zorn (enjoying the warm weather out here at Sector Honolulu)

ESB showdown (Seattle, Washington)

What a great weekend here in Seattle. Beautiful weather coupled with great beer makes this cool August day feel more like the fall than summer, but you will read no complaints from me. We hiked to Snow Lake about an hour into the Cascade Mountains yesterday, following this 6-mile breathtaking hike we hit the Columbia City Ale House with some friends. I decided to deviate from my ordinary search for bigger, hoppier, more extreme which paid off! Thankfully, I was surprised to find some outstanding Extra Special Bitters.
I have found that it is on rare occasion you can compare a beer style to something as authentic and true as a classic, in this case Fuller's ESB. Fortunately, I had that privilege last night with fresh kegs of both Fuller's ESB and Maritime's ESB, a local Seattle brewery. This comparison is two-fold, local vs. import and English classic vs. American interpretation.
I began with the Maritime. I found this to be a solid ESB, enjoyable and refreshing. Exhibiting a deep amber hue with practically transparent clarity. The aroma was a bit more hop assertive than I had expected but pleasant nonetheless. On first taste the dryness comes out with a substantial bitterness throughout melding the subtle toffee and caramel notes. Bitterness may have masked the complexities of malt so accustomed to the style, possibly served a few degrees to cold as well. Finish is clean and crisp. A very nice session beer although it had me yearning for the real thing to see how it really stacked up…
Second Pint was the Fuller's ESB and it lived up to my memories. The wonderful complexity of a beer you could easily quaff all night in not easily forgotten. In overall impression this classic edged past Maritime's already good example. It came out a shade darker than Amber, great clarity, and modest carbonation (classic to the style). The aroma was fantastic, notes of malt sweetness with a hop aroma that was gone before you could put your finger on it. Taste is full but not heavy, delicate flavors from the English hops surround the tongue as the malt complexities become more apparent. The taste began with the toffee, caramel maltiness so typical of the style while finishing slightly sweet from a mellow honey note that was delicate yet extraordinary. Finishes a bit fuller than Maritime, in combination with a slightly less carbonation left the beer feeling richer and more complex. This is still a classic among English beers. As Sierra Nevada is to Pale Ale, we can see Fuller's is to ESB.
If only they had both on Cask, we could all look forward to that!