Crankcase Cream

Light Ale

This 1999 BJCP style 3c beer is being brewed for a spring visit by extended family. The brew session was timed so my dad, visiting from Kansas City, could help on this one.

Recipe: Cream Ale
Volume: 5 gallons
Dates:

Brew date: 03-29-2003
Transfer to secondary: 04-06-2003
Bottling: 04-19-2003

Ingredients:

Water source: basement utility sink filtered dispenser using 2 qt pitcher
Yeast: White Labs WLP001 California Ale (pitchable vial)
Midwest Supplies Liberty Cream Ale Kit:
- 6 pounds of Gold malt extract
- 1/2 lb. Carapils
- 1 oz. Cascade bittering hops - Alpha Acid 6.3%
- 1 oz. Cascade aroma hops - Alpha Acid 6.3%

Activity Log

Steep/Boil:

Steeped grain in 3 gallons at 150 f for 30 minutes on kitchen stove. Removed from heat and steeped for additional 10 minutes. Removed grain bag and stirred in amber malt extract. Used propane burner in garage to bring to boil. Stirred in bittering hops (Cascade). Boiled total of 50 minutes, stirring occasionally. Dropped copper cooling coil in at 40 minutes to sterilize. Added aroma hops (Cascade) at 48 minutes. Cooled to 85 f using copper cooling coil attached to garden hose.

Added 2 gallons water to 6 gallon carboy fermenter. Siphoned wort into fermenter. Aerated by tipping and rocking carboy back and forth on a folded towel and siphoned some out into cylinder to take OG reading of 1.041. Pitched yeast and mixed in, then fitted with a stopper and airlock.

Fermentation:

Placed carboy in fermenting booth (~66.7f after 6 hours). Observations of primary stage:

24 hours: 3/4 inch foam, 1/4 bubble per second
38 hours: 1 1/2 inches foam, 1 bubble per second
53 hours: 2 inches foam, 1 bubble per second
62 hours: 2 inches foam, 4/5 bubble per second
78 hours: 1 3/4 inches foam, 1/2 bubble per second
99 hours: 1 inch foam, 1/3 bubble per second
120 hours: 1/2 inch foam, 1/5 bubble per second
135 hours: 1/4 inch foam, 1/10 bubble per second
168 hours: spider foam, 1/15 bubble per second

Siphoned beer to 5 gallon second stage fermenter at 8 days. Since this is a light colored and flavored beer, I'm going to give it ~2 weeks in the secondary to better clarify.

Bottling:

Washed, rinsed and sanitized bottles. Took FG reading of 1.011. Siphoned into a 2 liter bottle until 4/5 full, put carbonator top on, squeezed the air out and put aside in fridge for forced carbonation. Boiled 5 oz of priming sugar in 1 cup of water. Put priming solution in bottling bucket and racked beer into bottling bucket. Bottled, capped and labeled 47 bottles. Put bottles back in booth to condition. See Crankcase Cream Ale labels here.

Results:

I force carbonated a 2 liter bottle and everybody home for Easter had a taste of it. It's got a nice golden color to it and came out fairly clear. It's got a good taste but it's a little bitter. Hopes are that it will be better after it conditions in the bottles a while.
This was our second beer for the simultaneous toast at noon on national homebrew day for the brew session held at our house. Comments were positive. After 2 weeks of bottle conditioning the carbonation helped to balance the bitterness.
Comments were very positive at the May UKG meeting.
Testimonials here