Brew Day - January 1st, 2014

Slightly Confused Brewing Company

How Now Brown Cow Milk Stout (Hoggetowne Ale Works recipe)

Ingredients:
UK Pale Ale Malt
Black Patent Malt
US 80L Crystal Malt
Chocolate Malt 350L
Lactose

Willamette hops

Liquid yeast (White Labs Burton Ale Yeast WLP 023) via 1.5 L starter and stir plate
Note: yeast started at about 2 pm the day prior to brewing

Stats:
OG: 1.068 (estimated); 1.065 (measured)
FG: 1.022 (estimated); 1.022 (measured)
ABV: 6% (estimated); 5.6% (calculated)

Brewing Steps:

• Heated 3.7 gallons of water to a strike temperature of approximately 167 degrees
• 1.25 quarts/pound 
• Used Sparge Pal app for volume calculations
• Added grains to mash tun
• Added water to mash tun by about 1/2 - 3/4 gallon at a time; poured last 1.5 gallons from brewpot straight into mash tun
• After all water added mash temperature approximately 152 degrees 
• Final temperature 151 degrees
• After 60 minutes tried to lauter but flow out of mash tun was minimal (used manifold with protective braid)
• Poured mash out, manifold was clogged and we couldn't unclog it
• Went to Home Depot and bought 2 braids
• Removed PEX tubing and connected both braids to the T

• Very good flow afterwards
• Manifold was "thrown into the river"
• Delay was about 1 hour
• Heated 5.3 gallons of sparge water to approximately 180 degrees and added to mash tun 
• Let sit for 5 minutes, then lautered until we had about 6.5 gallons 

• Added hops according to schedule
• Chilled by putting pot into tub with ice and water (filled about 6-8 inches of tub with water) and wort chiller/pre-chiller to 75 degrees in about 6 minutes
• Pitched yeast (whole 1.5 L bottle) and then aerated wort by transferring between brew pot and bucket 6 times
• Poured into fermenting bucket 
• Put bucket into fridge at 62 degrees (took 11 minutes post-boil)

• Ferment about 21 days
• Recommended schedule is to ferment for 3 weeks in primary

Update:

• Opened fermentation fridge on 1/14/14 to dry hop the dry dock and saw that lid for fermentation bucket had burst off
• Unclear if lid had been off for a few days or nearly two weeks. Gravity at that time was 1.022
• Transferred into secondary at that time. Cold crashed on 1/18/14 (PM) to prep for kegging on 1/20/14
• Should probably check the fridge more than once every 2 weeks to ensure the air lock does not get plugged up