Dunkel Bock

[CrealCritter]

Turned out very well balanced, can even taste a hint of chocolate. I guess it's pretty hard to mess up a German Bock, yet so easy to brew.

 

[flowerbug]

with all the focus on sterility it might be a good idea to mention that squeezing could be done with food handling gloves or some other sterile instrument as for sure when i hear someone say squeeze i assume you are speaking of squeezing with the hands. which are massively laden with bacteria of many kinds... not that the alcohol won't kill them (after all that's predominantly what ales and beers were for back then), but after all that emphasis on sterile it just stuck out to me as something to mention.

 

[flowerbug]

Poor choice of words on my behalf... I used One Step for making this batch, for cleaning l. Then followed up by Star San to sanitize everything that comes into contact with the wort once it's chilled, including my hands. I'll go back and edit my post to be more clear.

But you are 100% correct, cleanliness and sanitation is the top priority, when it comes to beer and wine making.

I also might add... One Step is great for, mopping the floor and cleaning counters before you start the brew. It's also great for cleaning up after your done.

i read way too much stuff on microbes in general to think too hard about being perfectly sterile. my comment above should have used the more general term microbes too instead of only bacteria as for sure there are many more things on our hands than bacteria.

 

[CrealCritter]

My Dunkel Bock has finished primary fermentation. 9 days is about right for a 6ish ABV lager brew, fermented @ around 52 degrees. A sniff of the air lock smells like beer, that's a good sign now at least 3 days for diacetyl rest at room temperature and rack into a corny keg for lagering.

diacetyl tastes like butter, the diacetyl rest at room temperature allows the yeast to convert diacetyl into other compounds.

We don't want no butter flavored beer.

 

[CrealCritter]

Most styles of beer have a signature characteristic or two that dominate their profile may it be machine or hand squeezed. If it’s the pure, unobstructed, lugubrious essence of malt you seek nothing beats manual labour, traditional bock beer presents unfettered maltiness to the palate like no other style of brew.

Bock is by far my favorite style of beer. It's a old style of beer, in which it's ingredients are governed by German law. It's not to be confused with "Old Style", which is an American Adjunct Lager style beer brewed by Pabst Brewing Company in Los Angeles, CA. The Bock style can be traced back to the 1600’s. Bock style beer is an exceedingly rich, malty style that tastes just like a fresh loaf of bread straight from the oven. I actually like to drink a good Bock beer at room temperature. Which would almost be a crime for any American style of beer.

This Dunkel Bock recipe should produce a deep amber-brown beer that has a slight alochol warming as it goes down. With just enough hop bitterness to prevent the malt sweetness from being cloying. But to keep the taste buds entertained, it should have hints of chocolate and toffee flavor in the background and finish clean and soft, enticing you to take another drink.

 

[Britesea]

on drinking your beer at room temp: Why do the British drink their beer warm? Because Lucas also sells refrigerators.