Great White North

7th in the Series

"Before the microbrew revolution took hold, Canadian lagers like Moosehead and Molson were considered "the good stuff." Possesing a more interesting hop profile than the lagers produced by their neighbors south of the border, Canadian-style lagers are crisp, refreshing, and very drinkable."

6 pounds Canadian 2 row malt

1/2 pound flaked barley

1 1/2 ounces Pride of Ringwood hops for bittering

1 ounce Kent Golding hops for flavor

1 package American lager yeast

3/4 cup corn sugar for priming



Mash crushed grains for 60 to 90 minutes.

Collect 6 gallons of wort.

Add Pride of Ringwood hops and boil for 1 hour, adding Kent Golding hops for the last 30 minutes.

Cool wort and pitch yeast.

Primary ferment for at 50 to 55 degrees for 5 to 7 days.

Transfer to secondary fermenter. Lager for 2 to 3 weeks.

Bottle using corn sugar. Age in bottle 10 to 14 days.


Technorati Tags: beer, homebrew, Canadian, Moosehead, Molson, recipe

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Sack Mead

Last in the Series

"If you like your meads sweet, light and true to their heritage, you'll love sack mead. The flavor is full of honey, you can alomost hear the bees buzz!! Because this mead is only flavored with honey, the tannin is an essential part of the recipe. Leave it out, and you may find the end result a bit insipid."

Makes 1 gallon

3 pounds orange blossom honey

1 teaspoon acid blend

1 teaspoon pectic enzyme

1 Campden tablet

1 package Montrachet yeast

1 teaspoon yeast nutrient

1 1/2 cups orange juice at room temperature

1/4 teaspoon grape tannin


In a large enamel or stainless steel pot, boil the hone in water (1 part honey to 2 parts water) for 10 to 20 minutes, skimming off any foam that forms. (the foam will contain water impurities and beeswax residue.)

Let cool, and then transfer the honey mixture to a 2 gallon fermenter. Add the acid, pectic enzyme and enough water to make 1 gallon. Add the campden tablet and let the mixture sit, well covered, for 24 hours.

In a jar, make a yeast starter culture by combining the yeast, yeast nutrient, and orange juice. Cover, shake vigorously, and let stand 1 to 3 hours, until bubly, then add to must.

Add the tannin and allow the mixture to ferment. We recommend racking meads after the most vigorous fermentation, siphon the wine into a 1-gallon airlocked fermenter. In about 3 months, rack again. In about six months, rack once again. Rack a final time right before bottling--about a year after fermentation started. Then bottle and cork the finished mead and store in a cool cellar.

Age for at least six months before opening a bottle.


Technorati Tags: Wine, Winemaking, Mead, Honey, Recipe

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Golden Pils

6th in the series

"The addition of brown sugar to the pilsner style produces a beer that is less dry than the classic pilsner. Light brown sugar is recommended to maintain the correct color for the pilsner style."

8 pounds Alexander's pale malt

1/2 pounds crystal malt (20L)

1 pound light or dark brown sugar

1 ounce Hallertauer hops for bittering

1 ounce Tettnanger hops for flavoring

1 1/2 ounces Saaz hops for aroma

1 teaspoon Irish moss

1 package Pilsen lager yeast

3/4 cup corn sugar



Place the crushed crystal malt in water and steep at 155 degrees for 30 minutes.

Remove spent grains, add malt extract and brown sugar, and bring to a boil.

Add Hallertauer hops and boil for 1 hour.

Add Tettnanger hops 30 minutes into boil.

Add Saaz hops and Irish moss for the last 10 minutes of the boil.

Cool wort and pitch yeast.

Primary ferment at 50 to 55 degrees for 5 to 7 days.

Transfer to secondary fermenter. Lager for 3 to 4 weeks.

Bottle using corn sugar. Age in bottle 10 to 14 days.

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Sweet Wheat Wine

Fifth in the Series

"This wine is light and lively with hints of citrus and a nice, vinous character. The wheat supplies nutrients and sugars to enhance the fermentation process."

Makes 1 gallon

3/4 pound wheat berries

1 pound raisins or 1 pint white grape juice concentrate

2 1/2 pounds brown sugar

1 Campden tablet

1 package wine yeast

1 teaspoon pectic enzyme

1 teaspoon yeast nutrient

1 1/2 cups orange juice at room temperature

1 ounce citric acid


Soak the wheat berries overnight in 1/2 quart of water to soften them. Mince the wheat berries and raisins and transfer to a 2 gallon fermenter. Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil, pour it over the wheat-raisin mixture, add the brown sugar, and let cool. Add a Campden tablet and let sit, well covered, for 24 hours.

In a jar, make a yeast starter culture by combining the wine yeast, pectic enzyme, yeast nutrient and orange juice. Cover, shake vigorously, and let stand 1 to 3 hours, until bubbly, then add to the must.

Add the citric acid; then let the mixture sit, loosely covered, for ten days, stirring daily. Rack the mixture to a 2 gallon airlocked fermenter and allow it to ferment to completion. When fermentation stops, bottle, cork and cellar the wine.

Wait at least six months before sampling.


Technorati Tags: Wine, Winemaking, Wheat, Recipe

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