#22 GxSA (Galaxy Summer Ale)

Brewed: 12th November, 2009

The fourth batch in the Summer Ale series, this time using Galaxy hops instead of Nelson Sauvin.

I tried a slightly different technique of filling my mash tun this time, called underletting. This involves dumping all of the grain into the mash tun and filling it from the bottom up through the outlet. The aim of this was to see if I could saturate the grain properly and hit my mash temperature without having to stir the mash as much. The result I ended up with though was even more inconsistent temperatures throughout the mash (requiring more stirring!) and still coming in slightly under the mash temperature despite the fact that it was way over temperature before I started mixing in properly! Oh well, something learned for next time.

Part way through my first runnings, I realised that I made the silly mistake of not attaching the tap to the kettle. All of a sudden I was wondering what the dripping noise on the floor was! Luckily I was standing next to the kettle at the time and didn't lose too much sweet wort. The spills didn't end there though, as with a higher than expected post-boil volume, I overflowed the "no-chill" cube after the boil. In the future, I plan to use a brewday checklist and actually tick things off instead of relying on my memory to consult the checklist that's on the fridge in the brewing area.

In terms of numbers, I didn't lose as much temperature over the hour compared to last time (1 degree instead of 2). My first runnings were slightly under, which I made up for my adding an extra litre of water to the second sparge. My pre and post boil gravity readings were also a point lower, but well within my expectations.

The recipe:

JW Pale Malt: 4500g
Torrified Wheat: 400g

Galaxy pellets (13.4% AA): 12g @ -80 mins
Galaxy pellets (13.4% AA): 12g @-20 mins
Galaxy pellets (13.4% AA): 16g @ -5 mins
Galaxy pellets (13.4% AA): 23g in no-chill cube

Mash time: 60 minutes
Target mash temperature: 64C
Start: 63.5C
Middle: 63C
End: 62.5C

Run-off: 30L

Pre-boil SG: 1038
Boil Time: 90 minutes

Volume in fermenter: 21L
Yeast: WLP001 - California Ale (harvested from #20 NSSA)
Ferment temperature: 19C

Target OG: 1052
Actual OG: 1046

Actual FG: 1012

ABV: 4.5%