"Gizmo Gold"

So, I did it. I brewed an all organic batch of beer - a Blonde Ale, to be exact. Yippie!!! Now, what we're dealing with here is no mere run-of-the-mill Blonde Ale...no, this bad boy has a touch of Wu Wei Brewing all over it. I'm still going to prime the bottles with organic honey (specifically, wildflower), instead of my usual concoction of dissolved dextrose, as originally discussed. I'm hoping that this will add a subtle honey-y residual sweetness to the final product...and not screw up my beloved tasters' palates. Let's cross our fingers, shall we?

As you can see from the picture up there, I did something a little different this time too (aside from finally going all organic). No...I didn't polish my brewpot before using it this time around... Still not sure? Come on... Hey! I used whole hops! Now, some of you may be wondering what that actually means...or be thinking "okay...then what were you using before?" Basically, there are two main paths a brewer can follow when brewing a nice batch of this glorious nectar: 1) using hop pellets (whole hops that have literally been pulverized and packed into pellets) and 2) using whole leaf hops (what you probably think of when you hear that magical word "hops"). I've been using pellets from the get-go - mostly because of the fact that there have been shortages of whole hops, due to crop destruction back in 2007 and supply and demand; my local shop has only been carrying pellets since I started brewing (except for a few particular varietals). Each have their pros and cons, but we won't get into that here. Plus, whole hops make me feel more authentic in my brewing - which I'm sure going all-grain will only add to further, once I make that jump.

As mentioned in my previous post, this batch was specifically geared towards Seven Bridges Cooperative's National Organic Homebrew Challenge. I ordered all of my ingredients from them (except my yeast...well, my second pack of yeast...the first one overheated on its way to me and wouldn't activate), and they have a great supply of organic whole hops. So, I figured, what better time to try using whole hops than now?

I used 6 lbs. of Briess Pale LME (approximately 3.5-4 °L), 1 lb. of Briess Carapils (1-2 °L), 1 1/4 oz. whole Kent Goldings hops (Belgium 2007, 7.82% alpha acid) for the bittering, 3/4 oz. of the same hop for the finishing, and Wyeast British Ale yeast (instead of my original Wyeast Whitbread yeast). I originally (well, by "originally" I mean about two weeks before I sanitized my carboy and turned on the stove) wanted to add a little bit of heather to the boil as well, to groove things up a bit like usual (heather can have some honey-like properties when used this way), and then prime the bottles with heather honey to compliment it. Although, I wasn't able to locate any organic heather in time, or any organic heather honey. However, our best friend and maid of honor, Heather, came into town on brew day to visit with us for the week. Given the miraculous coincidence, I was left with two options: leave the heather out and use whatever honey I could find when I bottled, or follow my gut instinct and scrape some dead skin off of Heather into the brewpot. I'm kidding. Although, that still would have been "organic," right?

Anyway, without going into too much detail here, things went well and I managed to stay in the BJCP guideline range for the original gravity of Blonde Ales (1.038-1.054) without having to adjust things after the boil. So here's what we're looking at:

8/09 - Gizmo Gold

*Original Gravity: 1.054

*Potential ABV: 6.5%

*Homebrew Bitterness Units (HBU): 15.64

*International Bitterness Units (IBU): 38.81

My IBUs for this one are a little high (by about 10 units, according to the BJCP), but it is roughly calculated, and I don't think it will be a problem (meaning, I hope it isn't).

I'm calling this one "Gizmo Gold" after my beautiful kitten, and favorite little rascal, Gizmo :-) Although, I couldn't help but feel a bit guilty while I was boiling away...with him being locked up in our bedroom while I brewed a batch of beer bearing his name and honor. He'll forgive me.

It's been exactly one week since I transferred this batch to its temporary glass home in my guest shower, so I should be bottling sometime this coming week. Then, as long as everything turns out well, it's off to two competitions (one of which will be alongside "Fuzzie Berr"), and then a third in a couple months (along with the last of the "Fuzzie Berr").

As a side note, I must say, straining, sparging, and transferring the wort from the brewpot to the carboy (I'm still using a pot, but hoping to upgrade to a nice kettle with a spigot and thermometer soon) when using whole hops is significantly easier and faster than using hop pellets; it's a difference between washing over leaves and washing over dissolved pellet muck. It even sounds more aesthetically pleasing, doesn't it? So, I think I'm permanently sold on sticking with whole hops from here on out (assuming I can find what I need, when I need it); plus, they just look and smell so much nicer!

Here's to our very own Mr. Gizmo, and his Gold!

Peace and Love!