Off the Wall 1gal Batches - Got any ideas?

Lately I haven't been doing much off the wall stuff with my brewing. Now while I still really enjoy brewing up a nice pale ale, a hefe, IPA, or whatever else you would want to brew, its just not as fun as brewing up something really crazy. Not to sound arrogant, but I think Ive gotten to the point in my brewing that just about whatever I make it will turn out to be a pretty solid beer. There just isn't that feeling of nervous excitement and anxiety anymore when I'm about to try my latest batch. I just dont worry anymore....Is it gonna be good? Is it gonna be a drain pour? Will anyone else like it? I guess I just miss that moment when I popped open a bottle eager to find out, and it turned out far better than I could've hoped.

This indifference hadn't really come to a head until a couple of recent threads on BA got me really thinking about some crazy beers to consider. In one of the threads a hot wing beer is mentioned, and half-jokingly a bleu cheese beer is suggested to pair with it.......I loved both ideas! I don't think these beers will turn out to be everyday or even every month drinkers, and yah its a bit gimmicky but I think it will be a lot of fun watching people try these beers out. I can't wait to see someones face when they are eating hot wings and chasing it with a ranch or bleu cheese beer! Ive really been missing that excitement in my brewing and these ideas have really revitalized my passion for brewing.

After the initial shock of actually considering a hot wing beer faded and I sat there sipping on an English Pale Ale(review to come soon), the more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea of doing a series of 1gal batches that are really out there. Things that no one else has tried, or even thought about trying, batches that will really try my brewing technique and creativity. In addition to the hot wing beer Ive got at least one more idea that I plan on brewing, but I'm open to trying out just about anything at this point. So if you have a crazy weird way out there idea for a beer, and your just not insane enough to try it yourself drop me a line and maybe I can brew it up for you, Id even send you one to try yourself!

Soured Wit/Gose with Cherries Review

Appearance - Very red, reminiscent of a slightly pale strawberry soda, Moderate amount of head that dissipates to a thin ring around the glass. Small amounts of lacing on the glass, slightly hazy from yeast that was swirled before pouring.

Aroma - First whiff is very sweet and bready, followed by a strong phenolic finish with cherries throughout. I am actually surprised by how strong the spicy phenolic aroma is.

Taste - The beer is mildly tart with a strong cherry flavor. Just like it smells there is a nice phenolic note that is reminiscent of a witbier. Hops are non-existent, and the beer is not really dry but by no means is it sweet. Alcohol is very hidden. The version with salt added seems to have a much brighter cherry character and has a bit rounder flavor. Coriander is extremely sublte.

Mouthfeel - Highly carbonated, a bit prickly on the tongue, medium-low body that really feels bigger than it is from the high carbonation. Salt version feels slicker and has slightly more body.

Drinkability - Very easy to drink, has a soda-like quality from the high carbonation and strong cherry flavor, but unlike soda it doesn't become cloying and too sweet after more than one. The salted version is a much richer beer and has more of a dessert quality to it, it really is remarkable how different the two beers are. This beer is definately not a session type beer, the flavors are a bit too strong, but it is a nice after dinner drink.

Notes/Thoughts - I'm surprised by how much of a difference there is in the bottles that had salt added. In fact I wish I had added salt to more of the bottles, I haven't tried yet but plan on adding some salt to the glass to see if I can get a similar effect. Initially I was a bit disappointed that the beer didn't turn out a bit more tart, but after adding some lactic acid to the glass I was surprised how all of the subtleties in the beer were overpowered.

If I do the beer again I think I will do the following

1. Cut back on the wheat and add some oats

2. Add a touch of a light crystal malt to help round out the cherry flavor

3. Add salt to all of the bottles!

4. Up the amount of coriander used to emphasize its fruit flavors

Brewday 9/4/2009 - Recipe & Notes

Neo-Berliner Weiss

So, after my last berliner weiss didn't turn out nice and sour like I was hoping, I decided to brew up another. The problem with the previous batch was that the yeast culture I had received from Al on BBB had sat in the Arizona heat for ~12hrs in my mailbox, and while it fermented nicely there was next to no sourness well, that was until the rhubarb was added. Luckily Al was kind enough to send out another vial of his Berliner blend, this time when it wasn't as hot as Hades.

While I was very appreciative of Al sending out another vial of yeast/lacto, I wasn't very keen on having another batch of Berliner sitting around (Ive got ~5gal in bottles still), so I thought I'd change up the malt bill a bit to keep things slightly more interesting.

In the Berliners I've brewed the wheat flavor is always very strong, and while it does fade it takes a considerable amount of time. Now your probably saying, this is a wheat beer! why all the complaining? I'm not! I just wanted something a bit different, something that would set it apart from all the other berliners Ive brewed. So I decided to use a nearly all pils malt bill with a bit of acid malt thrown in (I split the batch and wanted that in for the other beer). I pitched the lacto/yeast mix when the wort cooled to ~70F and I'm letting the temp fall a bit. Thankfully this time around the starter smelled nice and sour, so Ive got a lot of hope for this one turning out nicely. I'm hoping the lacto will go to town on this beer because Ive promised some of the culture to a buddy whose brewing up a Lingonberry Sour next weekend.

It took some time but I finally brought him over to the dark side aka sour brewing. So this weekend he's gonna try his first sour beer, and while a lacto beer is pretty tame as far as wild brewing go, it is a baby step in the right direction. It would be nice to have another sour brewer around, it can be eye opening to try someones beers whose influences are leading them down a slightly different path than your own.

Neo-Berliner Weiss

Malt Bill
Amt (lbs)	Type
3.25	Pilsner
0.25	Acid Malt
Hops
Amt (grams)	Type	Time (min)
5	Simcoe (12.9%)	10
Mash Schedule
Temp	Ratio	Time
155F	1.2qt/lb	60
170F	2qt/lb	15min - vorlauf
Yeast	Al B's Berliner Blend
Stats
2gal+0.5gal top up	OG	1042
85% eff	IBU	6
2.5gal Boil	FG
Notes: 0.5 gal of top up water was used to dilute the OG down to suitable levels for a berliner, higher than normal mash temp was used because the wort was split between a number of on-going projects, and this one was the lowest priority, I guess I'll find out in a couple weeks if that's gonna be a deal breaker