This batch will be very similar to my recent Spring Kolsch 3. It was delicious, and brewing all extract was so refreshingly fast and easy.
I’ll be trying a few small changes that I thought might improve the beer
- 24 IBU for ~20% less bitterness
- Slightly warmer ferment temp
- Reverse osmosis water
- Slightly higher OG
The biggest feedback I got from my last batch of Kolsch was that it was a bit too bitter for the style. I hope reducing to 24 IBU will get it in a range that judges will enjoy.
For the water, I think my tap water tastes good and makes good beer, but I’m curious to see if I can tell a difference brewing with RO water this time.
I looked into suggested water chemistry for extract brewing, and the prevailing wisdom seems to be that you don’t need to add anything to RO water when brewing with extract. At least not if you just want a good neutral profile. Maybe you’d still try adding things if you want to make a NEIPA, or some other style with a very specific desired water chemistry.
The thinking is that malt extract already contains whatever minerals were in the water when the extract was made. It’d be a bit of a crap shoot to modify the water when you don’t know what the extract is already contributing. And hopefully you can trust that the maltster had decent water when they made the extract.
This batch will be slightly higher OG than my past batches. No particular reason. The last few batches around 1.045 were very nice. Maybe this is what makes it “fall” Kolsch compared to my previous three “Spring” versions of this beer.
Recipe
Batch size: 5.5 gallons
Target OG: 1.048
Target FG: 1.010
Calculated IBU: 24
Calculated SRM: 5.7
(It's paler than this in reality)
Grain bill:
6 lb Briess Pilsen Light DME (100%)
Mash: N/A
Hops:
1.75 oz Hallertau Mittelfrüh 4.5%
@ 60 minutes (23 IBU)
1.25 oz Hallertau Mittelfrüh 4.5%
@ 1 minute (0.8 IBU)
Water:
Reverse Osmosis
with no mineral additions
Yeast:
2x slightly old Imperial Dieter (No Starter)
Fermentation temp 65°F
Raise temp to 70 when fermentation slows down
Notes
2022-10-16 - Uneventful brew day. OG came in a tad high at 1.050 but that’s still withing style guides. I decided not to correct it.
Fermenting at 65°F.