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Thanksgiving Tripel


Vital Statistics:

Batch Number:30
Style:Tripel
Brew Date:17 October 2010
Original Gravity:1.074 (17.97 °Plato)
Final Gravity:1.004 (1.03 °Plato)
ABV:9.2%
ABW:7.2%
Calories per pint:312
Estimated IBU (Rager):27.5
Estimated IBU (Tinseth):19.3
Mash Temperature:150°
Mash Efficiency:75%
Days in Primary:35  
Days in Secondary:0 (kegged on 21 November 2010)
Ferm. Temp. Notes:59-60°, slowly raised to 65°
Yeast Used:1214 Belgian Abbey
Apparent Attenuation:95%
Real Attenuation:77%
Rating:4.35
Entirely Consumed:Yes (finished 21 May 2011)
Availability:181 days
Recipe:

12 lb European Pilsner malt

2 lb granulated white sugar, added with about 20 minutes left in the boil

6 AAU (53g @ 3.2% AA) Tettnanger @ 60
2 AAU (17g @ 3.2% AA) Tettnanger @ 20
2 AAU (17g @ 3.2% AA) Tettnanger @ 5

1 Irish Moss tablet @ 15 min

Wyeast 1214 - Belgian Abbey
General Notes:

Used yeast cake from batch #28.
Tasting Notes:

Tasting notes taken 23 January 2011. Dispensed from keg into my Unibroue tulip.

Appearance: cloudy, silvery golden hue with lots of apparent effervescence. Head is one finger of creamy white foam. Retention isn't great, but beyond that this beer looks exactly like I wanted it to. (4)

Smell: light, sweet malt with some orchardy fruit qualities. Pear and apple with a hint of tartness. It basically smells exactly as I hoped it would. A little hop bitterness comes through in the aroma, but beyond that it is everything I wanted it to be. (4.5)

Taste: sweet malt with a definite alcohol presence. Fruit flavors are slightly subtler, with more emphasis on pear than on apple. Bitterness is relatively low, but seems appropriate for the style. Nice malty aftertaste rounds out a great flavor. I almost feel wrong rating my own beer so high, but I freakin' love this brew. It is absolutely exactly what I was shooting for with this recipe. (4.5)

Mouthfeel: medium body with a good level of carbonation. This beer is damn creamy, but I feel like it could be a lot moreso. Whether it simply needs to be more intensely carbonated, or whether it needs a little more body (cara pils or something?), I can't quite tell. Still, it's pretty close to what I desire. (4)

Drinkability: this stuff is toxically drinkable for a 9.2% beer. I am extremely pleased with how this beer turned out. I love tripels as a general rule, so perhaps my liking of this beer isn't so surprising. I could drink myself into a coma with this stuff every day if I let myself. (4.5)

Overall rating of 4.35 (A). My first self-proclaimed A-rated beer. I know big beers have an advantage over others because they can carry so much more flavor. With this beer, however, I am shocked at how good a beer I was able to make. This is head, shoulders, knees and toes above my last tripel, batch #11. I feel like this beer could be a real competitor against most American tripels I've tasted. I don't feel like I really need to make any beer better than this one -- it is all I ever wanted from homebrewing.
Hops Table
Hop Variety Addition Time AAU AA% Quantity (g) Type IBU (Rager) IBU (Tinseth) Notes
Tettnanger 60 6.00 3.2 53 Pellet 22.3 15.2  
Tettnanger 20 2.00 3.2 17 Pellet 3.8 3.1  
Tettnanger 5 2.00 3.2 17 Pellet 1.4 1.0  
Competitions Entered
Competition Category Date Submitted Final Judging Date Score (High/Low) Outcome
Cascade Brewers Cup 2011 BJCP 18C - Belgian Tripel 24 February 2011 12 March 2011 32.5/50 (33/32) Did not place (26 entries in Belgian Strong Ale category).