Cuttlefish Czech Amber Lager
If you've been following SheppyBrew at all recently, you probably have read that I want to concentrate more on my BJCP Goal in 2025
As I type this, if I'm counting correctly, I've brewed 85 of the 108 styles in the 2021 BJCP Style Guidelines. Since the beginning of the year, I've already brewed 6 new BJCP styles (7 if you include Tasman Pilsner).
I have my Roll-a-Style list, which helps me keep track of styles that I still need to brew.
The idea is that I use a 20-sided online die to decide which style to brew next.
In early July, I was running sort of low on inventory, and needed to brew to get the pipeline going.
I rolled my 20-sided online die, and rolled a 2 ...
... which corresponds to 3C. Czech Amber Lager
"A malty amber Czech lager with a hop character that can vary from low to quite significant. The malt flavors also can vary, leading to different interpretations and balances ranging from drier, bready, and slightly biscuity to sweeter and somewhat caramel-like."
I came up with this recipe.
As you may know if you've been following our little home-brewery for awhile, all the Czech-style lagers I've brewed have names inspired by the Pirates of the Carribean movies.
If you don't recognize the reference to "Cuttlefish" it comes from the scene where the Pirate kings are discussing what to do about Calypso and the East Indian Trading Company.
Some of the pirates think they should run. Some think they should hunker down bunker-style. Jack Sparrow makes a confusing and somewhat amusing speach where he says:
"Let us not, dear friends, forget our dear friends the cuttlefish... flipping glorious little sausages. Pen them up together, and they will devour each other without a second thought... Human nature, in'it? Ooor... fish nature... So yes... we could hold up here, well-provisioned and well-armed, and half of us would be dead within the month."
Surprisingly, he agress with Captain Swann that the pirates should fight ...
... and spoiler alert ... that's what they end up doing.
Anyway ... I'm looking forward to having a nice amber lager on tap soon.
| Cuttlefish Czech Amber Lager --- Batch 1 (378) |
| Style | Czech Amber Lager | Batch Size | 5.50 gal | |||
| Type | All Grain | Boil Size | 6.60 gal | |||
| Brewhouse Efficiency | 65.00 | Boil Time | 60 minutes |
Recipe Characteristics
| Recipe Gravity | 1.051 SG | Estimated FG | 1.012 SG | ||||
| Recipe Bitterness | 33.8 IBUs (Rager) | Alcohol by Volume | 5.2 % | ||||
| BU : GU | 0.662 | ||||||
| Recipe Color | 15.0 SRM |
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| Measured OG: | Measured FG: | ||||||
| ADF: | Measured ABV: |
Ingredients
| Amt | Name | Type | # | %/IBU | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.96 gal | Denver, Colorado | Water | 1 | - | - |
| 5.00 g | Calcium Chloride (Mash) | Water Agent | 2 | - | - |
| 3.00 g | Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash) | Water Agent | 3 | - | - |
| 1.00 tsp | Lactic Acid (Mash) | Water Agent | 4 | - | - |
| 9 lbs | Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (2.0 SRM) | Grain | 5 | 76.6 % | 0.70 gal |
| 2 lbs | Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) | Grain | 6 | 17.0 % | 0.16 gal |
| 8.0 oz | Caravienne Malt (22.0 SRM) | Grain | 7 | 4.3 % | 0.04 gal |
| 4.0 oz | Midnight Wheat Malt (550.0 SRM) | Grain | 8 | 2.1 % | 0.02 gal |
| 1.000 oz | Hallertau Magnum [12.40 %] - Boil 30.0 min | Hop | 9 | 26.0 IBUs | - |
| 1.00 Items | Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 10.0 mins) | Fining | 10 | - | - |
| 2.000 oz | Saaz [2.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min | Hop | 11 | 2.7 IBUs | - |
| 1.000 oz | Motueka [7.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min | Hop | 12 | 5.1 IBUs | - |
| 1.0 pkg | Saflager Lager (DCL/Fermentis #W-34/70) [50.28 ml] | Yeast | 13 | - | - |
| 0.50 tsp | Gelatin (Bottling 1.0 days) | Fining | 14 | - | - |
Mash Profile
| Name | Description | Step Temperature | Step Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saccharification | Add 31.84 qt of water at 158.7 F | 152.0 F | 45 min |
| Heat | Heat to 158.0 F over 10 min | 158.0 F | 15 min |
| Mash Out | Heat to 170.0 F over 7 min | 170.0 F | 10 min |
If steeping, remove grains, and prepare to boil wort
Recipe Notes
From Denver water, salts puts water profile at
Ca=99Mg=8,Na=21,SO4=106,Cl=103,HCO3=104
Acid to bring water pH to around 5.2
Boil as directed.
Chill water to as close to 50F as possible.
Pitch yeast and ferment in 50's for first 2 days.
After main fermentation is done let temperature rise to room temp. Let total fermentation go a total of 2 weeks.
Chill and add gelatin after a couple days in the fridge.
Brewing Record
| Brew Date: | Strike Temp: | |||||
| Mash Temps: | ||||||
| Pre-boil OG | (1.046 SG) | Pre-boil Vol | (6.60 gal) | |||
| Actual Mash Efficiency | Pitch Temp | |||||
| Fermentation | ||||||
| Day 1: | ||||||
| Day ... | ||||||
| Day ... | ||||||