Same Grain Bill-different Beers

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bindi

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Using the same grain bill for different beers. I am sure others have done and still do this, but I am trying to get ideas.And yes, I did a search and found zip.
As an example, I have used the same grain bill for a pale but changed the yeast and hops for a Yanky,English etc then mixed them up just to see the differance, not 2 brews but 6 or more brews.
I have done this with stouts,porters and now pales using the same grain bill [and brand if I can]
The differance can be amazing sometimes. ;)
Thoughts on this anyone?

At the swap the other night someone asked me what style of beer the mix of grains I had weighed up were for? [Ross I think it was] I said I am not sure yet, well I am mashing it now as I type and made up my mind it is going to be a Yanky with Pommie yeast , a different English yeast then last time, same mash temps etc.
 
I think that's a great idea, Bindi. In Ray Daniels' book 'Designing Great Beers' the section on pale ales includes both APAs and English bitters in one chapter. As he points out, they are really very similar beers but with different hop usage. A simple grain bill of 95% pale ale malt, 5% crystal can be used for both after all.

I have an APA in the fermenter now, Chinook and Glacier, but fermented with the Burton ale yeast. I had brewed an English style bitter before this and thought I'd use the yeast for the APA. I'm hoping the fruity yeast character will go with the fruity hop character.

What yeast are you planning on using? And what differences did you find with the stouts and porters?
 
I think that's a great idea, Bindi. In Ray Daniels' book 'Designing Great Beers' the section on pale ales includes both APAs and English bitters in one chapter. As he points out, they are really very similar beers but with different hop usage. A simple grain bill of 95% pale ale malt, 5% crystal can be used for both after all.

I have an APA in the fermenter now, Chinook and Glacier, but fermented with the Burton ale yeast. I had brewed an English style bitter before this and thought I'd use the yeast for the APA. I'm hoping the fruity yeast character will go with the fruity hop character.

What yeast are you planning on using? And what differences did you find with the stouts and porters?

The next yeast will be Danstar Windsor never used that with Yanky hops before, as for the stouts,I could not get the strong yanky hops like Chinook and Simcoe to balance with the stout grain bill I had, a couple of guys tried one of the Yanky stouts I had in bottles at the swap meet last Saturday and the comments were 'that's strange' 'nice, not sure about the hops' and I agreed with them, did not balance.
But we are allowed to do this :) we are home brewers and not brewing for the "Plebs" .
 
I think that's a great idea, Bindi. In Ray Daniels' book 'Designing Great Beers' the section on pale ales includes both APAs and English bitters in one chapter. As he points out, they are really very similar beers but with different hop usage. A simple grain bill of 95% pale ale malt, 5% crystal can be used for both after all.

A standard ESB for me is 95% Pale (usually Maris Otter) 5% crystal.
My take on an American Amber usually has a very similar grist though normally with Australian Pale malt.
On the every increasing list of brews to do I'll do an ESB with the American Amber grist with variations in the mash to make it maltier.

The latest Amber and ESB were both brewed with the Wyeast 1028.

Little variations to tried and true recipes is a great way to keep learning some of the subtleties of yeasts, hops and grains.
 
When a mate of mine was starting out he brewed the same kit (yes this is not a grain bill I know but it is a baseline...) with variations of hop amounts and schedules, and DME amounts, for a few times over.

He said that he was amazed at the variation and it really gave him an idea of the difference ingredients can make, even just changing the amount of hops could make such a big difference.

I've also done the same base lager a couple of times, but with totally different hops. Both tasty, both different beers.

As you say, the difference between various pale ales and esbs etc. can be fairly minor grain wise.

So many options available to us!
 
Mate of mine and I once did a "same wort, different beers".

42 litres of an English Pale Ale recipe (ale malt, crystal, maize, etc.). Northern Brewer & East Kent Goldings hops. He fermented his half with Windsor, I did mine with Nottingham. Both were fine beers, but quite different. You wouldn't pick them as the same wort except for the identical colour. Malt flavour, esters, aroma, body were completely different.
 
Bump <_<
Been playing with this idea again and I am still suprised by the results of changing one thing in a beer.
Yeasts alone can be SO different, and hops that's another story, as is boil times etc.
Anyone else having/had a go at this? ;)
 
I've got several hoped for in the near future. For example:
Porter with 1728 and 1968 yeasts
Alt with 2565 and 1007
Koelsch with step versus single infusion mash.
California Common with 2005 and 2006 American and 2005 European Northern Brewer.

I'm also thinking about a single mash and split boils. Then of course boil times and hopping can be compared reasonably well.

The issue as always is time. Either the Porter or the Cali's should happen before Christmas. Hopefully :huh:
 
It's a great way to learn what flavours come from where.
I started with only Maris Otter. No crystal malts at all.
Some people start brewing with massivly complex grain bills but I reckon you learn heaps more doing what you're doing Bindi.
 
I'm halfway through a bit of an experiment. I'm making four batches using the same grain bill (90% Maris Otter, 10% Wheat), and yeast (wyeast 1098), while adding 90g of a different hop each time. So far I've used Nelson Sauvin and Glacier, and have Bramling Cross and First Gold to go. I'm hoping to end up with a bunch of hoppy summer ales and learn something about the flavour of these four hops in the process.
 

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