2008 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP BREW
January 1st 2009
This beer was my attempt to start the new year with a great batch of beer, having just broken the barrier of being able to make really good beers. I kind of visited my original recipes and tweaked them slightly to come up with a German/American hybrid ale, despite what the label says (I just wanted to use the play on words). I took the success I had with using honey and added traditional German ingredients (hops, specialty grains) and used a strain of liquid yeast I had read produced a clean, lager-like beer at ale temperatures. The result was once again a surprisingly teriffic beer. At that point it was the greatest beer I had made. I decided to name it in honor of the Florida Gators' national championship victory over the Oklahoma Sooners (which also happens to be my father's alma mater).
- 5 Gal. Water
- 5 lb Light LME
- 9.5 oz. Light DME
- 1 lb. Honey
- 1 lb. Vienna Malt
- 8 oz. 60L Crystal Malt
- 1 tsp. Irish Moss
- 1 oz. Hallertau pellet hops @ 60 mins.
- 1 oz. Hallertau pellet hops @ 20 mins.
- 1 oz. Cascade leaf hops @ 15 mins.
- WLP029 German Ale/Kolsch yeast
- 7.25 oz. Light DME (priming)
Steeped grains @ 150 F for 30 mins. Extract and honey for full 60 min. boil. Transferred to glass secondary on Day 10. Bottled on Day 17. Very well balanced beer. Light malty sweetness upfront with noticable but light hop balnce in background. Good carbonation and head retention. The irish moss really helped clarify the beer. Nice clean and crisp taste.
Tebow-tastic!
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