My first all grain beer. Any thoughts? Advice?

I'm dying to know what 2 months of vacation has to do with brewing!
 
not directly. but i have 2 months so I thought I would try something new.
 
The Dark Munich is not as good as a base malt, from what I understand. I'd use regular Munich in place of some of it.
Also, way too much "Cara" malts, I'm pretty sure.
A small amount of Cara Munich will add a caramel note without making it seem syrup-y like a big bock. Use some Carafa I for color.

I'd do something like:
60% Munich Light
30% Munich Dark
5% Caramunich
2% Carafa I or II
3% Carapils

A good Dunkel is on my to-do list before the fall, too. Good Luck!

PS...think about straight Nobel hops for a Munich Dunkel. It's just the right thing to do. :D
 
Thanks for the great input JA. Im gonna tweak it. Hopefully it turns out good. Like i said Im new to this so all great info is appreciated
 
By of disclaimer: I haven't brewed a Dunkel yet, so I haven't worked out a recipe or discovered one that I have confidence in, but I've been researching a lot and I'm going by the mistakes I've made on other German style beers. The right way to do those great German beers is by skillfully mashing very simple grain bills.
As homebrewers (and sometimes very amateur ones, at that, speaking strictly for myself) we have access to a lot of shortcuts and specialty grains that can mimic the qualities we want to impart. If we use them judiciously, we can get very good beer along the way, but we're ultimately on a journey of turning simple starches into very complex beers.
The thing that I'm realizing lately is that beer recipes can be very deceptive. We think that the ingredient list is the most important thing. It is an important part of the process, of course, but how we handle those ingredients is what makes the beer. The most perfect grain bill, whether simple or complex, will result in a pretty crappy beer if it's handled badly. ;) OTOH, 10 lbs of Pilsner in the hands of a real brewer will, given enough time, be transformed into something transcendent.
 
Building up for grain brewing is best thing to do in holidays. I have done this quite often with 4 taps and worked out quite nicely.
 
J A said:
By of disclaimer: I haven't brewed a Dunkel yet, so I haven't worked out a recipe or discovered one that I have confidence in, but I've been researching a lot and I'm going by the mistakes I've made on other German style beers. The right way to do those great German beers is by skillfully mashing very simple grain bills.
As homebrewers (and sometimes very amateur ones, at that, speaking strictly for myself) we have access to a lot of shortcuts and specialty grains that can mimic the qualities we want to impart. If we use them judiciously, we can get very good beer along the way, but we're ultimately on a journey of turning simple starches into very complex beers.
The thing that I'm realizing lately is that beer recipes can be very deceptive. We think that the ingredient list is the most important thing. It is an important part of the process, of course, but how we handle those ingredients is what makes the beer. The most perfect grain bill, whether simple or complex, will result in a pretty crappy beer if it's handled badly. ;) OTOH, 10 lbs of Pilsner in the hands of a real brewer will, given enough time, be transformed into something transcendent.

you would be correct on that one, I cant stress enough on the little things that people miss that are way more important than the recipe, if you haven't made a great beer before now the recipe isn't going to change that, the biggest things Ive leaned over time is strict temperature control, water, ph, sanitation and time are the biggest differences in good to great, we cant rush success :D
 

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