Brewing Day: American Wheat Ale (Holler at Me, Too)

After I received my Chico results, I couldn't let go of the fact that my American Wheat didn't do better! I got pretty good feedback from some people at my local brew club, and I felt it was a really strong beer. The Kinders (who I brewed this for) also were pretty happy with it, I might add.

I decided to give it another shot, and try and tweak the recipe to suit the critiques that I received. Here's a list of what I did:

• Critique: Beer too bitter
  What I did: I cut the amount of hops by an ounce. I dropped it to 1 ounce of Cascade at the 60 minute mark, and 1.5 ounces of Cascade at the 1 minute mark.
• Critique: Head dissolves too quickly
  What I did: I added about 6 ounces of Maltodextrin to the boil (at the 60 minute mark). This sugar is too complex to be consumed by yeast, so it simply thickens the beer (and sweetens it slightly). The thickness also contributes to a longer lasting head.
• Critique: Beer too clear
  What I did: I'm not quite sure how to address this one. I added EVEN MORE wheat to the recipe. We'll see if that helps.

 Here's an action packed shot of the brewing. I went with the blowoff tube again. The OG was 1.062 which is pretty big for a wheat ale. We'll see how it handles.