2024 Seasonals

Early in 2022, I spent some time identifying "SheppyBrew Seasonals". I tied a specific SheppyBrew beer to every month in the year.

For whatever reason, after the year was done I shared 2022 Seasonals I had brewed during the year. I had brewed all but 3 of the "Seasonals".

I reported on the 2023 Seasonals as well, missing 4 months. Now that I've established the pattern, I feel like I have to share my brewed "Seasonals" for 2024.

I actually made it a brewing goal in 2024 to brew all my "SheppyBrew Seasonals". Around July or August, I got tired of the idea, but I had hit all the months so far, so I forced myself to finish them up.

2024 Mardi Bock

2024 Q3 SheppyBrew Stats

It is already October, which blows my mind. Where did the summer go?

Of course, this means the 3rd Quarter of 2024 is done. We can report on the Q3 SheppyBrew Brewing Stats. 

When it comes right down to it, I'm sure no one besides myself really cares, but I like to look back on these posts to see how much I've brewed and what I was planning on brewing at certain points of the year.

As I've been saying, I expect that I'll brew less beer this year than I have for the past several years, and so far it does look like I'm tracking for a lower volume than 2023.

In fact, as of October 1 ... I was on track for just over 93 gallons for 2024, which would be the least amount I've brewed since 2018.

In this quarter, I brewed 4 batches of beer:

• Hail Storm Summer Saison ... 2024 Hail Storm Summer Saison (batch 359)
• N.T.S. Faux Pilsner ... N.T.S. Faux Pilsner (Batch 360)
• 1519 Barker Exportbier ... 1519 Barker Exportbier (Batch 361)
• Falling Leaves Autumn Saison ... 2024 Falling Leaves Autumn Saison (Batch 362)
  
  

N.T.S Faux Pilsner

N.T.S. Faux Pilsner is an innovative take on the classic Pilsner style, brewed with a twist that sets it apart. This beer is designed to mimic the crisp, clean profile of a traditional Pilsner while utilizing the unique characteristics of Voss Kveik yeast.

Grain Bill: The foundation of this beer is built on Pilsner malt, providing a light, straw-colored base with a subtle malt sweetness.

Hops: Noble hops, specifically Tettnang and Saaz, are used to impart a delicate bitterness and a floral, spicy aroma that is quintessential to the Pilsner style.

Yeast: Fermented with Voss Kveik yeast, this beer showcases a unique lemony ester profile that complements the traditional Pilsner flavors while adding a refreshing twist.

Brewing Process: The mash schedule includes a single infusion at 152°F for 60 minutes, ensuring a fermentable wort that leads to a dry finish. The beer is then fermented at a higher temperature typical for Kveik yeast, which enhances the ester profile without compromising the clean character of the beer.

Stats:

• Original Gravity (OG): 1.045
• Final Gravity (FG): 1.010
• Bitterness (IBUs): 26
• Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 4.8%
• Color (SRM): 3.6

N.T.S. Faux Pilsner (Batch 360)

It's been pretty hot here in the Denver area the past couple of weeks.

Really hot this past weekend.

You might have noticed (I've probably actually said that on this blog) that I've been attempting to brew all the "SheppyBrew Seasonals" in 2024. I only brewed 9 out of 12 of the 2022 Seasonals and 8 out of 12 of the 2023 Seasonals.

My "August" Seasonal actually uses Kveik yeast, and as you probably know if you're familiar with Kveik yeast at all, it loves fermenting at hot temperatures. 80's 90's even up into the 100's

Well, all yeast likes fermenting at hot temperatures, but Kveik yeasts actually make nice tasting beers when you ferment hot.

Since it was hot, and I wanted to brew a "Seasonal" that loves hot temperatures, Sunday was a great day to brew.

N.T.S. Faux Pilsner

2023 Seasonals

So ... a couple of years ago, I spent some time identifying "SheppyBrew Seasonals".

I didn't really pay much attention to "Seasonals" in 2023, but a couple weeks ago, looking through my blog, I came across 2022 SheppyBrew Seasonals. That made me want to check out which of these seasonals I did brew in the past year.

I figured that I had not done nearly as many as I had in 2022, but as it turned out ... I was actually pretty close.

The fact that I always brew the Seasonal Saisons every year gives me a little of a head-start.

Arctic Vortex 

 

2022 SheppyBrew Seasonals

Earlier in the year, I published a blog post in which I talked about beers that could be considered  SheppyBrew Seasonals, attaching them to each month of the year.

As I was working my way through brewing over the year, I kept this list in mind. I didn't hit every month, but I brewed most of the beers close to their month this year.

2022 Q3 (and 2) SheppyBrew Stats

Well ... crap ... here it is the end of Q3 ... and I just realized I never reported on SheppyBrew's 2nd Quarter.

Oh well.

As you may know, the Brewery likes to post quarterly updates on how much we have brewed. You can see all these updates (including the one you are reading right now) by following this link: Sheppy's Blog: Brew Stats.

You just will not see one for 2022 Q2. I think this is the first quarter I missed since I started doing these updates.

Must be getting old.

So ... just a quick update on the 2nd quarter ... I brewed 5 batches of beer for 26 gallons. There were 2 new recipes during that time, and I brewed 2 lagers.

Colorado Vienna Lager

 

N.T.S. Faux vs Actual Pilsner

At the end of July, I brewed a double batch of N.T.S. Faux Pilsner. See Double Batch of N.T.S.

N.T.S. Faux Pilsner was created a Faux Pilsner fermented with Kveik yeast at high temperatures as an experiment to see if I could brew a lager-like beer fermented with crazy-high Kveik fermentation temperatures.

The original NTS batch was a nice beer, but I didn't consider it "lager-like".

One of the reasons I brewed the Double Batch of N.T.S was that I could brew half with Kveik yeast and half with lager yeast and see if I could tell the difference.

Last week, I did a "blind" triangle test to see if I could tell the two beers apart.

Double Batch of N.T.S.

So, last year, I came up with a recipe for N.T.S. Faux Pilsner, which was an experiment to see if I could ferment a lager-like beer at a hot fermentation temperature with LalBrew Voss - Kveik Ale Yeast.

In my various brewing forums, lots of people say they make "pseudo-lagers" with various Kveik yeasts at higher temperatures.

The N.T.S. Faux Pilsner was a nice beer, but it was not very lager-like in my opinion.

The Voss - Kveik Ale Yeast imparts a very ale-like character. It is great for Pale Ales and IPA's. I even tried it out in my McShepardSons "Irish" Ale.

I just wouldn't consider it for "lager" beers.

Regardless, I liked the N.T.S. Faux Pilsner, and wanted to brew it again. I brewed it last Sunday.

I've gotten to a point where I'm low-ish on beer, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to brew a double batch to help get my beer supply back to normal levels.

2021 Q3 SheppyBrew Stats

Q3 is over. 

As you may know, the Brewery likes to post quarterly updates on how much we have brewed. You can see all these updates (including the one you are reading right now) by following this link: Sheppy's Blog: Brew Stats.

Summer Lovin' American Wheat

N.T.S. Faux Pilsner (Batch 295)

As you know if you read Shoddy Pale Ale Take II (Batch 294), I had a problem with my Lithuanian Farmhouse yeast and had to pick up a pack of dry LalBrew Voss - Kveik Ale Yeast to ferment the beer.

I fermented out that batch of Shoddy, and harvested some of it to brew again.

This past Sunday, I decided to brew up a beer with it.

I have to take advantage of the hot August days.

One of the things I see people talk about online quite a bit, is using Kveik yeast for "Pseudo-Lagers". 

To be honest, I'm not sure I believe that Kveik yeast ferments out that clean, and actually Voss is not a strain that is supposed to produce a lager-like profile.

Even so, I thought I'd give that concept a try, and came up with a recipe very similar to some of my real lagers.

N.T.S. Faux Pilsner