blending beer

hoboscratch · Post by **hoboscratch** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 5:52 pm

So I made an oaked IPA a while back, and it is waaay overoaked. I set 2 spirals in a 5 gal batch for 2 weeks. It pretty much tastes like liquid wood. I've read this and that and it sounds like I'll be with that strong oak flavor for a few months before it starts to drop out. Not ideal for an IPA.

I think I'm going to brew an identical unoaked batch and blend them together. My plan was to just do it at the keg. Take one half and mix it with the other half. Won't be exact but it should be better than trying to wait it out. Note to self, next time use 1 spiral.

tompb · Post by **tompb** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 6:37 pm

Mix a measured amount from each batch to find the blend you like best. Use that to decide how much you need for the oaked batch. It might not need a fifty/fifty blend. You can just drink the leftover.

hoboscratch · Post by **hoboscratch** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 7:36 am

That's a good idea. I would have just gone 50/50 without thinking about it.

bf514921 · Post by **bf514921** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 6:49 pm

that is a good idea, i have a batch i might try that on

kurtford · Post by **kurtford** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 8:38 am

I did this with a holiday porter I overspiced, blended different amounts of each together until I felt I had found the best tasting blend. I ended up doing 50% new porter and 50% overspiced holiday porter. It came out a lot better then the overspiced batch did and prevented me from pouring 5 gallons of beer down the drain.

tony b · Post by **tony b** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 1:51 pm

One of my favorite beers - Firestone Walker Pale 31 - is a blended beer. Part is fermented in their oak barrel system, the rest in stainless steel tanks. So, don't think of it as somehow cheating; it's just another beermaking technique that we have in our toolbox!

hoboscratch · Post by **hoboscratch** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 5:18 pm

Very cool. Now I just have to find time to brew the damn thing.