Name
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The idea is to produce a beer that is like a blank canvas. It is beer that you could layer other dimensions onto, but it itself is the blank canvas. Sort of an experiment to see what this "blank" beer is like, as a way to try to understand the space I'm working in.
The other aspect of this is that it is trying to be as "normal" a beer as I can easily make. For example, I will simply ferment it in the cellar space I have at between 65 and 68. It will be a product of my region, my background, and my methods. Thus, it is sort of a personalized blank slate. The question being: "what do I get if I produce 'normal' beer as simply as possible?"
Notes from formulation
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- It is very tempting to try to get more complicated by adding late hop additions, or at least one other malt variety. However, the point here is to be as minimal as possible. With only bittering hops, hops are only serving their original, primary purpose: to provide bitterness that balances the malts sweetness so that the resulting beer can be enjoyable.
- The intent is to produce a pale, clear beer with some subtle yeast character and balanced bitterness but minimal hop flavor. The most prominent aspects should be the taste of the base malt and the subtle yeast character.
- Since I’m planning to ferment it in the storage space, which is running about 58-59, I decided to switch to 1007 for its cold temp performance. In warmer months, though, I’d prefer to brew with 1056.
