# 9 Scottish Wee Heavy

In anticipation of drinking beer next fall, I thought spring would be the right time to brew at least one big beer that I would plan on laying down throughout the summer to age. So after brewing a low gravity Scottish 60, I thought the Scottish 1728 ale yeast would make for a great  high gravity Scottish Wee Heavy.

Scottish Wee Heavy


Batch Volume (Gal): 6.00
Pre-Boil Volume (Gal): 7.5


Total Grain (Lbs): 18.63
OG: 1.088   Anticipated FG: ~1.020   Anticipated ABV: ~9.0%


IBUs: 29.4
SRM: 19.4
Brewhouse Efficiency: 76%
Boil Duration: 105 min


Grain                                                (Lbs/oz.)    (%)
British 2-row Pale Malt (Pearl)          15.5         83.2
Crystal 40                                               1            5.4
CaraAroma                                          8 oz.         2.7
Crystal 120                                           8 oz.        2.7
Honey Malt                                          8 oz.        2.7
Munich Malt                                        8 oz.        2.7
Chocolate Malt                                    2 oz.        0.7


Hops                         (AA%)   (IBU)     (Oz.)    (Boil[min])
Northern Brewer     10.6       21.9         0.6            60
Northern Brewer     10.6       7.5           0.4            30


Yeast
Wyeast 1728 Scottish Ale (repitched 200 mL of yeast slurry 
from 60 Schilling)


Water
2 tsp 5.2 pH stabilizer (in mash)
3/4 tsp Calcium Chloride (105 min)
1/2 tsp Calcium Sulfate (105 min)
1 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min)
1/2 tsp yeast nutrient (10 min)

I mashed this beer at 1.5 qts/lb and aimed to hit anywhere from 158 F to 155 F for a 60 minute mash. I have been having trouble reaching my targeted mash temperature with the larger mashtun, so I set my aim a little higher than normal. I ended up hitting the upper end of that mash range at 158 F for about 15 minutes and slowly brought the mash down to 155 F for the remaining 45 minutes with stirring. Hopefully that high initial temperature won't result in a beer that is too dextrinous. The high gravity and large grain bill should create a fairly sweet beer alone, so such a high mash temp may result in a cloying beer. But I think either way, the alcohol should provide some sort of balance if the beer should finish at a high final gravity.

Letting the mash cool from 158 F to 155 F

I've started to notice a consistently salty flavor in my beers, so I've been trying to limit both the amount of 5.2 pH stabilizer that I use in the mash, as well as the amount of calcium chloride I add during the boil. I've heard that 5.2 can contribute a lot of sodium to the beer, leaving it salty, although the container claims that 5.2 adds nothing to the flavor of the final beer. Calcium chloride is the more likely culprit however. Tasting a grain of calcium chloride is one of the most intensely salty tastes I've ever experienced, so it's likely that I'm adding too much chloride to my beer, possibly in addition to the chlorides that already exist in my brewing water. I'll have to get a water test done so I can finally begin to understand the salts my brewing water needs in order to achieve the regional water profiles of the beer styles I brew.

Sparging the grains to remove the sugar

The brewday was smooth and uneventful other than the point at which I spilled a fair amount of my grain all over the floor. I'll have to build a better base for my grain mill; the one that the mill came with doesn't offer much stability. 

Part of me wishes I that I brewed the Wee Heavy from the first runnings of the mash and followed it up with a Scottish 60 from the second runnings. If I had been able to make a starter, that would have worked out great as I left a good amount of sugar in the mashtun after collecting all that I needed for the Wee Heavy. I'm running out of containers to condition my beer in though, so it's probably for the best that I give the parti-gyle brewing a rest for a while.

Having a pint of Alt during the boil

This beer should ferment at around 60-62 F for at least the next two weeks. The low fermentation temperatures should enhance the malt profile of this beer while reducing esters, as was the case with the Scottish 60 Schilling. After fermentation, I hope to condition this beer for a long time in the carboy at the coldest temperatures I can achieve. Then I'll bottle the beer and let it condition until next fall. As this beer should be strongly sweet, alcoholic, and malty, I'm expecting that I'll be able to keep my hands off it throughout a hot, humid summer; long enough so that there's still plenty to enjoy when the weather's right for such a big beer.

I plan on brewing a few Biere de Gardes in the upcoming weeks, after some more space opens up in the kegs/carboys. I'll start off with a Biere De Table which should be a great low ABV beer for the spring and then follow it up with a soured Biere De Garde. The kegs in the kegerator containing the German Altbier and the English Oatmeal Stout are starting to get lighter, so the English Pale Ale and the German Kolsch should take their places relatively soon.