Weyerbacher Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary clone

Weyerbacher Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary clone

(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.096 FG = 1.015
IBU = 30 SRM = 31 ABV = 11.6%

Ingredients
13.5 lbs. (6.12 kg) Pilsner malt
2 lbs. (0.91 kg) wheat malt
6 oz. (0.17 kg) crystal malt (40 °L)
6 oz. (0.17 kg) Special B® malt (130 °L)
1.25 lbs. (0.57 kg) dark Belgian candi sugar (15 min.)
12 oz. (0.34 kg) cane sugar (15 min.)
7.2 AAU Apollo hops (90 min.) (0.4 oz./11 g at 18% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Bramling Cross hops (0 min.)
1⁄2 tsp. yeast nutrient (15 min.)
0.1 oz. (3 g) ground star anise (15 min.)
0.25 oz. (7 g) ground coriander (2 min.)
White Labs WLP540 (Abbey IV Ale) or Wyeast 1762 (Belgian Abbey II) yeast
Wyeast 1214 (Belgian Abbey) yeast (if a re-pitch is needed, or if priming)
7⁄8 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by Step
Mill the grains and mix with 5.1 gallons (19.3 L) of 161 °F (72 °C) strike water to reach a mash temperature of 149 °F (65 °C). Hold at this temperature for 60 minutes. Mash out at 172 °F (77 °C). Vorlauf until the runnings are clear. Sparge the grains until you collect 6.5 gallons (24.6 L) of wort at approximately 1.061 specific gravity in your boil kettle. Boil for 90 minutes adding hops, yeast nutrient, sugar, and spices according to the ingredients list.

After the boil, turn off the heat and add the 0-minute hop addition according to the ingredients list. Whirlpool the kettle by gently stirring with a mash paddle for 2 minutes and then let rest for an additional 8 minutes. Next, chill the wort to 70 °F (21 °C) and transfer into a clean and sanitized fermenter. Aerate the wort with pure oxygen for 90 seconds and pitch yeast cells. The recommended pitch rate is 324 billion yeast, so it is highly recommended that you make a large starter or pitch a slurry from a smaller beer (see Tips for Success).

Ferment for three days at 70 °F (21 °C), then let the temperature rise up to about 75 °F (24 °C) to finish the remainder of primary fermentation. Rack to a secondary vessel and allow the beer to condition for an additional 2–4 weeks. Prime and bottle, or carbonate to 2.7 volumes of CO₂, keg, and enjoy!

Weyerbacher Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary clone

(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.096 FG = 1.015
IBU = 30 SRM = 31 ABV = 11.6%

Ingredients
6 lbs. (2.7 kg) Pilsen dried malt extract
3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) wheat liquid malt extract
6 oz. (0.17 kg) crystal malt (40 °L)
6 oz. (0.17 kg) Special B® malt (130 °L)
1.25 lbs. (0.57 kg) dark Belgian candi sugar (15 min.)
12 oz. (0.34 kg) cane sugar (15 min.)
7.2 AAU Apollo hops (90 min.) (0.4 oz./11 g at 18% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Bramling Cross hops (0 min.)
1⁄2 tsp. yeast nutrient (15 min.)
0.1 oz. (3 g) ground star anise (15 min.)
0.25 oz. (7 g) ground coriander (2 min.)
White Labs WLP540 (Abbey IV Ale) or Wyeast 1762 (Belgian Abbey II) yeast
Wyeast 1214 (Belgian Abbey) yeast (if a re-pitch is needed, or if priming)
7⁄8 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by Step
Place the two varieties of crushed crystal malts in a grain bag, then add the grain bag to 2 gallons (7.57 L) of 150 °F (66 °C). Allow grain bag (which will float) to steep for 20–30 minutes while you continue to heat the water up to no hotter than 170 °F (77 ° C) in order to avoid extracting tannins. Next, remove the grain bag and top your kettle up with enough pre-heated water to reach a total pre-boil volume of 6.5 gallons (24.6 L). Once you reach a boil, remove the pot from the heat and add the malt extract. Turn the heat source back on and boil for90 minutes adding hops, yeast nutrient, sugar, and spices according to the ingredients list.

After the boil, turn off the heat and add the 0 min. hop addition. Whirlpool the kettle by gently stirring with a mash paddle for 2 minutes and then let rest for an additional 8 minutes. Next, chill the wort to 70 °F (21 °C) and transfer into a clean and sanitized fermenter. Aerate the wort with pure oxygen for 90 seconds and pitch yeast. The recommended pitch rate is 324 billion yeast cells, so it is highly recommended that you make a large starter or pitch a slurry from a smaller beer (see Tips for Success).

Ferment for three days at 70 °F (21 °C), then let the temperature rise up to about 75 °F (24 °C) to finish the remainder of primary fermentation. Rack to a secondary vessel and allow the beer to condition for an additional 2–4 weeks. Prime and bottle, or carbonate to 2.7 volumes of CO₂, keg, and enjoy!

Tips for Success:
Due to the high original gravity of this beer, pitching the proper amount of yeast is key. Brewmaster Chris Wilson urges brewers that, “You need lots of healthy vigorous yeast!” There are a couple of ways to do this. First would be to make a large starter about a week prior to brew day, then cold-crash the starter and decant it off the liquid prior to pitching the yeast. If you’re using a stir plate, that would mean about 2.25-L starter. If you’re not using a stir plate, a better option would be to brew up a smaller (low gravity) beer first and use the yeast slurry from that fermenter to re-pitch into this beer. This should allow the yeast to properly attenuate your 20th Anniversary clone. Even if you do everything correct, Chris Wilson says that, “the yeast proved to be a bit finicky and pooped out on each batch at about 1.030 SG. We had to repitch to get it restarted on each occasion. It was still fermenting slowly and might have eventually done the job. Repitching did the job for us.”

In regards to the spices, make sure that you err on the side of caution and use less rather than more. Chris Wilson says, “We wanted the spice to complement the ester profile of the Rochefort yeast. We were looking for a background flavor that most people would be unable to pick out.”