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Posted 2012/11/17

Homebrew - White House Honey Porter

Like many people I wanted to try the famous Presidential home brew recipe. I used the Austin Homebrew partial mash conversion of the official recipe.

Method

  • Heat 1 quart of water per pound of grain to 162.
  • Add all the grains to the mash tun and add the water. Make sure the temperature does not drop below 152. Mash for 60 minutes, stir half way through.
  • Heat 1.3 quarts of water per pound of grain to 175.
  • Drain the wort slowly and sparge with the 175 degree water. Try to keep some water above the grain bed.
  • Bring wort to the boil.
    • Once boiling add any other fermentables (like malt extract).
    • Bring back to the boil.
    • 0 Add bittering hops.
    • Boil for 30 minutes.
    • 30 Add flavoring hops.
    • Boil for 15 minutes.
    • 45 Add a tea spoon of Irish moss.
    • Boil for 5 minutes.
    • 50 Put the wort chiller into the boil (to santize).
    • Boil for 5 minutes.
    • 55 Add finishing hops.
    • Boil for 5 minutes.
    • 60 Cool wort to 65 degrees and pour through a strainer into a fermenting bucket.
  • Top up the bucket, take a hydrometer reading, add the yeast and ferment for 3 weeks.

Using the temperature readings from when I brewed the Dubbel 'Em Up I guessed that 3.3 lb of grain would need 162 degree water to start the mash at between 152 and 156 degrees (my target). After adding the water to the grain the temperature was 151 so I added some boiling water to get the temperature at the start of the mash to 154. I think I should have used 165 degree water to get 154 without any messing around.

Ingredients: The famous White House Honey Porter
Starter:     15 Nov 2012
Brew:        17 Nov 2012, OG 1.054
Bottle:      09 Dec 2012 (21), FG 1.009, ABV 6%
Ready:       04 Jan 2013 (26)
Summary:     Primary 21 days, Condition 26 days

I was really looking forward to trying this beer. I think it is because we are living in America there is something strangely appealing to brewing the same beer they have in the White House.

Just like the other partial mash has very small bubbles and not a lot of head retention. I think I need to investigate if there is something I can add that will help with this in the future. Although the head is poor it is definitely carbonated. I wonder if the reason the last few beers have been like this is because I am conditioning them in the garage and it is has been bloody cold these past few months?

The beer is totally black and looks like a porter. It tastes quite light and bitter at the start. I was expecting it to be a bit more dense but I quite like how easy this is to drink. There is a definitely sweet after taste which might be the honey as it doesn't seem like a normal malty sweetness. There is no hint of alcohol harshness. I can't tell what it smells like because the kitchen smells like the chocolate porter that I am waiting to cool :)

Starter

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Brew

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Bottle

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Ready

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