After last year’s success for a Liverpool Beer Week collaboration with Tempestivus (a grapefruit dry-hop saison) brewed with Neptune, we decided to team up with them again to brew a very different beer for this year’s Liverpool Beer Week. Les O’Grady, Head Brewer at Neptune, was on hand again to keep us in check and manage the brewday. |
It was safety first, with dust masks handed out whilst mashing in (we were smiling behind these for the pictures) and while we worked on the mash tun. Pedro hefted the sacks of malt and grain into the new, larger mash tun which Neptune have recently acquired whilst Angela stirred to ensure no claggy lumps of grain; neither an easy task and a good workout! All lumps and clumps successfully eradicated, it was left to allow all the sugars to release and the enzymes to do their job, creating the wort ready for transfer to the kettle.
The fun part, or so Angela said, was digging out the mash tun with the help of the manway, which is particularly helpful for us shorter folk. After digging out the spent grain from the tun, we weighed out the hops ready to introduce some heady aromas and big flavour to our beer; an extravagant amount of Citra hops was used in this beer and the single hop. Added to the boil before adding some additional sugar (dextrin), we then waited for the hot liquor to cool down before transferring across to the fermentation vessel. Our day way done upon pitching of the yeast, but there was some additional dry hopping of the beer by Les, with more of the big, oily Citra hops to introduce yet more flavour and aroma.
The fun part, or so Angela said, was digging out the mash tun with the help of the manway, which is particularly helpful for us shorter folk. After digging out the spent grain from the tun, we weighed out the hops ready to introduce some heady aromas and big flavour to our beer; an extravagant amount of Citra hops was used in this beer and the single hop. Added to the boil before adding some additional sugar (dextrin), we then waited for the hot liquor to cool down before transferring across to the fermentation vessel. Our day way done upon pitching of the yeast, but there was some additional dry hopping of the beer by Les, with more of the big, oily Citra hops to introduce yet more flavour and aroma.
Neptune now have a tap room open every Friday 5pm to 9pm and Saturday 12pm to 9pm. We were lucky to be invited for a soft launch where we got to sample our beer – a very cheeky, sneaky preview of what we could look forward to and we won’t be disappointed! Although still requiring an additional few days for fermenting, this beer was punchy and powerful and will be a huge hit during this summer’s Liverpool Beer Week.
Neptune Brewery and the Liverpool Beer Collective bring to you, the whirlpool that swallowed the sea, Charybdis - a 7% Citra IPA.
Angela and Pedro.
Neptune Brewery and the Liverpool Beer Collective bring to you, the whirlpool that swallowed the sea, Charybdis - a 7% Citra IPA.
Angela and Pedro.