Brewing for the Zombie Crawl

I'm trying to throw together a light-bodied porter with reddish undertones for the 2016 Zombie Crawl in our town on Oct. 22nd.

6 lbs pale liquid malt extract
0.5 lb American chocolate malt
0.5 lb black malt
1 lb 120°L crystal malt
1 oz. Simcoe (12.8% AA) hop pellets (@ 60 mins)
0.5 oz. Willamette (5.1% AA) hop pellets (@ 0 mins)
White Labs' WLP090 San Diego Super Yeast

BACBF 2016

Just got two brews kegged for my participation in the 2016 Bay Area Craft Beer Festival's homebrew tasting tent.

Getting ready for NCHF

From the 2015 Bay Area Craft Beer Festival's homebrew tasting tent

Evil Cousin Once-Removed

Brew #32

Today I went to the AHA rally at the Heretic Brewing Company in Fairfield, and was given 5 gallons of wort prepared by the brewers at Heretic.

One of the brewers shared that they use White Labs' WLP001 yeast for most of their brews, so that what I pitched into the wort upon getting it home.  And since I was told that the wort given away is similar to that they use for brewing their Evil Cousin -and since I am using the same strain of yeast- I am calling this beer "Evil Cousin, Once-Removed".

Ingredients
6 gals. of Heretic Brewery wort
2 vials White Labs WLP001

Procedure
Brought wort home
Pitched yeast

Fermentation notes
Gals. in fermenter: 6
4/26 Pitched yeast
4/28 Kraeusen blew out through ferm. lock
5/12 Racked to 2ndary fermenter
 5/26 kegged

Gals in keg: 5.5
OG: Not taken
FG: Not taken
ABV: Not calculated

Martinez Mild Amber

Brew #: 31
Brew Date: 20 March 2014

Ingredients
7 lbs ultralight liquid malt extract
1 lb 60*L Crystal malt
4 oz Carafa II malt
1 oz. Northern Brewer hop pellets (bittering, @ 60 mins.)
1 oz. Northern Brewer hop pellets (flavoring, @ 10 mins.)
1 oz. Northern Brewer hop pellets (aroma, @ 1 min.)
1 tab. Whirfloc clarifier (@ 5 mins)
2 vials White Labs WLP001 California Common ale yeast
6 gals. distilled water
0.5 oz Northern Brewer hop pellets (dry-hopping addition)


Procedure
Put 2.5 gals distilled water into kettle.  Added grains in grain bag and let steep until water reached 170*F.
Removed grains, and raised heat to bring liquor to boil.
Once boiling, added malt extract.
Returned to boil and added hop pellets and clarifier at the minutes indicated from end of boil.
After 60 mins boil, removed from heat.  Cooled kettle with lid on in ice water bath.
Poured wort into fermentation bucker containing 2.5 gals of distilled water.  Added 1 gal. of distilled water to bring level up to 5.5 gals.


Gals. in kettle: 2.5
Gals. lost to boil: 0.5
Gals. in fermenter: 5.5


Fermentation notes
3/20 Pitched yeast at 76*F.
4/6 Transferred to secondary. Gallons in secondary: 5.  Tasting notes: Very low hop character, notable sweetness. (I wonder if the yeast crashed.)   Other: I noted that the lid to the bucket was not on securely.
4/8 Added a dry-hopping with 0.5 oz of N. Brewer hop pellets. (Let's see if we can give it a bit more of a nose and a tad more flavor).
4/10  Tasted again this afternoon. Watery, little hop character, no body, almost no flavor.  Threw it out.

O.G.: 1.036
F.G.: ----
ABV: ----

Saison No. 4

Brew #: 30
Brew Date: September 07, 2013

Ingredients

2.0 lbs German Vienna malt

1.0 lb flaked wheat

0.5 lb flaked oats

12.0 oz sugar

6 lbs light dry malt extract
3.0 oz Vanguard (5.4% AA) hop pellets @ 60 min. (bittering)

0.75 oz. Styrian Goldings hop pellets @ 30 min.  (flavor)

0.75 oz Styrian Goldings hop pellets @ 5 min. (aroma + flavor)

1.0 oz Vanguard hops hop pellets @ 0 min. (aroma)

8.0 oz honey, @ 0 min.

0.5 oz dried sweet orange peel @ 0 min

0.25 tsp black pepper @ 0 min

0.25 tsp turmeric @ 0 min

1 vial of White Labs WLP568 Belgian Style Saison Blend Ale Yeast

0.5 oz Styrian Goldings hop pellets, @ dry hopping

Procedure

Poured grains into 1.3 gals of 162°F water.  Held at 150°F-153°F range for 60 mins.
Strained grain liquor into kettle containing 2 gals of water.  Added bittering hops, sugar, and DME. Brought to boil.
Added aroma hops at 30 mins from end of boil.
Added aroma & flavor hops at 5 mins from end of boil.
Added aroma hops, spices, orange peel, and honey at 1 min. from end of boil, and turned off burner.
Strained into fermenter holding 2 gals of cool water, and added enough water to bring level up to aprox. 5.5 gals.

Fermentation notes
9/8 Pitched yeast at 78°F
9/9  am temp 76°F, pm temp 76°F
9/10 am temp 75°F pm temp 76°F
9/14 am temp 71°F
9/17 pm temp 75°F
9/26 pm temp 70°F
9/26 Racked to secondary fermenter, with addition of 0.5 oz Styrian Goldings (4% AA) hop pellets
10/05 Added 7/8 cup of corn sugar dissolved in 16 oz. water.  Bottled some and kegged the remainder.

Gals in fermenter:  5½

Gals. in Keg: 2.5

O.G.: 1.071

F.G.: 1.005

A.B.V.:  8.6%