Homebrew-Starving Brewer Gingered Ale

This is based on a couple of ginger beers I did back in my free-wheeling youth, both of which were tweaked recipes from the Joy of Homebrewing book. I think I've brewed up a pretty good hybrid of the two, which I plan to make a winter seasonal once my Starving Brewer Ales get up and running. Look for a finalized version of this one in December 2009:

6 # Briess dry light malt extract
1 # Domestic C-120
.5 # Domestic Chocolate
.5 # Domestic Munich 100
1 # Honey (I brewed with Mesquite)
1 tsp. Kosher salt
2 oz. Centennial pellets, 9.5% A.A.
2 oz. Mt. Hood pellets, 5.2% A.A.
4 oz. grated Ginger root
1 packet Safbrew S-33 dry yeast

Mash milled specialty grains with about 1 gal. of 170ºF water (with salt).
Hold at 155ºF for 45 minutes, then lauter to kettle with about 3 gal. of 170ºF sparge water.
Dissolve malt extract and honey in wort and fill to a volume of about 3 gal.
Bring to boil and add ginger and 1.5 oz. Centennials. Add 1 oz. Mt. Hoods and .5 oz. Centennials 30 minutes into the boil and then 1 oz. Mt. Hoods 45 minutes into boil.
At 60 minutes stop boil, whirlpool and let rest for 10 minutes before chilling to about 80ºF.
Rack to carboy, straining out trub. Be careful, as the ginger chunks can easily clog your racking cane. When mine did I was fortunate to have my dad brewing with me, and was able to pour the kettle out while he held the strainer over the funnel. With all the hops and ginger, it was a mess. Next time I'll put the ginger in a sack.
Top up carboy to 5 gal. volume.
Prestart yeast in 2/3 cup boiled water, cooled to 80ºF.
Stir wort and take gravity sample. I got an O.G. 1.059 (15ºP) on this one.
Pitch yeast and put on blowoff line.

Like I had mentioned above, my dad was in town to help me with this homebrew. The first time we homebrewed together was about 10 years ago, my third brew and also a Ginger Beer. This ale is a revved-up version of the one we made as father and son a decade back, with one big improvement: I now own a propane stove! I've never been able to fully dodge the caramelized, extra-toasty flavors that electric stovetop brewing adds to the beer, but I'm very hopeful now that this gas heating action will deliver superior brews. Add that with the prospect of a soon-to-be-delivered brewpot that I can actually brew a full 5-gallon batch in, and I believe I'm well on my way to becoming a brewer I can be proud of.
This brew should have some serious bitterness to complement the ginger flavor. I calculated 93 IBUs, but sort of overshot because my first two Starving Brewer Ales didn't seem as hoppy as what I'd figured them to be. I imagine this will be an attention-grabbing beer when it's finished and ready for enjoying.
Future posts with updates on all of my brews are forthcoming. The SB IPA/ESB is already half-gone so tasting notes on that one will be first.
Thank you to those who've had a chance to try one of my homebrews. I hope I keep brewing up continued goodness for you and others who appreciate an honestly handmade beer. Cheers!

s b