Modern Homebrew Recipes (49 page)

VIENNA HEFEWEIZEN

This beer was brewed for a retirement party at work. Someone requested a
hefeweizen,
and I asked if it was OK if I made it maltier and darker, kind of like a Schneider Weisse. The beer was a hit, as any wheat beer would be on a hot August afternoon. This beer probably wouldn’t do as well in a competition since judges would be expecting Pils malt, so save it for parties where you can drink it young and fresh as intended.

Style:
Weissbier (Classic BJCP Style, Experimental)

Description:
A classic German wheat beer with Vienna malt as the base instead of Pils malt.

Ingredients:

Water treatment:

Used RO water with varying treatments

Add 0.5 tsp CaCl
₂
to the mash initially

Add 0.5 tsp CaSO
₄
after first mash rest

Treat sparge water with ¼ tsp 10% phosphoric acid per 5 gallons

Mash technique:

Hybrid step mash and single decoction, mashout

Mash rests:

113°F (45°C) 10 minutes

131°F (55°C) 10 minutes

Pull thick decoction, heat to 158°F (70°C) for 15 minutes, then boil for 10 minutes

Meanwhile, ramp main mash to 146°F (63°C) and hold during decoction

Remix decoction with main mash, hitting 158°F (70°C)

158°F (70°C) 15 minutes

170°F (77°C) 10 minutes

Kettle volume:

8 gallons (30 L)

Boil length:

90 minutes

Final volume:

6 gallons (23 L)

Fermentation temp:

62°F (17°C) 2 days

64°F (18°C) 2 days

66°F (19°C) until done

Sensory description:
A bit richer than a typical hefeweizen but still pale. A decent alternative to my usual Pils malt based beer. The additional malt provides color, a very slight toast flavor, and a fuller mouthfeel.

Formulation notes:
Nothing fancy here; just a straight swap of Vienna for Pilsner malt. Add 1 lb (454 g) rice hulls to the mash to aid in lautering. Aerate the wort gently, but don’t use any oxygen. Be ready with a blowoff tube for this yeast.

Variations:
Could add other character malts, pushing it more towards an amber color. Try to split the difference between a
weissbier
and a
dunkles weissbier.

ROBUST CREAM ALE

I enjoy cream ale in the summer as much as the next guy (I have a lawn that needs mowing too). If I want to make a standard cream ale, I can’t really do any better than Curt Stock’s Craptastic Cream Ale.
¹
Instead, I decided to add extra character to the beer without taking it too far out of bounds (although I’m pushing the upper style limits on this one). This is another brewing project that is probably better suited to personal enjoyment than competitions.

Style:
Cream Ale (
Classic BJCP Style
, Experimental)

Description:
A slightly stronger cream ale with a bit more malt character and late hop character than standard.

Ingredients:

Water treatment:

RO water treated with ¼ tsp 10% phosphoric acid per 5 gallons

1 tsp CaCl
₂
in mash

Mash technique:

Infusion, mashout

Mash rests:

154°F (68°C) 90 minutes

168°F (76°C) 15 minutes

Kettle volume:

8 gallons (30 L)

Boil length:

90 minutes

Final volume:

6 gallons (23 L)

Fermentation temp:

66°F (19°C) primary

35°F (2°C) lager

Sensory description:
Very clear, medium yellow color. Tall, tight white head. Mild grain, light corn, hint of hops in the aroma. Slight sweetness and a touch of toast. Medium-low spicy hops. Smooth, low bitterness, medium body. The late hops are at the upper end for the style, and the malt has slightly more complexity than is typical. Still very recognizable as a cream ale, especially with the super-smooth body and excellent drinkability.

Formulation notes:
I made this once with polenta when I was out of flaked maize. Pre-boil as if you were going to serve it as food, then add it to the mash. It was good, but the corn flavor was subtle (flaked maize is more noticeable). Use 1 lb (454 g) rice hulls in the mash to aid lautering. I used one break-brite tablet in the last 15 minutes of the boil. This needs to be a clear style so I take steps to improve clarity, including using a settling tank before moving to the fermenter.

Variations:
As an homage to my good friend Curt Stock, you can turn this into a Miller Chill-inspired summer drink. Add the juice and zest of 3 or 4 limes about 30 hours before kegging, plus some kosher salt to taste.

GORDIAN STRONG ALE

In 2011, I was very much looking forward to the opening of Market Garden Brewery in Cleveland. Brewmaster Andy Tveekrem, who got started at Great Lakes Brewing Company before moving on to Frederick Brewing and then Dogfish Head, was returning home to Ohio. I was expecting to try his beers and maybe get to chat with him. I was floored when I got an email from Andy, asking if I’d like to work on a collaboration beer to help them open their new brewery (is there a more positive answer than “hell yeah!”?). Andy wanted to do a variation on a recipe from
Brewing Better Beer,
so we chose the Belgian Pale Ale since he had the right yeast in-house. We scaled it up to a
special
size, and Andy picked the name as a double entendre.

Style:
Specialty Beer (Classic BJCP Style, Experimental)

Description:
I guess you could call this an Imperial Belgian Pale Ale. In Belgium, it would be a special version of a regular beer, which usually just means that it’s about 2% stronger and maybe a bit richer than the base beer.

Ingredients:

Water treatment:

RO water treated with ¼ tsp 10% phosphoric acid per 5 gallons

1 tsp CaCl
₂
in mash

Mash technique:

Step mash, mashout, dark grains added at
vorlauf

Mash rests:

131°F (55°C) 15 minutes

145°F (63°C) 30 minutes

158°F (70°C) 10 minutes

170°F (77°C) 15 minutes

Kettle volume:

8.5 gallons (32 L)

Boil length:

90 minutes

Final volume:

6.5 gallons (25 L)

Fermentation temp:

66°F (19°C)

Sensory description:
Biscuity, moderately bitter, with a plum-like fruity notes and spicy-floral hops. Toasty, bready malt base with a dry finish. The alcohol is somewhat deceptive. The biscuit flavor can be a
bit high when young, but mellows with age. This beer cellars well, and tastes very good at one year old.

Formulation notes:
Essentially a Belgian pale ale recipe scaled up from 5% to 7%. Some changes made along the way to accommodate different systems, but nothing major. The general balance of the beer was fairly similar.

Variations:
This beer is already a variation on another style. If you scale it up again to 9%, it could be a Belgian barleywine. Although unusual for a Belgian beer, I imagine this beer could be dry-hopped (or at least whirl pooled). I’d stick with Saaz, but Styrian Goldings would also be a fun choice.

DARK SAISON

Saisons
are traditionally summer beers, but it has become trendy to produce one for each season. Perhaps the trend was started at Fantôme, but there’s no denying that the richer, stronger beers are delicious in the winter.

Style:
Saison (super dark) (Classic BJCP Style)

Description:
A strong, dark, unspiced winter seasonal
saison.

Ingredients: