LIGHT AMERICAN LAGER

Yeah I know, Light Lagers are the favorite target of beer snobs. The truth is, they could be considered the most popular session beers in the world. I'm not opposed to a nice light refreshing Lager every once in a while so I figured I'd give it a shot and try and brew one.

Technically speaking there's really no reason to homebrew a light lager except for the challenge. They're readily available & you can literally buy them cheaper than you can homebrew them. 

For the first attempt, I wanted to keep it as close to the BJCP guidelines as possible. I went with the traditional 6-Row malt instead of the much more popular 2-Row variety for authenticity. Taste-wise they're pretty similar. A lot of people will describe the flavor of 6-Row as having a more pronounced "grain" flavor in comparison to 2-Row. This seems to be a pretty fair description from my experience. Also the extra enzymes in the 6-Row will help convert the starches in the corn, which does not contain any enzymes. I usually use rice in my lagers instead because I like the neutral flavor it gives to the beer but again corn is more traditional. 'Murica.

As with all session beers, the generally low alcohol/malt/hop flavor will allow any flaw to come out very easily. It's even more true for light lagers. Drinkability is also a key component of the style and the low flavors mixed with a light body make for a drink you can, well drink a lot of. You want the beer to finish dry but not so dry it becomes overly thin. I chose to use my favorite Lager yeast, the German Bock strain which attenuates well but still manages to leave behind the perception of a malty finish somehow. 

Light American Lager (6 Gallons, ~80% Eff, Tinseth)

OG: 1.038
IBU: 10
ABV: 3.8%
SRM: 3

7 lbs - Domestic 6-Row
2 lbs - Briess Flaked Maize
1.5 oz. - Rice Hulls (added to the last 15 minutes of the mash)
.5 oz - Czech Saaz (Whole Leaf) 4.2% @ First Wort Hop
.25 oz - Czech Saaz (Whole Leaf) 4.2% @ 30 Min

Yeast: 2 packs WLP833 German Bock (2 liter starter, no stir plate)

Mashed 60 min @ 151, 1.5 qt/lb
Fermented for one month at 50 degrees.
Stored for two months at 42 degrees.

Look - Light yellow/straw colored, clear
Aroma - Sweet malt, grains, corn, light earthy hops
Mouthfeel - Light-medium, finishes dry but with a nice malt presence, slight carbonic bite 
Taste - Sweet grains with a hint of corn, minimal spicy hop flavor lingers in the finish

Notes:
Overall this is a highly drinkable beer & I'm really happy with how it came out. I was surprised how much it tasted like your run of the mill light lager, except with more flavor. The only criticism I have is that it probably has too much hop & malt flavor. I underestimated how little the malt flavor would mask the hop flavor. I'm used to brewing all malt beers for the most part. 6-Row isn't necessarily a flavorless malt but when you combine it with such a high percentage of corn, the amount of malt you taste drops off pretty substantially. 

This of course is the whole point of a light lager and contributes to its drinkability, so just keep it in mind. I would definitely drop the second hop addition and if I was to enter this into a competition I would probably enter it as a Standard American Lager, for fear of it being too flavorful, as weird as that sounds. 

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Rob

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SESSION AMERICAN PALE ALE

One of the holy grails of session brewing is an American Pale Ale.  A few breweries have been making really good sessionable, low alcohol American Pale Ales. Notch Brewing's American Session Ale is a good example of what I'm talking about. The challenge comes from making the beer flavorful & drinkable without being either cloyingly sweet or too dry. The hops can quickly overpower a low alcohol beer and throw it out of balance. Below is probably the third version of this recipe I've brewed & the first one I'm really (but not completely) happy with.

Session APA (BJCP Description)
(6 Gallons, ~80% Eff, Tinseth)

OG: 1.042
FG: 1.009
IBU: 10
ABV: 4%
SRM: 7.3

* 7.5 lbs - 2-Row Maris Otter
* 1 lb - Simpsons Medium Crystal
* .5 lbs - White Wheat Malt (Weyermann Floor Malted Bohemian Pale Wheat - 2 Lovibond)
* .5 lbs - Vienna Malt

* .25 oz Chinook (Whole) 16% FWH
* .5 oz Cascade (Whole Leaf) 8.8% @ 15 min
* .5 oz Cascade (Whole Leaf) 8.8% @ 5 min 
* 1.5 oz Cascade (Whole Leaf) 8.8% @ 0 min 
* 1.5 oz Chinook (Whole Leaf) 16% @ 0 min
* 1 oz Columbus (Pellets) Dry Hop for 14 Days

* Yeast:
Wyeast 1318 London Ale III - Washed

* Mashed 60 min @ 156, 1.5 qt/lb


Tasting Notes:
Look - Bright orange, off white head that sticks around (thanks hops!), slight chill haze
Aroma -  Big piney-resinous and slightly citrusy hop nose. Fruity esters show up at the end.
Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, crisp with a dry finish from the hops
Taste - Bitter piney hops, sweet bready/grainy malt backbone, firm bitterness but smooth

Notes:  Overall I'm getting closer to the "perfect" pale ale.  This is pretty close to where I want it. I might switch out some of the medium crystal for light crystal just because it's a little dark for a pale ale but that's purely cosmetic. I'm happy with the hop schedule so now it's time to scale it down. I really want to be able to brew a 3.5% hoppy APA (easier said than done). The only change I'm going to make is to reduce the base malt. Per Jamil's writings/discussions on scaling down beers. This is to ensure the beer doesn't dry out too much.

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Rob

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STANDARD AMERICAN LAGER

Apologies for the absence.


The most popular session beer in the world?  As I've said before on this blog, I'm not a macro lager hater, they have their place and the big breweries know how to brew this tricky style well.  So this time I thought I would try and brew the most consumed beer style in the world.


When brewing a Standard American Lager, the key is a clean flavor profile.  Not too much malt, not too much hops or yeast derived esters.  In fact, in the BJCP description it actually says, "strong flavors are considered a fault".  The devil for this one is in the ingredients.  I went with the standard American 2-row since pilsner malt would be too flavorful for this style.  Corn and rice adjuncts include a fair amount of the total grist and sometimes up to 40%.  I used a little less than 10% flaked rice (which I prefer over corn for it's neutral flavor but that's just a personal preference) and a little light crystal for body.


This was also the first time I tried the S-189 dry Swiss Lager yeast.  I had heard good things about it but I haven't had good success with dry lager yeasts in the past.  I tried Saflager W-34/70 and wasn't particularly impressed.  It threw a lot of diacetyl, which isn't a big deal on it's own, but the flavor profile also left something to be desired.  Also, I'm looking for a nice all around lager yeast and one that produces a lot of diacetyl is just going to be a pain.  


Anyway, Fermentis doesn't seem to sell small (~11 gram) packet to homebrewers but there's a sight (http://www.americanbrewmaster.com/product_info.php?products_id=2349) that buys in bulk and repackages into 11 gram packets.  Much better than buying a 500 gram packet.  I was worried about contamination due to the repackaging but the yeast performed well for me, so I have no complaints.

Standard American Lager (BJCP Description)

(6 Gallons, ~70% Eff, Tinseth)

OG: 1.043

FG: 1.011

IBU: 14

ABV: 4.2%

SRM: 3.8

9 lbs - Domestic 2-Row

.875 lb - Minute Rice

.5 lbs - Crystal 10

1 oz - German Hallertau (Whole Leaf) 3.8% @ 60 Min

.5 oz - German Hallertau (Whole Leaf) 3.8% @ 10 Min

1 oz - German Hallertau (Whole Leaf) 3.8% @ 0 Min

Yeast: Saflager S-189 Swiss Lager (22 grams re-hydrated)

Mashed 60 min @ 154, 1.25 qt/lb

Fermented for one month at 50 degrees.

Tasting Notes:

Look - Straw gold, brilliant white head that surprisingly sticks around (most likely due to the low adjunct content), slight chill haze

Aroma -  Sweet grainy malts, not much hop aroma, clean lager yeast

Mouthfeel - Medium-thin bodied, crisp

Taste - Sweet bready/grainy malts, spicy herbal/lemony hops, firm bitterness

Notes:  Overall I'm very happy with the beer and the dry yeast's performance.  It's a solid, flavorful, well brewed and very drinkable lager.  However, if I was to enter this into a competition I would probably enter it as a Premium American Lager because to me, it has too much malt/hop flavor for a Standard.  I would probably increase the percentage of adjuncts to eliminate some of the flavor from the 2-row, cut out the crystal malt and drop the last hop addition.

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Rob

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SAISON

One of my favorite styles and something I plan on brewing more often.  Historically brewed in the spring to last through the summer months when it's too hot to brew. This version is brewed in the "farmhouse" tradition and uses some oddball grains.  From my understanding, traditional Saisons were farmhouse ales which meant that the farmer usually threw in whatever grains besides barley they had laying around to increase the fermentable sugars. Sometimes these other grains were not malted like barley, and may or may not have contributed to the total fermentable sugars depending on the gelatinization temperature.  I love unmalted wheat so I threw some in. The gelatinization temperaute is low enough to include directly into the mash without any further processing (malting, flaking, etc.).

I also included Spelt which is the first time I've used this grain in brewing.  The gelatinization temperature isn't low enough to include in the mash, so I used flaked Spelt to avoid doing a cereal mash.  Hopping can vary greatly in Saisons from barely noticeable to assertively hoppy.  I shot for kind of a moderately hoppy mix of EKG & Saaz, since it's on the low side in terms of alcohol.

Saison (BJCP Description)
(6 Gallons, ~70% Eff, Tinseth)

OG: 1.040
FG: 1.006
IBU: 19
ABV: 4.5%
SRM: 3
90 Minute Boil

7 lbs - German Pilsner
1 lb - White Wheat Malt
1.5 lbs - Flaked Spelt (Bob's Red Mill)
.5 lbs - Unmalted White Wheat

1 oz - East Kent Goldings (Whole Leaf) 4.6% @ 60 Min
.25 oz - Saaz (Pellets) 5.5% @ 15 Min
.25 oz - East Kent Goldings (Whole Leaf) 4.6% @ 15 Min

.5 oz - Saaz (Pellets) 5.5% @ 0 Min
.5 oz - East Kent Goldings (Whole Leaf) 4.6% @ 0 Min


Yeast: Wyeast 3711 French Saison (2 Liter Starter)

Mashed 60 min @ 150, 1.25 qt/lb

Pitched yeast at 65 and let it free rise to 78

Tasting Notes:
Look - Light yellow, hazy, 1 1/2 finger white head with nice lacing
Aroma - Tropical fruit/citrus, very slightly peppery type phenols, sweet pils malt, earthy/spicy hops
Mouthfeel - Surprisingly light/medium bodied
Taste - Spicy/citrusy yeast, spicy/earthy hops, slight nuttiness, moderate bitterness

Notes:  This beer was delicious! I wish I had more.  Not sure if I was able to pick out the Spelt but it was the first time I used it.  It might have lent a slight nuttiness to the beer but it's hard to say.  I look forward to brewing this again.

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Rob

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MUNICH HELLES

A light golden, clean, and very drinkable lager that's perfect for summer especially when brewed to session strength.  I have a soft spot for lagers especially the full flavored continental variety, namely Weihenstephaner Original.  Although I'm not opposed to a Premium American Lager (BJCP Description) with my favorite being Shaefer but I've been known to enjoy a Budweiser every now and again. Die beer snobs! (sorry I got carried away).  Some might argue (link) that the most popular beers in America are session strength lagers (bud light, miller lite, etc.).

I was looking for a simple, tasty, no nonsense lager for the summer so I kept the recipe simple.  Mostly German Pils with a little Munich for character and all German Hallertau hops.  I used the WLP833 German Bock yeast because it's a supposed to be a versatile yeast which is what I was looking for since I plan on re-using the yeast for multiple batches.  I also decided to go with a single temperature infusion mash.  I thought about maybe doing a protein rest but this isn't a show beer so I'm not concerned with clarity.  With today's highly modified malts, there's no need for any sort of step mashing/decoction so why complicate the issue?

Like a lot of homebrewers I usually brew ales for obvious reasons.  This is only the second lager I've brewed and the first that came out well.  It seems like I've had nothing but bad luck with lager yeast with two separate starters getting infected (seriously has this happened to anyone else?).  When I finally did get a good starter going, I brewed a Premium American Lager.  Unfortunately I rushed the fermentation and ended up with too much diacetyl (even after a d-rest).  I also forgot to taste the sample after I took a gravity reading, woops.  Very disappointing so I realized I needed to do more research before my next lager. 

For this one I decided to leave it in the primary fermenter for twice as long to make sure there was no diacetyl.  After a month I tasted it and didn't find any diacetyl, so I kegged it and moved it to the keggerator for a couple weeks of lagering.  This fermentation schedule worked out well for me and I think I'll go this route again when brewing lagers.

Munich Helles (BJCP Description)
(6 Gallons, ~70% Eff, Tinseth)

OG: 1.045
FG: 1.010
IBU: 29
ABV: 4.6%
SRM: 4
90 Minute Boil

9.5 lbs - German Pilsner
1 lb - Light Munich

2 oz - German Hallertau (Pellets) 3.9% @ 60 Min
.5 oz German Hallertau (Pellets) 3.9% @ 20 Min

Yeast: WLP833 German Bock (4 Liter Starter with 2 Vials)

Mashed 75 min @ 150, 1.25 qt/lb

Pitched yeast at 52 and fermented for 1 month then 2 weeks of lagering at 42

Tasting Notes:
Look - Light yellow/golden, clear, 1 1/2 finger white head with nice lacing (no protein rest)
Aroma - Sweet pils malt, no hop aroma
Mouthfeel - Medium bodied
Taste - Sweet grainy malt, spicy/slightly earthy hop flavor, very clean with a lingering bitterness

Notes:  I'm extremely happy with how this beer came out.  It's much more flavorful than any light beer or even a Premium American Lager and very easy to drink.  All I need now is a glass boot.

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Rob

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BROWN PORTER

I've never brewed a Porter before so I figured I would start with the most basic of the sub-styles, Brown Porter. Brown Porter is characterized by the use of Brown Malt and in my opinion the lack of roasted barley.

I've never used Brown Malt in a beer before. It's basically a heavily toasted form of 2-Row malt. It's similar to Amber malt and is about 50-70 L and has very little diastatic power. Chocolate or Black Malt (or both) also contribute to the profile of modern Porters. There is a debate about whether roast barley is appropriate for a Porter. My feeling is that if it is used in a Porter it should be used sparingly. For me, the main difference between a Porter & a Stout is that Stouts rely heavily on roasted barley for the flavor profile.

In the past, Porters were made exclusively from Brown malt, however, it must have had more diastatic power in the past if it was making up 100% of the grain bill. The following recipe is based of Jamil Zainasheff's recipe, modified to use the hops I had on hand. I also did a 10 gallon batch split into two 6 gallon Better Bottles. One was fermented with Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire and the other with Wyeast 1318 London Ale III.

If you ever want a good base recipe either to introduce you to the style or to just produce a guaranteed good beer, I would suggest using one of his recipes as a starting point.

Porters and Stouts have a long complicated and sometimes intertwined history which I won't get into. Again if you're interested in the origins of the style I would check out the "Shut up about Barclay Perkins" website. I would also recommend the book, "Amber Gold & Black" by Martin Cornell which is a fantastic and well researched book about the history of beer styles in Britain.

Brown Porter (BJCP Description)
(6 Gallons, ~70% Eff, Tinseth)

OG: 1.050
FG: 1.015
IBU: 26
ABV: 4.6%
SRM: 25

9 lbs - Maris Otter (Warminster Floor Malted)
1 lb - Brown Malt
1 lb - Medium Crystal (Simpsons)
10 oz- Chocolate Malt (Simpsons)

2.5 oz Willamete (Whole Leaf) 4.6% @ 60 Min
.5 oz Willamete (Whole Leaf) 4.6% @ 10 Min
.5 oz East Kent Goldings (Whole Leaf) 4.7% @ Flameout

Yeast: Carboy #1 Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire (2 Liter Starter)
Carboy #2 Wyeast 1318 London Ale III (Washed, 6 oz Thick Slurry)

Mashed 75 min @ 150, 1.25 qt/lb

Pitched yeasts at 65 and let it free rise to 72

Tasting Notes (Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire):
Look - Dark brown/black with ruby highlights, 1 finger tan head with nice lacing
Aroma - nutty & fruity yeast but still clean, some dark chocolate notes and slight earthy hop aroma
Mouthfeel - Medium-full bodied
Taste - Very balanced with a full malt character that isn't cloying. Nice dark chocolate flavor, little/none roasted character, sweet bready malts, medium bitterness, slight earthy/spicy hop flavor

Notes (Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire):
Overall this beer surprised me. It's much more complex than I thought it would be and all too drinkable. I enjoy the occasional stout/porter now and again but I was never a huge fan of the style but this beer has me re-thinking that. It's also really well balanced between the malt, yeast & hop flavors. This is the first time I've used this strain so I'm excited to try it in some different styles.

UPDATE:
Tasting Notes (Wyeast London Ale III):
Look - Dark brown/black with ruby highlights, 1 finger tan head with nice lacing (same as West Yorkshire)
Aroma - Fruity yeast esters but subdued (compared to WLP002), some dark chocolate/coffee notes and slight earthy hop aroma
Mouthfeel - Medium-full bodied
Taste - full chewy malt character. Nice dark chocolate flavor, roast coffee, nutty malts, medium bitterness, slight earthy/spicy hop flavor

Notes (Wyeast London Ale III):
Overall the London Ale III (LA3) batch was along the same lines as the West Yorkshire (WY).  The key difference I found was in the dark malt character.  The LA3 batch had more of a pronounced coffee flavor compared to more of a dark chocolate flavor in the WY batch.  The LA3 batch also had a little more fruity esters (although still restrained) and a slight mineral quality to it.  In the end I prefer the WY version as it was a little more balanced, however both yeasts made a very good Brown Porter.

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Rob

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