Home Brewing Recipes Baker Street Ales Associate Brewer Arny Lands
Beer Nexus the crossroads of the beer world
Now that the heat of summer is in full swing it is time to brew a nice light but tasty session style ale. One you can drink a few of and enjoy at a picnic or party.
Don't go too overboard with the hops, as the light maltiness won't make for a good balance. However if it's light you can still give it some great flavor and color. You could add 1/3 lb of roasted or chocalte malt during the steep of the crystal malt for a darker hue and slightly maltier flavor.
Before we begin please refer to my Belgian Tripel recipe for tips on the sanitization of your equipment and later fermenting and bottling.
Ingredients: 6.6-7 lbs extra light malt extract (canned) 1/3 lb crushed crystal malt 1 lb honey 2 oz East Kent Golding Hops 1.5 oz Cascade Hops English Style Ale yeast
1) Add the crushed crystal malt into a grain bag and tie closed.
2) Place in a brewpot with two gallons of water and heat to 158 degrees F.
3) Place a lid on the brewpot and stirring occasionally keep the temperature above 150 for about 30 minutes.
4) Remove the grain bag, allow it to drain a bit but don't squeeze the bag. Bits of malt will get through and give your beer an off flavor. The loss of water will be negligable.
5) Now bring the brewpot to a boil and stir in your canned extract and your honey.
6) After stirring well add 1.5 oz East Kent Golding and 1 oz Cascade hops and allow to boil 45 minutes stirring occasionally. Avoid a boil over ! If it looks like it is going to boil over you need to remove the brewpot from the heat source, stir it up and then put it back on the stove. Don't panic it happens often when you add hops.
7) Now add the remaining 1/2 oz of East Kent Goldings and boil ten minutes longer.
8) Cool the wort to 65 degrees or so and add to the 3.5 gallons of water in the fermenter.
9) Pitch the yeast as per manufacturers instructions and place an airlock on the top. Aerate (shake) the fermenter (keep airlock on) to aid the yeasts growth.
10) When primary fermentation ceases ( when the foaming dies down) you should rack the beer into a sanitized carboy. But before you do this place the 1/2 oz of cascade hops you have leftover to the clean carboy for dry hopping.
11) Ferment, Prime and Bottle as usual (remember consult my Belgian Tripel recipe in the archives for instructions).
Have fun sharing your great homebrewed summer ale with your friends and family. Have a great summer!!