Summer quaffer thoughts

[DylanI]

Hi guys

 

My questions and proposed recipe are similar to the post by harviek recipe thoughts pale ale but I didn't want to hijack that thread...

 

I'm looking at making an easy drinking beer for summer. i.e. not as dark, or bitter as what I've been making of late. In other words, a summer quaffer.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions regarding the recipe below (especially specialty grains)? I plan to use some pacific jade, which is said to have Orange and pepper flavors.

 

To 23L

1 can Coopers draft

1 kg light dme

0.25kg carapils

0.25kg medium crystal

 

5L boil

10g each of cascade and pacific jade for 20 mins

10g each of cascade and pacific jade for 5 mins

 

US05 yeast.

[Hairy]

Does anyone have any suggestions regarding the recipe below (especially specialty grains)?

If you are after a summer quaffer that isn't so dark then I would drop the medium crystal back to a pale/light crystal. Caramalt would be good.

 

Otherwise it looks good.

[Nick]

Hi there Dylan, i have just made a Strawberry Blonde straight off the "how to brew" recipe's. i used yellow Box Honey and bottled into subbies. i up'ed the priming sugar slightly by putting in a little over half a teaspoon. i have been drinking it after only 2 weeks, and at just below freezing point. it is without doubt the nicest, thirst quenching beer i can remember drinking. it has been well up around 30 deg in Se Qld, so i reckon it will suit you well in the adelaide heat after xmas. a simple recipe that works well[happy]

[AdamH1525226084]

I'm with Hairy, drop the medium crystal and it will be a nice light bodied brew.

 

Some dry hopping would be good too, but that's just me and hops [devil]

[DylanI]

Thanks for the thoughts guys.

I'll swap out the medium crystal.

 

Just another one. Approx how alcoholic does your software of choice say a bottled version of this brew would be (or original gravity)?

 

I use the ianh spreadsheet. It's telling me 4.8% (OG 1.045). Does this seem a little high?

 

I have the trial copy of Beersmith 2. With the same ingredients, and carbonation setting to bottling, Beersmith says 3.7% (OG 1.039). This is quite a difference.

 

PS, I was thinking about 4.5% or so would be the go. Should I up the DME a little?

-Dyl

[Guest]

Hiya DylanI.

 

I use the Brewcraft Calculator purely to give me a rough idea of the Final Gravity of my brews, so I know when to bottle from 1-2 hydrometer testings. Despite the calculator offering a starting gravity reading, I never take a physical OG reading at the start of my brews. To me, it's almost irrelevant given the calculators assessment.

 

Edit: Original Gravity is important for one reason, & one reason alone to me. It IS my guide to how MUCH yeast I MUST pitch at the current brew I am making. To me it serves no other purpose other than bragging out a recipe to someone else.

 

However, Final Gravity is extremely important to me though.

 

The figures spat out by that calculator on your brew suggest a Final Gravity of approx. 1.014 & an end ABV of approx. 4.9% after secondary priming.

 

I hope that helps.

 

Beer.

[Hairy]

The OG is important when designing a recipe regardless of whether you physically measure it or not.

 

When making a brew with malt extract and simple sugar I didn't always take a reading because you pretty much know what you will get.

 

But if you are making an all grain or partial mash batch then it is good to check the OG. There are a lot more variables in extracting the sugars in the mash and the OG may be different to what you expected.

[Otto Von Blotto]

I always take an OG reading on my brews. I like to know what the ABV is, because from that I can work out how many standard drinks are in a bottle. Given my profession is driving, it comes in quite handy. It's more for weekends if I have to go somewhere, I'm on broken shifts at work but I don't drink during my break.

[GrahamB8]

But if you are making an all grain or partial mash batch then it is good to check the OG.

 

+1

I like to know Ive had conversion, I also like to work out my efficiency. Sometimes I will over evap so like Kelsey I really want to know the ABV.

I dont use this data for bragging, I save it on a notepad file on the computer as a comparison tool

 

I suppose this is when just making cheap beer goes beyond and into the realms of being a hobby

[DylanI]

Hey all

 

Yes, the OG should be easy for kit brewers. If it's lower than expected, it's likely 'tipping malt from can efficiency' being too low. My issue here is that I don't have a feeling for what to expect when using DME (I usually use LME).

 

My whole point here is I'm getting wildly different predictions of the OG (hence the final alcohol content) depending on where I go (ianh spreadsheet, beer calculus website, Beersmith,etc). I want to make a full strenth beer.

 

I may just up the DME from 1kg to 1.2kg to make sure that I get above 4%.

 

Either way, I'm looking forward to this one.

[Hairy]

I would leave the malt as is.

 

I don't know how Beersmith calculates it but it seems low. It should come in around 4.5 - 4.8%.

[Otto Von Blotto]

Beersmith is odd sometimes. I'm not sure how it works out ABV either, there's a million different "profiles" you can choose from on the recipe builder that affect the gravity readings. Maybe it doesn't add the priming sugar to the final ABV?

[DylanI]

Hey all

 

Just a quick update on the Summer Quaffer. Very quaffable.

 

In the end I went with:

 

To 23L:

 

1.70kg Coopers Original Draught

1.00kg light DME

0.25kg caramalt

0.25kg carapils

 

5L boil

10g cascade + 10g pacific jade for 20 mins

10g cascade + 10g pacific jade for 5 mins

10g cascade + 10g pacific jade dry hop

 

Yum. I drank a 5-day-in-the-bottle sample, and it was very nice.

 

It's a really nice base for a beer. I think I may tinker around with something similar next. I'm thinking of swapping the Pacific Jade for Willamette, and the caramalt for carared. Now to just think of a name for it.... Red Willy perhaps. Ha.