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Amerikanisch Pale Ale

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TasunkaWitko View Drop Down
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    Posted: 07 September 2017 at 12:25

Amerikanisch Pale Ale

My next two brews will include a straight-up American Pale Ale and a straight-up English Pale Ale; this thread is for the American Pale Ale.

This project is inspired by my reading of the book, Beer Craft: A Simple Guide to Making Great Beer , which is written specifically for small-batch brewing:

https://www.amazon.com/Beer-Craft-Simple-Guide-Making/dp/1605291331/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

What I really like about this easy-to-read book is how it introduces you to a versatile spectrum of 10 beer styles (pale ale, brown ale, porter, stout, saison, wheat, pilsner, Scottish ale, abbey ale and barleywine), with good descriptions and back-stories to each style. The book also includes basic, no-frills recipes for perfecting the fundamentals of each style (with some suggestions for possible variations) as you progressively learn to become a well-rounded brewer. This, to me, is a stroke of genius, and this brew represents the beginning of my quest to brew my way through those 10 styles, along with a possible variation or two along the way, such as in the case of the Pale Ale (American and English).

My goal for this brew is for a stripped-down, non-complicated American Pale Ale that reflects a few things about me. I am not consciously attempting to duplicate or emulate any commercial beer, but I do want it to conform to the style in general. I want this ale to be a malt-forward beer with good hop flavor and aroma, and a bitterness that is at the low end of the pale ale scale (see what I did there?). My name for the beer (Amerikanisch) is a nod to my German roots, and the pale ale malt that I will be brewing with comes from Montana. My chosen hops (Chinook) pay homage to my hometown.

Here is the recipe that I have come up with, following the guidelines in the book for a basic Pale Ale:

 
Quote Amerikanisch Pale Ale
 
All-Grain
1 gallon
 
OG - 10.51
FG - 10.09
ABV - 5.55%
IBUs - 30.58
SRM - 5.80

Fermentables
 
1.8 lb American Pale 2-Row Malt (MaltEurope) (90.0%)
0.1 lb American Caramel/Crystal 20L (5.0%)
0.1 lb American Munich 20L (5.0%)

60-Minute Mash @ ~152 degrees
 
60-Minute Boil

Hops
2.0 grams Chinook Hops (14.1% AA) @ 60 minutes
2.0 grams Cascade Hops (7.25% AA) @ 30 minutes
3.0 grams Chinook Hops (14.1% AA) @ 1 minute
3.0 grams Cascade Hops (7.25% AA) @ 1 minute

Yeast
 
Safale S-05 - 1/2 package
 
This seems non-complicated and it conforms, as far as I can see and from what I have read of BCJP, to what an American Pale Ale should be. It reflects my German heritage, Montana background, and the combination of my hometown (Chinook, Montana) and my wife's home county (Cascade, Montana). The Chinook/Cascade combination has been described as a good one, and the hops are - I hope - in good proportion to each other. The IBUs are within my goal, and it looks like this will be just a bit (but not overly) malty, which is what I want.
 
I tried a couple of "Mountain Pale Ales" over the summer - one was a special issue from Ranier. They were good, but to my opinion a bit lacking. This recipe hopefully goes with that "mountain ale" concept, but improves on the commercial offerings that I've tried.
 
I might play with the hops schedule a bit, but unless there are any huge, glaring errors, I'll go with the above. At best, I've got a good thing here; at worst, I'll need to tweak it a bit.


Edited by TasunkaWitko - 07 September 2017 at 12:25
TasunkaWitko - Chinook, Montana

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 October 2017 at 15:47

If things go well, this weekend will be when I am going to brew this beer.

Looking through the thread, I see that I have been making things way too complicated; therefore, I am my goal is to simplify this within the parameters of my goals in time for BrewDay.

Here is the label that I created for this beer:

More as it happens, etc. &c....

Ron



Edited by TasunkaWitko - 16 November 2017 at 11:51
TasunkaWitko - Chinook, Montana

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 February 2018 at 09:46
On Sunday, 18 February, I was - finally! - able to brew this beer. I am up to my neck in a busy week already, so I will keep it short; however, as far as I can tell, everything went very well with the brew and I encountered no difficulties that I can recall.

As soon as I can, I'll post the final recipe that was actually brewed. I'm pretty sure it is the same as the latest one posted here; but just in case it isn't, I'll add it for the record. The only major change that I can think of off the top of my head is that I eliminated the dry-hopping step, as I've tried a couple-three dry-hopped beers and simply wasn't impressed with the result.

Judging by what I saw, smelled and tasted during the brew, I think I've got some great things happening; I'll post more as events develop.

Ron
TasunkaWitko - Chinook, Montana

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 10 April 2018 at 12:46

I was able to sample this beer on April 5th, and enjoyed it very much:

This is a very good-looking beer, with a beautiful colour; I would prefer just a little more with the head, but it is still very young, so we will see what the future holds in a week or so.

It tastes great, which is what matters most! When I set out to create this beer, I wanted something that was classic and refreshing; not a hop bomb, but well-balanced. I believe that I achieved this here, as the play between the malts and the Cascade hops was wonderful; not too bitter, and not too sweet. This resulted in a refreshing, very drinkable beer that had some really nice malt character. Of the beers we sampled that night, it was by far the favourite.

I'll try to get a little more detail the next time we enjoy this beer, but I'm thinking it is a success on the first try. If anyone wants to give this one a shot, I'd be interested in opinions.

TasunkaWitko - Chinook, Montana

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 April 2018 at 11:48
Here is a photo from 21 April:


It would have been much more clear, except for the fact that I had to drive on about 8 miles of bumpy dirt roads to get where I was, due to local flooding.

This is hands-down a great beer. It's got just enough malt character to be interesting, and just enough hops character to make it refreshing - no more, no less. I have tried several American pale ales since I first embarked on this journey, and at least half of them seem to be hop bombs that are right up there with IPA's; this is not the case here ~ it is well-balanced and simply great. 

The American pale ales that I liked were well-balanced, as well, showing off this or that hop without kicking down any doors. That is what I was going for, and that is thankfully what I got. From what I can see, I reached my goals that I was working for when I started this project; it reflects me, who I am and what I am about - and it is also a very good beer. It looks great, it smells great, it tastes great, and I like it.
TasunkaWitko - Chinook, Montana

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 May 2018 at 14:53

Here is a photo from 11 May -

This beer, with its super-simple grain bill and good balance of refreshing hops, might be one of the best beers I've ever brewed. I am sure that it is the same (or virtually the same) as many, many other APA recipes out there, but it is certainly going to be my "go-to" recipe for this style of beer. Everything about it is good, and the things that I liked about it the first time I tried it seem to have improved a little more with some time in the bottle.

All-around, a great beer - no complaints, and a lot of praise. If you have friends or relatives who are new to home-brewed beer or craft beer, this one will almost surely be enjoyed by them, and might open a door to some new adventures for them.

Ron

TasunkaWitko - Chinook, Montana

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