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jlpred55 · 11-23-2009, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NQ3X

Dig the Wiki article on American Amber Ale.

Given the guidelines therein, I suggest you make the following changes:

Omit the UK malt. AAA is not necessarily a malt-forward beer; it is definitely a Crystal malt-forward beer. There's a difference. Munich, Vienna and Victory will all contribute to a different maltiness than Crystal malts. I'm not saying it's going to be bad; I'm saying it'll be removed from where one expects AAA to be. American Amber Ale is American from the ingredients used. The crackery, bready notes of MO are not appropriate for the style.

Use a broad spectrum of Crystal malts. Remember darker Crystal malts will contribute substantially more flavor and color than lighter; too much 90L will easily overwhelm 40L. I suggest no more than 10-15% of the grist be Crystal malts. In your recipe, I'd use a pound of 20L and a half-pound maxmimum of 80-90L.

If you use Munich, try not to exceed 5% of the grist. Omit Victory entirely.

Hops must be distinctively American varieties. Willamette, unfortunately,* is not one of those varieties. As Willamette is a Fuggles cultivar, and is a good substitute for Fuggles, it is not distinctive enough. Choose instead one of the American varieties which give that distinctive, American citrus flavor/aroma.

S-05 is the perfect yeast.

Have fun! It's gonna be a good beer no matter what you do!

Bob

This is no fun Bob. I am crying into my beer. Anyone made an amber with just 2-row and crystal in those amounts? I have, yuck!!! I personally love Victory in my Amber and so does Jamil.

lyacovett · 11-23-2009, 11:35 PM

Well, I am OK with not calling this an American Amber Ale .... or even an "Amber" for that matter. I was leaning towards an Amber ... but whatever. I already have the ingredients I listed ... didn't wait long enough for a reply. So I am going for the 2 lbs of crystal with the MO and munich. I really like the Williamette as well. I love the British hops.

From what I am gathering ... this recipe is part American Amber and part bitter ... or is there a better classification for this brew?

jlpred55 · 11-24-2009, 01:09 PM

It is a hybrid amber but it is closer to an american amber than anything. In america our brewing is a hybrid that was passed on by the different brewing cultures of immigrants. So we can pick and choose and completely bastardize styles!

I also like williamette- I use it a bunch as a compliment to cascade or centennial- it seems to bring out the nature of those other hops even more. Should be good recipe, heavy on the crystal for me, but with enough hops etc you might not notice it when it is fresh.With age the crystal will make itself known. Good luck.

Bob · 11-24-2009, 10:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jlpred55

This is no fun Bob. I am crying into my beer. Anyone made an amber with just 2-row and crystal in those amounts? I have, yuck!!! I personally love Victory in my Amber and so does Jamil.

Hey, to each his own, man. You don't care for it and that's fine. Thousands of fans of such beers as Mendocino's Red Tail Ale and other famous benchmark Ambers might disagree, but it's your right as a brewer to go swim against the tide if it makes you happy.

God forbid we should gainsay Jamil!

I like Victory, too. I don't like it in Amber; it's too toasty-malty, and I don't find it appropriate for the style. I save it for Brown Ale and the odd Pale Ale. If you like it, use it.

Lyacovett -

Don't worry about style overmuch. Styles primarily help drinkers, not brewers. Styles are an easy shorthand as to what I might expect in the bottle. If I'm told I'm drinking an Amber Ale and it tastes like a Brown Ale or Bock from all the malt, I get confused - no matter how good it is, the beer won't taste like a good Brown Ale or Bock; it'll taste like a poor example of Amber Ale.

Styles also help brewers. It's wise to "dial in" one's skills trying to epitomize a certain style. If you can brew a Dry Irish Stout just as good as Guinness using Guinness's ingredients list, you're on to something. You can't go too far afield with ingredients in this pursuit or it won't turn out right.

See what I mean?

Cheers!