Fall Brews

Okay, gang... I'm trying to get into the habit of making beer by season as well as aging it a bit before drinking. I've got 2/3 of a keg in the kegerator that should hold me for a few weeks and I can pick up a couple sixers from the store after that until the new brews are ready.

I've been looking over the "St. Louis Brews" list that someone posted recently and need some input.

1. What notable characteristic differences are there between wheat beers and rye beers? What about differences between American versions and German versions?

2. Would someone post a tried/trued extract recipe for a rye beer, please?

3. My wife has been bugging me to make a clone of Pyramid's Snow Cap for the cooler months. Does anyone know what style of beer this is? I'm assuming it's a stout of some variety. If anyone has a solid extract recipe for this, please post it.

4. I'd like to try an oatmeal stout. Can this be done as an extract brew? Recipies welcome.

I'll keep searching the archives in the mean time...

I can only help on the Oatmeal Stout front.
Recipe:
3 oz. (crushed grain) Dark Crystal, 3 oz. (crushed grain) Roasted Barley, 3 oz. (crushed grain) Chocolate, 8 oz. Flaked Oats, 2x 3.3 lb cans Dark Malt Extract, 4 oz. Malto Dextrin Powder, 2 oz. Target Hop Pellets, 1 oz. Tetnanger Hop Pellets, Saf-Ale Dried Yeast (or substitute 1084 Irish Ale Wyeast Liquid- preferred

From byo.com

Pyramid Snowcap Ale Clone
by Brent Rannow


An amber, full-bodied, winter warmer. Great for the cold holiday season. (5 gallons)

Ingredients:

• 6 lbs. Coopers light extract
• 3 lbs. Briess light dry extract
• 1 lbs. crystal malt, 80° Lovibond
• 8 oz. DeWolf-Cosyns chocolate malt
• 4 oz. flaked wheat
• 1 tsp. Irish moss
• 2 oz. Chinook hops (12.5% alpha acid) for 60 min.
• 1 oz. Willamette hops (5.2% alpha acid) for 30 min.
• 1 oz. East Kent Golding hops (6.2% alpha acid) for 2 min.
• Wyeast 1338 (European ale) or Coopers ale yeast
• 1 cup dry malt extract for priming

Step by Step:

Steep crystal and chocolate malts in 3 gal. of 150° to 180° F water for 15 to 20 min.
Remove spent grain. Mix in malt extracts and flaked wheat, then bring to a boil. Total boil
is 60 min. After hot break, add Chinook hops and boil 30 min. Add Willamette hops and boil
15 min. more. Add Irish moss and boil 13 min. more. Add East Kent Goldings in last 2 min.
of boil. Cool wort and transfer to fermenter, straining out hops and flaked wheat. Top up
to 5 gal. with cold, preboiled water. Cool below 80° F and pitch yeast.

Ferment at 68° F for 10 days. Transfer to secondary for 14 days. Prime and bottle. Age
several months.

OG = 1.065
FG = 1.020

I don't know how good this recipe is but it's an extract Oatmeal stout, I 'm planning on brewing this next:


Oatmeal Stout


Ingredients
7 lb. John Bull Amber Malt Extract
1 lb. M & F Amber Dry Malt
½ lb. M & F Roasted Barley Malt 675° L
½ lb. M & F Black Patent Malt 471° L
½ lb. M & F Chocolate Malt 338° L
1 lb. Flaked Oats (Quaker Quick Oats Can Be Substituted)
1oz. Yakima Magnum Hops (Bittering)
1 oz. Fuggles Hops (Finishing)
Wyeast # 1099XL Whitbread Ale Yeast


Procedure
Before starting, make sure your liquid yeast will be ready to add to the beer. Plan on putting your fermenter where the temperature is within the temperature range listed on the Wyeast yeast package.

Soak the cans of malt extract in hot water for 20-30 minutes so that the syrup will be easier to pour.
Place cracked grains in the steeping bag and add to your brew kettle along with 1½ gallons of cold water. Heat slowly.
Right before the water starts to boil, turn off the heat and remove the grain bag. The grain bag should soak in hot water for about 20-30 minutes to get full flavor.
Remove the pot from heat and add the cans of malt extract. Keep the kettle off the burner and stir until the malt extract is completely dissolved.
Put the pot back on the burner and bring it to a boil. Avoid messy boil-overs by reducing heat or momentarily removing the pot from heat. Once boiling commences, add the bittering hops (if using whole hops or plug hops place in a muslin bag) and boil for 1 hour (set a timer).
After 45 minutes of boiling add ½ teaspoon of Irish Moss which can help clarify your beer (optional).
After 58 minutes of boiling add finishing hops (if using whole or plug hops place in a muslin bag) and boil for 2 more minutes.
After 60 minutes of boiling, turn off the heat.
If you are using whole hops or plug hops in muslin bags, remove them from the kettle. Put a lid on your pot and cool it in an ice bath (use your sink) for about 20 minutes.
After the wort (stuff in your pot) is cool, add 2 gallons of water to sanitized fermenter, add the cooled wort (if using pelletized hops pour through a sanitized strainer), and top up fermenter with additional water to 5 gallons.
Take and record a hydrometer reading (optional).
Be sure that the temperature of your wort in the fermenter is below 78º F before adding the yeast. Sanitize the yeast pack and the scissors before opening the yeast. Add yeast to wort.
Bottle when fermentation is complete.