431brew said:
I am not certain that this is the right place for this post...it is MRB related and recipe related. Anyway, I am one remaining MRB recipe away from going to 5 gal batches and getting away from the MRB kits.
The very first beer I made was the MRB West Coast Pale Ale and, after seeing all the neg comments about it and MRB, I wasn't expecting much. However, I was very patient with it and by the time I drank the last one, I knew I wanted to make a 5 gal version of it (without buying two recipes from MRB!). It was not bitter, didn't leave an aftertaste, and the low ABV made it enjoyable for SWMBO. To me, it was just a very smooth, clean tasting beer.
How would I go about breaking down MRB's WCPA to determine what is needed to make my own 5 gal. version? I found this recipe
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?p=594726#post594726 and at first thought it was close until I compared the profiles.
Is this a trial and error thing, or is there a way to actually figure it out the first time?
Thanks!
Well first the recipe you found is for a Pilsner, Not an ale so it won't be similiar to what you're looking for.
Well the first challenge in recreating it in 5 gallon batches is that MR Beer uses Pre Hopped liquid malt extract, so figuring out exactly what they use is going to be difficult..
Obviously the easiest way would be to order 2 WCPA kits and make a double batch...but that would be more expensive and not as much fun to figure out
First thing is to look at the "numbers" for the wcpa.....it's on the website...
West Coast Pale Ale
Flavor: Balanced
Alc/Vol: 2.3%
SRM (Color): 3
IBU (Bitterness): 10
Alc/Vol -- Strength given in percent of alcohol by volume.
SRM -- Color based on Standard Reference Method, where as:
(fruits may give some additional color.)
- Golden Beers are between 0 - 6
- Amber Beers are between 7 - 12
- Dark Beers are 13 and over
IBU -- Shown in International Bittering Units, where:
- No bitterness 0 - 9
- Modest bitterness 10 - 19
- Noticeable bitterness 20 and over
Unfortunately they don't give OG and FG so it makes it more challenging....BUT we can still break down the recipe somewhat by what we do know....We have the Color, we have the bitterness and we have the ABV...so it is possible to break it down in brewing software, even a free one like beercalculus....
First there are Pre-hopped extracts made for 5 gallon batches that can be used and will be close in taste...thugh not perfect... Cooper's and John Bull have pre hopped extracts in 3.3 pound cans....but these are ranked in terms of color...like Light, Amber, etc....I'm assuming WCPA would use a light pre hopped extract....
Even better would be a recipe that is unhopped and you add the right hops...
That's my goal for you...to get you to a standard beer recipe rather than a prehopped one, that way you can control it and fiddle with it, and even when you're ready you can convert it to all grain!
It's hard to figure out what bjcp style the beer is...Is it a california common, and hybrid americanized IPA, or Pale Ale? The Color is so light and the bitterness (the IBU's) is so light..It's hard to match it to a bjcp style.
The first step would be to compare it to a commercial example, then go from there...Does it taste like any of these?
Redhook Blonde, Catamount Gold, Widmer Blonde Ale, Coast Range California Blonde Ale, Fuller's Summer Ale, Hollywood Blonde, Pete's Wicked Summer Brew, Deschutes Cascade Golden ,Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Stone Pale Ale, Great Lakes Burning River Pale Ale, Full Sail Pale Ale, Three Floyds X-Tra Pale Ale, Anderson Valley Poleeko Gold Pale Ale, Left Hand Brewing Jackman's Pale Ale, Pyramid Pale Ale, Deschutes Mirror Pond,Mendocino Red Tail Ale, North Coast Red Seal Ale, St. Rogue Red Ale, Avery Redpoint Ale, Anderson Valley Boont Amber Ale, Bell's Amber, Hoptown Paint the Town Red, McNeill's Firehouse Amber Ale,Genesee Cream Ale, Little Kings Cream Ale (Hudepohl), Sleeman Cream Ale, Liebotschaner Cream Ale (Lion Brewery), Dave's Original Cream Ale (Molson), New Glarus Spotted Cow Farmhouse Ale, Wisconsin Brewing Whitetail Cream Ale, Goose Island Summertime, Crooked River Kölsch, Harpoon Summer Beer, Capitol City Capitol Kölsch...
These are different commercial examples of Cream ales, Pale Ales, Kolsches, amber ales and hybrids...
If you can get me to a commercial beer that reminds you of it, I can get you to a 5 gallon recipe.... even a direct clone of one...
More likely we'll find 2 or three and cobble them together and plug the numbers in, and hit it pretty close...
I love beer detective work!!!!