Shed Mountain Ale Clone

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Rolling_Thunder

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Working from Jester369's recipe, which to me was MUCH too bitter and later confirmed by the brewmaster at the Shed, I cooked up a few batches trying to drive the brew closer to the taste of what I think the original is.

Jester's recipe has an IBU of 76 (if memory serves me). According to the Shed brewmaster it should be 35. This was the most noticeable objection I had to Jester's recipe and one I think important because this is one of the unique attributes of the original Shed Mountain Ale itself; it's soooo smooth drinking you hardly notice the Hops at all.

So having said all that and examined many other recipes that have characteristics I believe the original Shed Mountain Ale has (to my taste anyway) I've come up with something that is extremely good and not just to me but many others that have tried it and are now constantly pestering me for more. None of these folks have tasted the Shed Mountain Ale so they have no idea of what I'm trying to create, they just enjoy what this is as is.

So without further adieu this is my recipe:

2 oz. Briess Black Patent Malt
3 oz. Muntons Chocolate Malt
8 oz. of 2 row barley
1 lb Carastan
8 oz. Caramel Wheat
1-3.3 lb Munton's Dark Liquid Malt Extract (LME)
1-3.3 lb Munton’s Amber Liquid Malt Extract (LME)
2 lbs Muntons Wheat Dried Malt Extract (DME)

1 oz. Cascade Hops (US) - 1oz. Pellets
1 oz. Saaz Hops (Czech) - 1oz. Whole
1 oz. Tettnang Hops - 1oz. Pellets
1 Malto Dextrin - (8 oz. package)
7 oz KreamyX - Priming Sugar
2.5 oz. Vanilla Extract
1 Safeale US-05 (American) - Dry Yeast

Steep grains @ 155 degrees (get water to temp then turn off heat) for 45 minutes dunking in & out of water like tea bag
Bring to boil & add both (Amber & Dark) 3.3 lb. cans of LME & 2 lbs of DME and boil for 60 minutes

Toss ¾ oz of Cascade hops in boil for 60 minutes
Toss ½ oz of Saaz 20 minutes to flame out
Add 6 oz of Malto Dextrin 15 minutes to flame out
Toss ½ oz of Tettnang hops 5 minutes to flame out

Fill primary fermenter with 15 lbs of ice & 2.5 oz of Vanilla Extract
Add wort to primary fermenter straining through screened funnel then fill with filtered water to 5 gallon mark on bucket to top off.
Cooled wort needs to be between 60 & 72 degrees.
Toss Yeast when wort is to temp.
Slap lid & air lock on it and wait 2 weeks!
 
Just made this tonight. LHBS was out of Carastan so substituted Crystal 40l. I did the ibu calculations and they were a bit low so tossed a full oz. of Cascade in there. It looked and smelled great. Nailed the OG at 1.072 and am really looking forward to the vanilla. Favorite of mine is Philadelphia Brewing's Kilty Pleasure which has to have Vanilla extract and this recipe seems pretty close to that. Thanks for the recipe and one quick question, style says I should be using ~ 5 oz. Kreamy X for carb. How much did you use for 5 gal.? Thanks again ..Cheers.
 
Ya full oz. of Cascade will work well I think also. Good call.

I screwed up, it should be a full 7 oz bag of Kreamy X and it will do a 6 gallon batch nicely if you end up with a little over 5 gals.

Outside of the original Shed Mntn Ale this is the easiest drinking dark beer I've ever had. I'm sure you're gonna be very happy with the end result...
 
Are you steeping in 2.5 gallons of water or are you doing a full boil? I live in Missouri and have never heard of Shed Mntn. Would love to try the original before making a batch. What other beers could you compare it too?
 
ya I steep in 2.5 gallons for 45 mins @ 155 degrees.

There are only 2 ways you can try the original; the first being that you have to go to Stowe Vermont where they're located and buy it at the "Shed" and the second option being that you know someone that can buy it there for you and ship it to you. Unfortunately Vermont law doesn't permit the Shed to ship their product. It's a cash & carry deal.

Having said that, what does it compare to you ask? Nothing I've ever had. Me and almost every other non dark beer drinker I know avoid dark beers due to their inherent tendency to be extremely bitter. In fact I had the original Shed Mountain Ale in my hand for a half hour before I got desperate when I learned there wasn't another beer at the party so I took a swig. I was instantly impressed and in love. It was the best beer I've ever had. The flavors I got from it were/are: Chocolate, Caramel, Coffee, Cream & Vanilla. As you can see it would be very difficult to describe that in a style or single flavor. This recipe comes close to the original but is still lacking the magic the original has (probably has to do with the difference between this being an extract brew and the original being an all grain brew). When I convince other non dark beer drinkers to try this beer they're also very surprised at how good it is then they sit and rethink their boycot of dark beers and wonder what they might be missing.

I try to describe it this way.....some people like Starbucks Coffee, very bitter coffee. Others prefer a very rich, smooth, non bitter coffee and that's where my taste lies. This beer is the rich, smooth, non bitter type... :mug:
 
Subscribing to this thread. Going to make an attempt at this recipe when I am ready to brew again

I'm going to get the grains from my LHBS and according to their website, it doesn't look like they carry Carastan. What is the best substitution? I have another noob question, on the same website, they have American 2Row. Is that the same as the one you have in the recipe?

Oh and another question, where are you getting your ice from? It seems like the consensus is to stay away from using ice, unless you make your own
 
Crystal 20 is a good substitute for Carastan.

American 2 row will work fine.

I get my ice from my local supermarket. I've heard many others also scream in horror when I tell them I do this but I have yet to have any ill effects. It simply works fantastic. Think about it, boiling for 15 minutes kills all pathogens that are found in water out in the woods. You're using ice from a filtered city water supply which is FAR more clean than what is in the wild. Any unwanted bacteria that MIGHT exist from the ice factory is likely to be a weak bug favorable to a very cold environment so when you hit it with boiling wort it's gonna die instantly. Until I have a batch get ruined I can't see any credibility to the argument against using it.

Happy brewing!:mug:
 
Sounds good brah. I can't believe I didn't look at the ice thing that way. I just finished a pathogenic microbiology class hahaha.

How do you think your recipe will turn out if you added some lactose?
 
lol... there's much I learned in school that went in one ear & right out the other!

Actually I think using lactose would make it better. I'm lactose intolerant so I can't use it, but if it doesn't bother you I think you'll be happier with the end result.
 
This baby just went into bottles and I gotta say it is the best tasting warm flat beer I've had in a long time. Only got her down to 1.023 so 6.4% is still a nice number and there are no alcohol notes. Caramel, chocolate, vanilla, good stuff. Thanks for the recipe and now the wait begins.
 
Glad to hear it's working out well so far.

Oddly enough (referring to your warm beer comment), my last batch (of which I only have one 22 oz bottle left) I was testing periodically to see how it was carbonating. I'd grab one (I had them in a box in my mud room and I'd see them as soon as I came through the door from work. They were like an NFL cheerleader greating me everyday as I came through the door!) Anyway, where was I?....Oh ya, so as I was taste testing them it was at room temp (68 degrees) and after they conditioned and chilled in the fridge I found that I actually prefer it at room temp.

I've heard stories about how Europeans drink beer warm and it always used to make the hair on my neck stand on end. Now I've accidentally discovered it's not such a horrific thing to do.

My next venture with this recipe is to add in a beer gas system and push it through a Guinness faucet to give it that creamy foam and minimal carbonation and see what that does. I've been wanting to get into kegging anyway so the slightly higher cost of the Nitrogen/Co2 setup doesn't bother me. I'm gonna cook up a 20 gallon batch in a couple weeks. I'll bottle 5 gallons and keg the rest and see how she goes... :mug:
 
When you say Europeans drink beer warm, I think that you may be referring to us Brits who drink what we call "real ale". It's not all of us, just the ones who prefer the taste over the now ubiquitous euro-fizz lagers which are being foisted on us by the big brewing companies. Sorry, rant over.

Our real ale is a live product, conditioned in casks and usually kept in a cellar at about 13-15 degrees centigrade and is then pulled up to serve by a hand-pump. So that's the temp we like. The beer is not full of taste-bud-killing gas and is not too cold to taste. Neither is it too warm. Just right in our humble opinions.
 
When you say Europeans drink beer warm, I think that you may be referring to us Brits who drink what we call "real ale". It's not all of us, just the ones who prefer the taste over the now ubiquitous euro-fizz lagers which are being foisted on us by the big brewing companies. Sorry, rant over.

Our real ale is a live product, conditioned in casks and usually kept in a cellar at about 13-15 degrees centigrade and is then pulled up to serve by a hand-pump. So that's the temp we like. The beer is not full of taste-bud-killing gas and is not too cold to taste. Neither is it too warm. Just right in our humble opinions.

3 months ago I wouldn't have had a clue as to what you could have been describing. Today however, it makes perfect sense and sounds delicious! This "real ale" is something I MUST have before I begin my eternal dirt nap.

For this recipe, in the future, I think I'll store my bottled brews in my wine fridge over the summer. They'll be cool but not cold and as you say "just right."

Thanks for the enlightenment BeerEagle...:mug:
 
What is Malto Dextrin - (8 oz. package) and where can I find it???

Good question. Answer: "Derived from corn, this is non-fermentable. It is used to add body to a beer. If you are an extract brewer and your beers are coming out on the thin side, this here will take care of you. Add during last 15 minutes of your boil."

Use 4 oz. to 5 gallons of beer.

For those of us that are lactose intolerant Malto Dextrin is what you substitute. If you have no problem with lactose (you can drink milk and not get gassy & bloated) I recommend using the lactose. Whichever you prefer.

I get all my stuff (except bottles-I get those at my local home brew joint) through this place... http://www.rebelbrewer.com/shoppingcart/products/Malto-Dextrin-%2d-8-oz..html If I place my order on Monday the order is on my doorstep Wednesday and that's just their regular shipping.


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So would I use 4oz of Lactose or 8oz of Malto?

I'd start out with 4 oz. of either, but you can safely use (when I say safely I mean it won't ruin the taste) 4, 5,or 6 oz's. I was using it in an effort to create a creamy mouth feel, but it didn't end up with that effect. Instead makes the beer more rich in flavor for lack of a better way to describe it...
 
Drank a carbed beer at fridge temp and then warmer,around 50-55F. This beer definitely benefits from a higher temp. Now I just have to wait for it patiently if that's possible. Thanks for the recipe, this will be brewed again AG in August and I'll let you know how it goes.
 
Drank a carbed beer at fridge temp and then warmer,around 50-55F. This beer definitely benefits from a higher temp. Now I just have to wait for it patiently if that's possible. Thanks for the recipe, this will be brewed again AG in August and I'll let you know how it goes.

Sounds like it's coming along nicely. Please keep us informed on the AG recipe. I've wondered about that and would I'd like to hear how that works out. I hope you have more willpower than I do. I couldn't leave it alone once I had the first couple.

To take this a step further I'm going to be brewing up a 20 gallon batch in the next couple of weeks. Gonna keg 10 gallons & bottle 10 gallons (word is spreading and I now have many requests from friends in Montana, California, Virginia, Georgia, Texas, Mass and Vermont). So an idea came to me the other day...."self, what do you think about putting this brew on 'beer gas' and dispensing through a Guinness stout faucet?" I mulled it over for a few minutes and the more I thought about it the more delicious it occurred to me it would be! My biggest concern now is will 20 gallons be enough?!! I work with a bunch of guys that are VERY fond of this recipe in bottles. I'm pretty sure if they get a glass of this on a 'beer gas' setup they'll be at my house everyday like ants on a melted chocolate bar.

So this is going to neccessitate the purchase of a larger brew pot, Guinness tap, nitrogen tank & regulator, kegs and modifying my garage fridge. About $800 should cover it (including the ingredients for the large batch). Then the next investment is a big ass Blichmann fermenter and if I'm really feeling crazy and the AG brew comes out well I'll have to take the plunge and get an AG setup too!
 
Had a buddy bring me back a growler of Mountain Ale last year, great stuff. Subscribing so that I can keep up to date as the AG attempts are done.
 
This stuff on nitro might be too good. You'd end up having to move. And if you've got 20 gallons of this stuff, there's a house for sale right around the corner.
 
Well I did it. Recently equipped myself for a 20 gallon batch & obtained all the necessary goodies to keg with Beer Gas. Cooked up 20 gallons last Sat night & now have 4 five gallon buckets bubbling away almost halfway through a fermentation cycle. Had one five gallon bucket peter out 2 days after it started bubbling so I had to repitch the yeast in that one & it immediately came back to life and joined the others in vigorous sync.

As is typical with new stuff everything that could go wrong did in this attempt. My spankin new 20 gallon brew pot with weldless fittings began leaking as soon as I filled her up so I ended up having to drain 10 gallons of great store bought water all over my garage floor to fix the leaking problem, which meant I had to then go back to the store to get more water. Then all 4 new five gallon fermenting buckets showed up without the airlocks (my order was so large I didn't have time to inventory it to make sure everything showed up until I got into cooking it) so I had to make airlocks at 1am (fixing the leaking, buying more water, setting up my new grain mill and crushing the grains, cooking process, making 4 airlocks out of 16 oz. water bottles and getting it all into the primary fermenters in equal ratios took 14 hours). So in 1 1/2 weeks this brew will get pushed out of a keg & through a Guinness tap by Beer Gas & into a Sam Adams beer glass where I hope it will be as satisfying as I've imagined it will be. Won't be long now...
 
Update: This stuff on beer gas has been a remarkable hit. The visual display of the cascading nitro & CO2 in the glass wows you first then the creamy smoothness & lack of overpowering CO2 enables you to taste all the nuances of this brew. You get a MUCH greater appreciation of what this brew is on beer gas. This recipe done with regular CO2 is sex with a condom. This recipe on beer gas is sex without a condom. Either way you're gonna enjoy it, but if you can have it one way you'll enjoy it even more.......Cheers!
 
This thread is interesting. I'm a fan of this beer (although didn't like most of the other beers from The Shed).

Thought I should point out that The Shed closed a few weeks ago. It was just announced however, that Otter Creek, a brewery in Middlebury, VT is taking over The Shed's equipment and recipes so that a few of their beers will live on. From what I've heard The Shed may open again somewhere else, but that it is unlikely being that the owners are getting up their in age.
 
I found this thread during my attempts to find the mtn ale recipe. I too found out that they closed. I was lucky enough to get the last private keg of this magical elixir. I fell in love with the mtn ale in November of '08 while in Stowe for an auto race. I wasn't a big dark beer drinker, and tried a pint. After my second pint, I bought a growler to have when I got home. 2 weeks later I was back up in the area and got my first keg. Almost 3 years and 19 kegs later, I was told that they were closing the doors. I knew Kathy and Ken only briefly, but they all new me as the guy with the 5 tap kegerator from NH. To say I had an obsession with this beer, is an understatement, and I was not alone. As I had it on tap constantly, I turned other onto this wonderful concoction.

RT, thanks for the recipe, I'll try it out. I have another recipe that is close (made up by a HB shop that knew one of the brewers). It's close, and in some ways almost better. Once I get the secret ingredient, I'll post it up as well.
 
Wow, sad to hear the brewery's closing. If you've got inside info on the recipe, please share it!
 
Unfortunately it closed on Oct 17th. I'm still getting used to this forum, but where can I reference Jesters recipe in the OP?
 
Wow, very sad to hear the Shed Closed. Hopefully this & Jester's recipe will continue the legacy and enable those that enjoyed the original to keep a "redheaded stepchild" version around in remembrance of what was. To the shed!:mug:
 
Just an FYI, I just recieved an email from Dave Steinman at OtterCreek. He has confirmed that they did indeed acquire the mountain ale recipe as well as the head brewer from the Shed. They will continue to make mountain ale!

Of course, this will not stop me from trying to clone it...
 
Just saw this in the CO Op in Bratt, so I picked up a sixpack ...never tried it before...

I love this beer --so of course I want to brew it !!

almost as much as Dead Guy ... I an going to order the ingredients tonight --

Fo the yeast - I plan to use 1056 (from a starter, of course) ... figure I have it, and wld be a decent substitute for US 05
 
The new Shed Mountain Ale seems way better to me than I remember. I've not tried this recipe but I think Jester's makes a mighty fine beer. Doesn't taste exactly like the new shed or the old one but pretty darn close. I love making a batch and drying hopping 1/2 of it with Cascade.

Be interested to hear if this gets exact to the new version. Someone should also work on cloneing their IPA :D
 
Grabbed this as part of a pick your six at a Canals in Jersey. The original recipe on here isn't far off. Smooth, creamy goodness. A perfect winter beer. The recipe here isn't too far off. Time to revisit the full grain experiment.
 
I converted this to all grain using beersmith. I'm going to try brewing it soon. The 2.5oz of vanilla extract sounds like really a lot. I was thinking of using fresh vanilla bean. Do you think 2 whole beans would be enough? Have you guys brewed this as in the recipe with 2.5oz vanilla extract in a 5 gallon batch and it's not overpowering vanilla? 2.5oz is 15 tsp. If doing a baking conversion that would be equivalent to 15 whole vanilla beans.

Thanks for the recipe.
 
Believe it or not that amount of vanilla really isn't noticeable. I've used more than that (4 oz.) and still couldn't pick it up...

Good luck and let us know how it goes.:mug:
 
I recently moved to Vermont and fell in love with Shed Mountain Ale. I just started brewing a few weeks ago, so of course, I wanted to give it a shot!! I used the posted recipe, and also subbed Carastan, but with CaraMunich I. I also used a full ounce for each of the hops. Looks, smells and tastes great so far. Fermenting like a champ at the moment. OG was 1.078, so a lilttle higher than the targeted 1.072, but I'm not complaining.

I'm looking for some advice, however. The posted recipe calls for 2 wks fermentation. Is the full 2 necessary, or can I cut it down some?? Any advice is appreciated!

Cheers:mug:
 
Just bottled tonight the extract recipe. I used 6oz lactose and 3oz of vanilla. Tasted great, nice creamy milky flavor. Can't wait to try one with carbonation.
 
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