Irish Red Ale Raging Red Irish Red Ale

Yakima 728
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Still a little under carbed but it looks and tastes phenomenal.

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Based on my experimentation I can definitely recommend using oak with this brew.
This is already a great beer (thanks again Mysticmead, I keep coming back to this and it keeps being awesome) and I really like the additional vanilla and spice notes.
For this batch I purchased a medium toast Hungarian oak stick and sanitized it by letting it sit in Irish whiskey (Kilbeggan) while the beer was in primary for a week.
AC123DF1-FB17-47F5-B75F-693283B99174.JPG

After the first week I transferred to secondary and added the oak and let it sit for about 6 weeks.
Bottle priming took longer, roughly 3 weeks to fully carbonate, but it got there eventually. I'm down to my last 12 pack now and it tastes amazing though I think the spice notes from the oak have mellowed out after a few months in the bottle.
Again, I thought this was an amazing beer to begin with which is why I chose it for this longer process.

Cheers :tank:
 
jjeremy said:
Based on my experimentation I can definitely recommend using oak with this brew.
This is already a great beer (thanks again Mysticmead, I keep coming back to this and it keeps being awesome) and I really like the additional vanilla and spice notes.
For this batch I purchased a medium toast Hungarian oak stick and sanitized it by letting it sit in Irish whiskey (Kilbeggan) while the beer was in primary for a week.
AC123DF1-FB17-47F5-B75F-693283B99174.JPG

After the first week I transferred to secondary and added the oak and let it sit for about 6 weeks.
Bottle priming took longer, roughly 3 weeks to fully carbonate, but it got there eventually. I'm down to my last 12 pack now and it tastes amazing though I think the spice notes from the oak have mellowed out after a few months in the bottle.
Again, I thought this was an amazing beer to begin with which is why I chose it for this longer process.

Cheers :tank:
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sounds great! I might have to give this a shot too... after I oak age an imperial stout
 
I realize, as I near the end of my keg of this beer, that I have failed to post my results and owe it to Mysticmead to do so.

Awesome beer. Great color and clarity. Very easy drinking. I think the honey definitely adds a little something. Maybe its a little sweetness at the end of each swig. I had been on roll of IPAs and APAs and this was the perfect diversion. Everyone who tried it liked it...even my wife!!! That is a first.

Thanks again for a great recipe.
 
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In the fermenter. So excited about this one. Has anyone done this one with Orange Blossom honey? I'm curious to see if it adds anything to the flavor profile, good or bad. I've been wanting to do an Irish Red and this looked like a perfect place to start. The post boil sample looked amazing. Thanks for the recipe mysticmead! I'll let you know how it turns out and post pictures of the finished product..
 
John8251 said:
In the fermenter. So excited about this one. Has anyone done this one with Orange Blossom honey? I'm curious to see if it adds anything to the flavor profile, good or bad. I've been wanting to do an Irish Red and this looked like a perfect place to start. The post boil sample looked amazing. Thanks for the recipe mysticmead! I'll let you know how it turns out and post pictures of the finished product..
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honestly, save the Orange blossom honey and use some simple cheapo honey. it's really there to boost the ABV.. it might smooth it out just a little too but the flavor is lost to the rest of the beer.
 
I just put another batch into primary. I'll be aging with oak again, just 5 weeks is my current plan. Still, it's going to be such a long wait!

Totally worth it, but a long wait. Maybe I should give it an extra month on the oak and just have it on New Year's.
 
When I put this recipe in beersmith with the same efficiency, I get a little lower gravity and also a lower SRM, more like 14 instead of 15.9. Anyone else have this issue? I was thinking of maybe upping the caraaroma and/or meladoien a bit to get the color right. Should I do this or just leave it is as is despit what beersmith is saying?
 
nolabrew85 said:
When I put this recipe in beersmith with the same efficiency, I get a little lower gravity and also a lower SRM, more like 14 instead of 15.9. Anyone else have this issue? I was thinking of maybe upping the caraaroma and/or meladoien a bit to get the color right. Should I do this or just leave it is as is despit what beersmith is saying?
Click to expand...

I had the same problem. I think it's because I entered it as a 5.5 gallon batch like the heading of the recipe says, but if you look a little further down in the recipe it should be 5.0.
 
Mysticmead -
My thanks for an incredible recipe. Did my first homebrew this spring (kits), and this was my first foray into all grain. Did a noob goof and forgot the Melanoiden, but the beer is now quite drinkable although not with the full red color I've seen by others. Only concern I have now is I don't want to share it (except of course with SWMBO).

As I had done a couple of carb bombs I was conservative with the sugar for bottling and perhaps could have done a bit more. But the head, while not voluminous, does stay. Wonderful taste, easy to drink.

This will be one I want to always have available.

Beer 004.jpg
 
rbyount said:
Mysticmead -
My thanks for an incredible recipe. Did my first homebrew this spring (kits), and this was my first foray into all grain. Did a noob goof and forgot the Melanoiden, but the beer is now quite drinkable although not with the full red color I've seen by others. Only concern I have now is I don't want to share it (except of course with SWMBO).

As I had done a couple of carb bombs I was conservative with the sugar for bottling and perhaps could have done a bit more. But the head, while not voluminous, does stay. Wonderful taste, easy to drink.

This will be one I want to always have available.
Click to expand...

beautiful beer and happy I was able to share this recipe with you (and everyone else)
 
Finished drinking my first keg of this everyone who tasted said it was a winner. Will be brewing this one again.

Here is how it turned out for me.

Red.jpg
 
I just racked a 10 gallon batch of this beauty to kegs this past weekend. I brewed the recipe, unchanged, and hit the gravity numbers. The sample from the primary tasted terrific and the color is outstanding. I can't wait to try it carbonated. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
 
Shenanigans said:
Hi,
So I plan on giving this brew a go in a few weeks time.
The original recepie is for BIAB if I use this amount of grain for my setup where I mash in a cooler I should get 5-10 points more for the OG. I’m still working on optimising my system so the chances are that I won’t relalise this but if I do end up with a higher O.G. will this effect the taste of the beer significantly? Would it be advised to dilute it down with a few quarts of pre-boiled and cooled water?
I haven’t had a chance to read all 30+ pages in this thread but has someone already brewed this with an OG of 1.065 to 1.070 and did it still taste as awsome?
Thanks a lot.
Click to expand...

I usually run about 82-83% efficiency biab, and yes it was amazing.
 
Brewed this two weeks ago following exact recipe, OG 1.060, 73% efficiency, great color. 15 days in primary, kegged today. Took a gravity reading and it was still 1.022, going to leave in keg one more week to see if it goes down any more before i put it in the kegerator and cool. My mash temp was lower than i wanted, about 148, but iodine test showed conversion. Could this account for a high finish gravity? first AG batch in many years.
 
rknerem said:
Brewed this two weeks ago following exact recipe, OG 1.060, 73% efficiency, great color. 15 days in primary, kegged today. Took a gravity reading and it was still 1.022, going to leave in keg one more week to see if it goes down any more before i put it in the kegerator and cool. My mash temp was lower than i wanted, about 148, but iodine test showed conversion. Could this account for a high finish gravity? first AG batch in many years.
Click to expand...


a lower mash temp normally equals a more fermentable wort and a lower FG. I would check the thermometer and make sure it was reading correctly
 
Just put this in the fermenter. Looks good but had some strange numbers. I also could not get to 152 mash in my garage. Mashed at 150. Gravity 1.049. OG after boil is 1.08! Think I had a lot of boil off. Might need to adjust for my larger boil kettle? Ended up with about 4.8 gal.
 
SEndorf said:
Just put this in the fermenter. Looks good but had some strange numbers. I also could not get to 152 mash in my garage. Mashed at 150. Gravity 1.049. OG after boil is 1.08! Think I had a lot of boil off. Might need to adjust for my larger boil kettle? Ended up with about 4.8 gal.
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Keep some distilled water on hand for times like this. adding a gallon would get you back on track. of course, you can still do that :)
 
Mysticmead said:
Keep some distilled water on hand for times like this. adding a gallon would get you back on track. of course, you can still do that :)
Click to expand...

Added a gallon of distilled.
Thanks for the advice!
Looking forward to this one.
 
Would Pacman or WLP007 be a good yeast for this beer? I have some in slants, and I'm planning to make this next weekend.
 
Update...
Got the volume correct with distilled. This is going nuts on the left. (Summit Horizon clone on the right)
Even in the carboy you can see the good looking red hue.

image-2600778612.jpg
 
Mysticmead said:
Pacman is a great choice for this beer... WLP007 is another good yeast but you have to watch the diacetyl that you can get from that yeast
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Brewing it today and giving the WLP007 a try with it. My basement seems to be the perfect temp for that yeast right now in the mid 60s, and I'm going to give it a nice long diacetyl rest. I'll report back on how it turns out!
 
Well, that was adventure of a brew day. Everything that could go wrong went wrong, the copper manifold at the bottom of my mash tun got knocked loose when I was stirring the sparge water, and I had to dump everything into buckets, fix it and put it back, but there was still obviously a bunch of crap in the copper and I got a few stuck sparges. In the end though it worked out. I overcompensated with water and ended up with 5.75 gallons of 1.056 instead of 5.5 gallons I was shooting for at 1.059. Looks really good though, wort tasted excellent :)
 
Ok... I sorta brewed this recipe, as I had to change some of the grain bill because the LBHS did not carry the exact grains... I also subbed the hops for a straight up East Kent Goldings bill as I wanted a more "traditional" Irish beer, and I used my "go to" yeast which is 1968... I must say that this beer is VERY tasty, and will be a regular on tap now...:mug:
Just FYI here was my grain bill...
8# Two Row
1# Caramel/Crystal Malt-120L
.05# Cara-Pils/Dextrine
.05# Melanoidin
It still turned out a deep dark red, with a nice malt taste... TYVM for this recipe!!!:tank:
 
I am doing this recipe today without the honey. And last night I made a yeast starter out of malta goya water and 4oz of molasses. also am using WLp001 cali ale yeast. and 2oz of crystal hops. I am going to carbonate with my co2 cartridges and whipit n20 cartridges, I know ghetto setup i have. N2o should make this a cream ale. wish me luck
 
shawnbfromjersey said:
I am doing this recipe today without the honey. And last night I made a yeast starter out of malta goya water and 4oz of molasses. also am using WLp001 cali ale yeast. and 2oz of crystal hops. I am going to carbonate with my co2 cartridges and whipit n20 cartridges, I know ghetto setup i have. N2o should make this a cream ale. wish me luck
Click to expand...

no... N2o won't make it a cream ale... Cream Ale is a completely different style..N20 will give a creamy head but even that wont be much of a change from the way it was designed.

Irish Red Ale as defined by the BJCP
Description: An easy-drinking pint. Malt-focused with an initial sweetness and a roasted dryness in the finish. Sometimes brewed as a lager (if so, generally will not exhibit a diacetyl character). When served too cold, the roasted character and bitterness may seem more elevated.

Aroma: Low to moderate malt aroma, generally caramel-like but occasionally toasty or toffee-like in nature. May have a light buttery character (although this is not required). Hop aroma is low to none (usually not present). Quite clean.

Appearance: Amber to deep reddish copper color (most examples have a deep reddish hue). Clear. Low off-white to tan colored head.
Flavor: Moderate caramel malt flavor and sweetness, occasionally with a buttered toast or toffee-like quality. Finishes with a light taste of roasted grain, which lends a characteristic dryness to the finish. Generally no flavor hops, although some examples may have a light English hop flavor. Medium-low hop bitterness, although light use of roasted grains may increase the perception of bitterness to the medium range. Medium-dry to dry finish. Clean and smooth (lager versions can be very smooth). No esters.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light to medium body, although examples containing low levels of diacetyl may have a slightly slick mouthfeel. Moderate carbonation. Smooth. Moderately attenuated (more so than Scottish ales). May have a slight alcohol warmth in stronger versions.

Ingredients: May contain some adjuncts (corn, rice, or sugar), although excessive adjunct use will harm the character of the beer. Generally has a bit of roasted barley to provide reddish color and dry roasted finish. UK/Irish malts, hops, yeast.



Cream Ale as defined by the BJCP
Description: A clean, well-attenuated, flavorful American lawnmower beer. An ale version of the American lager style. Produced by ale brewers to compete with lager brewers in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States. Originally known as sparkling or present use ales, lager strains were (and sometimes still are) used by some brewers, but were not historically mixed with ale strains. Many examples are kräusened to achieve carbonation. Cold conditioning isn’t traditional, although modern brewers sometimes use it. Classic American (i.e., pre-prohibition) Cream Ales were slightly stronger, hoppier (including some dry hopping) and more bitter (25-30+ IBUs). These versions should be entered in the specialty/experimental category. Most commercial examples are in the 1.050–1.053 OG range, and bitterness rarely rises above 20 IBUs.

Aroma: Faint malt notes. A sweet, corn-like aroma and low levels of DMS are commonly found. Hop aroma low to none. Any variety of hops may be used, but neither hops nor malt dominate. Faint esters may be present in some examples, but are not required. No diacetyl.

Appearance: Pale straw to moderate gold color, although usually on the pale side. Low to medium head with medium to high carbonation. Head retention may be no better than fair due to adjunct use. Brilliant, sparkling clarity.

Flavor: Low to medium-low hop bitterness. Low to moderate maltiness and sweetness, varying with gravity and attenuation. Usually well attenuated. Neither malt nor hops prevail in the taste. A low to moderate corny flavor from corn adjuncts is commonly found, as is some DMS. Finish can vary from somewhat dry to faintly sweet from the corn, malt, and sugar. Faint fruity esters are optional. No diacetyl.

Mouthfeel: Generally light and crisp, although body can reach medium. Smooth mouthfeel with medium to high attenuation; higher attenuation levels can lend a “thirst quenching” finish. High carbonation. Higher gravity examples may exhibit a slight alcohol warmth.

Ingredients: American ingredients most commonly used. A grain bill of six-row malt, or a combination of six-row and North American two-row, is common. Adjuncts can include up to 20% flaked maize in the mash, and up to 20% glucose or other sugars in the boil. Soft water preferred. Any variety of hops can be used for bittering and finishing.
 
i have this in the mash and looking forward to it. my lhbs did not have caraaroma so i went with crystal 120. thanks for the recipe.
 
Bottled this last week. Color looks fantastic. I couldn't find a 1 lb bottle of honey so I bought 24 oz. Forgot it was larger and dumped the whole thing in. Smell of honey is overpowering. We'll see how this finishes up.
 
Mysticmead, I want to thank you for the recipe. I made a 10 gallon batch of this with some local honey and Willamette hops it turned out fantastic.
 
Mystic, I just popped one and it was a disaster. 100% operator error. Accidentally too much honey. Never used honey before so I'm not sure if this will calm down with age.
I'm definitely brewing this again!
 

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