Blonde Ale Miller Lite (Really Triple Hopped)

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Not that I know of in my perusings. I'd PM Forrest @ Austin Homebrew. He could piece somethin' together for you.

What do you want AG or Extract?
 
It will he only has his keg set for 1 tap and room for 2 kegs on gas so it will sit for a couple weeks on gas
 
Could I not use a long low mash for like 2 hours to convert everything to simple sugars?

or if that won't work, maybe I could use a thin mash and take our like a litre of liquid and refrigerate it and then add it to the secondary.

I won't be able to get any amylase enzyme from the lhbs, because they say they don't carry the proper kind. or the kind they carry is not sterile or something. They suggested that I try a health food store, but I could not find it.

I already ordered the ingredients so if I can't use amylase enzyme then I need an alternative way to bring the FG down. any other suggestions would be real helpful. :)
 
Well I tried this as my first all-grain brew. Several problems... 1st I didn't plan on so much head space in my cooler, so keeping the temp was a nightmare. 2nd, my ******* mismarked my measuring stick, so I ended up sparging with about 1.5 gallons too much water...which of course all ended up in my brew pot. A 2.5 hour boil was so much fun. The good news is that at least I ended up at 1.030 for 5.25 gallons. I also only used 1/2 oz of cascade because mine was 7.5% AAU. I also doubt I will dry hop. Most of my BMC drinkers, including SWMBO, does not like the smell of hops. We'll see how it turns out. I'm looking forward to the citrusy flavor of the cascade. But boy will this one be light in color!
 
BigB said:
Well I tried this as my first all-grain brew. Several problems... 1st I didn't plan on so much head space in my cooler, so keeping the temp was a nightmare. 2nd, my ******* mismarked my measuring stick, so I ended up sparging with about 1.5 gallons too much water...which of course all ended up in my brew pot. A 2.5 hour boil was so much fun. The good news is that at least I ended up at 1.030 for 5.25 gallons. I also only used 1/2 oz of cascade because mine was 7.5% AAU. I also doubt I will dry hop. Most of my BMC drinkers, including SWMBO, does not like the smell of hops. We'll see how it turns out. I'm looking forward to the citrusy flavor of the cascade. But boy will this one be light in color!
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It will be very light, but that's the point. It will be the cleanest and clearest beer you prolly ever made. Just don't forget the AE in the 2ndary.

The long boil is not too bad. It will have no DMS to speak of taste-wise.
 
Well I brewed this up about a week ago (Dry hopping in the secondary with AE now)...

I pretty much followed the recipe only difference is I added 0.5 lb more 2 row to make up for my typical brewhouse eff. Wish I wouldn't have though because I ended up getting about 93% eff. and hit OG of 1.038, but I added a little water to bring it down. It's been a couple of days now in the secondary and the air lock is barley going. Going into the secondary had gravity of 1.010. Does it take longer for the AE to work? Also still very cloudy, but again it's only been in the secondary for a couple of days now.
 
I am thinking of trying the AG/Brew in a bag method and this beer seems like a perfect fit for it. I enjoy me some Miller Lite and adding a bit of hop character to it sounds wonderful to me.

I'm trying to play with BrewTarget and for some reason it keeps showing my SRM too high, but that's not for this thread.
 
As of today hydrometer confirmed no fermentation with AE in secondary still at 1.010... wonder if the AE I have is expired or something?
 
Would this be a hard beer to brew for my first ever batch? Im very new, and it says all grain i believe, is all grain a difficult thing to do? And do i need anything special for that?
 
binaryc0de said:
As of today hydrometer confirmed no fermentation with AE in secondary still at 1.010... wonder if the AE I have is expired or something?
Click to expand...

I have added AE to secondary in two different "light beers" that I have brewed and it didn't drop the gravity in either of them. Makes me wonder if I did anything wrong...
 
Well I've ordered another bottle of AE from a different HBS. I'm not sure if AE needs to be refrigerated or not. I didn't store my AE in the refrigerator. Maybe I'll try doing that. I defiantly want to dry this out before bottling though because it still has a substantial corn flavor.

George7845 said:
Would this be a hard beer to brew for my first ever batch? Im very new, and it says all grain i believe, is all grain a difficult thing to do? And do i need anything special for that?
Click to expand...

Well, I believe there is an extract version of this recipe at the beginning of this thread. If you're new enough that you haven't brewed before I wouldn't recommend all grain for your first brew but that's just me. If you wanted to brew this as your first I'd try using the extract version, but I also wouldn't brew a light beer as a first brew either.
 
I still haven't seen a good explaination as to why I can't add AE to the primary after a week. The yeast is done so the AE can convert the tough stuff. Why do I need to transfer it?
 
binaryc0de said:
Well I've ordered another bottle of AE from a different HBS. I'm not sure if AE needs to be refrigerated or not. I didn't store my AE in the refrigerator. Maybe I'll try doing that. I defiantly want to dry this out before bottling though because it still has a substantial corn flavor
Click to expand...

Let me know if it works for you. The AE I have (that hasn't done anything to speak of) is powdered. I got it from Brewmaster Warehouse. I would love to be able to dry out my light beers more... I would be curious to know where Schlenkerla gets his. Is it possible that my AE is no good?
 
So you are saying that 3 weeks in Primary, 2 days cold crashing and 1 week on CO2 will not clarify this beer? Plus Whirl at 15mins. Not trying to be pushy but I have been leaving it in primary for almost two years now. I am trying not to do too much work if I don't have to. Can't wait to brew this on Friday night.
 
mymbtheduke said:
So you are saying that 3 weeks in Primary, 2 days cold crashing and 1 week on CO2 will not clarify this beer? Plus Whirl at 15mins. Not trying to be pushy but I have been leaving it in primary for almost two years now. I am trying not to do too much work if I don't have to. Can't wait to brew this on Friday night.
Click to expand...

No I'm not. The original recipe says to add the AE to an empty fermenter and rack to it, then let it sit 2 weeks. The beer gets super clear this way.

That's not to say that any other way won't work. The two step method is an easy way to get clarity w/o minimal effort or equipment.

Try leaving the AE in some clean beer and let it sit. I would recommend racking on top of AE though.

Gotta go...
 
How does the AE compare to mashing lower? Does it screw with the flavor profile or does it cause a more vigorous fermentation?
 
SC_Ryan said:
Let me know if it works for you. The AE I have (that hasn't done anything to speak of) is powdered. I got it from Brewmaster Warehouse. I would love to be able to dry out my light beers more... I would be curious to know where Schlenkerla gets his. Is it possible that my AE is no good?
Click to expand...

Mine is powdered as well (Ordered from http://www.highgravitybrew.com). I'm supposed to get my order from Austinhomebrew.com today. So I'll see if this one is powdered too. I'm also curious as to were ppl that have good results with AE get theirs.
 
How does this work as a bittering hop? I have an ounce that came with a bitter kit but I thought is was too much as I am not into citrus unless it is a wit. If I used .33oz of Sorachi (14%) at 60 minutes (19 IBU), do I still get the citrus or just the bittering? I want to use this up if I can. Thanks for any help.
 
Jdecarol said:
How does the AE compare to mashing lower? Does it screw with the flavor profile or does it cause a more vigorous fermentation?
Click to expand...

AE dies in the boil after mashing. It does not mess up the flavor profile. What is does it break down the leftover dextrines from the primary ferment. It definitely removes and residual corn taste. That's why I use in in the 2ndary.
 
SC_Ryan said:
Let me know if it works for you. The AE I have (that hasn't done anything to speak of) is powdered. I got it from Brewmaster Warehouse. I would love to be able to dry out my light beers more... I would be curious to know where Schlenkerla gets his. Is it possible that my AE is no good?
Click to expand...

I get my AE from the LHBS. I believe its a JD Carlson Brand.
 
mymbtheduke said:
How does this work as a bittering hop? I have an ounce that came with a bitter kit but I thought is was too much as I am not into citrus unless it is a wit. If I used .33oz of Sorachi (14%) at 60 minutes (19 IBU), do I still get the citrus or just the bittering? I want to use this up if I can. Thanks for any help.
Click to expand...

If you use sorachi in a 60 minute bittering it will be very neutral. I doubt you would be able to tell if you used sorachi, especially if you did a late or dry hopping with a noble German or Czech variety.
 
I dumped in the AE from AHBS (also powder) yesterday and today looks like it went from 1.010 to 1.006. So maybe it will crank it down to 1.000. I stirred up the yeast cake a little to get more activity out of it.
 
Jdecarol said:
How does the AE compare to mashing lower? Does it screw with the flavor profile or does it cause a more vigorous fermentation?
Click to expand...

I don't think I really answered your question earlier......

I do mash lower too. I think the lower mash breaks down more of the complex sugars. As for the AE in the 2ndary its like over saturating clean beer with another dose of enzyme to get all of the left over sugars broken down into simple sugars. Hence the lower FG. I always use S-05 to do this.

I believe this is essential to clean up the corn-like taste thats is common with a cream ale. OMHO - The sweet corn-like taste is from the left over complex sugars.
 
Schlenkerla said:
If you use sorachi in a 60 minute bittering it will be very neutral. I doubt you would be able to tell if you used sorachi, especially if you did a late or dry hopping with a noble German or Czech variety.
Click to expand...

Very helpful. Thanks.
 
I am brewing this for my brother-in-law for when he comes over to have dinner / watch sports. I'd like to get this dialed before football season (can't come soon enough) because I have other friends and a wife that love BMC lights.

Here is the hitch. My BIL is a DIE-HARD BMC drinker. He drinks Miller light, Busch light, Keystone light, Labat light by the 30 pack. He hates the taste and smell of hops (says it gives him a headache). I was drinking a Sierra Nevada 8 feet from him and he said the smell was overwhelming.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOo...... I am not trying to convert him (or my friends) or teach them the nuance of homebrews - I just want to make a beer that they will enjoy while hanging out.

How would you modify the hop schedule to make this beer taste hop neutral (exactly like a BMC light beer)?

Thanks in advance!
 
I brewed this one up. Its in the secondary on the hops now. The FG going into the secondary was 1.003 and very clean tasting, with no corn flavor. I am not going to use AE in the secondary at all; mainly because it is impossible to find in my area.

I used a 2 hour mash with rests at 130 degrees for 15 mins, 145 for 90 mins and 152, for 15 mins. I almost considered a decoction to get from 145-152 because I had very little space left in my mash tun, but decided against it because I was trying to stick to the low FG guidelines in the recipe. This may be a good path to take for people who are trying to brew this with no Amylase enzyme in the secondary.

I have only tasted this straight from the fermentor but, the hops are very nice in this-very well balanced.
 
BeerWars said:
How would you modify the hop schedule to make this beer taste hop neutral (exactly like a BMC light beer)?

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

Do a single hop addition at 60 minutes and use a noble hop. Sazz would be great. I would keep the IBU at 15-17. That level will keep the beer balanced.
 
SC_Ryan said:
Do a single hop addition at 60 minutes and use a noble hop. Sazz would be great. I would keep the IBU at 15-17. That level will keep the beer balanced.
Click to expand...

I have Cascade pellets and whole hops on hand and the brew store is closed today. I'll take your recommendation of hops for round 2.

I did my IBU calculator and it says I can hit 13 IBU with the pellets I have and your single hop addition. I read BMC's are between 8-11. So that is close enough for me. So you wouldn't recommend any aroma or dry hopping?
 
I bottled mine today. Unfortunately, the AE only brought the beer down to about 1.005. There was a wicked off flavor prior to secondary (corn most likely) but that seems to be gone now. Also, I know its flat and warm, but I'll be damned if it didn't actually taste really close to Miller Lite.
 
I just got back from a week long vacation and I took a hydrometer sample 1.006. So it looks like the AE did very little. So I'll go ahead and cold crash and bottle.
 

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