American Brown Ale HBT BJCP comp winning American Brown

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Tonedef131

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 4, 2008
Messages
1,891
Reaction score
39
Location
Fort Wayne
Recipe Type
All Grain
Yeast
California ale
Yeast Starter
2L
Batch Size (Gallons)
11
Original Gravity
1.057
Final Gravity
1.012
Boiling Time (Minutes)
60
IBU
35
Color
21
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
14 days @ 68F
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
don\'t do it
Tasting Notes
A very balanced hoppy/toasty ale great any time of the year.
This is the recipe for the highest scoring American Brown in the first (annual?) HBT BJCP competition. It tied CheschreCat's APA for first place in points in the American Ale category, but he beat me out with his intangibles and went on to place in the BOS round, congratulations CheschreCat! Yooper said that this beer was very well liked in the BOS round but didn't quite beat out the Intergalactic Porter for third place. This is my favorite hoppy ale to make and is always well received by drinkers and judges alike. This particular batch also won 3rd overall at a local comp and first place for all brown ales at the MBO 2009 competition.

It can easily be scaled down by cutting the quantities in half, but I would recommend against just using a pound of 60L crystal malt even if it does leave the color the same. The mixture of the 40L and the 80L give a bit of malt complexity in an otherwise very simple grain bill. You can increase or decrease the level of hops but I HIGHLY recommend sticking to the 3:1 Cascade:Willamette ratio as it is the heart of this beer and is a match made in heaven. I had never had Brooklyn Brown until about a month ago, and it actually reminded me of this ale a lot. So if you like Brooklyn Brown give this one a shot, you won't be disappointed.

Brushfire Brown
10C American Brown Ale

Type: All Grain
Date: 5/24/2009
Batch Size: 11.00 gal
Brewer: Kyle Alberda
Boil Time: 60 min
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
20.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 83.33 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 lb Victory Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 oz Williamette [5.50 %] (Dry Hop 6 days) Hops -
3.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (Dry Hop 6 days) Hops -
2.00 oz Centennial [7.13 %] (60 min) Hops 22.1 IBU
1.00 oz Cascade [5.40 %] (30 min) Hops 6.4 IBU
1.00 oz Cascade [5.40 %] (15 min) Hops 4.1 IBU
0.50 oz Williamette [4.50 %] (10 min) Hops 1.3 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [5.40 %] (5 min) Hops 0.8 IBU
2 Pkgs California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [Starter 2000 ml] Yeast-Ale

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.058 SG
Measured Original Gravity: 1.057 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.013 SG
Measured Final Gravity: 1.012 SG
Actual Alcohol by Vol: 5.87 %
Bitterness: 34.8 IBU
Calories: 254 cal/pint
Est Color: 21.4 SRM

Single Infusion
60 min Mash at 156.0 F

Ferment for 14 days at 68F adding the dry hops 6 days before transfer.
 
Looks great. I just did Jamil's Brown last week-similar recipe to yours. Congrats on the success you have had with this beer!
 
Here is JZ recipe...a few differences with crystal malts and hops.

Grain/Extract/Sugar
% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
78.5 15.50 lbs. Pale Malt - Crisp M.O. Great Britain 1.038 3
2.5 0.50 lbs. Victory Malt America 1.034 25
6.3 1.25 lbs. Crystal 40L America 1.034 40
6.3 1.25 lbs. Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt 1.033 2
2.5 0.50 lbs. Crystal 60L America 1.034 60
3.8 0.75 lbs. Chocolate Malt America 1.029 350

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.

Hops
Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
0.71 oz. Horizon Pellet 13.60 22.6 60 min
2.00 oz. Amarillo Gold Pellet 9.40 11.8 15 min
3.00 oz. Amarillo Gold Pellet 9.40 0.0 0 min
 
Yeah that is quite a bit more chocolate and caramel, but both are pretty basic Brown ale grain bills. If you are real happy with his grainbill you should try it with the hops from mine, they are really what set the beer apart. I love Amarillos, but the 3:1 Cascade to Willamette is just perfect for Brown Ales.
 
Yeah that is quite a bit more chocolate and caramel, but both are pretty basic Brown ale grain bills. If you are real happy with his grainbill you should try it with the hops from mine, they are really what set the beer apart. I love Amarillos, but the 3:1 Cascade to Willamette is just perfect for Brown Ales.

I agree Cascade and Willamette are a great combo, I use them in an APA-I will try those hops next time I brew this, which based on tastes off the carboy will be soon.
 
Planning on making this tonight or tomorrow. Quick question; scaling it down to a 5 gallon batch would you leave the hop amounts the same or bring down a bit? I didnt see a target IBU on your recipe.
 
Nice looking recipe, I'm a huge Janet's Brown fan, probably one of my favorite brews... but I'd like something different. Gonna give this a brew, and enter in a comp in Sept.

Thanks.
 
This recipe sounds great. A few questions though...

1) Did you do any sparges or just the 1 mash. If so at what temperature?
2) I would be doing a 5 gal batch, can I more or less cut everything in half?
 
I brewed this up about a month and a half ago. I must say that this is some fantastic stuff. Probably the best brown ale I have had in a while. This will be come a seasonal brew in my household. The dryhopping combo adds to an amazing aroma.
 
I'm brewing this tomorrow. I'm going on vacation for a week on saturday so I don't think there will be any dry hopping but I think it will be OK. I kicked around the idea of FWHing with some Willamette. The Ws I have are 7.5%AA. Thoughts?
 
Just wanted to give a shout to this recipe. Brewed it in April for my father, who requested a brown ale for a fishing trip to Maine with a buddy of his. They both enjoyed it, and so I submitted a bottle to Brooklyn Wort for qualification to the final round and got a spot! Second time entering a beer and first time getting noticed. Very glad I chose this recipe, as the hopping goes really well with the grain bill. Has a well-balanced, toasty, hoppy profile. Highly recommended.

Now I have to brew 5 gallons of something even better and bring the keg to the final round on sept 8th. Suggestions on what I should brew? Looking for some solid ideas.
 
This is the recipe for the highest scoring American Brown in the first (annual?) HBT BJCP competition. It tied CheschreCat's APA for first place in points in the American Ale category, but he beat me out with his intangibles and went on to place in the BOS round, congratulations CheschreCat! Yooper said that this beer was very well liked in the BOS round but didn't quite beat out the Intergalactic Porter for third place. This is my favorite hoppy ale to make and is always well received by drinkers and judges alike. This particular batch also won 3rd overall at a local comp and first place for all brown ales at the MBO 2009 competition.

It can easily be scaled down by cutting the quantities in half, but I would recommend against just using a pound of 60L crystal malt even if it does leave the color the same. The mixture of the 40L and the 80L give a bit of malt complexity in an otherwise very simple grain bill. You can increase or decrease the level of hops but I HIGHLY recommend sticking to the 3:1 Cascade:Willamette ratio as it is the heart of this beer and is a match made in heaven. I had never had Brooklyn Brown until about a month ago, and it actually reminded me of this ale a lot. So if you like Brooklyn Brown give this one a shot, you won't be disappointed.

Brushfire Brown
10C American Brown Ale

Type: All Grain
Date: 5/24/2009
Batch Size: 11.00 gal
Brewer: Kyle Alberda
Boil Time: 60 min
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
20.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 83.33 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 lb Victory Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 4.17 %
1.00 oz Williamette [5.50 %] (Dry Hop 6 days) Hops -
3.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] (Dry Hop 6 days) Hops -
2.00 oz Centennial [7.13 %] (60 min) Hops 22.1 IBU
1.00 oz Cascade [5.40 %] (30 min) Hops 6.4 IBU
1.00 oz Cascade [5.40 %] (15 min) Hops 4.1 IBU
0.50 oz Williamette [4.50 %] (10 min) Hops 1.3 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [5.40 %] (5 min) Hops 0.8 IBU
2 Pkgs California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [Starter 2000 ml] Yeast-Ale

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.058 SG
Measured Original Gravity: 1.057 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.013 SG
Measured Final Gravity: 1.012 SG
Actual Alcohol by Vol: 5.87 %
Bitterness: 34.8 IBU
Calories: 254 cal/pint
Est Color: 21.4 SRM

Single Infusion
60 min Mash at 156.0 F

Ferment for 14 days at 68F adding the dry hops 6 days before transfer.

I take it by the 3:1 Cascade/Willamette ratio, you are talking about the dry hopping?
 
I have brewed a couple of variations on this recipe and love it. I craved more chocolate character after my first batch, so I upped it by 3x - then I realized that the first time I had used pale chocolate malt, and the batch with 3x was normal chocolate malt, oops. So, this version came out very dark and with a nice touch of roast character (and lots of chocolate!).

I loved the beer but wasn't sure how to enter it into a comp, so I entered it twice - as an American Brown Ale (10c) and as a Robust Porter (12b). I ended up taking 3rd place in the 10c category with two 35/50 scores. In the 12b category I received an average of 29/50. Both category's judges commented that I was nearly out of style, either too roasty for 10c or too hoppy, thin-bodied, and lacking roastiness for 12b.

Here is my variation on the recipe. The tettnanger sub was due to availability, but the hop character did not change drastically from the first batch with willamette.


Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 6.1 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 7 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.049 (recipe based estimate)
Efficiency: 77% (brew house)
Original Gravity: 1.056
Final Gravity: 1.006
ABV (standard): 6.56%
IBU (tinseth): 40.83
SRM (morey): 27.7

Mash Temp: 155 F
Mash pH: 5.51

Fermentables
Amount Fermentable Bill %
8.05 lb Canadian - Pale 2-Row 64.7%
2 lb Gilbertson & Paige - Maris Otter 16.1%
0.75 lb Fawcetts - Chocolate 6%
0.65 lb Fawcetts - Crystal 45L 5.2%
0.65 lb Fawcetts - Dark Crystal 80L 5.2%
0.35 lb Briess - Victory 2.8%

12.45 lb Total

Hops
Amount Variety Type AA Use Time IBU
12 g magnum Pellet 12.2 Boil 60 min 18.92
14 g Cascade Pellet 7.1 Boil 30 min 9.67
14 g Cascade Pellet 7.1 Boil 18 min 7.62
7 g tettnanger Pellet 5.3 Boil 10 min 2.98
14 g Cascade Pellet 7.1 Boil 5 min 1.65
0.5 oz Tettnanger Pellet 5.3 Dry Hop 6 days
1.5 oz Cascade Pellet 7.1 Dry Hop 6 days

Pitched 3rd generation Nottingham @ 59 F, Fermented 21 days before dry hop, 6 day dry hop in primary, bottled on 32nd day. No thermometer at the time, but ambient temp remained around 53 for first 10 days, raised to 60 for remainder.
 
I have brewed a couple of variations on this recipe and love it. I craved more chocolate character after my first batch, so I upped it by 3x - then I realized that the first time I had used pale chocolate malt, and the batch with 3x was normal chocolate malt, oops. So, this version came out very dark and with a nice touch of roast character (and lots of chocolate!).

I loved the beer but wasn't sure how to enter it into a comp, so I entered it twice - as an American Brown Ale (10c) and as a Robust Porter (12b). I ended up taking 3rd place in the 10c category with two 35/50 scores. In the 12b category I received an average of 29/50. Both category's judges commented that I was nearly out of style, either too roasty for 10c or too hoppy, thin-bodied, and lacking roastiness for 12b.

Here is my variation on the recipe. The tettnanger sub was due to availability, but the hop character did not change drastically from the first batch with willamette.


Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 6.1 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 7 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.049 (recipe based estimate)
Efficiency: 77% (brew house)
Original Gravity: 1.056
Final Gravity: 1.006
ABV (standard): 6.56%
IBU (tinseth): 40.83
SRM (morey): 27.7

Mash Temp: 155 F
Mash pH: 5.51

Fermentables
Amount Fermentable Bill %
8.05 lb Canadian - Pale 2-Row 64.7%
2 lb Gilbertson & Paige - Maris Otter 16.1%
0.75 lb Fawcetts - Chocolate 6%
0.65 lb Fawcetts - Crystal 45L 5.2%
0.65 lb Fawcetts - Dark Crystal 80L 5.2%
0.35 lb Briess - Victory 2.8%

12.45 lb Total

Hops
Amount Variety Type AA Use Time IBU
12 g magnum Pellet 12.2 Boil 60 min 18.92
14 g Cascade Pellet 7.1 Boil 30 min 9.67
14 g Cascade Pellet 7.1 Boil 18 min 7.62
7 g tettnanger Pellet 5.3 Boil 10 min 2.98
14 g Cascade Pellet 7.1 Boil 5 min 1.65
0.5 oz Tettnanger Pellet 5.3 Dry Hop 6 days
1.5 oz Cascade Pellet 7.1 Dry Hop 6 days

Pitched 3rd generation Nottingham @ 59 F, Fermented 21 days before dry hop, 6 day dry hop in primary, bottled on 32nd day. No thermometer at the time, but ambient temp remained around 53 for first 10 days, raised to 60 for remainder.


How did this turn out?

I used all American malts, which I will probably change next time around.
 
It turned out really tasty. Chocolatey, hoppy, little bit of roastiness. I can't recommend Fawcett's specialty malts enough, if you can get your hands on them.
 
i might have to try this brew in a 50L batch and see how it gos and if all well will scale to 15HL then let you guys know for sure the end result
 
Brewed an Amber Lager this week while kids are home doing school work

8.9 lbs Canadian 2 row
1.1 lbs Munich light
1.1 lbs crystal 40
15 grams of columbus to bitter ended up boiling 75 mins so probably around 30 ibus
1 ounce cascade 5 mins
.5 ounce simcoe 5 mins

Will dry hop .5 ounce each of cascade, citra if i feel adventurous

I got 6.5 gallons in the fermentor. OG was 1.050 which gives me a respectable efficiency for the grainbill, i think.

I putt around with other **** while i mash, and long ago stopped trying to keep consistent mash temp. This baby masshed around 90 minutes, and drifeted from 160 degrees to around 148. Probably explains some efficiency too.

Its my go to beer after i flirt with other IPA styles or lagers. I'm sold on ambers, and there is a lot you can do between them, reds and brown ale variations to keep a brewer happy.
 
Brewed this two weeks ago and just tapped tonight...first brew on brand new system I've been working on for over I year. I missed the OG by A LOT, but this beer still tastes phenomenal.
Great recipe!
 

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