What makes a Cream Ale a Cream Ale?

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I've got a cream stout recipe...it's main difference from a regular stout recipe seems to be the boatload of malto-dextrin in it.
 
i guess it could be lactose (milk sugar) and/ or malto-dextrin
depending on what you expect from a creamy beer.

lactose will give you a sweet creamy beer

or

malto-dextrin will give you a frothy, full bodied/extra mouthfeel creamy beer.
 
Generally, lactose. Cream/sweet/milk stouts all use lactose.

However, there is in the Style guide:

American Cream Ale or Lager (I remember Gennie Cream Ale)

A mild, pale, light-bodied ale, made using a warm fermentation (top or bottom) and cold lagering or by blending top- and bottom-fermented beers. Hop bitterness and flavor range from very low to low. Hop aroma is often absent. Sometimes referred to as cream ales, these beers are crisp and refreshing. A fruity or estery aroma may be perceived. Diacetyl and chill haze should not be perceived. Sulfur character and/or sweet corn-like dimethylsulfide (DMS) should be extremely low or absent from this style of beer.
 
CORN is what makes a cream ale creamy!!! :D The more corn flakes you use, the creamier it will be......I have one I am drinking right now and used 1lb of corn flakes and it is a very nice brew to drink on a hot day........:mug:
 
I always think of Cream Ales as lager-like ales, sort-of the American version of Kolsch.

My very first association with cream ale is "lawnmower beer."
 
genesse cream ale :mug:

i used to steal them from my grandfather's cooler inthe summer. i think almost every recipe i've seen for cream ale has some sorta corn adjunct in it, that and the lagering.
 
In many ways Cream Ale is the ale version of the old Classic American Pilsners, where 6-row and corn both played a key roll. CAP is not the same as MBC by the way. Cream ale is also a Bastard Ale, cold fermented ale, as opposed to Bastard Lagers, like Steam Beer that are warm fermented lagers.

That has become my preferred phrase for these beers now that Anchor has layed claim to Steam. Bastard Lager was the original name for our Outlaw Lager, but the Federal Label approval folks didn't go for it. Now the term is all over the place - go figure!

outlaw.jpg
 
Brewpastor said:
That has become my preferred phrase for these beers now that Anchor has layed claim to Steam. Bastard Lager was the original name for our Outlaw Lager, but the Federal Label approval folks didn't go for it. Now the term is all over the place - go figure!
Those bastards! :p
 
I must admit, the creamest ale I've even made was the Poor Richard's and that had 2 1/2 lbs of corn. Sometimes the style guide is just a guide.

Haven't tried the cream ale on cornflakes, but I can recommend Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout with a scoop of french vanilla ice cream.
 
Brewpastor said:
In many ways Cream Ale is the ale version of the old Classic American Pilsners, where 6-row and corn both played a key roll. CAP is not the same as MBC by the way. Cream ale is also a Bastard Ale, cold fermented ale, as opposed to Bastard Lagers, like Steam Beer that are warm fermented lagers.

That has become my preferred phrase for these beers now that Anchor has layed claim to Steam. Bastard Lager was the original name for our Outlaw Lager, but the Federal Label approval folks didn't go for it. Now the term is all over the place - go figure!

outlaw.jpg

As always, dead on correct. Corn and six row base malt make a cream beer. I used 1 lb of corn last time around and found it to my liking. I know everyone around here loves wheat beer.. and I am growing to love it as well but I still think a good cream ale is the ultimate lawn mowing/auto work beer. While it's probably not correct according to the style guidelines I also used some oats to add more creaminess and improve head retention.. it is a good beer and is now a regular on the brewing rotation. Think of it as what bud is supposed to be.. but comes up short (probably because horse piss is cheaper than malt).
 

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