recipe critique

I was looking for a very light English summer Pale Ale. I am modeling after Real Ale's "Rio Blanco" Pale Ale

Malt:
9 lbs 2-row
1 lbs carapils
1 lbs vienna

Hops:
Saaz 4%:
1 oz 60 mins
1 oz 15 mins

Yeast:
Wyeast 1098

OG: 1.051 (65% eff)
22 IBU
5% ABV
Color: 4.3

Sounds reasonable?

Comments?

it's kinda heavy on the alcohol and light on the hops for an English Pale, which sounds mighty tasty to me!

I don't think the saaz really fits, either, but i love the stuff so I say go for it



if you want to check out the styles, check out the BJCP guidelines here:
http://www.bjcp.org/styles04/

Check out the recipes on the boards too. and tons of recipes here:
http://hbd.org/cgi-bin/recipator/recipes

Nothing wrong with higher abv , but I agree with DB - maybe some EKG or fuggles at 60 and .5 oz at 5 min for aroma?

How full-bodied do you want it? A pound is a fairly high amount of carapils. I'd be inclined to do the grain bill with a British pale malt, mash a little higher if you want it fuller-bodied, then add a modest amount of a low crystal (maybe 20L). The Vienna isn't common for an English beer, but should make a nice addition.

I agree, too, that EKG/Fuggles are classic for this type of beer.

Not much there says Light English ale to me. Maybe because Rio Blanco is an American pale ale.

If you want a light English try the Boddies.

That sounds like a nice beer, if a bit high on the OG for something I think of as "very light" and for Summer. I might consider knocking off a pound of the 2-row to make it a little more of a session beer and to bring the balance a little more back to the hops, but that's totally a matter of personal taste..

That carapils will make for some body, but I bet it's nice. It will not be a crisp beer, though. And, like the others said, it's not an English Pale Ale. I still like the sound of it, and I'd drink it right up.


TL

So, it's not supposed to be an Eglish Pale Ale, but an English style summer ale or a "Golden Ale".

I like the idea of going with english pale malt instead of 2-row, but I'm pretty stuck on the saaz as of right now.

I'm looking for a beer my BMC buds will drink, but kind of want that big, long lasting head like english beer, however, so I thought that the carapils might help.


World Beer Cup description:
"English-Style Summer Ale
English Summer Ale is light straw to golden colored with medium-low to medium bitterness, light to medium-light body, and low to medium residual malt sweetness. Torrefied and/or malted wheat are often used in quantities of 25% or less. Malt flavor may be biscuit-like. English, American or Noble-type hop, character, flavor and aroma are evident and may or may not be assertive yet always well balanced with malt character... The overall impression is refreshing and thirst quenching."

I think you are going more for a Pils than an English Ale.
Call it what you want.

You need an English base and hops with more IBU for it to be an authentic English Summer Ale.

http://www.allaboutbeer.com/homebrew/23.2-summerale.html

I'll just call it "beer"

However, I'd like to call it "beer, with a thick, foamy head"

Will the carapils take care of that for me? Is there anything else I could do kind of accentuate that without making the beer darker?

Mash High, use a little torrifed wheat.
One of the problems is going light and wanting good head is possible chill haxze.
I don't drink chilled so do not suffer that.

* The use of body and head enhancing malts such as crystal, wheat, or carafoam
* The altering of the mash schedule to enhance head retaining proteins
* The use of heading agents - additives that enhance head retention
* Addition of high alpha hops - which will increase bitterness, but also increas isohumulones that enhance head retention
* Limiting the use of household soaps on drinking glasses and homebrew equipment
* The use of a nitrogen and CO2 mix for carbonation and serving
* The shape of the glass used to serve the beer

i think it will be a very good beer that your BMC friends will enjoy (and if not, more for you!) but yeah, they might be more inclined to drink it if the alcohol dropped a bit and the carapils dropped a half pound or so. that is sound advice.

screw style, this beer sounds great. no matter what, send me a bottle!