cheap yellow >6%ABV recipe needed

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BowAholic

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Please help me come up with a replacement for my wife's $20 a 30 pack Mil. Best Ice! It has been that and (her favorite) Mickey's for 35 years...LOL... I told her that I knew I could make an easy to drink yellow beer with at least 6% ABV for the $20 she spends and get her 50 bottles instead of 30 cans...and it would taste even better... :) Maybe bulk 2 row, corn meal from walmart or rice from big star... ???? If I buy hops by the pound and use my own yeast starter, it should be doable?
thanks! This is a great place and I really enjoy being part of it.
Bob
 
Well... I know I could get close with an extract batch with a new pack of yeast and hops by the oz.

Gotta be even easier to hit that price-point with all-grain, you're only trying to hit $0.66 a beer. Cake man, CAKE!
 
Brew a smash all grain from Northern brewery , thats were i got the recipe .Its really good . It may not be 6% just drink more!taste a lot better though ,CHEERS!
 
Actually not that easy. If she wants a pale lager, those are about the hardest beers to get right. No room for off flavors. Fermentation has to be spot on, as does your water chemistry. Boring for sure, but tough to get right. I'm 0 for 2 on that score. My second attempt was good, but not quite right.

Do you think you could sneak in some improvements? Kolsch has a certain flavor that I greatly admire; its much more interesting than a pilsner or light lager, at least to me. Even better, add about 10 oz of honey late in the boil. Most of the sweetness ferments out, but you get a hint of it on the aftertaste that blends really well with the Kolsch yeast flavor. I could PM you my recipe if you want. Brewed variations of it 5 times.
 
Youd need to make a yeast starter and harvest yeast from batch to batch. If you are clean, and brew often, it shouldnt be hard to get at lest 4 or 5 generations out of a yeast pack. Buy a lb of high alpha bittering hops, Id go with warrior, and a lb of something domestic, like sterling, for some minimal flavor hops. And buy a 55lb sack of domestic pils or 2 row from the LHBS.
with that you should be able to get it to around 10$ a batch, in raw ingredients.

If you go with grits, or other cheap corn, you will need to do a cereal mash. google instructions if you havent done one before. If you really dont care, you can just use sugar instead.

Id just take a cream ale recipe and scale the gravity to 1.065. Something around 80% 2row or pils, 20% corn, Mash at 149, 5.3ph. 20IBU warrior, .5 - 1 oz or so of sterling at flame out. Ferment with a clean strain, us05 or other american ale, wyeast1335 etc. Cold condition for a month near freezing before tapping the keg.

Though once you factor in propane, sanitizer, the energy for the cold conditioner, etc, the economy isnt as great, but thats not really the point, is it?
 
thanks to all for not giving me a hard time for asking... :) I'm going to order a bag or 2 of grain after the first of the year as well as hops and such. I'm willing to try several recipes in the search for something she will drink. She doesn't like my son's chocolate espresso stout or my Belgian beers... I did order Moonshine Malt Liquor kit and have thought about a brown, cream, or red ale...Kolsch might be good too, I have never tried one. It will be a fun quest to play with while making other beers for myself...retirement is great!
thanks again,
Bob
 
Ya know, if she likes a consistent brew, you might be able to drive the price down by buying in bulk.

I'd try experimenting with small batch SMASH brews until you find a good malt and hop flavor she likes.

I'd also add Belgians and Stouts aYa know, if she likes a consistent brew, you might be able to drive the price down by buying in bulk.

I'd try experimenting with small batch SMASH brews until you find a good malt and hop flavor she likes.

Belgians and Stouts aren't for everyone (I don't mind, more stout for me). But I've found that people who only drink pale lagers still will usually love a good Brown Ale or an Irish Red.

Are they any other commercial beers she likes?
 
Slowly hook her into it. Make a cream ale as posted before. Clean neutral yeast and clean neutral hops with no more than 20 IBUs and minimal hop aroma and flavor. Then next time make a blonde ale sticking with neutral yeast but popping the hops a touch more by upping the IBUs to 25 but using an american hop like cascade or centennial in the flavor or aroma addition (just some not a lot). Next time you blast her with a lower end IBU pale ale. Remember- baby steps
 
You can get close with a cream ale or blond ale using a highly attenuative yeast like Nottingham. But it might have too much flavor. :)

I have not brewed this, or even anything like it (it's on my queue with a little more hops and no sugar), but for 5 gallons of thin yellow malt liquor:

8.5 lbs American 2-row malt (that you buy in a 50 lb bag)
1 lb flaked corn
1 lb sugar
3/4 ounce Willamette hops (5 AA), 60 minutes
Nottingham yeast. (US-05 might work too, or a liquid Kolsch yeast)

Ferment it kind of cool. You should be able to brew it for $15 with dried yeast. I don't know if it needs yeast nutrient with all that corn and sugar, but adding a little wouldn't hurt.
 
Do you have fermentation temp control? If so i'd do a ~1.052-1.055 smash lager with all 2-row and about 15 IBU, all at 60 minutes.
 
thanks to all...I promise that I will try most recipes before I'm through...unless she just loves one of the early ones... Cream of Three Crops is on the list now. I only suggested the higher ABV because she hates 'watered down' beer... if I can get more body and flavor with less alcohol...that's fine too... maybe even better for her. ;)
 
I guess I was thinking that if she likes to drink ML then it's better to start lower and work up. Clean high ABV beer is just tough to make.
 
Here my recipe:

2/3 (67%) 2-row
1/3 (33%) rice
~ 12-15 IBU Magnum Hops for bittering

s04, s05, or lager yeast

You can use use flaked rice if you like. I don't. I boil regular rice for 20 minutes in most of my strike water, then add cool strike water to get it down to mash in temps.

Mash in ~ 152, mash 90 minutes (or more if you want drier finished product, like a light beer).

Boil 90 min, chill and ferment on the low side for an ale yeast, or as usual for a lager. If you use an ale yeast, then after your secondary time, cold condition/lager it for 2-6 weeks or more.

You can even go longer on your mash times, even let the temp drop a bit over time. Your efficiency and attenuation will go higher. Commonly with a 90 minute mash and a fine grind, this hits 88% efficiency and 90% attenuation. Left overnight it's close to 100% for both.

Use that recipe as a starting guide. If you switch out some 2-row for vienna (like 1 pound/5 gal batch) it gets a budweiser vibe. Swap for corn (I use corn meal right in the hot strike water before mash in) and it gets a Coors/Miller vibe.

I can't say I've had much Natty Ice in a long while, but test this recipe out and I think you'll be close... the rice doesn't add as much flavor as an all-barley beer, so you can get that 6% pretty easily without getting too flavorful, and because of the efficiency/attenuation it will be about $20 for 10 gallons if you grind your own grain.
 
Do the cream of three recipe. You won't be disappointed. I buy my grain in bulk, use bulk white rice and I buy corn meal in bulk. It costs me probably $15/20 for 10 gallons.

By using the corn meal and rice, you have to pre cook it. I just gelentize the hell out of it. It's way cheaper than flaked rice and corn.
 
Sounds like a lot of trial and error to get the delicate product you're looking for. Especially with a $20 budget. $.60 a can seems like a good deal if thats what she likes. When you consider the time in effort in brewing and bottling or tying up kegs with such a standard beer.

Unless of course thats the type of beer you prefer to drink as well... Are you just start to home-brew?
 
I retired after 35 years and have plenty of time on my hands...loving it! I think I have the information I need to get started. Thanks again! She is not opposed to flavor, but doesn't like 'unusual' flavors or bitterness in her beer. It's not about the money... :) I just want to make something she will like, and perhaps her tastes will change over time. :mug: The Cream of Three recipe sounds like a fun start.
Bob
 
I'm digging on the simplicity of the 'summer smash' all-grain recipe on NorthernBrewer.com.
At 4.5%, a fella can have a couple without damage to health or wallet.
 
You've got solid advice. There is much to consider here.

1 - I'd suggest pitching more yeast than you're used to to keep the growth phase to a minimum which is where much yeast flavor comes from, Belgian ales are slightly under pitched.

2 - Also I'd aim for something along the lines of 15 ibus and even that might be too much for her taste.

3 - Ferment cool no matter what yeast strain you choose. This will be helped by the fact that you're pitching a higher yeast cell count thus not causing fermentation problems unless you're trying to go too low.

4 - Finally go with a noble German hop or perhaps Saaz or as others have suggested one of the more neutral bittering hops might be the best option; Magnum, Galena? You want this thing with very low IBUs and as little hop character as is possible.

I'll add mash temps might be important to retaining a small amount of residual sweetness yet the beer needs to be sufficiently dry.
 
I'll attest to the C3C's. I've made it a few times and perhaps my efficiency is a little higher than what the recipe calls for but it comes in at 6% when I make it and everyone that has tried it loves it. (These are not craft brew people.)

The Minute rice (or IGA's brand that I get) will add ABV without adding flavor as others have stated.
 
BTW, the cheap "ice" beer is not >6%, it's 5.9% (I buy that stuff too.) So you're target ABV is a little high. I think 5 to 5.5% is a good range.
 
thanks to all... I have the Blonde recipe saved. I actually have a batch of Imperial Blonde carbing right now that she can try in a week or so. It may be a wee bit much for her though. :) I will see if the local liquor store has any commercial Cream Ale or Kolsch to try... :)
 
I retired after 35 years and have plenty of time on my hands...loving it! I think I have the information I need to get started. Thanks again! She is not opposed to flavor, but doesn't like 'unusual' flavors or bitterness in her beer. It's not about the money... :) I just want to make something she will like, and perhaps her tastes will change over time. :mug: The Cream of Three recipe sounds like a fun start.
Bob


Awesome! Welcome to the hobby. You'll enjoy very much!!
 
You could also try yoopers fizzy yellow beer. I have many friends who like it and it comes in at 5.7% or so.
 
Update-
I made Cream of Three Crops and Fizzy Yellow Beer... both are good recipes. My latest is this-
5# Vienna
5# 2 row
.5 oz US Goldings @60m
.5 oz US Goldings @15m
.5 oz US Goldings @ 0m
rehydrated US-05
 
Just put batch #10 to bed... 5# Vienna/5# pale ale/0.5# Cara 60L... 1/2 oz. golding @60 & 30/ 1 oz Tettnang@ flameout. My wife loves it.
 
I do the CO3C recipe all the time and usually add a twist or two to hone in on my palate. The last one I made I only added 8oz oats, and 4oz Crystal 10. Wife even likes it, and she doesn't like Cream Ales. I also did it as is, once and lager'd it. Came out great! A total lawnmower beer, carbed it at 14psi and wow! 5% fizzy water for sure!
 
Just put batch #10 to bed... 5# Vienna/5# pale ale/0.5# Cara 60L... 1/2 oz. golding @60 & 30/ 1 oz Tettnang@ flameout. My wife loves it.

Glad you've found something!

What yeast did you use?
 
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