Looking for Simple Extract Recipe on a Budget

Anyone have a recipe or suggestions for the following?:

- 6 gallon recipe
- alcohol content around 5%
- no grains
- limited hops

I don't want a lager cause I can't control temperatures that to keep it low, so I'd like something that can be brewed well at room temperature (65-70 degrees).

 

German or American wheat beer.

 

A Saison can be anything. Just need the yeast.

Monty

 

Is that true? What exactly is a saison? I drank one a few years ago but was way to heavy for my liking but if it can be anything, doesn't matter....


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A Saison is a Belgium/French farmhouse brew. The style is all over the place, so it can have 4% - 10% ABV, can be light or dark (maybe not black) and can be made with wheat, barley, rye, or whatever you have. What makes a Saison a Saison is the yeast. I routinely use a dry yeast, Belle Saison by Lallemand. I really like them, but they are different tasting. They are fermented warm, I do mine at 75F, but I have heard of people doing it at 85F. Just a real easy beer. I use them to finish up whatever I have left.

Monty

Here's one I did as a smash (this is for a 2.25 gal fermenter, think of a mr beer little brown keg):
2.5 lbs light DME, with 1 oz Hallertau (I've done them with Sazz, Citra, Sorachi Ace, Belma all of which which go great with the yeast)

 

NB Nut Brown Ale. Just throw a pound of light brown sugar in it the last 15 minutes of the boil (on top of the recipe). Mine came in right at 5%. Full volume boil not a lot of hops. (wife liked it). It is a quick one too, just 2 weeks in primary and then bottle. It actually finished fermenting in 6 days but I let it sit the full 2 weeks.

 

Ive done a blonde and an amber under $30. Think my mango blonde was around $20 minus the mangoes. Search my name on brewtoad.com

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I have one very light. I'll have to follow this post up later to make sure I've added everything, but it was by far the lightest I've made.

Boil Ingredients

2 lbs Rice Syrup Solids
4 lbs 6.4 oz LME Pilsen Light
0.50 oz Warrior (4aau)
Saf US-05

Ready to bottle in 2 weeks.

 

4lbs of Amber DME (add at beginning of boil)
3.3lbs of Munich LME (add with 15 minutes left in boil)

.5oz Warrior Hops @ 60 minutes

Ferment with US-05 for two weeks. Bottle. Wait 2-3 weeks and begin drinking.

If you want an even cheaper option, go with 5lbs of Amber DME and a pound of sugar or brown sugar.

 

Usually the risk you run in adding sugar is upsetting the sweetness/bitterness balance.
Perfect example: we made a belgian by dumping 2 lbs of brown sugar in during boil. It tasted like drinking liquified sweet bread.

The robust flavors of a brown should make it easier to add sugar without throwing this off. Browns are hard to mess up, and ferment well at room temp.

6lbs Maris Otter LME
1oz Hops @60min
Sugar @15min
Ale yeast

 

If you have 65 to 70, you don't want to lager. Most ale yeasts do fine there, Belgain/Saison yeasts like it a little higher, and some ale yeasts prefere it down to 60, but are OK where you are. If you think you could drop to 60, find a yeast that is OK there (S-05 is a neutral yeast that is OK there. and Notty is an English yeast that works that low, or slightly lower).

Extract tends to end with a high FG, so adding about 10% sugar (regular table sugar - but not baking/confectioners sugar) will help lower the FG and make the beer better (personal opinion), and will make it a little cheaper.

No grains and limited hops would tend to lead you to a Saison, but that requires some higher temperatures and some control of temperatures. Alcohol tends to be 8% or higher, and uses up to 20% (or more) simple sugar.