amber

[amandley]

Hello,
I have a real basic amber recipe that I found on here a couple years ago. I like it but would like to tweek it slightly. I really dont know too much about what grain tastes like what, except the obvious ones. My goal is to keep the IBU's and ABV where they are but get a bit more malty taste to the recipe. Any help would be appreciated. Also, the grain bill plus 7 gal water really stretches the capacity of my 8 gal pot, so no room for more grain. Just hoping to take some of this out and add some of this. Here is what I do currently
7lb 2 row
2lb munich (10l)
1.75 lb crystal 40
.75lb carapils
.5lb caravienne

hops- cascade
1.25 oz@60
1oz@15
1.75oz@0

Thanks

 

[monkeyman1000]

Try Marris Otter instead of 2row

 

[ruger988]

Subbing 2-row for Maris would be a really good start for sure. Not that it really matters if you enjoy the beer, but that recipe seems to be a little hop-heavy to be a "true" amber. I'm more of a malt guy than a hop-head myself, so thats where I'd start personally...

 

[amandley]

I made it a bit hoppier than most ambers to mimic a lot of the ambers I loved while living in the Seattle area. I like the extra bite. I've just started reading about Maris otter. Apparently it's just a different kind of 2row? Earthier? I might give that a try. Any other suggestions? Would swapping out the Munich with something else help?

 

[enkamania]

Maybe instead of the crystal and carvienne, try Carared?

 

[Staylow]

Maris Otter, or maybe another variety of UK barley, is definitely a great idea/starting point. Maybe keep the two row, but sub two or three lbs for Vienna.

Sub the Caravienne for Victory, Biscuit malt or Special Roast. Or maybe sub it for something like Special B or honey malt.

Switch the C40 for C80?

What yeast are you using? You could potentially use a slightly less attenuating yeast, or a strain known to accentuate malt flavors.

Raise the mash temp? It would leave some more residual sugars, increasing malt perception. Though this option and/or using a lower attenuating yeast would slightly lower the ABV.

Or, if you have begun to dabble in water chemistry, you could try to up your chloride content, but that's a whole other can of worms if you haven't dove into it yet.

There are several tweaks you can make - that's what's great about homebrewing - there are a nearly limitless variety of options to explore! Whatever you do though, make one change at a time.