American Amber Ale Caramel Amber Ale

[WillieBananas]

Bottled today, sample tastes great!


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[sehedw]

Will like to go back got the chinook hop issue. You can try to put it at 30 mins as the only hop addition. It will give you less IBU and grapefruit flavor. If you do not like the flavor then I cannot help



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[iram84mx]

Can somebody explain what is the purpose of using Candi Syrup Amber on this recipe?
Can it be substituted by any special Malt(s)?
The color of the beer looks awesome by the way.
thanks.

 

[damlamb]

Can somebody explain what is the purpose of using Candi Syrup Amber on this recipe?
Can it be substituted by any special Malt(s)?
The color of the beer looks awesome by the way.
thanks.

Ive made this beer a few times and Ive tasted the syrup by itself and the taste and smell of the beer was unmistakle to me as the syrup. I wouldnt sub it out. The sryup is easy to make the day before and have it ready.

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[hmmmbeer]

Can somebody explain what is the purpose of using Candi Syrup Amber on this recipe?
Can it be substituted by any special Malt(s)?
The color of the beer looks awesome by the way.
thanks.

I make this while I'm waiting for my mash (takes much less time than an hour). Easy and is a vital component of this brew. This is my GO TO brew if my keg runs dry.

 

[Mx750ktm]

Thought I would chime in here as one more person who brewed this recipe !! :rockin:
This was my first BIAB all grain Brewday and everything seemed to go pretty smooth. My SG was 1.055 and I checked it yesterday which would have been 18 days and I'm at 1.010 so looks like all went well. During primary fermentation I use a blow off and I didn't need it for this beer but 16 days in the fermenter this thing was still bubbling away. I'm pretty new but I have never had action for that long. Any who tried a small sample yesterday and tastes great can't wait to bottle next week.
Thanks op for the recipe!!

Edit 4 days later now and I still have a bubble about once a minute so a total of 22 days with some signs of active bubbling!!! All krausen has fallen and I'm cleaning bottles as we speak!

 

[64stangman]

What was the gravity before syrup addition?

 

[wstehling]

Brewing tomorrow as a BIAB, can't wait to see what this beer has waiting for me. Pretty much nailed the candi syrup, it's gorgeous and was really interesting watching it change colors at each 10 degree increment as the recipie calls for. The knowledge gained just by watching that temp/color rise and subsequently reading about Maillard Reactions was pretty cool.

Will report back after brew day!

 

[wstehling]

Brew day is done, this was my first BIAB and everything went near perfectly after weeks of planning.

I used BIABacus to plan this recipe and I'm in awe at how accurate the predictions are from it. I hit all the volumes pretty much on the nose. My target OG was 1.055 and I hit 1.052 so not going to complain about that.
Predicted FG is 1.013.

Hydro sample tasted really good, and definitely had the plum/raisin notes from the 290F syrup, but it wasn't overwhelming at all.

Only thing I'm mildly concerned with is the hops. They weren't quite as noticeable as I expected in the pre-pitching hydro sample.

I'll report back in a few weeks. Thanks for the great recipe KingBrian!

What was the gravity before syrup addition?

64stangman - My gravity at the beginning of the boil (before syrup addition) was a temp adjusted 1.029

 

[wstehling]

Here is my 290F syrup.

 

[wstehling]

Just took a gravity reading at 8 days and it was at 1.006 which as about 88% attentuation, so i'll expect this to be a little bit on the dry side. First time I've used US-05 so wasn't real sure what to expect. It was a little slow to start with a 36 hour lag but when it got going, it really churned, had to put a blow off tube on it.

The hydro sample was just plain outstanding, I can't wait to get this one finished but I'm going to force myself to take the slow and patient route on this.

Great recipe Brian!

 

[mariahman]

This is a great recipe. I changed it to partial mash, subbing the base malt for LME and still hit all numbers. Super clean and roasty flavor. Similar to Fat Tire. Everyone lives it, will brew again.

 

[user 131481]

Nottingham clears up nicely. A great beer overall!!


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[damlamb]

This is one of my favorites. I entered this beer into a local competition this year. Took third place overall despite the fact that I boiled off a little too much and ended up with a high OG. I ended up around 6.8 abv.

 

[MikePote]

I finished brewing this 10 minutes ago. I added a little too much water pre boil and ended up with a full 6 gallons at a SG of 1.046. Maybe a hair shy of where I was supposed to end up but close enough.

It was my first time making the candy syrup and as far as I can tell all went well. Hydro sample super caramely. Results in a month or so. Thanks for the recipe!

 

[FatDragon]

My first brew was an extract caramel amber ale kit, almost certainly based off this, but with brown sugar in place of the candi syrup and without the late Chinook (I believe), and S-04 instead of US-05. I was told to ferment it at 24C (75F) for the esters. After a few beginners' mistakes, I pitched around 30C (86F). I got super-fast fermentation - 4-5 bubbles/second in the three-piece - that left some bad flavors. It was an alright beer if you ignored the aftertaste brought on by the high fermentation temps, but nowhere near as good as it was when I drank the same beer, properly made, at the home of the guy who sold me the kit.

I decided to come full-circle and try again now, after seven months and about a dozen BIAB batches.

My adjusted recipe (based on my ingredients and efficiency):

3.9kg 2-row
.7kg C60 (a mediocre batch, unfortunately)
.52kg homemade Candi Syrup (290F x2) - meant to add .6kg, ended up with a bit less than intended. I was surprised how little color it added compared to Beersmith calcs - apparently I estimated way too high on the SRM.
.08kg "old red sugar" - very dark brown sugar ("old red sugar" is directly translated from the Chinese), used to make up for coming up short on the Candi Syrup.
22g Chinook 60m
29g Chinook 0m
29g Willamette 0m
1 packet S-04, rehydrated

Overshot my OG and volume by a bit (still adjusting some Beersmith profiles): 14p (1.057) vs. 12.3p (1.051 - replacement hydro only had Plato) and ~6 gal vs. 5.5 gal. Color seems about right.

Cooled down to about 26C with my IC (maybe 45 minutes), pitched about four hours later after cooling to ~19C in my ferm chamber. Chilled down to 17C by the morning, adjusted the temp controller to 18C, got bubbles 8 hours later, left town for a day and a half, came back and bumped to 19C, then 19.5C the next morning, 20C last night. I'm planning on reaching 24C (the temperature recommendation from that first kit) at 1C a day, then letting it sit for a week, dropping down as close to 12C as I can for a few days (chamber's lower limit - it's a wine fridge), then bottling around the 3 week mark to free up the chamber for my tea beer experiment.

 

[MikePote]

I finished brewing this 10 minutes ago. I added a little too much water pre boil and ended up with a full 6 gallons at a SG of 1.046. Maybe a hair shy of where I was supposed to end up but close enough.

It was my first time making the candy syrup and as far as I can tell all went well. Hydro sample super caramely. Results in a month or so. Thanks for the recipe!

I am drinking a hydro sample as I type. Really good but the sample is much more bitter than I had hoped. It is still young and hopefully the bitterness subsides and the caramel shines through. I dont plan to bottle for at least a week. Results in a month or so.

 

[natural]

This has probably been asked either in here or somewhere else but the search option isn't working for me on my app. What the hell is dap? How do I make this?

 

[FatDragon]

This has probably been asked either in here or somewhere else but the search option isn't working for me on my app. What the hell is dap? How do I make this?

DAP is di-ammonium phosphate yeast nutrient. LD Carlson's Yeast Energizer has a significant amount of di-ammonium phosphate as well - it's what I used, though I would use DAP yeast nutrient if you can get it. Read the first post of this thread and you'll be off to the races.

 

[wstehling]

Well, after 15 days of bottle carb'ing this sucker is done, this is one damn good beer. Although I finished at 1.005, it really isn't all that dry, it still has a very nice malt finish and the slightest hint of the caramel flavor from the carmel candi syrup. The color is just amazing.
I'm putting this one in a contest in early August, have my competition beers set aside and hopefully the extra month or two of aging will just improve them, with a beer this good I can't make it last that long except for the ones I put aside for the competition.

Will report back then. This one is going into the regular rotation.

 

[BigTerp]

Just wanted to let everyone know who is considering this beer that it's awesome!! I've brewed this several times over during the past few years, and it's great everytime. Just follow the orginal recipe in the first post and you can't go wrong. My last batch of this I gave a few bottles to a fellow homebrewer and coworker and his response was "It was so good I made my pregnant wife try some". Made me laugh!!

 

[MikePote]

I brewed this up 5-13 and bottled last night. I would have let it sit a little longer but I need the fermenter. Finished at 1.004! Wow I cant believe it got that low. I followed directions exactly and have a ferm chamber. If anybody has any idea why it got so low let me know please. The beer was really good and didnt taste dry for the low FG. A little hoppier than I had hoped but it was good hoppy not super bitter. I definitely could taste the caramel and some malt. Really excited for this one to carb up. If the hops subside a little and let the caramel show through this is really going to be awesome. Taste test in a few weeks or so.

 

[wstehling]

Mike, see my post a few befiore yours. Mine finished at 1.005 and it is not dry at all. I'm enjoying one right now, excellent beer.

 

[MikePote]

Just had one and after only a week in the bottle it is REALLY good! Very well balanced with a tiny bit of hop at the finish. When I bottled a week ago it was pretty hoppy but they have faded a lot which is good in my opinion. Hopefully they fade a tiny bit more. As stated in the post above it finished very low (1.004) but really isn't dry at all. Update in a couple weeks.

 

[Tippsy-Turvy]

Must be fate that I stumbled across this thread just as I've been preparing for my first attempt at a caramel amber!

What struck me about this tasty recipe though was the yeast. I thought S-04 is designed for darker beers and that's what I had intended to use. Why use the S-05 for this amber?

 

[KCBigDog]

I finally got around to brewing this yesterday. She is bubbling along nicely this morning.

Can't wait to get it in the Keezer.

 

[Tutsbrew]

Must be fate that I stumbled across this thread just as I've been preparing for my first attempt at a caramel amber!

What struck me about this tasty recipe though was the yeast. I thought S-04 is designed for darker beers and that's what I had intended to use. Why use the S-05 for this amber?

I wonder if the OP wanted a very clean (and highly attenuating) yeast to let the grain bill and caramel-sweet-yumminess to shine?

 

[kvedderman]

I brewed this yesterday and it is fermenting now..My first of many home brews..30 days can't go by fast enough to drink this..Love Amber Ale beers..My final gravity came in a little low because I left the lid on for 30 minutes of the boil(rookie)..I saw it and removed..If that is my only mistake in a first home brew that is all good with me..

 

[damlamb]

Congrats on your first brew. You picked a great recipe too. Ive made this a few times and it always turns out good for me. I screwed up by boiling too long before and ending with high gravity. I entered it in the competition anyways and snagged third place so im sure your beer will still taste great.

 

[mdbrewer1]

I just got done putting 5 gallons of this into the fermenter. I tasted the hydrometer sample and it was very hoppy. I thought I could detect some caramel flavor, but it was pretty much like licking a Chinook pellet. Is that to be expected? I was slow with my cooldown since I was stuck using a tiny sink for my ice bath. My chiller is arriving tomorrow. I don't know if that allowed more of the hop flavor/aroma to impart itself or if that is normal.

I hope to have this ready by Labor Day, but I realize it might not make it. I've got it in a swamp cooler in the basement since I've read that one of the best things you can do when trying to turn a beer around quickly is ferment at the low end of the range when it starts so that it doesn't give off much off-flavors.

We shall see!