Coffee Blonde Ale recipe... thoughts?

[ghast]

I was thinking on making a coffee ale and this is what I came up with...

Boil: 7gal
Batch: 5gal

Mash:
8lbs 2-row malt
4lbs Pale ale
2lbs Crystal 40L

Hops:
0.5oz Chinook @60 (I dont want it too bitter)
0.5oz Chinook @10
1oz Crystal @Whirlpool
+1 whirlfloc

Then dry hop 2oz of crystal in the secondary fermentation (7 days)

I dont know if this quantity is okay but ill add 5oz of coarse grinded coffee beans 1 or 2 days before bottling

Yeast: Safale US-05
Priming sugar: 5oz dextrose

 

[GoeHaarden]

I've never done a coffee blonde, so be advised. But a few things...

What IBUs are you targeting? Chinook is usually pretty high AA, and what you have will probably end up fairly hoppy for the style. I guess it depends if you want the hops to be the star or the coffee. I would probably delete the dryhop, and target 20-25 IBUs.

I could be wrong but isn't 2-row and Pale malt the same thing? Also, that's a fairly large percentage of crystal malt, and I would probably do less than 1 pound of crystal 10L. Not crystal 40L which will definitely make this beer not so "blonde." Might think about adding a little Vienna too.

Maybe someone else can chime in on this, but I believe you will add less color with your coffee addition if you add it whole beans instead of ground...

Cheers!

 

[milldoggy]

I did this

http://beersmithrecipes.com/viewrecipe/1664044/7-14-17-blonde-half-coffee

 

[milldoggy]

The notes are for 5 gallons, I split this 10 g and only made one half a coffee, I put all the stuff in a stainless tube in the keg. Beer was amazing

 

[ghast]

and target 20-25 IBUs.

Yeah... I maybe want to delete it to make it less hoppy...

Not crystal 40L which will definitely make this beer not so "blonde."

I read 40L gives a toffee-caramel flavor and golden hues... but its true It might get darker as I did not took to account how much darker it would get with the coffee

 

[GoeHaarden]

I read 40L gives a toffee-caramel flavor and golden hues... but its true It might get darker as I did not took to account how much darker it would get with the coffee

I don't think anything would be wrong with using 40L, I would just dial it down a lot if you want to stay in the realm of a blonde. Crystal malts add unfermentable sugars lending to a sweeter beer, which can over power everything else at times. Maybe a larger addition of crystal will help balance the bitter coffee, but I don't know. There's only one way to find out . Try it out and see what you think...

 

[ghast]

I don't think anything would be wrong with using 40L, I would just dial it down a lot if you want to stay in the realm of a blonde. Crystal malts add unfermentable sugars lending to a sweeter beer, which can over power everything else at times. Maybe a larger addition of crystal will help balance the bitter coffee, but I don't know. There's only one way to find out . Try it out and see what you think...

Okay... maybe changing the malts to 8pounds Pale Ale, 4pounds Vienna and 2pounds 40L

 

[C-Rider]

I could be wrong but isn't 2-row and Pale malt the same thing?

Cheers!

Pale Ale Malt is roasted a little more that plain 2 Row. Something like Marris Otter I believe.

 

[divrack]

id second using much less 40, like maybe a half pound. also if you want to keep it blond I wouldn't crush the beans at all, I've heard this works somewhere in this forum. I think it was a thread titled coffee and blueberry pale or some such nonsense.

 

[TGFV]

For coffee I would recommend cold brewing the coffee. This greatly reduces the bitterness while keeping the great flavour and aroma. Then add to vodka to sterlize before fermenter.

And the crystal would work great i think but i second reducing it, and it may come out more like a golden ale than a blonde (nearly the same in my opinion)

 

[Mer-man]

If you want to make a Latte Stout, a dude in another subforum had a profile pic of a light stout he made with lactose. Seemed like a neat idea.

I gotta say I think Chinook will clash with coffee.

 

[ghast]

If you want to make a Latte Stout, a dude in another subforum had a profile pic of a light stout he made with lactose. Seemed like a neat idea.

I gotta say I think Chinook will clash with coffee.

I did the brew and yes, it definitely clashed. The beer was not bad at all but it could be better without the chinook and a better-pairing hop

 

[Gemadrken]

A local brewery has a "Coffee Golden Ale" which is freaking awesome. I say definitely give it a try. I don't know how to keep the beer light colored though, but they manage to keep it nice and gold.

 

[Dade0]

Use whole beans.

 

[applescrap]

I like the idea of whole bean for the 1 or 2 day before method. Add cold brew at kegging is easiest and best imo. Just go to a starbucks and have them give you a big cup of cold brew and add to taste at bottling if no other plan comes up.