Crystal/Caramel Malt Question.

[Ryan11]

I have a recipe that calls for 8 oz. of Crystal 40L and 8 oz. of Crystal 60L. My homebrew store does not have these but they have Crystal 50L. Could I just use 1 lb. of Crystal 50L as a substitute?

 

[ajf]

Yes.

-a.

 

[unionrdr]

You could,sure. But it might be a lil hair lighter colored.

 

[rklinck]

It will also have a different flavor. The different color levels have distinct flavor profiles. Using multiple levels tends to give a beer more layers of flavor (which is sometimes good and sometimes bad). But, in this instance, you could use the 50L and get a pretty close approximation.

 

[cluckk]

I think the flavor difference between 40 and 50 and then again between 50 and 60 are going to be so slight that few would be able to pick it out. The difference between 40 to 60 will be more pronounced and many more will notice. All this means is that your beer will have a less layered flavor profile, a bit more one dimensional (at least on the crystal contributions)--somewhere between the two, without the differences each offers. Other than that get a touch less color from it, as unionrdr said.