I know this is an old thread, but I miss that beer; actually I used to prefer Edelstoff over their regular Helles, but that was 15 years ago and I know my taste has shifted since so either would be something Id really like to get my hands on over here.
I came across this thread, because I decided to brew one tonight (yeast starter is read ;-). No I dont have the perfect clone recipe yet and intend to make a rather general Muenchner Helles.
I also think the response to the OP from the brewery is quite nice. It didnt come from some customer service rep either, but from the head or production&quality, which shows that they surprisingly bothered evaluating how to respond to the bold request.
One thing to keep in mind is that they are not only old on paper (1328), but they used to be an ultra-traditional brewery even for German standards (I dont know today, but I had a friend who worked their 25 years ago). Regarding the malt you need to keep in mind that they are one of the few breweries worldwide who maintain their own malt house (Tenne; i.e. floor malted)!
So, beside most likely having their own yeast strain (which I think does not play so much of a role for the lager when you factor everything else in), they will have their unique malt. The water in the area is hard; average of around 3 mmol/l CaCO3 (and no, I dont know what their well water actually is).
They also continued to be one of the very few filling limited quantities into traditional wood barrels despite the cost and other drawbacks. Typically, this results in lower carbonation and a subsequent shift in perceived maltiness. On the other hand, most beer is sold in bottles (so you might compare apples and oranges, depending on which one refers to).
Because of the overall traditional notion, a hop from the Hallertau is the way to go.
Someone here said 100% Pilsner, but it is a true Munich lager, so there needs to be some degree of Munich malt properties in grain bill.
As other said, DMS is a non-issue in a homebrew pot - the whole idea of exactly mimicking a commercial process is never going to result in a perfect clone. Up-/Downscaling a process is a very difficult thing and in this particular case, access to the malt is already a limiting factor. So, why not go alternative the whole way?
For my first attempt at this, Ill try 9 parts Boeheminan floor malted Pilsner and one part Munich malt (perhaps incorporating some Melanodin or Vienna down the road is something to look into), single step infusion mash (keeping it really simple for now, but chances are I change at least to ramping up temp.), Hallertau, a VLB yeast at 12C (which is certainly not the same they use, but I have it ready right now).
I have no idea if this will result in anything close to an Augustiner Helles, but since I cannot remember the very precise taste anymore (i.e. in comparison to other Munich Lagers) it should provide a drinkable beer and hopefully some foundation for future attempts when I ever get my hands on some bottles for reference.
I came across this thread, because I decided to brew one tonight (yeast starter is read ;-). No I dont have the perfect clone recipe yet and intend to make a rather general Muenchner Helles.
I also think the response to the OP from the brewery is quite nice. It didnt come from some customer service rep either, but from the head or production&quality, which shows that they surprisingly bothered evaluating how to respond to the bold request.
One thing to keep in mind is that they are not only old on paper (1328), but they used to be an ultra-traditional brewery even for German standards (I dont know today, but I had a friend who worked their 25 years ago). Regarding the malt you need to keep in mind that they are one of the few breweries worldwide who maintain their own malt house (Tenne; i.e. floor malted)!
So, beside most likely having their own yeast strain (which I think does not play so much of a role for the lager when you factor everything else in), they will have their unique malt. The water in the area is hard; average of around 3 mmol/l CaCO3 (and no, I dont know what their well water actually is).
They also continued to be one of the very few filling limited quantities into traditional wood barrels despite the cost and other drawbacks. Typically, this results in lower carbonation and a subsequent shift in perceived maltiness. On the other hand, most beer is sold in bottles (so you might compare apples and oranges, depending on which one refers to).
Because of the overall traditional notion, a hop from the Hallertau is the way to go.
Someone here said 100% Pilsner, but it is a true Munich lager, so there needs to be some degree of Munich malt properties in grain bill.
As other said, DMS is a non-issue in a homebrew pot - the whole idea of exactly mimicking a commercial process is never going to result in a perfect clone. Up-/Downscaling a process is a very difficult thing and in this particular case, access to the malt is already a limiting factor. So, why not go alternative the whole way?
For my first attempt at this, Ill try 9 parts Boeheminan floor malted Pilsner and one part Munich malt (perhaps incorporating some Melanodin or Vienna down the road is something to look into), single step infusion mash (keeping it really simple for now, but chances are I change at least to ramping up temp.), Hallertau, a VLB yeast at 12C (which is certainly not the same they use, but I have it ready right now).
I have no idea if this will result in anything close to an Augustiner Helles, but since I cannot remember the very precise taste anymore (i.e. in comparison to other Munich Lagers) it should provide a drinkable beer and hopefully some foundation for future attempts when I ever get my hands on some bottles for reference.
