Budwiser, Coors, Bush .... lite colored clear American beer with little hop flavor?
I want to us this as a base to add hops till I find the level and flavor of hops I prefer.
Every American style beer (all grain) I have made so far is to dark in color and to hoppy.
Anyone have a good all grain recipe for a very clear American style beer?
I'm all for experiments in home brewing, I've done a few myself.
But conceptually, using an American Light Lager to test flavor profiles for hops seems somewhat puzzling to me.
If big lager brewers could make a decent hoppy beer by just adding hops to their existing lagers, you would see that in the market place.
Sure, some hoppy lagers can be found, but the drinking public hasn't made them a big commercial success.
My theory is that a truly drinkable beer has the various components in balance. BUD Light is a big seller because the light beer flavor, no hop character and fairly low alcohol all work together.
IPA's generally have a stronger malt backbone and a higher ABV to stand up to the various levels of hops that are used.
To make things more complicated, finding the level and flavor of hops you like is a moving target because all the different varieties of hops bring different flavors and bitterness to the beer. Another factor is that hops are different from year to year, have differences because of their growing locations and climate and can be different because of the way they are stored and processed.
The good news is that someone else has already done most of the flavor/bitterness experimentation for you.
I would suggest starting with trying as many commercial beers as you can that have flavors you like. Then set out looking for clone versions of those beers and figure how to tweak the beer to suit your taste.
If you really want a lager in your cooler while you are away, just brew a lager you like without the hop experiment and you'll have something good to drink when you get back from your travels. Good Luck and Merry Christmas!
