Is there such a thing as a good, light beer?

[OHIOSTEVE]

protein has 4 calories per gram...carbs have 4 calories per gram and fat has 9 calories per gram. Someone posted that alcohol has 7 calories per gram....when you consume alcohol, your body stops working on the proteins fats and carbs until all of the alcohol is gone from your system. It sees the alcohol as a poison and removes it entirely then goes back to normal. That is why almost all diets say NO ALCOHOL......... or VERY moderate consumption.

 

[humann_brewing]

Also if you haven't seen it already it, check this out.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f62/miller-lite-really-triple-hopped-123937/

 

[weirdboy]

youre right, it is both low alcohol and low carbs that make a light beer. But your original post did not seem to give credit to a highly attenuative yeast (or, using beano) when making a light beer. Clearly, a high attenuation is key, so the question about yeast was warranted.

I don't think high attenuation IS the key. The key is low gravity. Lower gravity means lower calories, period.

 

[SFBEER]

I don't see why you couldn't produce either a dark ale or a lager that has a lower OG and still tastes great. Almost all of my beers start of below 1045 and no one has ever complained about the taste. What's the worst thing that can happen? You have to make (and drink) a few batches to perfect the recipe?

 

[ArcaneXor]

Excellent light beers:

English Mild
Ordinary Bitter
Berliner Weisse

 

[Ryan]

Blonde ales are good and light in both calories and body.

 

[chainsawbrewing]

classic american pilsner.
c.a.p.
i've brewed it a few times. i forget my exact recipe, but it's really cheap, light, and not bad. has some flaked maize, and two row, and that's all. small american hop additions. low o.g. not too hoppy, a good bmc crowd pleaser, but not too light and lifeless at the same time.

 

[Loudog]

I LOVE big beer!! but sometimes I would like a light easy drinking beer, the problem is that I have gained a few LBS..... Sooo for the New Year the plan is that if I want to keep Brewing and drinking beer, I need to make sure I stay active not just come home and grab a few cold ones.

 

[impatient]

do you work out at all?

Yes. I run 3 miles @ 6 mph 6 days a week and do calistenics 3 days a week.

I am not that bad. 6'2" 235lbs.

 

[impatient]

I brewed up Orfy's Mild Mannered Ale and mashed at 158°F. It came in at 2.9% ABV and 164 cals/pint. It came out so full bodied and flavorful that you would never guess it was 3-2 beer.

Are you asking "lite" as in "diet" or "light" as in light body and color?

for a diet

 

[impatient]

How would this taste? I like hops.

Lite Beer
American Pale Ale
All Grain
5 gal. final
6 gal. start
72 % efficiency
6.50 lbs. grain
124.0 calories
$29.13 (USD) total cost
$0.55 (USD) cost per bottle




6 lbs.American 2-row info
.5 lbs.American Caramel 60°L info
1 oz.Cascade (Whole, 5.50 %AA) boiled 60 min. info
1 oz.Cascade (Whole, 5.50 %AA) boiled 20 min. info
1 oz.Cascade (Whole, 5.50 %AA) boiled 10 min. info
Yeast : Danstar 3767 Nottingham info

 

[weirdboy]

Looks OK to me, although it seems like your costs are pretty high. When I do a the same recipe it only costs me about $12.

 

[impatient]

Er, ok, you don't like my recipe. But it I don't get why it'd be a "problem".

No offense. The last time I added corn sugar to up the abv the beer tasted hot.

 

[impatient]

Looks OK to me, although it seems like your costs are pretty high. When I do a the same recipe it only costs me about $12.

Actually, that is just from beertools.

It will cost me:

3oz Cascade $10.20
6lbs 2-Row $6.90
.5lbs Crystal 60 $0.70

umm.. $17.80

I have yeast.

 

[JimE]

I would like to brew something low on the caloric scale that does not taste plain like "Coors Light".

Can this be done?

Has this been done around here?

Well, I probably cannot help. My heaviest beer is a Belgian Tripel @ 283 cal per 12 oz. My lightest is an APA @ 178 cal per 12 oz

 

[Grimster]

I have never understood why "Light" beers are so popular. If I want to drink a beer, I want to drink a "beer." If you are thinking that alcohol will cause you to add weight, maybe you should consider drinking root beer... or even a nice cold glass of ice water.
Light Beer? Not me.

I'd rather drink one good beer, damn the calories, and a glass of water, than 2 light beers. If I actually liked real light, as in bodied, beers I'm sure I might say otherwise. Just my opinion on the calorie issue. Or get on the treadmill and get off after it says I've burned 250 calories and have a beer, then repeat until I'm either drunk, worn out, or ready for bed hahaha.

 

[Stuntman]

Actually, that is just from beertools.

It will cost me:

3oz Cascade $10.20
6lbs 2-Row $6.90
.5lbs Crystal 60 $0.70

umm.. $17.80

I have yeast.

I sure am glad someone here was talking about Hops Direct. Those Cascades in pellet are $8.75 a pound!

http://www.hopsdirect.com/detail.src?SKU=HCASP&Category=Pellet Hops

Same price after shipping and you would have 13 oz. left over.

 

[MrFlannery]

Call me crazy, but if you're worried about caloric intake -- I'm surprised you're interested in home brewing. Kind of like when you see mechanics with those black work gloves on... It's like, c'man man -- comes with the territory.

Moreover, it's an excellent excuse to keep yourself on a solid exercise regimen. If you know you have a passion for beer and wish to drink it on a near daily basis, gotta do some jumping jacks. Keep breakfast light and carb-less, lots of water each day with turkey sandwich on wheat... sky's the limit for dinner, within reason.

A brand new local beer bar with 36 taps just opened up 10 minutes from my house. I've been averaging 3 pints a day to complete their "Around The World" challenge. Drink any 36 pints (they rotate often) in any amount of time and you get a tshirt. I plan on burying it in 2 weeks.

I've upped my cardio and actually lost a couple pounds... as well as dollars :/

 

[eppo]

Go check out a bmr calculator. Then there is a multiplier for your activity level. That way you find out how many cals your body burns a day. Subtract 500 cals from that and you should lose a pound a week, about. If some of those calories come from beer, so be it. But you will lose some weight.

 

[motobrewer]

as I said before...

go buy the British Bitter kit from northern brewer

Beersmith gave me 142 calories. 3.5%. It's a great beer.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewi...ract-ale-kits/british-bitter-extract-kit.html

 

[Saccharomyces]

I contemplated the same question not for diet reasons but because I want something really light for the hot summer in Texas. I'm planning to brew a pile of peach Berliner Weiss (something like DFH Festina Peche but lighter) that will clock in around 3% ABV. Since it's sour, I don't expect to have the urge to pound pint after pint of it either, a couple of those and I will be quite happy.

 

[ArcaneXor]

Since it's sour, I don't expect to have the urge to pound pint after pint of it either, a couple of those and I will be quite happy.

This stuff is deceptively wonderful on a hot afternoon - you'll find yourself restrained only by the enamel of your teeth crying out in pain!

While I prefer it "plain", Berliner Weisse is also an excellent "cocktail" beer, if that is the right word. You can mix it with sodas, sparkling water, fruit syrups, fruit juices, etc and get something delicious out of it. I like the Berliner Weisse/Diet Coke combination on ice, for instance. You can drink that stuff all day long!

 

[fishnfever]

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/produ...d=335&osCsid=8303e28153b5cea36821fc0da3abc5ac

 

[ecojack]

The low carb recipe from austinhomebrew.com includes Bean-o tabs. I guess that Beano converts the sugars into into either complex (or simple...i dunno) sugars that the yeast cant convert into alcohol or CO2.

I made it with some blueberries and bottled too early...bottle bombs...

 

[impatient]

as I said before...

go buy the British Bitter kit from northern brewer

Beersmith gave me 142 calories. 3.5%. It's a great beer.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewi...ract-ale-kits/british-bitter-extract-kit.html

I have only done 1 kit. I'm cheap and stick to AG. I could convert it. do you have the ingredient list?

 

[impatient]

I sure am glad someone here was talking about Hops Direct. Those Cascades in pellet are $8.75 a pound!

http://www.hopsdirect.com/detail.src?SKU=HCASP&Category=Pellet Hops

Same price after shipping and you would have 13 oz. left over.

Do they have whole hops for the same price? The pellets always plug up my filter.

 

[Stuntman]

Do they have whole hops for the same price? The pellets always plug up my filter.

http://www.hopsdirect.com/detail.src?SKU=HCAS&Category=Leaf Hops

eleven bucks plus shipping.

Learning how to wash yeast as well....My brew bill will be so cheap!

 

[Bernie Brewer]

1 lb of corn sugar! Houston we have a problem.

No, there's no problem. I double-dog dare you to brew it without being able to taste the flaws. If you can't do it, then don't criticize.



OP- Brew this

Guaranteed to please the BMC masses

 

[impatient]

http://www.hopsdirect.com/detail.src?SKU=HCAS&Category=Leaf Hops

eleven bucks plus shipping.

Learning how to wash yeast as well....My brew bill will be so cheap!

Thanks. I am gettting some rhizomes in a couple months to grow my own. For now, I have 2 lbs on the way.

Thought about the bail you know. The cops might think I am selling bud.

 

[impatient]

No, there's no problem. I double-dog dare you to brew it without being able to taste the flaws. If you can't do it, then don't criticize.



OP- Brew this

Guaranteed to please the BMC masses

If you read the whole article, you would have seen that I have tried it.