kilkenny irish cream ale

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mikec68

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Does anyone happen to have a recipe for an Irish Cream Ale similar to Kilkenny? Thats one of my favorite brews. Unfortunately it isn't available in the US. (Living near Detroit, I can hop over to Windsor, Canada to get my fix!) Just wondering if anyone else came up with anything close to it...
 
while I've never had it, it seems to be an irish red ale that is served on beer gas. So the best you're going to be able to do is come up with an irish red recipe. If you want to invest a lot in kegging and a beer gas mix with nitro tap, I guess you could make it more authentic.
 
I don't have a recipe, unfortunately. It's one I'd definitely like to clone. One time, I had some out of bottles instead of on tap, and it was very different. Much more like an Irish Red, it didn't have the thick head that it had out of the tap. On tap, the beer is definitely one of my favorites, ever. Good luck! If you find a clone, post back. If it is an extract clone, I'll try it.
 
FYI for anyone in Denver, I just found this on tap at the Irish Hound on 6th. Much relief, as I'd been questing for another pint of Kilkenny's for many years.
 
Kilkeny Ale is straight up Smithwicks on nitrogen. They just modified the recipe a little to up the ABV and IBU. The tour guide said IBUs in ball park of Guinness, ABV in the area of 5-5.5%. They said the standard Smithwicks recipe creates a medicinal flavor when the ABV is increased, but no one seems to notice the flavor when its poured from nitrogen.
 
Kind of an old thread, but I found this recipe for Kilkenny:

Original Gravity: 1048 11.9° Plato
5 US gallons

Pale Malt: 8.1lb
Crystal Malt: 13.16oz (LHBS laughed at this detail)

Start of Boil:
Challenger hops - 0.75oz
Northdown hops (seeded) - 0.70oz

Last 15 minutes of boil:
Fuggle hops - 0.35oz
Irish Moss - 0.30oz

Last 5 minutes of boil:
Golding hops - 0.35oz

Single infusion mash, top fermenting yeast

Mash schedule - 65° C - 90 minutes (149°F)
Boil time - 90 minutes
Racking gravity - 1011 2.8° Plato
Alcohol content: 4.9% ABV 3.9% by weight
Bitterness 33 EBU
Colour 30 EBC
 
They have brought the beer to the US. I was a beer festival in baltimore and they were demo'ing it. its now found in the local irish pubs around here. So keep your hopes up and maybe it will find its way west
 
Jesus! I just had some of this beer and it is delicious. It is on tap in the local pretend Irish Pub in San Diego.
Must Brew Some!
 
I went to Ireland on my honeymoon 5 years ago, and SWMBO and I fell in love with this beer. I'd love to be able to clone it.
 
If you have BeerSmith there is a Kilkenny clone in the sample recipes. I don't knwo what its like, but I saw it when i was looking for a clone of this way back. I gave up since I figure unless you can do the nitrogen pour, its not really worth it.
 
I gave up since I figure unless you can do the nitrogen pour, its not really worth it.

Pretty much. It's still a decent Irish Red. I've made 5 batches of the recipe I posted and everyone seems to really like it. I do a 60 minute boil, so I've reduced some of the hops. Still, the IBUs that Beersmith calculates is definitely on the high side for an Irish Red. I use Wyeast 1084.
 
I agree. This is a wonderful beer. I had it when I was in Budapest and again when I was in Berlin. I was ecstatic when I found it in Toronto, but I've yet to find it in the States. So - as a homebrewer, I figured I must clone it. You are correct though, it is served with nitrogen / beer gas, so you won't have that affect. However, I keg all my beers now and I have a "Creamer" faucet, so while it doesn't last like it would with beer gas, you do get the waterfall visual. Just don't blink, because it will be gone :) What you're left with, using this type of faucet is a nice thick creamy head at the top. I have my CO2 set to 12 lbs and let it carb for two weeks. It's at the top of my re-brew list. Of the five faucets I have, I've decided this is a a brew I will always have on tap.

The recipe below is for all grain, adjusted for no sparge method. So, keep in mind you'll have to adjust back some of your grains if you're doing batch sparging or fly sparging:


8.48 lbs Belgian Pale
3.64 lbs Belgian Wheat Malt
1.81 lbs Carared
0.49 lbs Flaked Oats
0.11 lbs Belgian Chocolate Malt
0.10 lbs Black Roasted Barley

0.6 oz Northern Brewer (Pellets 60 min.)
0.1 oz Fuggles (Pellets 15 min.)
0.1 oz Fuggles (Pellets 1 min)

White Labs WLP004 Irish Ale Yeast

Target Mash Temperature 152 deg F

Target Boil Volume 6.59 gallons for a 5.00 gallon batch.


Let me know what you think!
 
I would love to get this on an extract recipe. I have not had a better beer since I've had this in Ireland in 2007.

I looked high and low for it when I returned state side. I have found it at two pubs in Denver but since they have removed it cuz it didn't sell cuz no one knows about it. I heard it's at the Rail Yard.

Anyone have an extract recipe?

Thanks,
Lorne
 
So here is the key behind the infamous Kilkenny, home brew, nitrogen injecting, problem... :ban: Stick it in a whip cream dispenser You can buy the thing at wal-mart or canadian tire. It's for pie's or whatever. Anyway stick your homebrew in there, Charge the nitrogen ... and dispense!

Enjoy!

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