Light Ales?

[Wavewalker]

A friend of mine wants to get into brewing, but he likes light beers - mostly crappy macrobrew, pilsners, though he likes some wheats too. I'm not really sure why he wants to brew, but I guess he needs a hobby. In any case, lagering is out of the question for a while at least, so what are some good light ale styles for someone like this? I'm thinking wheats and light pale ales, but anything else?

 

[phenry]

Blonde and cream ales would be my first guess. Get him to try commercial examples of each style, so that way he's only invested in 6 bottles instead of 5 gallons.

 

[FensterBos]

I was wondering the same thing and everyone recommended blondes, cream ales, and kolsch. I'll by making a kolsch for my next brew since it would be difficult for me to keep beer in lager temperatures.

 

[brettwasbtd]

BJCP style 6 - Contains Cream Ales, Blondes, Kolsch (taste best with some cold conditioning, but can be made without) and American Wheats. Your friend may also enjoy scottish ales, witbiers, and hefeweizens. If this person primarily drinks BMC, then I would suggest the cream ale or blonde ale. Also, tell them to do some research by trying some other beers. Is this a case of not trying other styles, or does you friend just not like hoppy beers?

 

[mdwmonster]

A honey ale might be a good choice. Usually not too hoppy, nor too malty. The honey makes for a "lighter" flavor.

Kölsch can also have a lighter flavor. You could also try making a Kölsch but using a different yeast strand.

Just some thoughts.

 

[HoboBrewery]

hef and light ale are really his limitations if he doesn't like heavy tasting or dark or bitter beers. i agree with you- if he doesn't like real beer then why would he waste his time making real beer? id recommend he make a 5 gallon batch of hef like this:


6.6 LBs wheat liquid malt extract
1 oz Hallertau hops at the beginning of the boil
Wyeast Brand Weihenstephaner Yeast (my favorite yeast for this)

So simple, so good, but if he doesn't like real beer, you may just want to tell him that coors light is cheaper than his efforts.

such a blasphemous thing to say on this forum, but if people don't know good beer, why start by MAKING it?

 

[spagyric]

Maybe home brewing will expand his tastes. Before I started brewing I didn't really like hoppy beers, but now I love hops. I've come to appreciate all of the different dimensions a beer can have whereas before, beer was often too this or that (bitter, heavy, hoppy, etc).

As far as the op goes, kolsch would probably be my first choice. It's clean and light like a lager. A friend of mine wants to make pilsner with me, but since I don't have any way to lager I was thinking of trying a kolsch. Blonde or American hef like others suggested would be good choices too.

 

[kpr121]

Maybe home brewing will expand his tastes. Before I started brewing I didn't really like hoppy beers, but now I love hops. I've come to appreciate all of the different dimensions a beer can have whereas before, beer was often too this or that (bitter, heavy, hoppy, etc).

I tend to agree with this. When I started homebrewing I thought that Sam Adams Boston Lager was a "dark" beer. My 4th batch was a pecan porter with Johnnie Walker soaked oak chips.

 

[Wavewalker]

Thanks everyone, you guys gave me some good options. I think I'll advise him to do a kolsch first. Like some people suggested, I'm hopeful that brewing will expand his tastes. In general, though, he doesn't usually enjoy the beers I bring over (usually something over 9%, and very flavorful), so I don't know what will happen with him, but there's hope. He likes Corona, which is awful of course, but he also like Sam Adams, so that's a start. I think he just feels like he needs a hobby, and he knows I've been brewing, and I guess he thinks my beers are alright. If he didn't have lots of money, I'd just tell him, like someone suggested, to buy coors light instead. But this way, I'll get extra practice (he'll need help getting started), I'll get to drink more homebrew, and if we're both lucky, he'll start to appreciate decent beer.

Thanks for the thoughts, all. I like the cream ale and blonde ideas, too. I think we have plenty to get started with.