light rye?

[GreasyGuitar]

so, i have yet to find a rye that wasn't buried in hops. i;ve heard that rye needs the hops to balance it, but i've only seen super-hopped ryes (don't get me started on over-hopping). figured i'd take a stab at something drinkable while poolside this summer. opinions?

(all-grain, stovetop, deathbrewer style)
batch size: 2.5 gallons

s.g 1.049
f.g 1.013
color 6.2 srm
ibu 25.8

4 lbs marris otter
1 lb rye malt
1 lb rye, flaked
4 oz munich malt
4 oz vienna malt

1/3 oz northern brewer 60 min
1/4 oz cascade 15 min

wlp 028 edinburgh ale

 

[beesy]

let us know how it goes. i am a self proclaimed hop head and brew this weekend is going to be a 7.5-8% abv, 90ish ibu rye ipa (hop rod'ish). It would be nice to have somthing toned downed for summer. I say that as cashing out a 6 of Southern Tier Hop Sun thinking i feel like i only drank 2-3 beers. Wondering what the flaked rye adds??

 

[GreasyGuitar]

i'll most likely brew it this weekend, unless a more rye-experienced brewer advises a change in it. i'll let you know how it turns out. btw, founder's red rye was the only rye brew that i could find at the beer store by my house. 70 ibu, and all i could taste was the amarillo hops in it. it's like they didn't even bother with malt and rye. just boiled some hops in water and added some vodka to get the abv to 6.6%. don't get me wrong...i love hops, but not at that ratio.

oh yeah...i haven't used rye before, but from what i've read, the flaked rye is spicier than the malted variety and also adds some head retention. and, since i've never brewed with rye, i might find out why i can only find it used commercially with massive ibu counts...

 

[david_42]

Looks good. My Bent Rod Rye is more bitter and somewhat hoppier, but what you have should bring the rye to the front.

 

[GreasyGuitar]

cool. think it'll be too strong on the rye with my ibu count lowered that much, or does it sound fairly balanced? i'm clueless when it comes to rye (obviously).

 

[DeathBrewer]

Looks like a great recipe to me...nice malty backbone and flavor, just enough rye to really bring it out in the flavor but not overpowering, northern brewer is a great bittering hop and will add slight flavor.

I'd mash low (~150°F) to make this dry and crisp, especially if you're going to drink it poolside. That edinburgh ale yeast won't ferment out completely, either...so between that and the marris otter you will have a malty beer.

If you really wanted dry and crisp, I would go with american 2-row and maybe even throw in ½-1 lb of flaked corn to lighten the body. Or use the corn with the marris otter for that grainy, malty flavor combined with the light body.

 

[GreasyGuitar]

good points, Death. definitely going to mash low on this one. how about changing the yeast strain? i only picked that one because it was mentioned in the 6.6.06 hbt brew thread. any favorites for rye-based brews?

 

[DeathBrewer]

S-05, WLP001 or nottingham would be my choices, in that order.

The edinburgh is a good yeast, but not for a dry, refreshing style.

Ferment in the mid 60s if you can.

 

[Chello]

The Rye Pale Ale recipe in my drop down is lightly hopped for a Pale Ale and is my house staple.

 

[GreasyGuitar]

i must have not been awake completely when i was perusing the recipe database, Chello. mine is pretty similar to yours...well, after i followed Death's suggestion on the s-05. stopped at the lhbs on the way home from work, and picked up my grains. i have odd hops in the freezer, so that's partly why i chose what i did there. good thing about brewing small batches is leftover hops. that, and having to brew once or twice a week to keep the pipeline filled

 

[user 22118]

I find that I like the Malted Rye to be a little more present and so would suggest taking the marris otter down a pound and upping the Rye a pound. Then you are sitting at about even with rye and MO. The rye flavor always, always comes out first and is a little strange tasting early in its life. Give it some time and it will move into the beer.

Let us know how it turns out none the less though

 

[GreasyGuitar]

thanks for the tips, all. seems like there were a few lightly hopped ryes that i had overlooked in the database. with the fairly light grain and hops, i was thinking about 10-12 days @ 65*f and then 3-4 days @ 40*f before bottling, but i'll give it 3 or 4 weeks in primary to meld. i'll post my results after i taste it. thanks again.