Looking for a new beer style to brew, any recommendations?

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Tyler B

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Hello people! The title says it all. I'm looking for a new beer style to explore/brew. I love imperial stouts. I also really enjoy double IPAs, NEIPAs, sours, and most barrel aged beers. On occasion, I enjoy a refreshing kolsch, wheat beer, or a session IPA when the weather/meal calls for it.

Brown or amber ales, light stouts and porters, and light lagers leave me underwhelmed and unimpressed more often than not.

I haven't ventured in to the world of lagers yet and honestly don't know much about them. I considered a doppelbock or Vienna. Even thought an eisbock might be fun. I also considered a Baltic porter.

What do you think? Any suggestions or recommendations?
 
I've been playing with Roggenbier lately for an interesting change. They are similar to a German Weizen/wheat beer but use malted rye instead of wheat. It's been an interesting experiment over a couple of batches and I definitely have some more playing to do. You might give that a shot for something different.
 
Why not choose one of the styles you're not a big fan of and explore the recipe variations within that style. For example I'm not a fan of commercial brown ales either, but I have a rye brown ale with caraway seeds recipe that is one of my all time favorite beers, and I brew it every year. I've never had a commercial brown that comes anywhere close.
 
I'm on a rye kick lately. Like stouts? Ever made a rye stout? You like IPAs? Ever try a rye IPA? Or as suggested already a rogenbier.

If you're not a fan of rye, try with something else like wheat or oats or corn etc etc....
 
Why not choose one of the styles you're not a big fan of and explore the recipe variations within that style. For example I'm not a fan of commercial brown ales either, but I have a rye brown ale with caraway seeds recipe that is one of my all time favorite beers, and I brew it every year. I've never had a commercial brown that comes anywhere close.
This. You’re a homebrewer. Pick a style and make it your own. Unless you’re entering competitions, or on a mission to win the approval of the self-anointed Internet gods of homebrewing, create “Tyler B’s Badass Brown”. Or something.
 
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I'm on a rye kick lately. Like stouts? Ever made a rye stout? You like IPAs? Ever try a rye IPA? Or as suggested already a rogenbier.

If you're not a fan of rye, try with something else like wheat or oats or corn etc etc....

Half baked reference? Enhancement brewer?

 
Thanks for all of the recommenations! I love the ideas and thoughtful responses. I did brew a hazelnut brown ale that I enjoyed (similar to Rogue's). As a homebrewers, that is how I usually approach beers. I try to make them my own. Sometimes I just don't want a full keg or I don't feel like spending the time to brew something I'm not excited about.

It just so happens that I brewed a stout with rye recently (first time using it) and definitely need to explore rye as an ingredient. I'll give the rye suggestions a try. How much is too much? Is it sticky in the mash like wheat?

I also talked about malting my own corn with a friend so that will give me a chance to explore mating a bit. Maybe a Mexican lager.

The more that I think about it, I should really focus on ingredients instead of beer styles, like Velnerj said.

Thanks again!
 
Thanks for all of the recommenations! I love the ideas and thoughtful responses. I did brew a hazelnut brown ale that I enjoyed (similar to Rogue's). As a homebrewers, that is how I usually approach beers. I try to make them my own. Sometimes I just don't want a full keg or I don't feel like spending the time to brew something I'm not excited about.

It just so happens that I brewed a stout with rye recently (first time using it) and definitely need to explore rye as an ingredient. I'll give the rye suggestions a try. How much is too much? Is it sticky in the mash like wheat?

I also talked about malting my own corn with a friend so that will give me a chance to explore mating a bit. Maybe a Mexican lager.

The more that I think about it, I should really focus on ingredients instead of beer styles, like Velnerj said.

Thanks again!
My rye brown ale recipe has about 20% rye malt in it. It is a little bit gummy, but not so much that I've ever had an issue with a stuck sparge.

Enjoy the exploration!
 
Brown ales can be very complex and very tasty. Same with a light dry Irish Stout. Theres a great recipe I came across that used flaked rye instead of flaked barley in a dry Irish Stout.
Or its also fun to get into historical beer styles and recipes. There are many out there and its fun to try and source all the ingredients and make your process close to the original.
 
Brown ales can be very complex and very tasty. Same with a light dry Irish Stout. Theres a great recipe I came across that used flaked rye instead of flaked barley in a dry Irish Stout.
Or its also fun to get into historical beer styles and recipes. There are many out there and its fun to try and source all the ingredients and make your process close to the original.
I also like the idea of historical beer styles. I was reading about one of George Washington's recipe the other day and it piqued my interest.
 
Thanks for all of the recommenations! I love the ideas and thoughtful responses. I did brew a hazelnut brown ale that I enjoyed (similar to Rogue's). As a homebrewers, that is how I usually approach beers. I try to make them my own. Sometimes I just don't want a full keg or I don't feel like spending the time to brew something I'm not excited about.

It just so happens that I brewed a stout with rye recently (first time using it) and definitely need to explore rye as an ingredient. I'll give the rye suggestions a try. How much is too much? Is it sticky in the mash like wheat?

I also talked about malting my own corn with a friend so that will give me a chance to explore mating a bit. Maybe a Mexican lager.

The more that I think about it, I should really focus on ingredients instead of beer styles, like Velnerj said.

Thanks again!
The rye is even stickier than wheat. An official roggenbier is at least 50% rye, but I have certainly seen recipes using less and if you're just adding rye to something else, then however much you want is fine. 10%-20% is what I have seen generally recommended. The recipe I've been tinkering with for the last couple of batches is 57% rye (off the top of my head), with most of that coming from 3L light rye and then a few percent chocolate rye. I do full volume BIAB and so don't have to worry about sparging/lautering stuff getting gummed up, but It's definitely gummy and sticky and my mash efficiency has been way down compared to my previous wheat and all-barley batches.
 
Why not choose one of the styles you're not a big fan of and explore the recipe variations within that style. For example I'm not a fan of commercial brown ales either, but I have a rye brown ale with caraway seeds recipe that is one of my all time favorite beers, and I brew it every year. I've never had a commercial brown that comes anywhere close.
Care to Share? I had a one off, limited edition beer from Goose Island a few years back that I have been dreaming about ever since. It was a strong brown ale with caraway that tasted like fresh loaf of dark rye bread. It was one of my top 5 beers of all time. I’m curious if your recipe might get me in the ballpark.
 
Care to Share? I had a one off, limited edition beer from Goose Island a few years back that I have been dreaming about ever since. It was a strong brown ale with caraway that tasted like fresh loaf of dark rye bread. It was one of my top 5 beers of all time. I’m curious if your recipe might get me in the ballpark.
Sure.

5.5 G batch
mash @ 152* for 60 min

Grains
6.5# 2 row 51%
3# rye malt 23.5%
2# biscuit 15.7%
.75# chocolate malt 350L 5.9%
.5# C60 3.9%

Hops
.75 oz Columbus @60
.25 oz Columbus @ 20
1 oz Willamette @ 5

Yeast
Wlp007 dry English ale
Ferment @ 67*

The last batch, I added 0.5 oz of crushed caraway seeds @ flame out and steeped in a hop bag for 15 minutes before removing and chilling. The caraway spiciness was subtle, but delicious. It added a nice earthy bitterness that complimented the hops and an earthy spicy flavor reminiscient of pumpernickel bread. The caraway flavor seemed to dissipate fairly quickly though, so in the next batch I might add a little more 0.75 oz maybe, or add them a little earlier in the boil, maybe @ 5-10 minutes from the end, to see if I can get a little more flavor and longevity out of them.

I love experimenting!
 
Sure.

5.5 G batch
mash @ 152* for 60 min

Grains
6.5# 2 row 51%
3# rye malt 23.5%
2# biscuit 15.7%
.75# chocolate malt 350L 5.9%
.5# C60 3.9%

Hops
.75 oz Columbus @60
.25 oz Columbus @ 20
1 oz Willamette @ 5

Yeast
Wlp007 dry English ale
Ferment @ 67*

The last batch, I added 0.5 oz of crushed caraway seeds @ flame out and steeped in a hop bag for 15 minutes before removing and chilling. The caraway spiciness was subtle, but delicious. It added a nice earthy bitterness that complimented the hops and an earthy spicy flavor reminiscient of pumpernickel bread. The caraway flavor seemed to dissipate fairly quickly though, so in the next batch I might add a little more 0.75 oz maybe, or add them a little earlier in the boil, maybe @ 5-10 minutes from the end, to see if I can get a little more flavor and longevity out of them.

I love experimenting!
Thanks.

probably be a few weeks before I can work it into my lineup, but I’m definitely trying this.
 
I mainly brew belgian stuff so that's what I'm recommending haha I'm even considering the possibility to limit myself to Belgian yeast strains for any style that I brew, which really are stouts and Imp Stouts, out of belgian stuff, I barely brew any other thing
 
I mainly brew belgian stuff so that's what I'm recommending haha I'm even considering the possibility to limit myself to Belgian yeast strains for any style that I brew, which really are stouts and Imp Stouts, out of belgian stuff, I barely brew any other thing
I do like some Belgian beers. Unfortunately, I can't get liquid yeast here and I really think the yeast is what makes a good Belgian beer. Any dry yeasts you like? I tried BE-256 and wasn't a big fan. I have some T-58 that I used in a kettle sour, but haven't tried it on its own. I successfully stepped up Chimay yeast from a bottle once but I also grew some bacteria and a pellicle so I didn't end up using it. Maybe I should try that again.
 
The rye is even stickier than wheat. An official roggenbier is at least 50% rye, but I have certainly seen recipes using less and if you're just adding rye to something else, then however much you want is fine. 10%-20% is what I have seen generally recommended. The recipe I've been tinkering with for the last couple of batches is 57% rye (off the top of my head), with most of that coming from 3L light rye and then a few percent chocolate rye. I do full volume BIAB and so don't have to worry about sparging/lautering stuff getting gummed up, but It's definitely gummy and sticky and my mash efficiency has been way down compared to my previous wheat and all-barley batches.
Thanks for the feedback! This is good to know.
 
I also like the idea of historical beer styles. I was reading about one of George Washington's recipe the other day and it piqued my interest.

You might be cautious about following his scribbled directions for a "field beer" done with oats and a simple cover over the fermented mash. That one is missing barley and a good yeast along with proper mashing and temp control. Oats done without proper cooking and malting or a barley malt will be weak and pretty bitter.
As brewers we have it pretty darned good 200-some years later. I look back at some of the great historical recipes and realize there must have been some real stinkers back then everyone forgot about - and we know why.
 
You might be cautious about following his scribbled directions for a "field beer" done with oats and a simple cover over the fermented mash. That one is missing barley and a good yeast along with proper mashing and temp control. Oats done without proper cooking and malting or a barley malt will be weak and pretty bitter.
As brewers we have it pretty darned good 200-some years later. I look back at some of the great historical recipes and realize there must have been some real stinkers back then everyone forgot about - and we know why.
I'm planning on brewing a Horner Bier later on this year, any tip on that as it is a 100% malted oats beer?

I will substitute the cream of tartar for a pitch of L. Plantarum
 
Yeah, I'd most likely do something inspired by historical brews. Not necessarily strictly adhere to historical recipes.

Re: Brewing with 100% Oat Malt...
A quick Google search pulled up this article:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Vaw3Im55VQ5Gb40qAuyY_B7IH&cshid=1603195682485[/URL]
Pretty fascinating read actually. Definitely worth looking at. If nothing else skim through the abstract and conclusion. I found the comparisons of total proteins, protein profiles, total nitrogen, and FAN in oat wort and barley wort particularly interesting.

It looks like there are a few notable differences to be expected with mash pH, extract efficiencies, etc but it certainly looks doable. If you give it a try, let us know how it turns out.
 
Since I know you like hops, have your brewed a NZ Pilsner yet? They are awesome. You get to showcase beautiful elegance of NZ / AUS hops with the subtle notes of Pilsner malt, all cleaned up by a refreshing crispness from the lager yeast.
Black lagers are also a lot of fun. I love my schwarzbier. I’ve only been able to brew it twice but it’s beautifully dialed in.
 
For a lager type, a dunkle would seem fitting. There are some other german darks as well, but dunkles are great beers.

For an ale type, and english ESB may work
 
Since I know you like hops, have your brewed a NZ Pilsner yet? They are awesome. You get to showcase beautiful elegance of NZ / AUS hops with the subtle notes of Pilsner malt, all cleaned up by a refreshing crispness from the lager yeast.
Black lagers are also a lot of fun. I love my schwarzbier. I’ve only been able to brew it twice but it’s beautifully dialed in.
I was just thinking I'd like to get my hands on some NZ hops. Was considering another NEIPA, as well as a Czech Pilsner, so a NZ pilsner sounds like fun.

For a lager type, a dunkle would seem fitting. There are some other german darks as well, but dunkles are great beers.

For an ale type, and english ESB may work
I just brewed a couple ESBs with my friend. I've never had a proper English Bitter so I'm not sure how close we were but an English friend enjoyed it.
 
Also, I'd love to try the 30% crystal malt brown ale. Thanks for sharing!
 
Hello people! The title says it all. I'm looking for a new beer style to explore/brew. I love imperial stouts. I also really enjoy double IPAs, NEIPAs, sours, and most barrel aged beers. On occasion, I enjoy a refreshing kolsch, wheat beer, or a session IPA when the weather/meal calls for it.

Brown or amber ales, light stouts and porters, and light lagers leave me underwhelmed and unimpressed more often than not.

I haven't ventured in to the world of lagers yet and honestly don't know much about them. I considered a doppelbock or Vienna. Even thought an eisbock might be fun. I also considered a Baltic porter.

What do you think? Any suggestions or recommendations?
I always like the challenge of brewing styles that I never find a good commercial example of. Then see if you can make something you actually think is good. Try to hit all the BJCP notes on the style or push just slightly outside those lines so your not brewing a totally different style beer. When people ask what it is you can say it is a "what ever style, or like what ever style".
 
I only skimmed the thread a bit, but when I burn out on hoppy beers and already have a stock of malt forward beers, I generally look towards the yeast. Try a hefeweizen? I really enjoy dunkelweizen, myself. I had reasonable good success with a very simple and bastardized Belgian. Or at least it was different enough from anything else I had brewed previously.
 
I only skimmed the thread a bit, but when I burn out on hoppy beers and already have a stock of malt forward beers, I generally look towards the yeast. Try a hefeweizen? I really enjoy dunkelweizen, myself. I had reasonable good success with a very simple and bastardized Belgian. Or at least it was different enough from anything else I had brewed previously.
I'm about to do a heffeweizen actually. I usually plan my next two or three brews and order my ingredients a few weeks in advance. The heff will be new for me but it's already on deck. So I'm actually looking for what to brew about three brews out.
 
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Do you want to learn more about brewing? Do you want to improve the beers you already make?

Personally I’d say focus on process and not ingredients if you really want your beers to get better. The best beers in the world are often made with the simplest recipes. Often times It’s the process that defines the flavor more than the ingredients themselves.

If you have temp control and can keg then I would suggest going down the lager path if you’re interested in improving all your beers. Proper lager is all about process and sweating the tiniest details. The more you dive into the process of true lager brewing the more you’ll understand about brewing as a whole and your beers across the board will improve I guarantee you.

However If you don’t have temp control and don’t keg then don’t bother.
 
Do you want to learn more about brewing? Do you want to improve the beers you already make?

Personally I’d say focus on process and not ingredients if you really want your beers to get better. The best beers in the world are often made with the simplest recipes. Often times It’s the process that defines the flavor more than the ingredients themselves.

If you have temp control and can keg then I would suggest going down the lager path if you’re interested in improving all your beers. Proper lager is all about process and sweating the tiniest details. The more you dive into the process of true lager brewing the more you’ll understand about brewing as a whole and your beers across the board will improve I guarantee you.

However If you don’t have temp control and don’t keg then don’t bother.
I'm mostly interested in exploring new styles and by extension the ingredients and processes related to brewing those beers. I'm happy with my beers and processes. I don't brew for competitions or really for anyone else other than my wife. That's not to say I don't share with others, just that i don't care if others don't like my beer. I like it. I'm sure I could improve my beers but that's not what I'm actively seeking.

Brewing is a fun hobby that gives me a creative outlet and a keg of beer at the end of the day. The journey of learning about various beer styles, their history, ingredients, and brewing techniques is why I'm interested in the hobby. Not necessarily to brew the absolute best finished product. Brewing different styles has the added benefit of indirectly helping me improve my processes.

For example, learning to brew NEIPAs has taught me a lot about water chemistry, types of hops, hopping techniques, oxidation, etc. As I prepare for my heffeweizen brew, I'm reading/learning about new yeasts, different types of wheat, various mashing techniques, temperature rests, etc.

I guess I just enjoy improving my craft through the exploration of beers that I'm not very familiar with. Hopefully I stumble on something I enjoy as much as I like RIS.
 
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