New brewer needing recipe help

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deadguy

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Hey guys,

I'm a pretty new brewer with 2 extract w/ specialty malt brews under my belt. So far I've done an IPA that is finished conditioning and is pretty good and i've waiting on a quasi-california common (done with ale yeast though)

Next up is a Honey Blonde Ale. Here is the recipe i've worked out so far:

5gal batch:

4# extra-light malt syrup
.5# light crystal (10l)
2# Clover Honey

.5 oz Perle (5.0%) hops (bittering)
.3 oz Perle (flavor)
.2 oz Perle (aroma)

Safale us-05 yeast (american ale yeast)

I chose the Perle to get some floral notes that I think will work well with the taste of fermented honey.

Questions:
Does the hops bill seem appropriate? I have two ounces of the perle, so if I had to add more it would be fine.

If I wanted to get some ginger taste in there, what would you guys recommend? How much and how to infuse it. I do not want it to be overpoweringly gingery, just a nice spicy note.

Thanks for any help guys, nice to be part of your community :D
 
I get an OG of 1.044 with your ingredients and about 16 IBU. Is this in the ballpark of what you are planning for?
 
if you could put a time frame on your hops it might help

the choices look ok

this is just a thought ,

with hop additions at

30 min
15 min
and flame out
for a 5 gallon batch you are looking at about 10.5-11 IBU's
with a O.G 1.045-1.055 depending on your extract

looks like this will make a nice summer brew
 
I plugged your recipe into BeerSmith, looks to be within style guidline more or less. You can download a free trial copy of Beer Smith. Just do a search. Not sure about the ginger, maybe someone else can chime in.

Honey Blonde Ale

Type: Extract
Date: 7/2/2008
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Size: 4.20 gal

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
4 lbs Pale Liquid Extract (8.0 SRM) Extract 61.54 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 7.69 %
0.50 oz Pearle [5.00 %] (60 min) Hops 9.9 IBU
0.25 oz Pearle [5.00 %] (30 min) Hops 3.8 IBU
0.25 oz Pearle [5.00 %] (0 min) Hops -
2 lbs Honey (1.0 SRM) Sugar 30.77 %
1 Pkgs American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056) Yeast-Ale

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.043 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.010 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.24 %
Bitterness: 13.7 IBU Calories: 43
Est Color: 6.1 SRM Color:



BJCP Guidlines are as follows



Blonde Ale
Light Hybrid Beer


Type: Ale
Category Number: 6B
Original Gravity: 1.038-1.054 SG Color: 3.0-6.0 SRM
Final Gravity: 1.008-1.013 SG Bitterness: 15.0-28.0 IBU
Carbonation: 2.4-2.8 vols Alcohol by Volume: 3.80-5.50 %
Description: All malt, dry, crisp beer approximating a lager in overall character. Enjoying a resurgence at may microbreweries as an alternative to American style lagers.
Profile: Dry, light to medium body with light malty sweetness. Low to medium hop bitterness with minimal aroma. Slight fruit flavor. Light yellow to golden blonde color with no chill haze. Med to high carbonation.
Ingredients: Generally all malt. Sometimes uses up to 25% wheat or sugar adjuncts. Low hop rate. American, light English or Kolsch yeast. Some have honey, spices or fruit added.
Examples: Goose Island Blonde Ale, Redhook Blonde, Sea Dog Windjammer Blonde, Catamount Gold, Hollywood Blonde, Pete's Wicked Summer Brew
 
More hops! More Hops! It sucks when you make a batch and theres just barely enough hops, so make sure you got enough. Or it will be this super sweet weirdness.
 
Keep in mind also that the honey adds very fermentable sugar and a little color but minimal flavor. The ales I have made with one or two pounds of honey always seem to finish with a very low gravity but do not have a honey flavor. I have been told to get honey flavor use honey malt, but I have not tried it.
 
Keep in mind also that the honey adds very fermentable sugar and a little color but minimal flavor. The ales I have made with one or two pounds of honey always seem to finish with a very low gravity but do not have a honey flavor. I have been told to get honey flavor use honey malt, but I have not tried it.

yeah, i'm using it to boost alcohol content and lighten the body, not to really flavor, atleast not to sweeten. I'm hoping there will be some floral notes, but if not i'm sure it will be fine.

Righlander, would you reccomend more bittering or flavor hops, or just more of both? I do like a hoppy beer, so i'll probably just end up winging it on brew day and using the whole 2ozs.

Hey scout, thanks for the heads up on beersmith. I just downloaded it and am going to be toying around with it. Sweet program :D

I'm still debating the ginger. Read that using a lot of ginger in the beginning of the boil will boil off most of the spice, while leaving a lot of the subtler tastes of the ginger. I'm thinking I might do 1# ginger in the beginning of the boil. Still debating on using any towards the end, or a tiny bit (<1oz) in the secondary, but we'll see how that goes. I'm also going to be doing some reading about late addition on the malt to keep the color lighter. One of the things I want out of this beer is a nice blonde color. My IPA turned out wayyyy darker in color than I wanted it, but it's a good beer none-the-less. This time I want to improve and nail both taste and color.

thanks for the help guys :D
 
The subject should read "beginner thinking about making up my own recipe needs to be reminded that sticking with proven recipes for a while would probably be better". Sorry, I know it's harsh but when you only have a few recipes under your belt, it's easy to make a medicre beer that will discourage you. Pick up a copy of Brewing Classic Styles and make a few of those. I wish someone gave me the same advice when I was in your shoes. I made a lot of sh!tty beer.
 
Im with you bobby m. Ive been brewing for two years now and a year of AG. It seems the more simple the beer i make the better it comes out. Practicing sure is fun though. I have an endless supply of honey (grandpa keeps bees) and have used it a couple times. I have found that while using it it needs to age. I made a honey wheat beer that while green tasted horrible but after two months it was a lot better.
 
The subject should read "beginner thinking about making up my own recipe needs to be reminded that sticking with proven recipes for a while would probably be better". Sorry, I know it's harsh but when you only have a few recipes under your belt, it's easy to make a medicre beer that will discourage you. Pick up a copy of Brewing Classic Styles and make a few of those. I wish someone gave me the same advice when I was in your shoes. I made a lot of sh!tty beer.

First: I do not appreciate your condescending comment. It could have been worded in a much nicer manner.

Second, Thanks for the input, but this is just how I do things. Not just with beer, but with mostly everything. I'm a big fan of improvisation and I don't usually follow things to the T. I also like to make things mine.

That being said, I do not completely throw together a recipe from scratch. I go around, read different recipes online, research the style and move from there. The only thing that was going to be completely out of the blue was going to be the ginger, and after thinking about it I'm leaving it out for a few reasons, but mostly because I want this to be an experiment with honey, to give me a feel for that. Throwing ginger in might make a good brew, but it might also distract from the honey taste, so I won't get the full honey experience.

Anyway, each of us are going to do our own thing. I'll follow recipes more closely when I start doing all-grain brews and getting obsessive about it. For now, it's fun to make something my own. Both of the brews i've done have been original recipes. My IPA came out great, and the sample off the cali common tasted great too.

I'm not going to get discouraged by a mediocre beer, more inspiration to make it better. I already know I can make good beer, so that's really all the push I need.

for now, experimentation is good and fun. Once I get into AG i'll get technical.
 
Hey deadguy I hope i didnt offend as well. That was not at all my intention nor did i think it was bobby m's. Im totally with ya in that i think brewing is an art and should be experimented with.
 
I too agree that experimentation within ones home is what it's about, but how many "Help" or "is my beer ruined" or "is this right" or "no ferm. after 16 hours!!" type threads are on here EVERY DAY!! Personally, I understand the spirit of Bobby M's post. He apologized in advance, he shared personal experience, and he gave advice. The one thing that I love about this forum in the short time that I've been here is the lack of flaming that is found on other, similar forums. I'm a Jeep guy. Take a walk into pirate4X4.com or greatlakes4x4.com and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Maybe it's because we NEED more homebrewers, we certainly don't need more a$$holes with Jeeps. The thing that seems to keep this site so great, in my mind at least, is the complete tolerance of the seasoned home-brewers of the up-and-comers like myself.

I certainly don't think that Bobby M was offensive, just a bit off-center for this site.


Sorry, I'm off the soapbox now. While I've never made a blond, your original recipe looks as though it would meet criteria. If I were making it I'd use 1oz perle for 60 min., then split the other at 15 and flame out. That's the only change I'd make. Good luck with the brew, skip the ginger, and drink the crap out of it!!
 
I too agree that experimentation within ones home is what it's about, but how many "Help" or "is my beer ruined" or "is this right" or "no ferm. after 16 hours!!" type threads are on here EVERY DAY!! Personally, I understand the spirit of Bobby M's post. He apologized in advance, he shared personal experience, and he gave advice. The one thing that I love about this forum in the short time that I've been here is the lack of flaming that is found on other, similar forums. I'm a Jeep guy. Take a walk into pirate4X4.com or greatlakes4x4.com and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Maybe it's because we NEED more homebrewers, we certainly don't need more a$$holes with Jeeps. The thing that seems to keep this site so great, in my mind at least, is the complete tolerance of the seasoned home-brewers of the up-and-comers like myself.

I certainly don't think that Bobby M was offensive, just a bit off-center for this site.


Sorry, I'm off the soapbox now. While I've never made a blond, your original recipe looks as though it would meet criteria. If I were making it I'd use 1oz perle for 60 min., then split the other at 15 and flame out. That's the only change I'd make. Good luck with the brew, skip the ginger, and drink the crap out of it!!

after rereading it probably shouldnt have been taken as offensively as I took it. Frustrating day at work and what not. Anyway, yeah. I think it's just two perceptions that can clash. different ideologies of brewing haha.


haa tdavis no offense taken.

We're going with this for the final recipe:

Type: Extract
Date: 6/3/2008
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewer: deadguy
Boil Size: 4.08 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: Brew Pot (5 Gallon)
Taste Rating(out of 50): 35.0 Brewhouse Efficiency: -
Taste Notes:

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
4.00 lb Pale Liquid Extract (8.0 SRM) Extract 61.54 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 7.69 %
1.00 oz Pearle [5.00 %] (60 min) Hops 19.2 IBU
0.50 oz Pearle [5.00 %] (30 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops -
0.50 oz Pearle [5.00 %] (0 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops -
2.00 lb Honey (1.0 SRM) Sugar 30.77 %
1 Pkgs American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056) Yeast-Ale


Est Original Gravity: 1.043 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.010 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.24 %
Bitterness: 19.2 IBU C
alories: 43 cal/pint
Est Color: 6.1 SRM
 
Looks tasty!! One thing I've practiced over the last two batches, that will be very important for a beer this light, is to keep the primary fermenter temperature in the low 60's while it's working. I can't believe the difference this has made in these two beers.
 
I think 30% honey is too much. Personally I would drop the honey and add more malt extract.
 
It won't be the first or last time my poor attempt at humor isn't appreciated by someone that doesn't know me. I should probably stick to making goofy facial hair designs for my avatar.

Then again, I don't find my post to be condescending at all. We find a general theme here where new members who are new brewers who post something they want to do and then get offended when more experienced brewers try to discourage it. The end result is usually the OP does what they want anyway and rarely ever comes back to the site. I'm not saying this is the case here, but it more likely is than not.

Here's my helpful nugget: 30% honey is in Braggot territory.. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Braggot
 

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