Sierra Nevada Pale Ale recipe from their site

[DJL531]

Came across a comment about their posting the Pale Ale recipe a few years back. Decided to take a look and since I had the hops, I bought the grains and will be brewing this next weekend.

For those that have not see it, the grain bill and hops are simple:
92% 2-row
8% Crystal 60
all total about 5.25 oz of Cascade
155 deg mash for 60 min, 90 min boil.
.5 oz at 90
.75 oz at 60
2.0 oz at 30
2.0 oz at flameout.
California Ale yeast or something similar.

I will be using nearly all of my whole cone Cascade hops I have. They come in at 4.8%AA and will adjust accordingly.

So, looking at this, the grain bill is pretty straightforward. Their website gives it 5.6ABV and 38 IBU and I have to say I am a fan of this beer and I am interested in how close I can get to theirs in taste and color.

Anyone have a suggestion using different hops? So besides the typical "C" hops out there, what else would make a good substitution for the Cascade to carry over a single hop flavor? Any Aussie varieties that you can think of? Alternate hops don't have to be a substitute for Cascade in flavor. So, let's hear it.

If I had enough Medusa, I think this would be interesting. My small supply is slated for an extract pale ale this weekend.

Cheers!

 

[day_trippr]

Amarillo would be a natural, but really any hop one associates with citrus character would likely work...

Cheers!

 

[Coastalbrew]

I just made that exact recipe using Mandarina bavaria last weekend. It's in the fermenter now. The Hydrometer sample tasted fantastic. Will probably bottle it next weekend.

Let us know how your batch turns out.

Cheers!

 

[eric19312]

I would scale the 90, 60 and 30 minute additions to deliver same IBU as you are getting from Cascade. The hop IBU calculator in beersmith could do this pretty easily. Seems like a solid recipe to try any hop proposed for use in IPA or APA.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I have brewed a very similar all-cascade pale ale many times. The last time I did a side by side with SNPA and they were very close. I add some dry hops, so I had a touch more hop brightness (could just be due to freshness and not being bottled). The SNPA had a slickness that I associate with their water profile. This was one of my last batches before I started adjusting water chemistry.

If brewing this with other hops I would be tempted to pick a hop like Columbus as a 60 minute addition and target it to the IBUs of the 90 and 60 minute additions. Then use ~4 oz of the selected hops for the other additions. My preference would be to shift the 30 minute addition closer to the end of the boil...but that is starting to drift from the recipe. If you did add a 30 minute addition, scale the amount to account for the aa% of the hops.

A basic, enjoyable beer like this is a great base for playing with different hops...and there are so many great hops out there these days.

 

[Bigdaddyale]

 

[Bigdaddyale]

View attachment 722809

 

[Nate R]

Or, if you can read Ken Grossman's handwriting...
(This is why you always take good notes!!)


https://sierranevada.com/blog/pale-ale-homebrew-recipe/

 

[DJL531]

Thanks for the comments. I'm not inclined to follow the hop additions as in the recipe, especially with higher AA hops. I use Magnum a lot to bitter and let the flavor and aroma additions come in late. Anyone played with Zappa yet?

 

[Nubiwan]

Came across a comment about their posting the Pale Ale recipe a few years back. Decided to take a look and since I had the hops, I bought the grains and will be brewing this next weekend.

For those that have not see it, the grain bill and hops are simple:
92% 2-row
8% Crystal 60
all total about 5.25 oz of Cascade
155 deg mash for 60 min, 90 min boil.
.5 oz at 90
.75 oz at 60
2.0 oz at 30
2.0 oz at flameout.
California Ale yeast or something similar.

I will be using nearly all of my whole cone Cascade hops I have. They come in at 4.8%AA and will adjust accordingly.

So, looking at this, the grain bill is pretty straightforward. Their website gives it 5.6ABV and 38 IBU and I have to say I am a fan of this beer and I am interested in how close I can get to theirs in taste and color.

Anyone have a suggestion using different hops? So besides the typical "C" hops out there, what else would make a good substitution for the Cascade to carry over a single hop flavor? Any Aussie varieties that you can think of? Alternate hops don't have to be a substitute for Cascade in flavor. So, let's hear it.

If I had enough Medusa, I think this would be interesting. My small supply is slated for an extract pale ale this weekend.

Cheers!

Anyone care to comment what flavour, if any, would be imparted by the 90 & 60 minute Cascade boil? As others have suggested, would you knot get similar bittering benefit from a magnum or columbus bittering stage, and latter Cascade additions (30 and flameout) imparting the Pale Ale bite. Interested to see how this recipe has turned out for people.

 

[Pehlman17]

The SNPA had a slickness that I associate with their water profile. This was one of my last batches before I started adjusting water chemistry.

I’ve definitely noticed a similar quality in their beers. What would you guess water profile wise that might be giving this character?

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I think they did a great thing when they created Torpedo. I like SNPA well enough, but I would never buy it now that Torpedo is available. It's not just the hop load. Seems to be more balanced and have more caramel flavor. And I like it after it's been stored improperly in the heat for a year.

 

[DosGatosBrewing]

I made their recipe a few times, then switched out all the the hops for Centennial. Game changer. Very popular here.