Stupid alcohol. Why does everything I like get me drunk?

[Finn]

Anybody got any ideas for styles and recipes I could look at that would be low in alcohol but high in flavor? My current batch (Cromwell Nut-Brown Bitter) is ridiculously delicious but it's pushing 6 percent real hard. I've got the day off, SWMBO is snowed in at my ma-in-law's house 50 miles away and I'm realizing what I really need is a good 3-percent beer that I can just sit around the house quaffing on days like this without totally getting crocked.

Cheers!

--Finn

 

[bradsul]

Can't go wrong with a nice ordinary bitter! Have a look in the recipe database and look for recipes that have an OG less than 1.040.

 

[mrkristofo]

you can modify any recipe that you have to a certain extent with brewing software and the following plot:

Plot your original recipe, then back off the gravity accordingly.

 

[Dr_Deathweed]

You could always make your favorite beer, only add the bittering hops to your boil and ferment. When fermentation is complete, warm the beer up to 170-180 for a few minutes with your aroma and flavor hops. This will "boil" off most of your alcohol, leaving you with a low/non-alcoholic beer.

 

[Dr_Deathweed]

oh yeah, I had a link too.... do a search for "non-alcoholic" or "N/A beers"....

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=33107&highlight=non-alcoholic+beer

 

[FSR402]

I found myself looking thru my kezzer about a month ago. One beer was 10% +Bourbon, one was 9% and the other 3 were 6-6.5%.
I figured I needed something lite in there so I made up this.


BeerSmith Recipe Printout - www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Just the basics Mild
Brewer: Part Time Brewery
Asst Brewer:
Style: Mild Brown Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: ()

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 12.00 gal
Boil Size: 15.17 gal
Estimated OG: 1.030 SG
Estimated Color: 9.7 SRM
Estimated IBU: 15.1 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
11 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 81.48 %
1 lbs 8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 11.11 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L (120.0 SRM) Grain 3.70 %
8.0 oz Victory Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 3.70 %
1.50 oz Goldings, East Kent [6.30 %] (60 min) Hops 15.1 IBU
2 Pkgs Nottingham (Danstar #-) Yeast-Ale


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Medium Body
Total Grain Weight: 13.50 lb
----------------------------
Single Infusion, Medium Body
Step Time Name Description Step Temp
60 min Mash In Add 16.88 qt of water at 176.1 F 154.0 F
10 min Mash Out Add 7.43 qt of water at 211.7 F 168.0 F
Sparge Water: 11.51 gal
Sparge Temperature: 168.0 F



I kegged it Saturday and put her under 30psi and shook it up a few times over the next 24 hours and then pulled a pint out of it. (I have never done it this way before) It tasted great and will only get better as the two kegs age a little more.

She finished out at a SG of 1.034 and a fg of 1.012 giving it just under 3%

 

[BierMuncher]

I do lots of light ABV beers.

Just did 10 gallons of Jamil's Ordinary Bitter about 4 weeks ago. Kegs are already empty. I'll do it again.

Very malty. Very flavorful and an all-day drinker. Make sure to mash around 156 and use an English (Safale-04) style yeast.

Cut it inhalf for 5.5 gallons:


Batch Size: 11.00 gal
Boil Size: 13.69 gal
Estimated OG: 1.036 SG
Estimated Color: 13.3 SRM
Estimated IBU: 27.2 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
12.00 lb Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 81.6 %
1.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 10.2 %
1.00 lb Special Roast (50.0 SRM) Grain 6.8 %
0.20 lb Chocolate Malt (450.0 SRM) Grain 1.4 %
2.00 oz EKG [5.50%] (60 min) Hops 20.8 IBU
1.00 oz EKG [5.50%] (20 min) Hops 6.3 IBU
2 Pkgs SafAle English Ale (DCL Yeast #S-04) Yeast-Ale

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I also vote for the ordinary bitter. The hardest part is keeping it around once you've brewed it. I have begun to believe bitters are magical and the beer gnomes that live in my house are drinking it. Oh wait... that was me.

 

[sAvAgE]

Anybody got any ideas for styles and recipes I could look at that would be low in alcohol but high in flavor? My current batch (Cromwell Nut-Brown Bitter) is ridiculously delicious but it's pushing 6 percent real hard. I've got the day off, SWMBO is snowed in at my ma-in-law's house 50 miles away and I'm realizing what I really need is a good 3-percent beer that I can just sit around the house quaffing on days like this without totally getting crocked.

Cheers!

--Finn

You lucky bugger! Those are days you take advantage of and just start sluggin em back!

 

[niquejim]

+1 on the Bitter(or a darker mild)

I've been making all my beers a little smaller lately.
Next I think I'll try a small Scottish Ale and not the usual Wee Heavy

 

[CBBaron]

I try to make sure to do at least half of my beers at 5% or under. I did Jamil's Dark Mild last year and it was nice to be able to enjoy a few pints without worrying about stumbling around. That ended up just under 3% for me due to a high FG.
Make a smaller beer, mash at a higher temp and enjoy a full bodied beer with much less alcohol.
Craig

 

[Biermann]

I'm with you. Lately, I like to drink and not have any headache, and I don't like the buzz anymore. I'm going to start to brew some lower EtOH stuff.

Plus, the lower the gravity, the cheaper the beer is to make (although not much).

 

[Chriso]

The below recipe is entirely theoretical. I assembled it for the HBT Weight Loss thread. I plan to brew it sometime, but have to get a few other things done for upcoming events. It might be worth a try?????

Lo-Cal-Brau
BeerSmith Recipe Printout - www.beersmith.com
Style: Lite American Lager

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Size: 6.84 gal
Estimated OG: 1.030 SG
Estimated Color: 2.6 SRM
Estimated IBU: 10.9 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
3 lbs 8.0 oz Pilsen Malt (1.0 SRM)
8.0 oz Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)
8.0 oz Maize, Flaked (2.0 SRM)
2.0 oz Caramel Malt - 40L (Briess) (40.0 SRM)
4.0 oz Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM)
1.00 tbsp PH 5.2 Stabilizer (Mash 60.0 min)

Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge
60 min Mash In Add 1.52 gal of water at 161.4 F 150.0 F

Boil 90 minutes:
0.50 oz Crystal [3.50 %] (60 min) Hops 8.0 IBU
0.50 oz Crystal [3.50 %] (10 min) Hops 2.9 IBU

1 lbs Honey (1.0 SRM) Last 5 minutes of boil.

0.50 tsp Gelatin (Secondary)

I would imagine one could run this as either an ale or a lager. According to BeerSmith, this is 2.86% ABV, 130 cal/pint. I could get that down further, but I'd have to leave out barley.



Otherwise, yeah, look at BierMuncher's signature. He's got lots of session beers that look fantastic and that I can't wait to brew!

 

[Jo3sh]

When you make your mild beers, be sure to include lots of flavorful and aromatic malts. I have a recipe I make somewhat regularly which in only about 4%, but uses a boatload of Briess' Ashburne Mild malt, which gives the beer a lingering malt flavor even after the swallow.

Also look at some of the Belgian "medium-colored" malts like Aromatic, which pump up the malt aroma a ton; smell is a huge portion of taste and satiation, so a good-smelling beer will go a long way to making a good-tasting beer. I recall an article in a recent issue of Zymurgy discussing these malts, but I don't have it in front of me.

 

[Got Trub?]

Another vote here for an Ordinary Bitter. I have tweaked Jamil's recipe and it is essentially my house beer for now. Scottish ales and Dark milds also get my vote and given the hop situation worthy of exploring. I highly recommend drinking all the above at the appropriate temperature as that really brings out the malty flavours. The down side is I'm going to have to find something else to consume in the heat of summer...

GT

 

[TexLaw]

I've had some great 60/- and 70/- ales. I need to start looking into them, myself.


TL

 

[IndyPABrewGuy]

You could make your normal big beer (8 % or so) and the make a small beer. That'll give you something around 2% to 3%, which will ferment out quickly. Plus you're using your grains for two beers.

Just a thought.

 

[sirsloop]

quality not quantity... I'm usually at home drinking stuff 7% and up but I only have 1-2 pints a night. Yeah its more $$ to make, but I enjoy super rich flavors.

 

[Finn]

You could make your normal big beer (8 % or so) and the make a small beer. That'll give you something around 2% to 3%, which will ferment out quickly. Plus you're using your grains for two beers.

Just a thought.

Oooh ... that's a really good idea! Although I'm not set up to do more than about a 4-gallon mashout. Still, I could make a 3-gallon batch of big beer, I suppose ... I hate wasting stuff, especially food, and it kills me to have to ditch mash that's still sparging out at 1.025-plus just because I've gotten to the end of my boiler capacity ...

 

[IndyPABrewGuy]

Oooh ... that's a really good idea! Although I'm not set up to do more than about a 4-gallon mashout. Still, I could make a 3-gallon batch of big beer, I suppose ... I hate wasting stuff, especially food, and it kills me to have to ditch mash that's still sparging out at 1.025-plus just because I've gotten to the end of my boiler capacity ...

Glad I could help.

Cheers,

 

[Bob]

+324 on bitter/mild. I try to have one or the other available round here at any time, with another "rotating seasonal".

My Mild recipe is under my sig. Folks seem to like it, as it's difficult to keep it in stock. Same with my Ord'n'ry Bitter, recipe for which follows. Dead simple, easy and tasty. For a different twist, replace the Briess base extract with John Bull Maris Otter - bliss! And yeah, it uses Willamette, but A., I've got 4+ pounds of Willamette pellets in my freezer; and B., Willamette is Fuggles anyway. Sue me.

Sebastian's Special Ale

A ProMash Recipe Report

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (Gal): 5.50 Wort Size (Gal): 3.00
Total Grain (Lbs): 6.50
Anticipated OG: 1.039 Plato: 9.85
Anticipated SRM: 6.9
Anticipated IBU: 29.6
Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
92.3 6.00 lbs. Briess LME- Gold America 1.035 4
7.7 0.50 lbs. Crystal 55L Great Britian 1.034 55

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.50 oz. Willamette Pellet 4.00 24.2 60 min.
1.00 oz. Willamette Pellet 4.00 5.4 20 min.
1.00 oz. Willamette Pellet 4.00 0.0 0 min.


Extras

Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.25 Tsp Whirlfloc Other 15 Min.(boil)
0.25 Tsp Yeastex Other 15 Min.(boil)


Yeast
-----

Danstar Nottingham

 

[Catfish]

Also that OG of 1.035-40 is a great 5 gallon starter for your 1.090 beer the next weekend.