What do I brew for my girl?

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Closet Fermenter said:
Irish Dry Stout
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I'm curious as to what used for hops (type & timing)?

Anecdotally (and with a small sample), I know people who dislike the flavors that come from classic 'C' hops and especially the newer IPA hops. When I was brewing a couple of porters/stouts for those peeps, I got better 'reviews' when I bittered with Golding rather than Magnum/Warrior. For them, even in a stout, it made a difference.
 
BrewnWKopperKat said:
I'm curious as to what used for hops (type & timing)?

Anecdotally (and with a small sample), I know people who dislike the flavors that come from classic 'C' hops and especially the newer IPA hops. When I was brewing a couple of porters/stouts for those peeps, I got better 'reviews' when I bittered with Golding rather than Magnum/Warrior. For them, even in a stout, it made a difference.
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I use 2.0 oz of East Kent Golding at the beginning of a 60 minute boil.
There might be a better way, but this works, so I haven’t messed with it.
 
My wife didn't like beer much, but would drink a Corona once in a while. She tried Pacifico and really liked it, still does. Then she slowly added browns, porters, stouts. More recently has added fruited sours of all things. This all happened because I would get tasters of everything and let her try them.
 
Closet Fermenter said:
I use 2.0 oz of East Kent Golding at the beginning of a 60 minute boil.
There might be a better way, but this works, so I haven’t messed with it.
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Depending on AA I often even go with 1oz fuggles or 1oz ekg. IMO the roasted barley doesn't need many IBUs to be balanced, but I've never been accused if being a hop head : )
 
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Seriously though, it's nice that you want to share your passion/hobby with her. My wife wasn't into all the styles when I first started brewing. She was a Bud Light girl.

Her love for beer blossomed from me having her taste certain styles and help me distinguish certain flavors and help troubleshoot undesirable flavors. Did she like all the styles? Well, no, but she would say if it was a little more this or a little less that, it would taste better to her.

Since then, I have created a nut brown, pale ale, ESB-loving monster. Wheats and IPAs are totally not her thing, but she'll still help me tune new experiments.

Like others have said, I would start her with a low IBU, bright and crisp American lager or Kolsch.
 
This is an interesting chain. My wife has always enjoyed beer, and as we've tried more and different styles together, she's evolved into an IPA fan who likes either the hazy or West Coast style, flavored with Simcoe - this is the common thread in all the beers that she's particularly enjoyed lately. Troeg's Nugget Nectar is a new fave. She also enjoys dark beers, and tomorrow for St Pat's we'll be drinking half Guinness / half Lindemans Framboise.
Women can be unpredictable; that's the only generalization that I'll hazard.
 
Some people like beer the first time they ever have it, but for many, it’s an acquired taste. And I won’t say that anybody can learn to enjoy anything, but most people, if they can convince themselves to try a new thing enough times (I’ve heard 20 as a benchmark), will learn to appreciate it. That’s probably a survival instinct, when you think about it: if you have something 20 times and it hasn’t hurt you, your aversion to a perfectly good source of calories is likely not a useful one.

All of which is to say, if you have a partner that’s interested in trying beer because it’s a way of sharing one of your main interests, that’s a great thing, and if you approach it the right way, it has a good chance of working out. Maybe not for everyone—some people are innately intolerant of alcohol, and others hypersensitive to bitterness—but for most.

So keep an open mind. Stay low-key. Try lots of things. Think in terms of bitterness, maltiness, hoppiness, roast, esters, and phenols. Teach them to think in these terms, and encourage them to express which aspects of a beer they do or don’t like.

Most of us who are enthusiasts know that a blanket statement — “I don’t like beer” — doesn’t really make sense, because there’s so little similarity between an IPA, a Doppelbock, a Tripel, a stout, a Pilsner, or a Belgian sour. Chances are good (again, assuming no unusual aversions to alcohol or bitterness) that if you don’t put someone off and can encourage them to keep trying, the space is big enough for them to find things they like.
 
YeastFeast said:
Every girl I know that “doesn’t like beer” likes dark beers. Definitely try stouts and porters on her. Seems opposite of what you’d think but works everytime.
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This is a thing. I know lots of women, wives of homebrew club, etc who all like stouts and dark beers. Opposite of what I would have thought. My wife loves strong beers like barleywine or imperial stout, even the barrel aged ones which are my favorite. Hefeweizen - people who don’t like beer like wheat beer.

I think women or even just some people don’t care for hops or hop forward beers. Look for the styles with lower hop profiles and lower bu:gu ratios. Doppelbock, Scottish Ale, Irish ale, etc

Best thing I could suggest is buy mixed 6 packs of different things and split/try different things with her to see what she likes/doesn’t like before you brew 5 gallons of anything.

Theres also mead and cider
 
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YeastFeast said:
Every girl I know that “doesn’t like beer” likes dark beers. Definitely try stouts and porters on her. Seems opposite of what you’d think but works everytime.
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Nope. Nothing works 'everytime'. My wife absolutely hates them. Dark beers, stout, porters anything hoppy are out. She can't even tolerate the smell (and this is someone who drinks her dark roast coffee black). Sour beers were a win though, and a pleasant surprise for both of us as we had never even heard of sour ales. Hell, we once found a coffee sour ale we loved.

The only way to find the beer style she likes, is to try a bunch. But just be prepared most are likely to be a fail. Some of the bigger liquor stores have 'build your own' 6 packs where you can grab an assortment of different beers. Ask her what flavors she doesn't like in the beer. And try to then find some that don't have that flavor. Then once you have an idea you can try making making a beer in that style.
 
I agree with a few above (unfortunately a minority it seems). As far as my experience goes there's no correlation at all between gender and beer drinking. Most women I know even like more beer styles than I do. But the first post already suggests that she "likes the commercial lights, Coors and Mich Ultra". Why not try to brew a light lager? Then, as a few others have suggested as well, a beer flight or buying a few different beers from the store might have her realize that she likes beer more than she thinks.
 
Thegundog said:
Sorry, she’s my sweetie and I can’t exchange her.
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I assume that was more a preventative measure to avoid such comments, but you're also giving yourself the best way to deal with this: you don't want to exchange her and probably you don't want to change her (taste) either. Don't go for something you want her to like, but what she likes - and personalize it.

I do not know the beers you mentioned, but from what I've found out so far, these beers
- don't seem very bitter,
- are no full meals (that's what my girlfriend says about wheat beers)
- and neither are they malt bombs.
So your best option might be a (light) lager, blonde or juicy ale with a very low haziness.

Use some maize for extra dry-ness, stay at the low side of the IBU scale, aim for a slightly fruity flavour by decent dry hopping with e.g citra, galaxy, mosaic, riwaka, nelson sauvign... just think of her favourite fruits.
 
mac_1103 said:
Does she actually like them or does she just drink them because they're low in calories and carbs and don't taste like much of anything? There's a Michelob Ultra "clone" recipe on Brewer's Friend. I put clone in quotes because it has 134 calories and 13 carbs, while the real thing comes in at 95 and 2.6; it's also close to 30 IBU which is probably 3x to high. So on second thought, she'd probably hate it.

I second the idea of getting her to try some fruited beers and see if any of those tickle her fancy.
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No she likes the lites, it’s not a calorie thing. I’ll have to look into the Ultra clone - thanks
 
mashdar said:
Gundog, can you brew lagers with your setup? I think making the rounds of lagers might work. Consider cutting them down to 3.5-4% ABV if she drinks light beer. I would think most bud drinkers could stomach a helles. A session marzen isn't out of the question.
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I truthfully have never brewed a lager and only surfaced skimmed the process.

So I don’t exactly know if my setup will afford it, but I like lagers and maybe it’s something I should consider, brewing a lager…

My equipment is pretty basic compared to many… propane burner, spike flex and a keezer that holds three kegs. Can I lager with this setup? would I need a separate cooling system to cold crash or could I use my keezer I keep it 38F?
 
PCABrewing said:
Wow, did you consider just asking her? She might just say not to bother.
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When I brew, she always asks why in he$& don’t you brew something I like…

She’s definitely driving the need and I want to brew something we both can enjoy…

Truthfully I have NEVER had a beer type that I didn’t like, so whatever she will enjoy I will enjoy as well.

She really is against spending our hard earned $ on commercial kegs.
 
flipster said:
I assume that was more a preventative measure to avoid such comments, but you're also giving yourself the best way to deal with this: you don't want to exchange her and probably you don't want to change her (taste) either. Don't go for something you want her to like, but what she likes - and personalize it.

I do not know the beers you mentioned, but from what I've found out so far, these beers
- don't seem very bitter,
- are no full meals (that's what my girlfriend says about wheat beers)
- and neither are they malt bombs.
So your best option might be a (light) lager, blonde or juicy ale with a very low haziness.

Use some maize for extra dry-ness, stay at the low side of the IBU scale, aim for a slightly fruity flavour by decent dry hopping with e.g citra, galaxy, mosaic, riwaka, nelson sauvign... just think of her favourite fruits.
Click to expand...
Great points that are well taken.
 
I always start people new to the different styles with a low ABV [4-4.5%] and low IBU [20-25] Blonde Ale. If they don't like the normal citrus hops I use some noble German or maybe English hops. Several years back I had a cousin from Oregon and her husband visit. He tried a Blonde Ale I brewed with American citrus hops and one I used English hops . He preferred the one with EKG with a little Willamette finishing hops.
You could try a Blonde Ale with a percentage of wheat malt or corn to lighten the color and flavor.
 
Lager brewing is all about fermentation temperature control and big starters. Making the worts is the same whether ale or lager. One of the major yeast companies has a dry lager yeast purported to produce clean lager at ale temps.

Even if lite BMC is truly enjoyable to her, brewing a clone of American light lager is silly. It's everywhere, cheap, and difficult to brew as well as the experts.

I stand by the possibility she steers toward lite BMC as a default against the fact that so much American 'craft' beer is as 'extra' as it is. Hoppy is hoppy. Bitter is bitter. Strong is strong. Sweet is sweet. We just don't understand balanced and drinkable very well.

Classic European lagers are widely varied and many are thoroughly delicious to a wide variety of palattes.

Does she enjoy Mexican beers such as Dos XX? Try a Vienna lager.

Kolsch ale is really delicious in a very gentle, thoroughly drinkable way. Cream ale is the Americanized version of the style.

British bitters are definitely not. An ordinary bitter with a faint hint of UK dry hops is nothing like your typical American pale ale.

Find a good bottle shop that has a wide selection and sells singles. Find a local Brew pub that produces classic styles. Search for drinkable styles. They're so many more of them than the American 'craft' beer market will have you believe.
 
I call this one The Studfinder
50% pilsner
50% wheat
I shoot for 1054 sg
Hulls as your system requires for the wheat.
152*F
Boil until hot break (no hops) add 1 qt per 5 gallons of wort of zinfandel concentrate from Coloma Frozen
Cool, transfer to fermentor
Pitch 1 pk Philly sour for every 5 gallons
Ready in 3 weeks or add some oak
 
DBhomebrew said:
Lager brewing is all about fermentation temperature control and big starters. Making the worts is the same whether ale or lager. One of the major yeast companies has a dry lager yeast purported to produce clean lager at ale temps.

Even if lite BMC is truly enjoyable to her, brewing a clone of American light lager is silly. It's everywhere, cheap, and difficult to brew as well as the experts.

I stand by the possibility she steers toward lite BMC as a default against the fact that so much American 'craft' beer is as 'extra' as it is. Hoppy is hoppy. Bitter is bitter. Strong is strong. Sweet is sweet. We just don't understand balanced and drinkable very well.

Classic European lagers are widely varied and many are thoroughly delicious to a wide variety of palattes.

Does she enjoy Mexican beers such as Dos XX? Try a Vienna lager.

Kolsch ale is really delicious in a very gentle, thoroughly drinkable way. Cream ale is the Americanized version of the style.

British bitters are definitely not. An ordinary bitter with a faint hint of UK dry hops is nothing like your typical American pale ale.

Find a good bottle shop that has a wide selection and sells singles. Find a local Brew pub that produces classic styles. Search for drinkable styles. They're so many more of them than the American 'craft' beer market will have you believe.
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Are you referring to Fermentis Saflager s-23? I have really good experience with that one and can recommend it to all who don't have access to temperature control
 
Stikius said:
Are you referring to Fermentis Saflager s-23? I have really good experience with that one and can recommend it to all who don't have access to temperature control
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I was thinking NovaLager. Their published temp ranges are similar if not their flavor profiles. I have no experience with either.
 
Thegundog said:
I truthfully have never brewed a lager and only surfaced skimmed the process.

So I don’t exactly know if my setup will afford it, but I like lagers and maybe it’s something I should consider, brewing a lager…

My equipment is pretty basic compared to many… propane burner, spike flex and a keezer that holds three kegs. Can I lager with this setup? would I need a separate cooling system to cold crash or could I use my keezer I keep it 38F?
Click to expand...
Lagers generally require a separate fermentation fridge or other means of hilding ~50F.

But if lagers are off the table, you could tey Kolsch/cream ale/etc as others suggested. A ~3.5-4% ABV Kolsch might be worth a try.(Can just take a typical 4.5% Kolsch recipe and cut it down a little.)

Do you do all grain or extract brewing?
 
mashdar said:
Lagers generally require a separate fermentation fridge or other means of hilding ~50F.

But if lagers are off the table, you could tey Kolsch/cream ale/etc as others suggested. A ~3.5-4% ABV Kolsch might be worth a try.(Can just take a typical 4.5% Kolsch recipe and cut it down a little.)

Do you do all grain or extract brewing?
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The extra temperature control method is why I haven’t really explored Lagers. I don’t have ability to add another fridge/freezer. But I am interested in lagering and might look into it deeper.

I do BIAB and extract kits as well.

I took a little hiatus and recently two of my kids gifted me IPA kits which I completed over the past couple of weeks - this sparked the discussion with my girl to brew something she likes.
 
Thegundog said:
The extra temperature control method is why I haven’t really explored Lagers. I don’t have ability to add another fridge/freezer. But I am interested in lagering and might look into it deeper.

I do BIAB and extract kits as well.

I took a little hiatus and recently two of my kids gifted me IPA kits which I completed over the past couple of weeks - this sparked the discussion with my girl to brew something she likes.
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So you could try this, maybe cutting pilsner malt to 7lbs. If you want a little more character, you could up the Vienna or add a little munich malt.
https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/homebrew-recipe/2015-big-brew-recipe-3-killer-kolsch/
Note the 90min boil, helps with DMS when using a lot of pilsner malt.

edit: Oh and ignore "whole hops". Pellets are fine, possibly superior if well packed. Can also ignore mash steps and water stuff. If you need a dry yeast recommendation, others here likely have good ideas.
 
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mashdar said:
So you could try this, maybe cutting pilsner malt to 7lbs. If you want a little more character, you could up the Vienna or add a little munich malt.
https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/homebrew-recipe/2015-big-brew-recipe-3-killer-kolsch/
Note the 90min boil, helps with DMS when using a lot of pilsner malt.

edit: Oh and ignore "whole hops". Pellets are fine, possibly superior if well packed. Can also ignore mash steps and water stuff. If you need a dry yeast recommendation, others here likely have good ideas.
Click to expand...
Lallemand Koln is a perfectly lovely dry option for German ales (and many more styles.)
 
AlexKay said:
Holy **** that is terrible news. Losing London was bad enough, but Koln is probably my favorite dry yeast, bar none. I will have to see if I can stock up …
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AK, you've said so many good things about this yeast, that I just bought a packet. I'll have to try a Kolsch with it in the fall.
 
If it’s not ‘kveik’ or ‘hazy’ enough, it risks being discontinued. ‘Progress’ to some, especially those who don’t like beer that much. I used Lallemand’s London yeast last year when I was assessing dry yeast. It worked very well for me straight out of the pack for a Porter. I had to use isinglass to clear things, but it turned out surprisingly nice. Makes no sense to discontinue it, imo. It’s a nice low-attenuating English strain, better than some ‘comparable’ liquid yeasts I’ve tried, tbh. I guess it was a business decision associated with limited yeast lines/driers and making more profit from their time packaging other better marketed strains. Shareholders like that more than anything, in their quest to takeover the world and everything in it.
 
McMullan said:
If it’s not ‘kveik’ or ‘hazy’ enough, it risks being discontinued. ‘Progress’ to some, especially those who don’t like beer that much. I used Lallemand’s London yeast last year when I was assessing dry yeast. It worked very well for me straight out of the pack for a Porter. I had to use isinglass to clear things, but it turned out surprisingly nice. Makes no sense to discontinue it, imo. It’s a nice low-attenuating English strain, better than some ‘comparable’ liquid yeasts I’ve tried, tbh. I guess it was a business decision associated with limited yeast lines/driers and making more profit from their time packaging other better marketed strains. Shareholders like that more than anything, in their quest to takeover the world and everything in it.
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I have to wonder though, (cause I am bit cynical), if it’s more of a change in the name and package decoration than of the actual yeast itself. Just saying….
 

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