What style would you call this?

[prrriiide]

I've done a few batches, and I know what I've been calling it. I just don't know if I'm right.

What say ye??

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 10.00 gal
Boil Size: 11.49 gal
Estimated OG: 1.054 SG
Estimated Color: 6.0 SRM
Estimated IBU: 28.9 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
17 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 85.00 %
2 lbs Munich Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 10.00 %
1 lbs Wheat Malt, Ger (2.0 SRM) Grain 5.00 %
0.50 oz Magnum [13.20 %] (60 min) Hops 11.4 IBU
0.50 oz Magnum [14.00 %] (30 min) Hops 9.3 IBU
1.00 oz Tettnang [4.50 %] (15 min) Hops 3.9 IBU
1.00 oz Tettnang [4.50 %] (10 min) Hops 2.8 IBU
1.00 oz Tettnang [4.50 %] (5 min) Hops 1.5 IBU
2 Pkgs SafAle (DCL Yeast #S-05) Yeast-Ale

 

[yorkbrew]

Looks like you can call that one a pale ale. It's on the lighter side of the style but that's what I'd call it. Now if you were entering it in to a competition... You might have luck in the blonde ale category. It looks a bit on the hoppy side for that though. Without drinking it it's hard to say.

 

[Dynachrome]

+1 on the Pale Ale categorization. There isn't enough wheat to make it a wheat.

Can you compare it to something close that is by a big brewery?

What affect does the Munich Malt have on it, higher SG?

 

[yorkbrew]

+1 on the Pale Ale categorization. There isn't enough wheat to make it a wheat.

Can you compare it to something close that is by a big brewery?

What affect does the Munich Malt have on it, higher SG?

That amount of wheat is pretty common for a lot of breweries because it helps with head retention and gives a bit of flavor. I add like 1/2 pound of wheat to a lot of my brews.

 

[prrriiide]

I've been calling it a Kolsch, even though it doesn't use Kolsch yeast. It has a lot of the same taste characteristics as a Kolsch. Competition-wise, would it necessarily have to use Kolsch yeast to be considered a Kolsch? I know judges don't have the recipe in front of them, but I also know most judges can probably tell the difference between s-05 and Kolsch yeast.

Taste-wise, it's very smooth and crisp. The 29 IBUs are a bit misleading - you don't really get a hop punch out of it. There is certainly a good hop character, but definitely not in the hoppiness league of a Pale Ale. It's probably the most popular beer I've done, so competition with it is not out of the question.

 

[CthulhuDreaming]

If you're not competing, call it what you like.

+1 on Pale, though 29 IBU is just under the 30 IBU minimum for the style. You probably wouldn't be able to taste the difference. 29 IBU is only a prediction in any case - it's going to matter more how much hop bitterness is detectible. Color is just about at the low end of the spectrum.

OG is too high for a Blonde, IMO - and as another poster said, it's probably too hoppy. If it tastes like a Kolsch... well, I suppose it depends on what the judge thinks, regardless of the yeast used. I wouldn't doubt that a discerning palate could tell the difference.