Your all time fave recipe - what is it?

[StewMakesBrew]

Ok, after years of brewing, we've all developed that ONE recipe that's always the favorite - you nail it every time you make it, you love drinking it, you're bummed when you're out of it.

What's yours?

Mine is a punched-up version of Anchor Steam Beer - a classic California Common but with a flameout addition of an ounce of Cascade hops for that extra hop nose. Because hops. And higher gravity, because alcohol.

I started making this when I first started - in fact it was my first batch to use specialty grains. I've since transitioned to all-grain and continue to make it over and over - probably annually or more.

Here's my recipe:

For Extract:

8 lbs (approx) of pale DME
1 lb of 60L crystal
1/4 lb cara-pils

For all Grain:
11 lbs american pale base malt
1 lb 60L crystal
1/4 lb cara pils

Hops:
1/2 oz Northern Brewer (60 min)
1/2 oz Northern Brewer (30 min)
1/2 oz Northern Brewer (5 min)
1 oz Cascade (flameout)

1 tsp Irish Moss (15 min)
Wyeast 1056 or White Labs WPL001

SG: Around 1.045
FG: Around 1.008

If extract - steep grains for an hour between 155 and 150 degrees (start at 155, let it fall to 150 and maintain). Bring to a boil, add your DME and go. If boiling short of a full batch, boil as much as possible to avoid darkening the color, top up with water to hit gravity.

All grain - single infusion mash at 152, use whatever sparge method you choose.

Boil 1 hour, following hop steps above. Cool to 75 and pitch (I find the warmer pitch temp delivers the fruity flavors of the yeast better), ferment between 68 and 72 degrees for three weeks (three gives better clarity) - no need for secondary. Rack and package. If force carbonating, about 2.3 vols is ideal - 2 weeks at 10 psi at 40 degrees.

What's yours?

 

[friarsmith]

mmm... Steam Beer. Good on yah for adding a little Cascade. Cluster (aroma) is great too, IMO in a steam beer. Northern Brewer gets a little minty & one dimensional with each passing pint.

Steamers are my 2nd fav after German Pilsner. I've brewed it 5-6 times a year for over a decade. Finally locked into a recipe about three years ago. It's rare that I don't have some flowing in the garage. Brought home lots of hardware in comps, but mostly I'm proud because it's a near dead-on Jever clone. My local bottle shop stocks Jever, but it's always skunky.

95.6% Best Malz Pilsner Malt
1.9% Acidulated
2.5% Light Munich
Hard 75 min boil
35 IBU Magnum at 75 mins
4.2 IBU Hallertau at 15 mins
1.7 IBU Hallertau at 5 mins
2 oz Hallertau in the whirlpool at 150*
Saflager 34/70 (400B Cells per 5-6 gal batch) WY Danish Lager is also excellent.
Double Decoction mash w/ rests at 130/146/155/168
Primary Ferment at 45-50*
CA-58/Mg-8/Na-10/Cl-77/SO4-86

Thanks, now I'm thirsty. Might be a trip to the garage in my near future! Oh snap! Look what just fell into my hand...

 

[bleme]

I'm sure I'm not the only brewer who has never made the same recipe twice, but then I've only been brewing 5 years...

 

[mrdauber64]

I'm sure I'm not the only brewer who has never made the same recipe twice, but then I've only been brewing 5 years...

I'm in this same boat. I feel like I'm constantly making small tweaks to recipes based on ingredients available or to fix something I didn't like. I haven't nailed down a "perfect" recipe yet.

saying that though, I have brewed a simple cream ale a couple times using this recipe:

Two row - 76%
Flaked Corn - 19%
Victory - 4%

Hops:
Cascade FWH 14 IBU's
Cascade 5 min. 5 IBU's

Yeast:
Nottingham yeast fermented at 58

This produces a clean lager-like beer that is perfect for the summer and year round for the non craft drinkers. The main changes I make to this recipe are type of base malt used(Golden Promise, Pils, Rahr two-row) and taking the 60 min. addition and using hop extract.

 

[Weezy]

House IPA is this grain bill (hops du jour):

93% MO
3.5% carafoam
3.5% sugar

 

[bonecitybrewco]

2017 is a year of working on consistency for me. I want to have a house lager, house IPA and house porter to please any palate by the end of the year. Every brew I do in 2017 is working towards that goal. Any new recipe outside of those 3 is a waste in my mind this year. So far, Co3C has been incredibly good to me. I will likely be making a lager version as my house lager.

 

[peanasky]

Honestly, I absolutely love the Irish Red from Brewing Classic Styles. Favorite beer to make, drink, and share. Lame, I know, but it's THE beer people ask me for.

 

[friarsmith]

Honestly, I absolutely love the Irish Red from Brewing Classic Styles. Favorite beer to make, drink, and share. Lame, I know, but it's THE beer people ask me for.

NEVER apologize for making delicious beer. You like what you like:rockin:

 

[mmiddleton]

I've only made it once, but it's definitely my favourite. I made a clone of Founders Breakfast Stout, with a couple of modifications, and it was delicious. Even better, I racked off a growler of it when bottling, and added tart cherries. Even better!

 

[jurgenph]

Mine is a punched-up version of Anchor Steam Beer - a classic California Common but with a flameout addition of an ounce of Cascade hops for that extra hop nose. Because hops. And higher gravity, because alcohol.

Wyeast 1056 or White Labs WPL001

have you ever tried making that with a california/san francisco lager yeast instead?


J.

 

[StewMakesBrew]

have you ever tried making that with a california/san francisco lager yeast instead?


J.

Sorry for the long wait for a reply - very busy with work!

Yes, Wyeast 2112 is my favorite for that style and I've used it multiple times. It works great - a touch frutier than what I recommended here, but that's cool.

 

[cubalz]

I make Yooper's House Pale Ale and Cream of Three Crops all of the time. Everyone loves them and one or both are on tap at my house most of the time.

 

[jan_b19]

This:
My very own Belgian Saison (BIAB)
Yes I know It's in metric units...

2800,00 g Pale Malt (2 Row) Bel (5,9 EBC) 61,0 %
450,00 g Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (3,9 EBC) 9,8 %
400,00 g Munich Malt (17,7 EBC) 8,7 %
200,00 g Carared (39,4 EBC) 4,4 %
40,00 g Chocolate Malt (689,5 EBC) 0,9 %
400,00 g Candi Sugar, Amber (147,8 EBC) 8,7 %
300,00 g Sugar, Table (Sucrose) (2,0 EBC) 6,5 %
9,00 g Magnum [15,00 %] - Boil 60,0 min 18,7 IBUs
13,00 g Saaz [3,50 %] Boil 20,0 min 3,8 IBUs
8,00 g Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [3,75 %] Boil 5,0 min 0,8 IBUs
11,00 g Tettnang [4,50 %] Boil 2,0 min 0,5 IBUs
18,00 g Coriander Seed Boil 5,0 mins
12,00 g Orange Peel, Sweet Boil 5,0 mins
1,0 pkg Belgian Style Saison Ale Yeast Blend (White Labs #WLP568) [50,28 ml] Yeast 14 -
14,00 g Orange Peel, Sweet (Secondary 1,0 weeks)

Mash(BIAB):
15 min 52C
35 min 62C
45 min 70C
2 min 78C

est OG 1.063
est FG 1.011

This is a variation on the very first beer I brewed. Of course I made a TON of mistakes back then but I actually liked it. After brewing it a couple of times until it was perfect I started playing with the recipe a bit. Added some roasted grains for color and flavor, added some grains got rid of some sugar (the original recipe had double the amount of sugar in it (original used only candi sugar to get to an amber color))

It's a great refreshing beer, with a weee little bit of residual sweetness. great for a summer barbecue. Sometimes I'll add some dried juniper berries for a nice spicy touch.

 

[Redtab78]

Mine is a recipie I found here that was a clone of another beer found only up in the PNW, then I tweaked the recipie just a tad, and have been brewing it every 2 months or so. It always last maybe a few days in the keg:

8.5# M.O
2# Crystal 60L
1# Munich 10L
.5# White wheat
.5# carapils

.75 Nugget @60
.75oz Cascade @5
1.5oz cascade @ flameout (let sit/steep for 10 min before cooling)

1# Cascade leaf + .5oz citra (pellet) dry hop for 10 days

Wyeast 1968 (1.5L starter)

everytime, all I get is Oh's and Ah's

 

[kh54s10]

About 6 years and 95+ batches and I will say I am one of those who does not have a favorite. I have one that I have done 5 different versions of trying to make it better and another one that I alter a little each time. 4 versions so far.

But I like most styles of beer so I don't want to limit myself too much. I have so many that I want to make. I had a computer crap out on me that had 15-20 Beersmith recipes that I wanted to brew. My current list is 11 long. Working on a relocation, so those 11 recipes might last for a year.....

 

[JonM]

Picking ONE favorite I think is impossible for me, but here's the ones I make every year:

Common Room ESB
Cottage House Saison
Patersbier (basically a Pilsner/Saaz SMASH with 1214 yeast)
A simple Altbier (50/50 Pilsner and Munich)
Basic Hefeweizen