Good Summer Brew?

[jdc567]

Greetings to the community! Looking to find a great summer beer that will make mowing the lawn much more enjoyable or at least , forgettable.

[guildofevil]

Hi jdc567,
Welcome. What kind of recipe are you looking for? Extract? All Grain?

The best summer brews, in my opinion, are wheat beers. This includes the German Hefe Weizen kind of wheat beer and Belgian style Wit beers, with their Orange peel and Coriander additions.

Having said that, a nice Lager or India Pale Ale can make a summers day all the more pleasant.

It's a matter of personal taste.

Séan

[kevin]

I agree with the Hefe or a light colored pale ale with some casade for flavor..

[jdc567]

They all sound so tempting. I haven't ventured into the realm of all-grain yet but have done many partials. I am not opposed to either. The Hefe sounds good with the orange and corriander. Thanks to all! Will keep my eyes open for something similar.

[BrewDog]

A Classic American Pilsener is a nice summer beer. You can do a partial using flaked maize. (I wouldn't suggest using grits in a partial, though.)

Since you want 25-30% or so of the total AG grist to be flaked maize, you could take an AG recipe, use the same amount of flaked maize, and rather than go with the full grain bill, use the same amount of pale lager or pilsner malt for a 50-50 mix. Then, substitute extra pale DME/LME to make up the rest of the fermentables.

When I get home, I'll take the recipe I made with Grog and CampAJohn and turn it into a partial mash recipe using flaked maize for anyone that is interested.

HTH-

[jdc567]

Thanks Brewdog! I would love the recipe for the partial mash. Now I haven't done a pilsener yet. Have read loads about lagering though. Would love to give it a shot.

[SoxyinMO]

We added about 1/3 C Ahtanum hop pellets and about 1/3 C Tettnanger hop pellets to dry-hop a California Common and it is very Citrusy! Just in time for the warm weather.

Just a regular California Common is good for warm weather, too.

[YamahaXS]

for an extract go for a Kolsh with something like the following

6 # LME
1 # 40L Crystal
.5 # Carapils
1 ounce Splat at 60 minutes
1 ounce Hallertauer at 7 minutes


Wyeast 1056 is good for this beer.

Brew a double batch b/c it will go FAST.

[Grog]

I vote for Kolsch too. I just tapped a keg of this yesterday, and I am amazed at how well it turned out (and P.O.'ed because I only made 5 gallons and I have 2 full cases committed as samples).

All grain:
90% German Pils Malt
10% Wheat Malt

Saaz whole leaf all the way thru (even for bittering).
For 5 gallons I used 1oz each FWH, 3oz Bittering, 1oz @ 15min, 1oz @ FlameOut. Approx: 23 IBU. Primary @ 56°F took two full weeks and lagered @ 36°F for 6 weeks.

[BeerMeShorty]

Originally posted by Grog
I vote for Kolsch too. I just tapped a keg of this yesterday, and I am amazed at how well it turned out (and P.O.'ed because I only made 5 gallons and I have 2 full cases committed as samples).

All grain:
90% German Pils Malt
10% Wheat Malt

Saaz whole leaf all the way thru (even for bittering).
For 5 gallons I used 1oz each FWH, 3oz Bittering, 1oz @ 15min, 1oz @ FlameOut. Approx: 23 IBU. Primary @ 56°F took two full weeks and lagered @ 36°F for 6 weeks.

Hey Grog, I'm curious about the wheat malt in your recipe. I understand it is a relatively small amount, but most Kolsch style beer I've seen is brilliantly clear. Wouldn't the wheat give it a cloudy appearance? Sounds like a great tasting recipe, and I'll likely brew it this weekend. Just curious is all so any help is appreciated.

[Grog]

Originally posted by BeerMeShorty
Hey Grog, I'm curious about the wheat malt in your recipe. I understand it is a relatively small amount, but most Kolsch style beer I've seen is brilliantly clear. Wouldn't the wheat give it a cloudy appearance? Sounds like a great tasting recipe, and I'll likely brew it this weekend. Just curious is all so any help is appreciated.

It is probably filtered; the beer throws a very minimal haze, but most of the haze settles out in the lagering phase I would guess. But it is a beautiful golden yellow, if the stupid sun every shines for more than 5 minutes, I will snap a pic. It is a good beer though.

[BeerMeShorty]

Originally posted by Grog
It is probably filtered; the beer throws a very minimal haze, but most of the haze settles out in the lagering phase I would guess. But it is a beautiful golden yellow, if the stupid sun every shines for more than 5 minutes, I will snap a pic. It is a good beer though.

I'm sure that most commercial Kolsch styled beer is filtered by some means. I was referring to home brewed varieties however. A picture isn't necessary, but I wouldn't say no to a bottle!

:D