Amber Ale Recipe - Need some advices

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by Jos3h2r, Mar 19, 2018.

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  1. Jos3h2r

    Jos3h2r Initiate (0) Apr 7, 2015 Panama

    Ok guys, long story short, i wanna join a HB competition here in Panama, is in june so i have time, im working on 2 recipes, decided to go with the amber ale first because it looks more complicated for me, this is my recipe so far, feel free to criticize and i have a couple of doubts also because i have to work with what i have in my local HB store.


    Amber Ale
    A BrewBot Recipe File: marzo 18, 2018
    Recipe Profile
    Volume: 3.25 gallons
    Fermentables: 7.50 lbs
    Anticipated OG: 1.055
    Anticipated SRM: 13.6
    Anticipated IBUs: 34.42
    System Efficiency: 64 percent (yes is that low :cry:)
    Recipe Type: all grain - BIAB

    BJCP Style Parameters
    Style: 19A. American Amber Ale
    Original Gravity Range: 1.045-1.060
    IBU Range: 25-40
    SRM Range: 10-17

    Fermentables
    Amount Percent Name Potential Color (SRM)
    5 lbs     66.67% Pale Malt (Weyermann) 1.039 1.8
    1 lbs 13.33% Munich 10 (Briess) 1.035 11.5
    0.5 lbs 6.67% Carapils (Briess) 1.033 1.4
    0.5 lbs 6.67% Caramel 80 (Briess) 1.033 80
    0.5 lbs 6.67% Caramel 40 (Briess) 1.034 40

    Hop Schedule
    Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
    .5 ozs Cascade (US) pellets 6.9 17.50 60 min
    .5 ozs Cascade (US) pellets 6.9 13.44 30 min
    .5 ozs Cascade (US) pellets 6.9 3.48 5 min

    Yeast: options that i have available
    1. OMEGA - West Coast Ale
    2. Fermentis Safale US-05
    dont have Wyeast or WL available in Panama atm, only OMEGA, Fermentis and Lallemand.

    Mash 153ยบ F for 60 minutes. aiming for a medium body? not sure if this temp is right

    this is all i have so far, feel free to comment. And tx in advance and for taking the time to read this.

    Cheers :beers::beers:
     
    #1 Jos3h2r, Mar 19, 2018
  2. firstthenlast

    firstthenlast Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2013 Massachusetts

    This will make a fine beer.

    1.5lbs cara, 1lbs munich and 153F mash will give you plenty of body. IMO 1.5lbs of cara might be a tad bit too sweat. If you want "medium body" you are might get a bit more than you bargained with.

    If this were mine I would ditch either the C40 or carapils. I would consider replacing it with either more base of munich/vienna.

    Either yeast will produce good results. I like US05 and tend to get pretty strong attenuation from it.

    Good luck.
     
    #2 firstthenlast, Mar 19, 2018
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  3. Jos3h2r

    Jos3h2r Initiate (0) Apr 7, 2015 Panama

    I understand. This will be my first time brewing an amber ale and i tend to be like a bad cook at first, throwing everything in and see how it ends. Ill follow your advice, i like the idea of increasing the munich and get rid of the C40.

    But a question, am i getting the malt flavor that an amber ale should have just with C80, carapils and base malts?
     
    #3 Jos3h2r, Mar 19, 2018
  4. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    IMO...
    - 20% C-Malts is too high. Maye get it down to 10% or so. Start by deleting Carapils.
    - That amount of Munich (13%) will probably work fine, though personally I'd consider reducing it and getting some color from a very small amount of chocolate malt or other roasted malt.
     
    #4 VikeMan, Mar 19, 2018
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  5. scottakelly

    scottakelly Maven (1,487) May 9, 2007 Ohio

    Personally, I would delete the carapils and get the total caramel malts to around 10%. I would replace it with more Munich.
     
    #5 scottakelly, Mar 19, 2018
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  6. PortLargo

    PortLargo Pooh-Bah (1,831) Oct 19, 2012 Florida
    Pooh-Bah

    If C-120 is available I'd go with that around the 7-8% level, if not then C-80 only. If you have Munich II that will help with maltiness and color, I've also had good results with Melanoidin (MIII). For color you'll need Carafa or Chocolate or Roasted Barley, . . . tend to favor the darker color range as it helps make the "eyes" think it's richer. Marris Otter would be an ideal base malt, although the Weyerman pale is no slouch.

    Cascade is excellent but 1.5 oz total might be a little light, consider adding something to compliment (Willamette, EKG, Simcoe). Not wild about the 30 minute addition, I suggest whirlpooling at least an ounce of hops.

    US-05 is just fine, at your mash temp expect an attenuation ~75% . . . would shoot for a FG in the 1.014 range.
     
    #6 PortLargo, Mar 19, 2018
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  7. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    +1 to dropping CaraPils

    Personally, I'd move the 5min addition to flameout, and like the idea of adding some Willamette to to it.
    My version would look something like:
    5# pale malt
    1# Munich malt
    .5# C40
    .5# C80
    Whatever you have on hand @FWH or 60min to get 30IBU with other hops considered
    .5oz Cascade @30Min
    .5oz Cascade @ 10min
    1oz Cascade @FO
    1oz Willamette @FO

    US-05 to ferment.

    Amber ale is definitely a style in flux these days in the US.
     
    #7 MrOH, Mar 19, 2018
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  8. Jos3h2r

    Jos3h2r Initiate (0) Apr 7, 2015 Panama

    wow amber ales are really complex, i think because you have so many grains to pick from.

    Ill get rid of the carapils, for sure.

    im confused about the malts, about the flavor im going to get, but the only way to know that is by brewing. Ill go with 1 or 2 caramel malts at 10% max as suggested.
    Base malt, i think we have MO available, if not ill go with the pale.

    about the hops, remember im brewing 3 gallons. i want it a little hoppy but more to the malty side.

    Fermentables: OG 1.051 - SRM 15.7 - 7.3 lbs. total
    #5 Pale Malt/MO
    #1 Munich Malt
    #0.35 C60
    #0.35 C40
    #0.1 Chocolate 350

    Hops 35 IBU
    0.5 ozs Cascade 60 min
    0.5 ozs Cascade 30 min
    0.25 ozs Cascade 10 min
    1 ozs Cascade at FO
    1 ozs Willamette at FO

    I work with US05 most of the time, never tried Omega West Coast Ale so ill leave it for another time.

    ill keep working on it, tx again for the advices.
     
    #8 Jos3h2r, Mar 19, 2018
  9. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    If by "in flux" you mean, 'not that popular', I will agree :slight_smile:...Red Seal is still my favorite and probably more bitter/hoppy than most NEIPAs out there today. Cheers
     
    #9 GreenKrusty101, Mar 20, 2018
  10. jeebeel

    jeebeel Zealot (667) Jun 17, 2003 Texas

    OP, this is good advice that I would follow. For my tastes, less caramel/crystal malt is always much better than more.

    Also, ferment cool if you can. And maybe consider 2-3 hop additions (60-30-0, etc.) instead of more. Traditional ale styles, IMO, are best brewed with simplicity and balance rather than more ingredients or steps in the recipe. Cheers.
     
    #10 jeebeel, Mar 20, 2018
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  11. Jos3h2r

    Jos3h2r Initiate (0) Apr 7, 2015 Panama

    Tx for your reply. Ill remove the carapils and leave the caramel malts no more than 10%. About the hops yeah, ill go just cascade at 60 30 10 and 1 ozs at flameout, wont hurt anyone heheheh.

    I wanna brew that in 2 weeks. But im all hyped and ready hahahaha.

    Will post the results for sure.
     
    #11 Jos3h2r, Mar 20, 2018
  12. crcostel

    crcostel Initiate (0) Feb 26, 2006 Illinois

    As far as the yeast goes - West Coast i is the same strain as US-05. No need to spend more on the liquid. If you had access to West Coast ii though...
     
    #12 crcostel, Mar 20, 2018
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