So I'm thinking about possibly brewing a Classic American Pilsener, using American pale ale malt rather than 6-row, and flaked corn as the adjunct grain for that distinctive grainy sweetness. I'm also considering a decoction mash. Would decoction be appropriate for the style? I've read yes and no. My main question is what a decoction would do to flaked maize. Would I end up with some overwhelming and/or funky flavor from the corn? Would decoction make the beer more malty than the style dictates? Is it even worth doing a decoction with Briess pale malt? Pros or cons, please. And thanks!
Jamil Zainasheff suggests that you just conduct a single infusion mash for a CAP: “Historically, brewers would most likely have used a decoction mash and perhaps a separate cereal mash for the corn or rice, but I like to avoid any work that I do not feel is necessary, so I prefer to use flaked corn or rice and a single infusion mash. I find that fresh, high quality ingredients and ideal fermentation conditions are the keys to award-winning beer. It is far more important to invest time and effort in fermentation, sanitation and post fermentation handling than trying to mimic historic practices. Also, malt has drastically changed during the last century and things that were once done for a certain reason are often times not totally necessary with today’s malt, unless you enjoy the extra brewing procedures. For single infusion, target a mash temperature range of 147 to 150 °F (64 to 66 °C).” http://www.byo.com/stories/article/indices/11-beer-styles/2527-classic-american-pilsner-style-profile Cheers!
Thanks, Jack. Reading through Brewing Classic Styles it becomes obvious that Jamil doesn't like to decoct. He calls for single infusion for every recipe. Good points on the malt changing over time. I'm leaning toward a single infusion at 148, if I decide to brew one at all. Since my lagering freezer is on loan as a "real" freezer for the time being, I'd have to mess around with a fridge to do it, and I'm not sure about that much trouble. Thanks again for the info, though!
The historic way is a cereal mash, not a decoction. Jamil does not seem to like 6-row or grits/corn meal. I find that grits/corn meal give a better flavor. Jamil does not like Cluster hops. If you want a historic beer use cluster. If you want a modern/non-traditional CAP don't. The best CAP I have ever had was by Jeff Renner. It used corn meal/grits, Cluster hop for the bitterness, and teh corn was pressure cooked. Google Jeff Renner and CAP if you want more infromation.
Yeah, I used to "talk" with Jeff way back in the UseNet days (rec.crafts.brewing, if I remember correctly). I know he's big into the cereal mash, and is somewhat credited with reviving the style. I'm not planning on using grits, though, even if they would be more authentic. Same reason I don't ride a horse to work. :-) Still, that does make sense, as it would make a decoction a bit of overkill.
I personally conduct a single infusion mash when I make my CAPs. I also utilize 6 row malt and flaked maize. For hops, I utilize Cluster for the bittering addition and Hallertauer Mittelfruh for the flavor and aroma additions. I am very happy with the resulting beers. Cheers!
FWIW, my sense of it is that decoction would not be style appropriate. I think it's really the czech pils that almost demand a decoction, whereas the CAP should have a less noticeable grain flavor. To me, the whole logic of using adjuncts is to dial back the graininess (and lighten the SRM) at bit, so decoction seems counterproductive. That said, it's really all about your preferences... and how much time you have on your hands!
Since there are no ‘genuine’ commercial CAP beers to serve as a ‘guideline’ for defining what a CAP should taste like I personally heavily rely on the BJCP style guidelines (plus the articles that Jeff Renner has written). On the topic of “grain flavor” I personally take note of this verbiage from the BJCP style guidelines for a CAP: “Refreshing, but with the underlying malt and hops that stand out when compared to other modern American light lagers. Maize lends a distinctive grainy sweetness.” So, for me one of the distinguishing features of a CAP vs. a German/Bohemian Pilsner is the aspect of “maize lends a distinctive grainy sweetness”. Now, this can be a tricky thing in brewing a CAP since maize should be just a small portion of the grain bill. I personally aim for maize just being 20% of the grain bill. I have homebrewed my CAP beers with a number of different lager strains: 2206, 2035, 2272, 2124 and WLP830. The stain that I have used the most is 2206 but I started using 2124 back in 2009 and that is now my personal favorite lager yeast strain for making CAPs. In my opinion, 2124 has the quality of permitting the maize character to ‘shine’ despite the fact that I only use a small amount of it. The CAP beers that I make with 2124 definitely achieve what is described in the overall impression in the BJCP style guidelines: a nice balance of malt and hops with a subtle but noticeable grainy sweetness from the maize. This past winter I made two batches of CAP: one with 2124 and one with WLP830. I purchased the WLP830 since the online vendor was out of stock on 2124 and WLP830 is described as being the White Labs equivalent of 2124. I was shocked on how different the WLP830 batch tasted from the 2124 batch (all other ingredients and brewing process was equivalent). The WLP830 batch had a much different malt character; it has a ‘bready’ taste and the sweet graininess of the maize is not detectable to my palate. I also found the hop flavor/aroma to be more muted in the WLP830 batch. I personally much prefer the 2124 version of my CAPs. I have corresponded with Jeff (hopfenunmaltz) on the homebrewing of CAP beers since he is extremely knowledgeable on this topic. He and Jeff Renner have a preference with WLP833 for brewing CAPs. I personally have not brewed with WLP833 so I can’t really comment on this yeast strain. White Labs does have some interesting verbiage on their description of this yeast strain: “Very versatile lager yeast, it is so well balanced that it has gained tremendous popularity for use in Classic American style Pilsners.” Cheers!
I used grits on my recent CAP. It was sort of a pain. Precooking them wasn't a problem, but they clogged up my slotted copper lautering manifold and stuck my mash. I ended up repackaging my grist in a paint strainer to lauter.
Seems the consensus is that a decoction would be at best unnecessary, and at worst not true to style. Looks like I'll go with a single infusion, not even bothering with a protein rest, let alone a decoction. I'm planning to use Briess pale ale malt as the base instead of 6-row, because I'm cheap and already have a sack of the Briess. About 20-22% flaked corn, because I'm too lazy to do a real cereal mash. Figure I'll shoot for about 1.054 and about 32 IBUs, probably using a combination of Liberty and Crystal rather than Cluster, although I may change my mind and choose Cluster anyway. Now all I have to do is get the right hops and yeast and I'm good, since it appears I get my lagering freezer back tomorrow. Thanks for the info on the yeast, Jack. I had actually narrowed my selection down to 2124 or 2352 (the Private Collection Munich II). I've not heard much about the 2352, so I may stick with 2124. I've only used White labs for lagers in the past, mainly 820, 838, and 840. I'm interested in seeing what either 2124 or 2352 have going for them. Thanks, everyone!
I'm looking forward to it. I almost invariably do an American lager for a family gathering, because that's what so many of them drink. This year I wanted to change it up on them just a tad. I've done an Ofest before that got a tremendous reception, so we'll see how a hoppier CAP goes over with them. I decided to use the combination of Sterling for bittering, with Cluster, Crystal and Liberty for later additions. 1.056 and 34 IBUs. And I went with the 2124. Looks like I'll be brewing the first calm day next week.
“I decided to use the combination of Sterling for bittering, with Cluster, Crystal and Liberty for later additions.” An ‘interesting’ combination of hops; please report how it turns out. I use Sterling hops as my bittering hops for my Bohemian Pilsners and I like them in that role. I have never used Cluster hops as a late addition hop so I have no idea what that will yield. Cheers!
