Summer recipe challenge

So are you looking for a German grain bill, but American yeast and hops? Or something else?

You can get red color from caramel malts or from a little bit of roasted malts. You will get very different beers depending on which you use for your color.

Never had that beer

 

I had Switchback Ale once on a ski trip but I really don’t remember the details.

From their website:

“Brewed using only traditional ingredients, Switchback Ale is a reddish-amber ale which is particularly well-balanced, allowing for complexity of flavor coupled with an unusually smooth and refreshing character. Five different malts, select hop varieties, and our own specially cultivated yeast create an ale which leads with hop flavors and a subtle impression of fruit (our yeast’s contribution), followed by a palate pleasing malty finish. Our own special process uses the yeast to naturally carbonate the beer, and we leave it unfiltered. The result is a satisfying brew full of flavor with a remarkably clean and smooth finish. This ale contains 5.0% ABV and has 28 IBUs.”

Based upon the details of “Five different malts” it sounds like they are using a number of different specialty malts in their grain bill.

Cheers!

 

that's just not accurate.
Jever is dry as a bone.
in fact, the majority of German beer is the lager style and in fact does not have high esters or a long fruity finish. quite the opposite.
wheat beers are an exception and definitely not the rule. so, avoid wheat and wheat yeast strains.

I do believe your difficulty designing the beer can be fixed with some focus. we love to bash styles together and make something entirely new, but it helps to know the styles we are trying to mimic and the styles we want to avoid.
Cheers.

 

Jever is indeed dry as a bone; I would used the word "crisp" to describe Jever.

Cheers!

 

Most Germann beers are lagers, and the style guidelines always say "clean, no fruity esters". When you get to doppelbocks, Koelsch, and Altbier you can have low esters, but those are niche beers in Germany.

German Wheat beers are indeed estery, the ester being isoamyl acetate which smells like banana.

 

yeah, in my estimation clean hop bitterness requires the use of noble hops, or perhaps a newer high AA German variety. Herkules and Magnum are superb for this.

 

I am a BIG fan of German Magnum for the bittering addition. I used it as a bittering hop for two recent batches: Wit and Belgian Pale Ale.

I have never used German Magnum for either flavor or aroma additions so I have no input there.

Cheers!

 

What about a recipe that is 85% Red X Malt and 15% wheat?
O.G. around 1.065ish
Bitter with Magnum to 30 IBUs.
Maybe throw in a few late addition Saaz.
Ferment low with California Ale or Kolsch/German Ale, diacetyl rest, quick lager (1-2 weeks)

Crisp. Red. Wheat. Beer. Got 'em all.

 

I'd make that brew. I think I have.
use Vienna base malt, mash low. gets you orange color, maybe not so much red. dry it all out with a portion of dextrose. a small percent, real small, of blackprinze malt could get it a bit darker perhaps.

US05 can work at a good cool temp. Cali Common even, 2112.

just spit balling here, but I think this could go somewhere.

 

@premierpro has posted that he has fermented in the 60's with the 34/70 yeast with good results.

Based upon this input I would suggest that this yeast strain be utilized for this batch. The Wyeast version of this yeast is 2124.

Cheers!

 

how cool can ferment? Vermont basement cool or A/C in the bedroom cool? or neither?

 

There are some simple methods for bringing fermentation temperature down a few degrees. Below is something I posted in the past:

"My homebrewing area (utility room in my half basement) is a bit too warm now (ambient about 72-73°F). My preference is to ferment my Wit beers around 70°F (although 72°F would be OK). So, since fermentation is an exothermic reaction (it produces heat) I need to ‘manage’ the fermentation temperature. Right now I am able to do that by simply placing my bucket on the basement floor; the basement floor operates like a heat sink drawing the ‘excess’ heat away. I will just use the ‘floor method’ unless the fermentation temperature exceeds 72°F. If that occurs I will place my fermenter in a shallow Rubbermaid pan (about 5 inches tall) and put water in the pan. The presence of water increases the heat sink effect by cooling a couple more degrees. If I should need even more cooling I will place a towel (or a T-shirt) around the bucket for evaporative cooling. If even more cooling is needed I add a fan to the mix. If even more cooling is required I add some ice to the water; refreezable blue ice blocks."

Cheers!