As far as brewing is concerned, there is very little that is easier – and more immediately rewarding – than brewing an extract-only light ale. As with most light beers (and really anything else that appeals to the bovine masses) it only takes a few simple ingredients to make something mildly pleasing, and therefor adored by all. Seriously… What, you think the Bloomin’ Onion or the Big Mac are complex dishes? You think there are a lot of ingredients in Budweiser? Sure, us ‘Mericans love guns, and we certainly love saying that we love freedom, but most of all we love simplicity… and things with lots of salt and sugar. Mmmm… makes me want to pop over to Applebees for some babyback ribs and a Bud Light.
Anyway, in an effort to appeal to the female members of the Shadow clan, and to see how easy it would be to churn out a light, decent-tasting homebrew, I raided the malt-shelf over at Larrys Brewing Supply, and concocted the following recipe, which Jon is now affectionatly calling “Yeti Piss”.
Fermentables: (dissolve in 3 gal of 150 degree water, and bring to a boil. boil for 60 min)
- 3.5 lbs Pils DME
- 1.5 lbs Honey
Additions:
- 1 oz of cascade, borzken down as follows:
- 1/4 oz @ boil
- 1/4 oz @ 30 min
- 1/2 oz @ 0 min
Yeast: WYEAST American Ale 1056
I ended up racking this brew into a second stage after only 7 days of fermentation. Unfortunately, I had run out of bottles, so I had to wait for a delivery from a friend. As I mentioned above, a light brew like this is immediately satisfying, and can be consumed as soon as it is carbonated. After only a week in the bottle, the beer had a pleasant, smooth mouthfeel, with some nice sweet honey-notes. A few more weeks in the bottle have aged-away the excess sweetness from the bottling sugar, and have allwed the subtle, medium-hoppy flavor of the Cascade to balance out the honey. It has a nice, clear golden hue, and is a hit with the whole crew.
Cheers!
Love, Food & Beer 