Brew UK Forum | Extract Brewing
Christmas Cheer Ale
Hi, all, its been a while since I last posted as I've been too busy drinking and not brewing. I wanted to make a Christmas themed ale and have been playing around on beersmith to come up with a recipe. Here it is:
BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Christmas Cheer Ale
Brewer: Alex Ward
Asst Brewer:
Style: Christmas/Winter Specialty Spice Beer
TYPE: Extract
Taste: (35.0)
Recipe Specifications
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Batch Size: 9.50 L
Boil Size: 4.63 L
Estimated OG: 1.088 SG
Estimated Color: 55.7 EBC
Estimated IBU: 9.9 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: - %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes
Ingredients:
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Amount Item Type % or IBU
0.75 kg Amber Dry Extract (24.6 EBC) Dry Extract 26.8 %
1.50 kg Pale Liquid Extract (15.8 EBC) Extract 53.7 %
0.11 kg Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (157.6 EBC) Grain 3.9 %
0.11 kg Chocolate Malt (886.5 EBC) Grain 3.9 %
25.79 gm Tettnang [4.50%] (60 min) Hops 9.9 IBU
14.15 gm Goldings, East Kent [5.00%] (10 min) (AroHops -
0.05 oz Cinnamon Stick (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
0.38 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
1.50 oz Ginger Root (Boil 12.0 min) Misc
0.23 kg Honey (2.0 EBC) Sugar 8.1 %
0.05 kg Brown Sugar, Dark (98.5 EBC) Sugar 1.8 %
0.05 kg Turbinado (19.7 EBC) Sugar 1.8 %
1 Pkgs Windsor Yeast (Lallemand #-) Yeast-Ale
Mash Schedule: None
Total Grain Weight: 4.54 kg
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I have a few questions as I'm not sure if the recipe is quite right. I want it to be quite a rich and strong complex ale and it fits all the style perimeters on BS, but do I need to change anything in the recipe? Would this be better kegged or bottled? Are the boil and batch volumes correct? And how much of the spices should I use? (baring in mind the values I have entered are not correct)so how many cinnamon sticks, how much orange peel and how much ginger? Also when should I add them?
The plan for the boil, excluding the spices, was to add all grains to pot and bring to a boil, as it starts to boil remove from the heat and strain, add all sugars and extracts and bring back to the boil once boiling add the tettnanger hops and boil for 60 minuets, at 15 minuets to go add the goldings. Does this sound about right? And where should I add the spices?
Sorry for all the questions at once. Any help is much appreciated.
Thanks, Alex.
PS. still meaning to document my summer ale and thunderbolt brews.
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Responses
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Looks like a good xmas ale to me, loads a fruity tones n all that. What is amber extract like? Is it just for colour or does it impart flavour? I seem to remember reading somewhere that normal amber malt takes a long time to mellow out and can be a bit on the intense side.
Brew it now and age it till xmas....Mmmmmmmm.....sounds ggooooooooood!
Conditionin' - LEB Pale
Conditionin' - Thwaits Nutty Black
Plannin' - A user upper!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi Nath. Thanks for the reply, to be honest ive never used amber extract before, but i was planning to age it until December from now anyway just to let it mellow out. is medium dry extract the same as medium dry extract as i dont think i have seen amber dry extract before? and have you any idea on how much of each spice and when to add it?
Alex
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Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Ive never done the fabled "xmas brew" so I have no Idea of how much spices. I know Mr.H and Tony and a few others have tried so it may be better from them. I think I may do an xmas ale for this year as I believ im home and not over various relatives.
I expect medium is the same as medium dry but im sure mr greg will help us on that.
Conditionin' - LEB Pale
Conditionin' - Thwaits Nutty Black
Plannin' - A user upper!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Sorry I don't quite understand this.
I need to finalise this recipe soon so I can order the stuff and also some bottles for my way to Amarillo recipe pack I still have laying around, so any advice is much appreciated.
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Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hey Alex ... I did a christmas ale last year - I think the recipe is in here somewhere - do a search for 'christmas'. Its an AG recipe though. The only advice I was given before I started was to make it a dark beer or a porter - which I did (well .. a 'light' porter). With all those spices in there it needs some depth of flavour - I'd also go for something above 5%, possibly over 6%.
Your recipe looks good but to be honest, I've never used DME so can't help on that front. Other than that though .. it all looks like a good balance! Good luck with the brew!
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
Posted 1 year ago by Admin
You can get Amber malt extract but I've only seen it in liquid form. I'm pretty sure medium DME is the same stuff.
Its only really the colour so I would have thought the choc and crystal will take care of them anyway. I would probably adjust the recipe to use 500g medium DME (as that's one pack) and increase the pale to get it upto SG. I can't see that will make any difference to the finished product. Otherwise you will be left with 250g of Medium Spraymalt.
Looks like a good recipe. I'm gonna do a Xmas recipe too. I've got a porter fermenting at the moment which is coming along nicely.
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Thanks for the feedback guys, I like your thinking about reducing the DME to only need one pack, Greg, but that would mean getting more LME to bring the OG back up witch is even more waste. Do you think my best bet would to be to reduce it to 500g and have done with it, thus reducing the OG to 1078 or could I use the 250g excess for priming or somthing?
I think I've now sorted the procedure for the spices;
1oz grated ginger boil for 60 minuets
1oz grated ginger boil for 15 minuets
2 table spoons of orange peel boil for 15 minuets
2 cinamon sticks boil for 15 minuets
I'll also add the 2 sugars and the honey at 15 minuets to go.
What do you think? I've based this around times and quantities of spices I've seen in other recipes.
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Posted 1 year ago by Admin
I would exchange the 1.5 kg of Liquid malt extract for 1.5kg of DME which with the loss of the amber by 250g should bring you to around the same starting gravity.
Alternatively you could use the 250g excess Amber for priming, didn't think of that.
I've not used spices like those before so not really sure about that. Tony's probably your man for that one.
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Well thanks a lot for the advice all. Going to go with the first option, Greg. Is it exactly the same procedure now with the DME replacing the LME?
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Posted 1 year ago by Admin
Yes should be the same. You can always substitute LME for DME or vice versa but you just need to remember to adjust the qty by 20% as LME has 20% less sugar by volume as 20% is water.
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi again Alex
Here's my recipe from last year... there's a few things I'd change - and will change for this years however - when I've worked it out. Went down a treat this one and this year I have to make a shed load as I have orders in
If you want me to post the whole recipe - just let me know (it is AG though)
0.99 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (Boil 5.0 min) Misc (I added peel from 2 - NO PITH)
3.00 items Cinnamon Stick (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
8.00 items Cardamom (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
10.00 items Cloves (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
40.00 gm Ginger Root (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
0.50 kg Palm Sugar (15.8 EBC) Sugar (added 2 mins from end of boil)
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Thanks Tony, this gives me a good idea of the quantities I need to add. pretty much got it finalised now and have made my order.
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