Amber Ales and Crystal/Caramel Malt

[goschman (Iliff Ave)]

@erockrph

Crystal malt is kind of the defining ingredient for an Amber ale. I think that the idea that “too much Crystal malt” is going to lead to an overly sweet or cloying beer is an old brewer’s myth dating back to times when many homebrewers were using extract + steeping grains and didn’t necessarily have access to the quality of yeast that we have today. Underattenuated beer with a lot of crystal malt is pretty blah. A well-attenuated Amber ale with enough IBU’s and hop character to balance the Crystal can make for a fantastic beer.

I agree, but that’s the trick isn’t it.  In my opinion, there are a lot more failures than success stories.  Maybe the pendulum is starting to swing in favor of more appropriate crystal usage, but I’ll continue to be skeptical.  I’ve had too many overly sweet caramel/crystal beers.  Maybe it’s me.  Could be.

I’m with ya