I was considering using a combo of pilsner and 2-row for an APA. Looking for something fairly light, OG ~1.045-1.050. Going to hop it with some cascade, sorachi ace (need to use these already!), and simcoe. I thought the lighter malt would pair well with the lemon/grapefruit characters in the hops and I hear simcoe can pair well with the sorachi ace. Overall goal is a crisp, citrusy, session type APA. Any thoughts? I figured i’d start with a 50:50 split of 2-row and pils + maybe a little crystal 20 to round it out a bit.
If you wanna highlight the hops, I’d go with the 2-row. That’s just me though, YMMV.
I wouldn’t use pils malt either. The hop combo sounds good though.
Oh, poo-poo! Don’t listen to the nay-sayers.
While there is little precedent for using a portion of Pils in a Pale Ale, its not to say its not worth trying. A lot of brewers concentrate on 2-row Pale and maybe a bit of Munich as the base malts, it would be an education to try a portion of Pils. Pils definitely has a differing flavor, so it might be an interesting combination. This is more valuable when you brew a similar brew without the Pils and contrast the differences.
Just remember that Pils malt has more SMM and it requires a longer boil time to make sure most of it is scrubbed from the wort.
Enjoy!
I’m with Martin. On a lighter beer like this swapping out the 2-row for Pils has the potential for adding some flavor complexity from the base malt while staying out of the way from the hops. Give it a try and see what you think.
Nothing wrong with using part or all pils for an APA/AIPA. Ninkasi here in Eugene does it all the time.
I have tried pils in apa/ipa, but didn’t like it. you should try it - maybe you will like it.
Russian River- row 2 hill 56- I can’t think of an apa I liked more, 70/30 pils to maris otter with some crystal 20.
That’s the best answer to many of the questions that pop up in the forum….just try it. The best part of this hobby (other than the reward in the glass few weeks down the line) is the experimentation to find *exactly what suits your own tastes. *
With regard to some Pils in the pale ale grainbill; although I’ve worked hard to standardize certain of my recipes and attain consistency in my favorite beers, I did few batches of both pale ale and ‘best bitter’ this past year with some pils to fill out the grainbill, simply because of availability, and they all turned out great.
FWIW, I have a “light” (as opposed to “lite”) APA on tap at the moment made with pils malt and light candi syrup. Turned out quite well.