Cream Ale

Beer Recipes
1

Never tried one. The wife’s boss sent home a six pack of his partial mash version. Crazy good. I didn’t know what it was and guessed a hefe because it had a little haze. But it was awesome, clean crisp with a faint orange zest finish.

Anyway I looked at BCS and a couple on the wiki. Think I’ll give it a shot.

9lbs 2R
Mash 1.5:1 at 150
60 boil
2 oz Mt Hood FWH
1lb cane sugar at 30 min
Wirlfloc and Wyeast nutrient at 15 min
Wyeast 1056 at 65°

1.055
Hoping to get it down to 1.008

2

What you have looks good, but since your wife’s boss’s was so good, why not ask for his recipe?

3

I’d suggest you replace the sugar with flaked corn.

4

This one by Skotrat is excellent.

https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=6089.15

5

Here’s my recipe that took 2nd place at the NYS Fair last year. This is my house beer. Pretty standard cream ale recipe. Great for watching baseball and hockey!

40% Pilsener Malt
40% American 2 Row
10% Flaked Corn
10% Flaked Rice

Mash at 150F.
Boil 90 minutes.

1 oz Hallertau @ 60 min. 0.5 oz Hallertau @ 5 min.

Ferment in the lows 60s with WLP001 or WLP080 (depends on how lager-like you want it to be).
Cold condition for 2-4 weeks.
Carbonate to 2.7 volumes.

Water treatment definitely benefits this beer.

6

+1. I made Skorats and it was great!

7

I’ve made it twice, though the second time I cut down the bittering hops a little.

8

Well it’s mashing right now so I’ll keep the suggestions in mind as o make future adjustments.

I’m just surprised I liked the style

9

Well if you do like it give Genesee a try. I was pleasantly surprised to find it hoppier than remembered; and when compared with Little Kings you’ll see the wide difference across the style.

10

Not sure I can find it here on the left coast but I’ll keep an eye out

11

There is a great brewery in Indy called Sun King, and they make a wonderful cream ale called Sunlight Cream Ale.  They say that they use just a pinch of oats and wheat in the grist, and I think I’m gonna try to clone it in my next cream ale. It has the drinkability and clean character of a cream ale, but is unique at the same time. Good stuff.

12

Hi All:

I was thinking about brewing one of these cream ales over the weekend, and I have a real amature question:

I see the recipie above calls for an addition of 1lb cane sugar during he boil (at 30 min).  If you substitute flacked corn (which I have a little of), does that go into the boil too (and not the mash)?

Thanks for any guidance to the amature here!

-Bill

13

flaked corn goes in the mash.

14

No, it needs to be mashed.

15

Personally I would go with corn for the corn flavour it provides more than the alcohol. I think that’s a key aspect of the beer but others may not.
Mash the corn.

16

Thanks everyone!

One follow up question:  Does adding sugar to the boil have a flavor/feel effect?  Or is it just to boost fermentable/alchol?

-Bill

17

it boosts alcohol and lightens body. If used in very high percentages it can add some cidery flavours. but at these levels it will just boost the gravity without changing the flavor.

18

I prefer to avoid the corn flavor personally.  I use rice syrup solids instead.  just replace the sugar with it.

19

How high is high?

20

Good question. I’ve gone 20% but in a very big very malty beer. Actually at brew club the other day we had a member present on cask ale and he tapped a pin of ordinary bitter at 3.2% abv that had 2lbs of sugar in the recipe. I didn’t get any particular cideryness there. so I guess the short answer is…
it depends.