Brewing with corn, British Dark Mild Ale recipe and more

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Find Recipes Start your free trial Brew Day Bulletin Dear Homebrewer, Jamil Zainasheff's British Dark Mild Ale recipe [Free], a British session ale is known for its low hop character when compared to bitters and pale ales with a lot more toasted malt presence in the dark milds. Gordon Strong's American Amber Ale recipe [Digital Members] challenges the brewer to keep the flavors in balance.  We build a case to reconsider brewing with corn [Free]. On the other hand, here are suggestions for brewing with the finer things [Digital Members]—Tahitian vanilla beans, black truffles, saffron.  Mr. Wizard answers reader questions on brewing with Belgian candi sugar [Free] and reverse osmosis water [Digital Members]. Try building a portable RO system for water on the go [Digital Members] and a water control system [Free] to make the most of a float switch.  Cheers! Brad Ring Publisher Read & Brew: Free Content For All Recipe British Dark Mild Ale Jamil Zainasheff provides readers with a recipe for a British Dark Mild. This British session ale is known for it's low hop character when compared to bitters and pale ales with a lot more toasted malt presence in the dark milds. Often served via cask in it's native land. (5 gallons/19 L, all-grain) OG = 1.036 (8.9 °P)  FG = 1.011 (2.8 °P) IBU = 17  SRM = 22  ABV = 3.2% Ingredients 6.25 lb. (2.83 kg) Crisp British pale ale malt or similar (3 °L) 5 oz. (142 g) crystal malt (60 °L) 5 oz. (142 g) crystal malt (120 °L) Read more Article Brewing with Corn Since the late 1970s the craft beer movement has been growing among both brewers and consumers based on the desire to drink something besides mass-market macro-brewed lagers. These light, flavorless beers often are brewed using substantial percentages of adjuncts such as corn (maize) or rice in order to achieve an extreme degree of lightness in color, clarity, calories, and flavor. However, in our zeal to make different styles of flavorful beer at home we should not throw the baby out with the bath water. Read more Ask Mr Wizard Brewing with Belgian Candi Sugar? Q Soon I'll brew a personal style of Westvleteren and I'm a little bit confused about the use of Belgian candy syrup. For a final batch of 23 liters (6 gal.) I'll use 1.53 kg (3.37 lbs.) of syrup. I read to add the syrup in three steps: 1/3 at the beginning of boil, 1/3 the last five to ten minutes and 1/3 in the secondary. What are the differences between the two different additions to the boil? Because the boiling time will be 90 minutes, can I have caramelization problems? The temperature of the secondary will be 10 °C (50 °F) for eight to ten weeks. Will the yeast be able to use the candy syrup? A Candy syrup or candy sugar (usually named "candi" sugar) is a fancy name for beet sugar that has been caramelized into syrup with a dark color and rich flavor. The flavor of candi sugar is definitely rich and I can understand why brewers use it as a source of fermentables and flavors. I personally have used dark candi sugar in Belgian-style dubbels and the beer turned out great. However, I honestly don't know if the candi sugar added color or flavor since I used special malts for the most obvious contributors of flavor.The instructions you describe above have a few details that I question.   Read More Project Water Control System: Making the most of a float switch One of the things that I enjoy about homebrewing is customizing my brewing system. I have built several contraptions to help improve the quality of my beer, make brew day go more smoothly, and reduce the risk of the mishaps that can add unneeded frustration. One of the things I built with those goals in mind is my water control system. Read More For Digital Members Only Members get access to thousands of recipes, all new BYO issues and more. Try membership risk free for 14 days.* Brew Better. Try Membership, Free!* Recipe Gordon Strong's American Amber Ale The challenge in this style to me is restraint, and keeping the flavors in balance. If you do that, this could be a choice as one of your regular house beers. (5 gallons/19 L, all-grain) OG = 1.054 FG = 1.012 IBU = 30 SRM = 15 ABV = 5.5% Ingredients 9 lbs. (4.1 kg) pale ale malt 1 lb. (454 g) dark Munich malt (9 °L) 1 lb. (454 g) crystal malt (60 °L)   Read more Article The Finer Things: Brewing with culinary delicacies Beer has long been the beverage of the working class. It is the default drink for picnics, festivals, and the beach. Who drinks vintage Cabernet while bowling or Cognac at a baseball game? However, this blue-collar reputation has prevented beer from taking its deserved place alongside world-class cuisine. Brewers like Garrett Oliver from Brooklyn Brewery and chefs like Daniel Burns from TØRST, among others, have started to correct this injustice, but there is still much work to be done. Read more Ask Mr. Wizard Reverse Osmosis Water Q We have a whole-house R/O (reverse osmosis) water treatment system in our current home. The water tastes good but the beer we have made from it seems, perhaps, less complex and less bright than beer we've made with non-R/O tap water in previous residences. Is there a standard set of minerals/additives that could be added to make the R/O water appropriate for most beers, or is the only way to select additives to test the water and then craft the minerals to be added based on the beer style we are planning to brew? A I have spent the last 20 years brewing beer using pure water, either from RO or distillation, and to me this has become the norm. I like brewing with RO because it takes variability away from water and gives the brewer a blank slate, but as you point out that slate needs to be decorated.   Read more Project Portable RO System: Water on the go Maybe like me you have come to realize the importance that water and water chemistry plays in the flavor of the beer you brew. And maybe like me you have also wanted to take control of the mineral composition of the water you use for brewing so you can dial in a particular profile for that perfect helles, NEIPA, or saison. If you want help with that . . . I'm not your guy. I'll be the first to admit that I bought, read, and understood little in Water: A Comprehensive Guide for Brewers by John Palmer and Colin Kaminski. Read more *Free Trial Terms and Conditions: For new members and subscribers only. Limit one per customer. 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