The good news for homebrewers is that you can save some money if you make a couple adjustments to your brewing practices. Before we get to the tips, though, let’s face a couple facts.
Fact 1: Homebrewingis Economical
As hobbies go, homebrewing is inexpensive. You can make it costly, but the basics can be done very economically. Once you have the needed equipment, the cost of ingredients and expendibles for a moderate gravity 5.0-gallon (19-L) batch of beer is generally only 30 to 40 dollars. Compare this expense to buying a new bass boat or fixing up that old muscle car.
Fact 2: BrewingServes Two Purposes
For the homebrewer, brewing serves two purposes. Brewing, of course, supplies the homebrewer with beer and this is less costly than buying commercial beer. And, let’s face it, no matter how bad the economy gets, you’re not going to quit drinking beer. Secondly, brewing is entertainment. With the wide variety of great craft beers available today, nobody has to brew to have access to great beer. We brew because we love brewing.
Viewed as both supplying a commodity and entertainment, homebrewing is very inexpensive. Compare a day of brewing with going to see a major league sporting event, or even a minor league sporting event . . . or, for that matter, even dinner and a movie.
However, even though brewing is already affordable, there are ways to stretch your brewing dollar even further. In addition to my ideas, I also gathered money-saving tips from homebrew retailers. See their comments at the bottom of the pages in this article.
Money Saving Tip 1:Brew More
Generally, saving money involves buying fewer things. So how can brewing more — which would involve buying more brewing stuff — save you money? First, brewing results in beer that costs less than store-bought beer. Second, brewing fills entertainment time, during which you might be doing something far more costly. So, if you’re looking to save money this year, consider how a few extra batches of homebrew would save you on your overall beer expenses. And also, be honest, if you weren’t brewing on those Saturdays, what would you be doing in place of brewing and how much would that cost?
Money Saving Tip 2:Buy in Bulk
If you have a fairly good idea of what you are going to brew in the coming months, buying your ingredients in bulk can save you some money. If, for example, you know you’re going to be brewing several English-style ales soon, buying a whole sack of pale ale malt can save you 10 or more bucks versus buying it by the pound for each batch. Likewise, if you use a particular variety of hop frequently, buying it by the pound is cheaper than by the ounce. (Given the current hop situation, some shops don’t currently sell hops by the pound. This will likely change next year.) Other expendibles, such as bottle caps, are also generally cheaper when bought in quantity.
Of course, buying in bulk only saves you money if you end up using all the ingredients. And, keep in mind that brewing ingredients have a shelf life. Buying in bulk works best when you plan your brewing for several months in advance.
Money Saving Tip 3:Brew Appropriately-Sized Batches
Most homebrew recipes are for 5.0 gallons (19 L) of beer. However, brewing smaller or larger-sized batches may make more economic sense, in different situations.
Sometimes, you might find a recipe you are interested in brewing, but you might not want 5 gallons (19 L) of the beer. It may be a beer style you’re not familiar with. It may require a ton of malt or hops, use some unusual and costly ingredient, or simply be something you like in small amounts. In those cases, save some money and brew a smaller batch.
On the other hand, for brews you enjoy and make frequently, scaling up may make more sense. The cost of malt and hops will increase proportionally with batch size. However, the cost of yeast, propane, cleaning solutions and other things — such as the cost of running the refrigerator to cool your kegs — stays the same or about the same. If there’s a style of beer you really enjoy, brewing larger batches is a smart move.
Money Saving Tip 4:Substitute Maltfor Malt Extract
Brewing with malt extract is very convenient, but extract is also expensive compared to malt. One way to retain most of the convenience of extract brewing, but save a little money on fermentables, is to make partial mash beers. There are many ways to do partial mashes. One method we have featured a few times in the past few years is my countertop partial mash protocol. With that, the brewer mashes4.0 lbs. (1.8 kg) of grains to supply some of the wort. The rest is made from malt extract. You can think of this small mash as replacing approximately the amount of liquid malt extract found in a 3.3 lb. (1.5 kg) can. Swapping 4.0 lbs. (1.8 kg) of grain for 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) of liquid malt extract will save you at least a couple bucks.
To perform a countertop partial mash, all you need in terms of new equipment is a 2-gallon (7.6-L) beverage cooler, which sells for around $20 at most sporting goods or camping supply stores. Switching to all-grain brewing will also save you money, although you will need a mash tun, a kettle large enough to boil the full volume of your wort and a wort chiller. For most average-strength beers, switching to all-grain can save you around 10 dollars per batch.
Money Saving Tip 5:Hops
You can save money on hops if you’re willing to do some substitution in certain recipes. If you have a recipe that is bittered by adding a large amount of low-alpha hops, substitute high-alpha hops for low-alpha hops. Recently, a new method of late hopping beers has arisen in the homebrewing community — adding hops via a French press extract. The idea is simple: Put some hops in a French press coffee maker, pour some boiling wort on them and let them steep briefly. Then, pour this hop extract — that contains loads of hop flavor and aroma — into your beer when you rack to secondary. Using this method, you can get the same amount of late hop character in your beer using 1⁄3 to 1⁄2 as many hops. With the French press method, you also lower the amount of wort lost to the absorption of the hops in your kettle, so your yield goes up slightly, especially when brewing very hoppy beers.
Most brewers have one form of hop — pellet, plug or whole — they prefer. However, being flexible on the type of hop you choose can sometimes save you money. If your shop carries a variety you use in both whole and pellet form, watch the prices and alpha acid ratings each year. Sometimes the whole and pellet hops will come from different sources and one can have a substantially higher alpha rating than the other. If you divide the cost by the alpha acid rating of both, you can directly compare the “bang for your buck” both deliver. Keep in mind, though, that you get approximately 10% less utilization from whole hops.
Money Saving Tip 6: Yeast
Yeast is one of the major ingredient costs, but yeast differs from other beer ingredients in one key respect — you can reuse your yeast. If you plan to brew beer two weekends in a row, you can use the yeast from the first batch to pitch the second batch. Most commercial breweries repitch yeast several times before starting a new culture. A few repitch continually. Your success in repitching is going to rely mainly on your cleaning and sanitation. If you repitch yeast from a batch with a small amount of contamination, the resulting batch will show a lot of contamination. Repitching once halves your yeast cost …and if you keep the ball rolling, your yeast cost can drop to almost nothing.
If you make the same beer over and over, obviously, repitching is a valid option. However, most homebrewers don’t do this. Still, if you brew similar styles of beer, it is feasible. In the recipe section on page 49, I give an example of a beer combination that can be used for repitching. In general, if there is a low-gravity style of beer you enjoy and a higher gravity style that can be brewed with the same strain, they will make a good pair. You can raise the yeast for the higher-gravity beer by brewing a batch of the lower-gravity beer. (Low gravity fermentations put less stress on brewers yeast.) For example, if you like both Scottish 60/ ales and Scottish 80/ ales or wee heavies, you could brew both of these from the same yeast. Other possible combinations include an English bitter followed by an ESB, English-style IPA or barleywine. A Belgian blonde ale could be used to raise yeast for a dubbel or tripel and a helles could be used to raise yeast for an Octoberfest or a bock.
To get the yeast in the best possible health for repitching, be sure to aerate your wort thoroughly and add a small dose of yeast nutrients. The gravity of a session beer is higher than the gravity of most yeast starters, so be as kind to your yeast as possible.You can also repitch from any average-strength beer to another beer of similar strength. Commercial brewers do this all the time. Just be sure to aerate your wort well and, again, adding a little bit of yeast nutrient is a good idea.You can repitch from high-gravity fermentations, but the yeast tends to be less viable. Aerating well and ensuring yeast nutrition become more important when using “tired” yeast. In general, though, you’ll get better, more consistent results from using yeast that has fermented low-to-moderate gravity beers.
You can also make multiple yeast starters from a single vial or smack pack of yeast. Wyeast and White Labs packages contain around 100 billion cells. This is easily enough to pitch to 2.5 gallons (9.5 L) of low gravity wort. So, if you are an ale brewer who typically makes 5-gallon (19-L) batches of average-strength ales, and have some extra growlers on hand, you can make five 2-quart (~2 L) yeast starters and pitch them from a single pack of liquid yeast. On brewing day, pick the one that was fermenting the best to pitch to your batch. Refrigerate the rest once they finish. (Watch that the liquid in your fermentation lock doesn’t get sucked into the starter when you cool it. If you use the common “S”-shaped lock, leave only a small amount of liquid in the lock and it won’t get sucked in. Do not store these starters sealed.) If you are a lager brewer, you can make three starters of slightly less than 1.0 gallon (3.8 L).
Money Saving Tip 7:Brew with a Friend
Having a brewing partner can have multiple benefits. For starters, if you combine your yearly brewing plans, you will likely have more opportunities to buy ingredients in bulk.In addition, the combined elements of your individual breweries may make a better hybrid brewery. For example, let’s say your buddy has a nice counterflow chiller and you have a pH meter. Together, you have a better setup than either of you have alone. Having a brewing partner also allows you to gradually purchase equipment towards assembling a “stand-alone” brewery. For example, let’s say you’re an extract brewer who has decided to go all-grain. You have an extract setup, but your brewing partner is all-grain. You could buy a new brewpot one month, a wort chiller later and the mash/lauter tun still later. This would allow you to switch to full wort boils, then to all-grain — all while brewing and learning the ropes with your all-grain brewing buddy.
In addition, sometimes just splitting the cost of a batch can be a help, Even if you end up spending the same amount on brewing ingredients over the year, spreading out the expenditures may help.
Money Saving Tip 8:Grow Your Own
Money doesn’t grow on trees. But, hops grow at the end of long vines (technically called bines). Growing your own hops can be a rewarding activity as well as a cost-saving measure. Hops can be grown almost anywhere in the continental US and each plant can yield several ounces of dried hop cones.
Some beer recipes call for small amounts of raw (unmalted) wheat and you can easily grow this in your garden, too. Likewise, if you frequently brew Belgian-style ales, you can grow your own cilantro plants to supply the coriander. Growing your own barley would certainly save you money, but you’d have to malt it yourself.
Money Saving Tip 9:Use Energy Wisely
One hidden cost to brewing is the cost of electricity to run multiple brewing fridges and fermentation chambers (which are usually a fridge or chest freezer with an external thermostat). If you have multiple fridges, see if you can consolidate your fridge contents and unplug unused fridges. Likewise, continually opening fridge doors costs electricity. If possible, keep all of your most-used items in a single fridge. This way, you can grab multiple items every time you open the door. And, you can keep the door of other fridges closed for long periods of time.
If one of your brewing fridges is very old, it pays to consider buying a new one. This is obviously a large up-front cost. However, your savings in terms of electricity use can justify the cost in a fairly short amount of time.
Money Saving Tip 10:Make SmartEquipment Purchases
Every advanced homebrewer has at least one gadget they bought years ago, thinking that it was the solution to one of their problems or at least something that would be really handy. Now that gadget sits unused. To avoid buying equipment that is destined to gather dust, there are a couple things you should do.
If you see a gadget or a piece of equipment in your local homebrew shop that catches your eye, think about whether it will really fit into your existing brewery. It also helps to think about what you want your brewery to consist of in the future. The new 7-gallon (26-L) conical fermenter in the window might look cool, but what if you only brew 10-gallon (38 L) batches, or plan to start doing so once the brewing rig you’re building is finished? Planning an upgrade path also forces you to think about what pieces of equipment would benefit you the most. The conical might be sweet, but you might benefit most from bringing in a chest freezer to use as afermentation chamber.
For expensive purchases, do some research and find out if other brewers who own the product are satisfied. For example, many new homebrewers wonder if a new kegging system is worth the money, but I’ve never heard from a “kegger” that regretted that purchase.
Note that some equipment purchases will eventually pay for themselves. As mentioned before, buying the equipment to go all-grain will lead to lower per-batch costs. Likewise, if you buy a grain mill, you can save on crushing charges and take advantage of buying unmilled grain by the sack. (You can buy milled grain by the sack, but you need to use it within a few weeks.) And of course, if you upgrade to a larger brewery, you can save money by brewing larger batches. (Plus, if you sell off your old brewery pieces, you can recoup some of the money immediately.)
Money Saving Tip 11:Think Green and Lean
The principles of reducing, reusing and recycling can not only potentially help the environment, they can help save your green. Two specific things homebrewers can do is to reuse the plastic containers that some shops use to hold liquid malt extract and reuse your sanitizing solutions. Clean the extract bucket and bring it to the store the next time you buy extract. Most shops will charge you less to refill a bucket than to give you a new one.
Sanitizing solutions can be effectively used more than once. If your iodophor solution still has the correct yellow color, and you are planning on sanitizing some more items in a few days, save it in a carboy and reuse it. Likewise, Star San remains effective as long as the pH is around 3.
Going Further
Try keeping a brewing diary. Record every beer you brew, save all your brewing receipts and add up what it is really costing you. However, also add up what it is really saving you. If you didn’t brew that last IPA, how much would you have spent on beer at the liquor store, bar or brewpub? On weekend days that you don’t brew, what do you do? And how much does that cost? Although most homebrewers probably won’t want to go to this extreme, it can be informative.
How Not to Save Money
Using the tips mentioned in the article can help out your bottom line. There are, however, some bad ideas when it comes to saving money.
One of the worst ways to try to save money is to do things that increase the risk of making bad beer. For example, skimping on cleaning or sanitation solutions is not a wise move. Reusing solutions within a reasonable amount of time is a good idea. However, using a sanitizer that you expect is past its prime or mixing it at a lower than recommended concentration is a very bad idea. You may save a few cents on the chemical, but you risk contaminating your beer.
Another way of being “penny wise but pound foolish” is to continue to use tubing, rubber stoppers or similar items made of soft materials when they get too grungy. Don’t let a contaminated batch of beer be the only thing that forces you consider replacing these inexpensive items. You can still use old buckets to hold cleaning and sanitizing solutions, or simply as a container for miscellaneous equipment.
Likewise, using ingredients that are past their prime just wastes your time. You can’t brew good beer from stale malt, stale malt extract or cheesy hops. And pitching your wort with a package of expired yeast may result in a sluggish fermentation, if the fermentation starts at all. (You can frequently revive old yeast if you make a very small, very low gravity yeast starter. Use this mini-starter to pitch to a normal-sized yeast starter once you see signs of fermentation.)
Old ingredients, especially old grain, can be dumped on your compost pile or just worked into your garden soil. Some homebrewers use old malt extract to make yeast starters. If you do this, you’ll obviously only want to pitch the yeast sediment, not the whole starter. Old hops can be saved and used in lambics.
The absolute worst way to save money as a homebrewer is to brew beer that you don’t like. Brewing a barleywine can be expensive. But, brewing an English-style bitter — which requires far less malt — is not a good substitute if what you really like is barleywine.
Likewise, don’t let economic concerns diminish the joy of brewing. If you don’t feel like repitching the same yeast or making multiple yeast starters from a single package of yeast, don’t do it. This is your hobby. You should be having fun with it. The fact that you are brewing at all is
saving you some money . . . and that’s good news.
Retailer Budget Brewing Tips
“One of the best ways for homebrewers who brew all-grain to be cost-effective with this hobby would be to either join a local homebrewing club or get together with other homebrewers in the area and order grain and hops in bulk from their local homebrewing supply shop. Homebrewers can easily shave off 40% or more in savings if they order in bulk and then break it down into individual orders once the shipment arrives. Brewing all-grain beer is also more cost-effective than brewing extract, too.” – Ben Knoerdel, Ben’s Homebrew,Tarentum, Pennsylvania
“I’d have to point out the obvious. Re-pitch your yeast. Maybe start a yeast bank with the club. Ask members, ‘What’s brewing? When are you racking?’ Understanding hop utilization is another opportunity to save money. Know where and why you should be using hops . . . at $3-4 per oz, this will save plenty!” – Jason Smith, Adventures in Homebrewing, Taylor, Michigan
“Kegging your homebrew is a wise investment. Purchase used corney kegs and reduce your bottle needs and cleaning costs.” – Elizabeth Erschens, HomebrewUSA, Norfolk, Virginia
“Brew larger batches, the incremental cost is less for heat. Get together with other brewers and split batches!” – Erik Schmid. The Brewmeister, Folsom, California
“We have found that we are having an increased number of sales on the Brewer’s Best and True Brew ingredient kits that include malt, yeast, hops, hop/grain bags, bottle caps, some grain, recipes, etc. I am finding that the increase of sales is due to the simple fact that separate ingredients, especially liquid or dry malt and hops have increased so tremendously over the last year and a half. I understand that some brewers prefer making their own recipe, but the kits can offer more beer for your buck.” – Christy Sewell, Wine & Cake Hobbies, Inc, Norfolk, Virginia
“Making full-bodied, full-flavored homebrews under 4.5% alcohol saves money. All those big beers are expensive. Focusing on good everyday “session” beers is always a good strategy. Summer, when lots of brewers are too busy to brew beer, is a perfect time to make a wine kit. The carboy can sit all summer full of wine, not empty. By the time a brewer needs the carboy back for beer, she has 5 or 6 gallons of wine at a substantial savings over store bought wine. A busy, productive carboy and an appreciative significant other is a win-win situation.” – Anne Whyte, Vermont Homebrew Supply, Winooski, Vermont
“Brewing with a friend also saves money on outside entertainment expenses. We are seeing our customers getting together for weekend brews followed by parties with friends and family that showcase their homebrews. Guests bring homebrewed beer, munchies and soda for the kids! Soda is so easy to make with fresh ingredients or extracts. You can make small batches and reuse 2 liter soda bottles. It is a great way to get your children involved in a hobby. Kids love to be involved in activities and can’t wait to squeeze the bottles to see if they are ready to be chilled!” – Elizabeth Erschens, HomebrewUSA, Norfolk, Virginia
“Brewing more is definitely the way to go. Brew double or triple batches! Not only do you save time brewing more, but you save money on cleaning supplies, yeast if you do a starter, water, and electricity or gas! For those that want more variety, brew with a friend and split the beer or have your friend brew something different and share your beers! If you brew with a friend, take turns on hosting the brew event. This way no one person has to shoulder the cost of munchies.” – Elizabeth Erschens, HomebrewUSA, Norfolk, Virginia
“Experiment by using hop varieties that may be priced lower than your “go to” hops, and see if you like the results.” – John “JB” Brack, Austin Homebrew Supply, Austin, Texas
“Some sanitizers can be reused for months. Go beyond the spray bottle. Star San, for one, can be stored in a plastic bucket or glass carboy for months and reused as long as the pH stays below 3.” – Elizabeth Erschens, HomebrewUSA, Norfolk, Virginia
“If you purchase malt extract from a local homebrew store, ask if you can reuse your containers. We give a discount off kits when customers bring their container back for reuse. If that is not an option, save them and reuse them for storage. They are food grade so work well for leftovers as well as storing dry goods.I have customers tell me they haven’t purchased a single food storage container since they started brewing.They also work great for storing small toys and items in the garage.” – Elizabeth Erschens, HomebrewUSA, Norfolk, Virginia
“Homebrewers that purchase their supplies online may want to consider purchasing two or three batches of beer at once instead of separately in order to save on shipping. For example, if a kit costs $10 to ship and 3 kits cost $20, the savings is obvious. Brewers can store the extra kits in the fridge and they will keep for several months until they are ready to be brewed.” – Desiree Knott, High Gravity Homebrewing & Winemaking Supplies, Tulsa, Oklahoma
“We suggest purchasing dry yeast when there is a good equivalent. Our experience with Safale’s US-05 has been excellent and we suggest customers give it a try when recipes call for American ale yeast. Brewers generally save between $2 and $3 per batch by using dry instead of liquid yeast when appropriate.” – Desiree Knott, High Gravity Homebrewing & Winemaking Supplies, Tulsa, Oklahoma
“Don’t buy your water if you don’t have to. You may have a friend that has a great water source and will be willing to give you your water in exchange for a few brews.” – Francie Lengerich, The Brewers Art Supply, Fort Wayne, Indiana
“Most shops will give price breaks for bulk buys of extract, grain and hops.” – Erik Schmid, The Brewmeister, Folsom, California
“Grow your own hops!” – Steve Bader, Manager, Bader Beer and Wine Supply, Vancouver, Washington
“Plan to brew! Many homebrewers do not plan ahead and don’t have that Irish stout ready in March, the Oktoberfest in September and the winter warmer in December so they end up buying multiple six packs. Decide what kinds of beer you want to have ready to drink each month, and then back up your brewing calendar the appropriate number of weeks to get it done. If you plan to brew 6 batches of beer next year, and have it on your calendar, chances are you will make it happen.” – Steve Bader, Bader Beer and Wine Supply, Vancouver, Washington
“I’ve been encouraging my customers to convertDME to to less expensive LME whenever possible without affecting the recipe. Iconvert liquid at the rate of 1.2 times thatof dry malt.” – Bob Bacolas, Grains Beans & Things, Medford, Oregon
“Use high alpha hops for bittering when possible, as they are often the same price per ounce. Instead of 2 ounces of 8% N. Brewer, try 1 ounce of some Warrior, Columbus or Nugget.” – Erik Schmid, The Brewmeister, Folsom, California
“To stretch your dollar, plan your brews in order to reuse the yeast cake from the primary fermentation of the previous batch. A couple of good solid choices for multiple styles are the California/American ale yeast (White Labs WLP001/Wyeast 1056/Safale US-05) or English/ESB yeasts (White Labs WLP002/Wyeast 1968/Safale S-04).” – Steve Headstream, Kevin DeLange, Jason Wiedman, The Brew Hut, Aurora, Colorado
Budget Brewing Combo (Two Brews from One Yeast)
Here’s a simple twist on repitching yeast from one batch to the next that makes the process quick and easy. It’s based on the idea that both Wyeast Activator packs and White Labs tubes contain roughly 100 billion cells — enough to pitch around 2.5 gallons (9.5 L) of moderately-low gravity beer at the optimal rate. The basic idea is, instead of making a yeast starter, then two full batches of beer, make 2.5 gallons (9.5 L) of a session beer as the yeast starter. Then use this yeast to pitch to either 5 or 10 gallons (19 or 38 L) of a higher gravity beer. You skip making a yeast starter, but still have plenty of fresh, healthy yeast for both of your batches. In addition, there are several convenient options to get the smaller first batch packaged quickly.
Walk in the Park Ale(Golden Ale)
(2.5 gallons/9.5 L,mini-mash)
OG = 1.043 FG = 1.009
IBU = 22 SRM = 6 ABV = 4.4%
Ingredients
3 lb. 13 oz. (1.7 kg) 2-row pale malt
3.0 oz. (85 g) crystal malt (30 °L)
4.0 oz. (0.11 kg) light driedmalt extract
3 AAU Columbus hops (60 mins)(0.25 oz./7.1 g of12% alpha acids)
0.25 oz. (7.1 g) Cascade hops(10 mins)
1⁄2 tsp. Irish moss (15 mins)
1⁄4 tsp. yeast nutrients (20 mins)
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), WhiteLabs WLP001 (California Ale) orFermentis US-05 dried yeast(no yeast starter required)
Step by Step
Place crushed grains in a large steeping bag. Heat 5.5 qts. (5.2 L) of water to 164 °F (73 °C) and pour into a 2.0-gallon (7.6-L) beverage cooler (which will serve as your mash/lauter vessel). Submerge grain bag, then open bag and stir grains. Put the lid on the cooler and let the grains mash for 45 minutes, starting at around 152 °F (67 °C). Begin heating 1.0 gallon (3.8 L) of water to a boil in your brewpot. Also heat 5 qts. (~5L) of water to 180 °F (82 °C) in a separate pot. After mash, draw off several pints of wort, one at a time, and return to top of mash. After this recirculation, draw off roughly a pint of wort and add it to the boiling water in your brew pot. Take a pint of 180 °F (82 °C) water and pour it gently on top of the grain bed. Repeat this until you have 3.0 gallons (11 L) of wort in your brewpot. Add dried malt extract and boil wort for 60 minutes, adding hops, Irish moss and yeast nutrients at times indicated. Cool wort and transfer to a bucket fermenter. (Use a bucket so you can harvest the yeast easily.) Top up to 2.5 gallons (9.5 L), if needed. Aerate and pitch yeast. Ferment at 67 °F (19 °C). Let the fermentation run to completion, then let the beer sit for about 3 days, to let most of the yeast settle out.
On the IPA brew day, rack the golden ale to bottle or kegs. An easy packaging option is to rack the beer into five 2-L soda bottles or 2-qt. growlers, each with 0.5 oz (14 g) of corn sugar added. These bottles, made from PET plastic, are not good for long-term beer storage. However, they are filled with a low-gravity session beer — so you shouldn’t be expecting to keep them for long. Other good options include small (2.5 or 3 gallon/9.5 or 11 L) Cornelius kegs, a Party Pig, two Tap-A-Draft bottles or any kind of mini kegging system.
Edison’s IPA(American IPA)
(5 gallons/19 L,countertop partial mash)
OG = 1.060 FG =1.012
IBU = 60 SRM = 8 ABV = 6.1%
Ingredients
3 lb. 10 oz. (1.6 kg) pale malt
6.0 oz. (0.17 kg) crystal malt (20 °L)
1.5 lb. (0.68 kg) light driedmalt extract
4.0 lbs. (1.8 kg) light liquidmalt extract
16 AAU Summit hops (60 mins)(1.0 oz./28 g of 16% alpha acids)
0.75 oz. (21 g) Cascade whole hops
0.5 oz. (14 g) Centennial wholehops
0.5 oz. (14 g) Amarillo whole hops
2 tbsp. light dried malt extract(for hop extract)
1 tsp. Irish moss (15 mins)
1⁄4 tsp. yeast nutrients (20 mins)yeast from previous batch
Step by Step
Mash the crushed grains as described in the golden ale recipe, but have 1.5 gallons (5.7 L) of water in your brewpot, so you have 3.5 gallons (13 L) of wort when the boil starts. Boil for 60 minutes, adding Summit hops at beginning of boil and Irish moss and yeast nutrients late in the boil. Rack golden ale to keg or bottles during boil. Cool wort, transfer to fermenter and top up to5 gallons (19 L). Aerate wort and pitch yeast from the golden ale yeast cake. To do this, take a sanitized brewing spoon and scoop a little over a cup of yeast from the bottom of the bucket. Try to get as much of the creamy, light-beige colored yeast from the middle layers of sediment. Ferment at 68 °F (20 °C). Add whole hops to bottling bucket or keg using the French press method. Add the hops to a 1-L French press, pour in boiling wort (made from DME). Let sit for 15 minutes, then pour in bottling bucketor keg.
Edison’s IPA(American IPA)
(10 gallons/38 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.060 FG =1.012
IBU = 60 SRM = 8 ABV = 6.1%
Ingredients
24 lbs. (11 kg) pale malt
12 oz. (0.34 kg) crystal malt (20 °L)
32 AAU Summit hops (60 mins)(2.0 oz./28 g of 16% alpha acids)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Cascade whole hops
1.0 oz. (28 g) Centennial whole hops
1.0 oz. (28 g) Amarillo whole hops
4 tbsp. light dried malt extract(for hop extract)
1 tsp. Irish moss (15 mins)
1⁄4 tsp. yeast nutrients (20 mins)
yeast from previous batch
Step by Step
Mash grains at 152 °F (67 °C) for 60 minutes. Boil wort for 90 minutes. Ferment at 68 °F (20 °C), then add late hops using the French press method (described above).
Written by Chris Colby
Issue: May-June 2009
