Tastes Like Freedom
By James Wilson
Recipe is part of Recipe Index
BJCP 2021 Style 1A American Light Lager
The dirty secret in this beer is that it wasn't made with a lager yeast, although in my defence it was lagered for several weeks. When I first brewed the beer it was part experiment to see really how clean an American Ale yeast is, part joke to actually enter a light lager in a competition (when normally it's the placeholder style for many entries that don't turn up), and part giant yeast starter for another beer. As it turned out, I really liked the beer - it's a fabulous thirst quencher for warm days, and does have a touch more flavour than the a macro brewery light lager.
Crisp Europils is a very basic malt, the flaked rice helps lighten things up, and the use of amyloglucosidase really dries it out. High carbonation is essential to bring this beer to life.
Awards
ACB Homebrew Competition 2022 (Colchester, Essex)
HM - Best in Show
1st - Lagers/Pilsners
Statistics
- IBU 10
- ABV 3.8%
- OG 1.031
- FG 1.001
- EBC 4
- 24 litres at end of boil.
- 21 litres into fermenter.
Ingredients
Water
Reverse osmosis water with 5 grams of gypsum and 1 gram of calcium chloride in the mash.
Malt
- Crisp Europils, 2500g, 80.6%
- Flaked Rice, 600g, 19.4%
Hops
- 28g Tettnang (3.8% AA) in the boil at 30 minutes to get 10 IBUs
Yeast
- 1 litre starter of Wyeast 1056 American Ale
Process
Mash
- Infusion at 63C for 60 minutes
- Infusion to raise to 72C for 15 minutes
- When lautering, don't heat the kettle up yet!
- Sparge on the cool side to hit volume in kettle around 60C temperature (or lower)
- Add 2ml of amyloglucosidase enzyme to kettle, stir and leave it for 1.5 hours (or longer)
Boil
- 60 minute boil, 27 litres starting, 24 litres at end.
- Add Brewbrite and Yeast nutrient 10 minutes before end of boil.
Ferment
- Added pure oxygen before pitching
- Pitch below 16C and leave for 24 hours.
- Raise to 17C for 48 hours.
- Raise to 18C to finish.
- Lager in keg or fermenter for 1 month
Serving
Carbonate high - 2.8-3.0 volumes