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Author Topic: American Mild  (Read 18215 times)

Offline denny

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American Mild
« on: August 21, 2014, 10:45:51 am »
Thought I'd start a thread to document my attempts at coming up with an "American Mild" ale.  I want to end up with a sub 4% beer that doesn't have flavor and mouthfeel comparable to water!  I'm basing it on the English Mild, obviously, but with American ingredients.  My goal is to come up with a beer with the mouthfeel and flavor impact of a traditional mild, although not the same flavor.  I'm guessing this will take at least 3-6 attempts to get to what I have in mind.  I'm hoping that the amount of crystal, the high mash temp, and the yeast will give me the body I want, while all the late hops will have a lot of flavor but bitterness in line with the OG.  I'm also doing it no sparge, which I haven't done in a while.  Here's the recipe....

#463 American Mild

A ProMash Recipe Report

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (Gal):         5.50    Wort Size (Gal):    5.50
Total Grain (Lbs):        8.00
Anticipated OG:          1.036    Plato:              8.91
Anticipated SRM:          10.3
Anticipated IBU:          31.3
Brewhouse Efficiency:       73 %
Wort Boil Time:             60    Minutes

Pre-Boil Amounts
----------------

Evaporation Rate:       1.50    Gallons Per Hour
Pre-Boil Wort Size:    7.00    Gal
Pre-Boil Gravity:      1.028    SG          7.05  Plato


Grain/Extract/Sugar

   %     Amount     Name                          Origin        Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 81.3     6.50 lbs. Pale Malt(2-row)              America        1.036      2
 12.5     1.00 lbs. Crystal 60L                   America        1.034     60
  6.3     0.50 lbs. Special Roast Malt            America        1.033     40

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

   Amount     Name                              Form    Alpha  IBU  Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
  0.50 oz.    Chinook                           Pellet  12.10  15.5  20 min.
  0.50 oz.    Simcoe                            Pellet  15.40  11.8  10 min.
  0.50 oz.    Centennial                      Whole   10.20   3.9  5 min.
  1.00 oz.    Columbus                        Pellet  15.20   0.0  0 min.


Yeast
-----

Wyeast 1450 Denny's Favorite


Mash Schedule
-------------

Mash Name:

Total Grain Lbs:    8.00
Total Water Qts:   16.00 - Before Additional Infusions
Total Water Gal:    4.00 - Before Additional Infusions

Tun Thermal Mass:   0.13
Grain Temp:        65.00 F


                     Step   Rest   Start   Stop  Heat     Infuse   Infuse  Infuse
Step Name            Time   Time   Temp    Temp  Type     Temp     Amount  Ratio
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sacc                   0     60    160     160   Infuse   173       16.00   2.00


Total Water Qts:           16.00 - After Additional Infusions
Total Water Gal:            4.00 - After Additional Infusions
Total Mash Volume Gal:      4.64 - After Additional Infusions

All temperature measurements are degrees Fahrenheit.
All infusion amounts are in Quarts.
All infusion ratios are Quarts/Lbs.


Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

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Offline klickitat jim

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #1 on: August 21, 2014, 10:53:42 am »
It's a style that is overdue. Good on ya. I can taste it all ready. I'll be following this and willing to help when the time comes.

Offline HoosierBrew

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #2 on: August 21, 2014, 11:07:52 am »
That sounds really good.  Pretty sure a keg of that wouldn't last long !
Jon H.

Offline klickitat jim

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #3 on: August 21, 2014, 11:33:48 am »
Denny, post the stats ranges and desired final character (which you kinda already have) and we'll start brewing them.

Offline troybinso

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #4 on: August 21, 2014, 11:37:25 am »
How about some oats or rye for a fuller body? Or some carapils?

I would go with a slightly higher original gravity for more fullness as well. 1.040-1.011 is 3.9%.

A more expressive base malt might help with the possible lack of malt flavor. I would go for GW NW pale ale malt for a flavorful domestic malt.

Offline klickitat jim

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #5 on: August 21, 2014, 11:46:55 am »
I like that an American Mild doesn't have to be brown!

Offline denny

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #6 on: August 21, 2014, 12:18:20 pm »
I like that an American Mild doesn't have to be brown!

Well, technically neither does a British mild.

Just started the boil.  Got 84-87% effieincy from a no sparge!  To address some of the comments...

Jim, to fill out the description above, I want a beer that is fairly balanced between hops and malt.  It has to have an American hop quality, which is why I went with the "classics" rather than the newer tropical fruit hops...well, that and I hate those!  ;)   

troybinso, great ideas, some of which I already considered.  I don't find oats to add body, frankly.  Maybe it's something I'm doing wrong, but multiple attempts at using oats to build body haven't come out with what I expected.  Thought about rye, but I don't want that flavor in there, at least in the first test batches.  Considered carapils also, and it may end up in there after I evaluate this attempt.  Like I said above, I'm expecting anywhere form 3-6 batches to get it dialled in.  Your idea to bump the OG is good, but again it's something I'll consider after I evaluate this batch.  The last few batches I made used GW pale ale as a base, but I was out of it for this one.  But thanks for the idea...something to keep in mind for future revisions.
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

www.dennybrew.com

The best, sharpest, funniest, weirdest and most knowledgable minds in home brewing contribute on the AHA forum. - Alewyfe

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell

Offline erockrph

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #7 on: August 21, 2014, 12:18:39 pm »
How about some oats or rye for a fuller body? Or some carapils?

I would go with a slightly higher original gravity for more fullness as well. 1.040-1.011 is 3.9%.

A more expressive base malt might help with the possible lack of malt flavor. I would go for GW NW pale ale malt for a flavorful domestic malt.

+1 to a lot of this. My session robust porter starts at 1.047 and finishes at about 1.018. For my non-hoppy session brews, I find that they end up a bit thin unless they finish in the high teens. I like the special roast here, but I'm thinking you might also want one or more of the following to amp up the malt flavor a bit:

Munich
Aromatic
Darker Crystal (to replace some or all of the C-60)
A touch of chocolate malt (maybe?)

I think 12.5% is a good starting point for the Crystal malt.
Eric B.

Finally got around to starting a homebrewing blog: The Hop Whisperer

Offline denny

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #8 on: August 21, 2014, 12:21:39 pm »
+1 to a lot of this. My session robust porter starts at 1.047 and finishes at about 1.018. For my non-hoppy session brews, I find that they end up a bit thin unless they finish in the high teens. I like the special roast here, but I'm thinking you might also want one or more of the following to amp up the malt flavor a bit:

Munich
Aromatic
Darker Crystal (to replace some or all of the C-60)
A touch of chocolate malt (maybe?)

I think 12.5% is a good starting point for the Crystal malt.

Yeah, I considered a darker crystal.  I'm also thinking about a blend of several crystals to increase the depth of flavor.  Munich is a good idea, too, but I wanted to keep this first attempt pretty basic to evaluate the whole concept.  Considered chocolate malt, too, for the added flavor but I really want to keep this in the pale mild area.  I just feel like that's closer to the American style I was going for.
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

www.dennybrew.com

The best, sharpest, funniest, weirdest and most knowledgable minds in home brewing contribute on the AHA forum. - Alewyfe

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell

Offline erockrph

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #9 on: August 21, 2014, 12:57:40 pm »
+1 to a lot of this. My session robust porter starts at 1.047 and finishes at about 1.018. For my non-hoppy session brews, I find that they end up a bit thin unless they finish in the high teens. I like the special roast here, but I'm thinking you might also want one or more of the following to amp up the malt flavor a bit:

Munich
Aromatic
Darker Crystal (to replace some or all of the C-60)
A touch of chocolate malt (maybe?)

I think 12.5% is a good starting point for the Crystal malt.

Yeah, I considered a darker crystal.  I'm also thinking about a blend of several crystals to increase the depth of flavor.  Munich is a good idea, too, but I wanted to keep this first attempt pretty basic to evaluate the whole concept.  Considered chocolate malt, too, for the added flavor but I really want to keep this in the pale mild area.  I just feel like that's closer to the American style I was going for.
Thanks for sharing your process. It's cool to get to follow along while you work this out. This is why we brew your recipes and not the other way around :)
Eric B.

Finally got around to starting a homebrewing blog: The Hop Whisperer

Offline HoosierBrew

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #10 on: August 21, 2014, 01:00:58 pm »
+1 to a lot of this. My session robust porter starts at 1.047 and finishes at about 1.018. For my non-hoppy session brews, I find that they end up a bit thin unless they finish in the high teens. I like the special roast here, but I'm thinking you might also want one or more of the following to amp up the malt flavor a bit:

Munich
Aromatic
Darker Crystal (to replace some or all of the C-60)
A touch of chocolate malt (maybe?)

I think 12.5% is a good starting point for the Crystal malt.

Yeah, I considered a darker crystal.  I'm also thinking about a blend of several crystals to increase the depth of flavor.  Munich is a good idea, too, but I wanted to keep this first attempt pretty basic to evaluate the whole concept.  Considered chocolate malt, too, for the added flavor but I really want to keep this in the pale mild area.  I just feel like that's closer to the American style I was going for.
Thanks for sharing your process. It's cool to get to follow along while you work this out. This is why we brew your recipes and not the other way around :)

+1   
Jon H.

Offline 69franx

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #11 on: August 21, 2014, 01:09:14 pm »
+2
Frank L.
Fermenting: Nothing (ugh!)
Conditioning: Nothing (UGH!)
In keg: Nothing (Double UGH!)
In the works:  House IPA, Dark Mild, Ballantine Ale clone(still trying to work this one into the schedule)

Offline denny

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #12 on: August 21, 2014, 01:21:45 pm »
Thanks for sharing your process. It's cool to get to follow along while you work this out. This is why we brew your recipes and not the other way around :)

That's very kind of you!  I have to admit that I think this is my favorite part of brewing...setting a goal and figuring out how to get there.  we all know that you can throw a bunch of stuff together and make beer and it may be pretty good beer.  But for me, the thrill is envisioning something and the bringing that vision to a glass!
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

www.dennybrew.com

The best, sharpest, funniest, weirdest and most knowledgable minds in home brewing contribute on the AHA forum. - Alewyfe

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell

Offline HoosierBrew

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #13 on: August 21, 2014, 01:26:53 pm »
Well, you have a pretty darn good track record, Denny.  The Rye IPA and BVIP (especially for me) among others are awful hard to beat.
Jon H.

Offline denny

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Re: American Mild
« Reply #14 on: August 21, 2014, 02:25:24 pm »
As we say in my club "At least you got the color right"....



Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

www.dennybrew.com

The best, sharpest, funniest, weirdest and most knowledgable minds in home brewing contribute on the AHA forum. - Alewyfe

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell