All-grain Homebrew Beer Recipes | Page 388 | Browse 220,000+ at Brewer's Friend

Author:

mhv2themax

Boil Size: 6 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.081

Efficiency: 75

Mash Thickness: 1.3

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.35

Primary Temp: 70 ° F

Priming Method: co2

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 3/14/2019 2:15 PM

Notes: the keg was completely finished within two hours at my friends wedding

Author:

Valkyrie Brewing

Boil Size: 9.46 Gallons

Boil Time: 30

Boil Gravity: 13.2

Efficiency: 70

Mash Thickness: 2.45

Sugar Scale: Plato

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.75

Primary Temp: 75 ° F

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 3/13/2018 10:56 AM

Notes: It's all Darryl's fault.

Biabcalculator inputs
Kettle size: 20gal
Trub: 1.375gal
Boil off: 1
Grain absorption: 0.06
=> Strike 10.4 gal (10gal, 1.6qt), 163F

Author:

Boil Size: 13 Gallons

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.072

Efficiency: 75

Mash Thickness: 1.25

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.5

Primary Temp: 68 ° F

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 4/3/2017 1:09 AM

Notes: Secondary:
Soak .25 oz French Oak chips in one cup Kentucky Bourbon for 2 days. Soak ground kona coffee in 1 cup boiled, cooled water and leave overnight, covered in refrigerator. Strain out grounds and add cold coffee and bourbon, with wood chips to secondary. Rack fermented stout into this mixture and condition in secondary at 55-60F for 2-6 mos.

original recipe:
Here's a recipe from Jul/Aug 2010 Zymurgy. The recipe was built with guidance from Jeremy Kosmicki, Founders head brewer. My buddy made this and it was as good as, or maybe even better than, the real deal. Per the article "this is not an exact ounce-for-ounce recipe, but the brewery was able to share proportions".

FOUNDERS KBS CLONE
5 US Gallons

FERMENTABLES
13.25 lbs pale malt
1.5 lbs flaked oats
.75 lb roasted barley
.75 lb Belgian choc. malt
.50 lb Belgian debittered black malt
.5 lb 120L crystal malt

HOPS
1.0 oz Nugget 13% aa (60 mins)
1.25 oz Willamette 5% aa (25 mins)
1.75 oz Willamette 5% aa (10 mins)

2.5 oz Belgian bittersweet chocolate (15 mins)
1.5 oz unsweetened cocoa nibs (15 mins)
2.0 oz ground Sumatran coffee (flameout)
2.0 oz cold-brewed Kona coffee (secondary)

YEAST
American or California Ale yeast

DIRECTIONS
Boil Time 90 mins
IBU. 73
SRM 60
Specific gravity 1.092
Assumed Efficiency 75%

Infusion Mash at 155F for 60 mins. Add Hops, chocolate, and coffee as specified. Ferment for 2 weeks at 65F. Soak .25 oz French Oak chips in one cup Kentucky Bourbon for 2 days. Soak ground kona coffee in 1 cup boiled, cooled water and leave overnight, covered in refrigerator. Strain out grounds and add cold coffee and bourbon, with wood chips to secondary. Rack fermented stout into this mixture and condition in secondary at 55-60F for 2-6 mos.

Author:

RockHopper

Boil Size: 26.5 Litres

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.064

Efficiency: 75

Mash Thickness: 2.7

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: 20 ° C

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 1/6/2017 10:16 PM

Notes: Mash crushed grains in about 6 gallons of clean, chlorine-free water at 150˚F for 60 minutes. Sparge to collect about 7 gallons of wort in the kettle, then bring wort to a boil. Add hops according to schedule above. For the 0 minute additions, add the hops gradually after cutting off the heat, allowing the hops to steep in the wort as you chill it down, at least 30 minutes, or for as long as an hour. When the wort temperature reaches 68˚F, transfer to a fermenter and pitch the yeast starter. Ferment for 7 days at 68˚F, then pitch first round of dry hops. After 4 days, transfer to secondary fermenter and pitch second round of dry hops. After four days, bottle or keg. Beer will be ready to drink in 1-2 weeks.

Will be using Burlington Ale WLP095 (not on the list)

Author:

Jered Grubb

Boil Size: 8 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: N/A

Efficiency: 75

Mash Thickness: N/A

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 9/11/2012 11:38 AM

Notes:

Author:

Ozarks Mountain Brewery

Boil Size: 8 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.055

Efficiency: 80

Mash Thickness: 1.75

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 1.0

Primary Temp: 60 ° F

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 12/21/2014 2:04 AM

Notes: whirlpool at 0 until you reach 180, then chill, use an 8 gallon fermenter, fill as much as possible, ferment for 7 days, raise temp to 70 then pull off yeast and dry hop for 7 more days, pull into keg or kegs and cold crash at 34 for 7 days, pull into serving keg, purge then set pressure to 12 for 7 more days.

at this point you should have close to 5 gallons, enjoy

Author:

Kosmak125

Boil Size: 4.63 Gallons

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.028

Efficiency: 75

Mash Thickness: N/A

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.35

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 5/11/2019 1:24 PM

Notes: Made for a 2.5 gallon keg, 1.75 gallons of beer after 3 weeks in fermenter racked into keg after keg is filled with 96oz of Sanpellegrino Sparkling Limonata.

*fill Sanpellegrino Sparkling Limonata before racking beer

*carbonated to 2 volumes of co2 serve after a week.

Author:

Outlander Brewing

Boil Size: 52 Litres

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.06

Efficiency: 80

Mash Thickness: 3.2

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.5

Primary Temp: 19 ° C

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 6/19/2016 8:52 AM

Notes: Slight departure from the Brewdog recipe. Substituted the original Motueka hops for Cascade and Saaz to mimic style and IBUs (compromise of both).

brew efficiency is also much higher for us than for the recipe so we will upscale to about 50L instead of 40L.

hops bill also results in a higher IBU (49 instead of 40)

Author:

Jaman

Boil Size: 28.5 Litres

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 14.2

Efficiency: 70

Mash Thickness: 2.6

Sugar Scale: Plato

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: 22 ° C

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 10/8/2014 9:57 PM

Notes:

Author:

Ferdaze

Boil Size: 7.1 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.053

Efficiency: 65

Mash Thickness: 1.25

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.35

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: co2

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 5/24/2020 10:29 PM

Notes: For the dry hops the half ounce should be cryogenic hops.

Bring wort down to 147 degrees add the 0 minute hops and let rest for 10 minutes.

Author:

Whistle Punk

Boil Size: 50 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.052

Efficiency: 72

Mash Thickness: 1.15

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.35

Primary Temp: 64 ° F

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 11/26/2016 11:31 PM

Notes:

Author:

OVBrewer

Boil Size: 80 Litres

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.041

Efficiency: 75

Mash Thickness: 2.5

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: 20 ° C

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 6/29/2016 11:19 AM

Notes:

Author:

mechamaniaboy

Boil Size: 26.8 Litres

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.064

Efficiency: 63

Mash Thickness: 3.1

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 6/5/2018 7:43 PM

Notes: https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/may-edition-what-homebrew-are-you-drinking.508399/page-2#post-5460155
https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/how-to-brew/tips-brewing-new-england-ipa/
https://byo.com/article/neipa-style-profile/
http://www.homebrewfinds.com/2016/06/finding-the-conan-strain-of-yeast-vermont-ipa.html

STRAWBERRY MILKSHAKE IPA
For 5.5 gallons at 1.073 OG 1.012 FG
66 IBU
5.3 SRM
8.0% ABV

Malt
8.0 lbs pale malt
2.0 lbs Golden Naked Oats
1.0 lbs flaked oats
1.0 lbs white wheat malt

Mash
Single infusion mash at 150°F

Hops
1.0 oz Columbus for 60 minutes
1.5 oz Mosaic whirlpool at 180°F for 20 minutes
1.5 oz Mosaic whirlpool at 180°F for 20 minutes
3.0 oz of Mosaic at dry-hop (10 days after fermentation start, or when kegged)

Yeast
Conan

Miscellaneous
1.5 lbs lactose (added 2 days after fermentation start)
6.0 lbs strawberry puree (added 2 days after fermentation start) [For the puree, took 6lbs of frozen strawberries, added 1.5lb of lactose on stove with ~12oz of fermenting ‘wort’ and heated gently to around 180F for ~15 minutes, to ensure no contamination of wild yeast)

Note: You can also add some pectinase at this time, which might help breakdown the strawberries a little more and enhance flavor extraction.

Author:

itStevens

Boil Size: 7 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.053

Efficiency: 70

Mash Thickness: 1.5

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: 63 ° F

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 10/2/2018 7:24 PM

Notes: Mash all grain 60 minutes @154,

Fly sparge until 7.0 in boil kettle.

Boil, add warrior, 20 minute hop stand with 6 oz hops and 3oz Chai

Lactose @ 10 minutes

Rack to fermenter.

Pitch Yeast

When krausen begins to fall add dry hops.

Dry Hop 3 days

Transfer to Secondary for 1 week.

Split Vanilla beans and add everything to Secondary with 2oz Chai Tea.

Cold Crash 2 days.

Bottle or rack to keg.

Author:

Torwill

Boil Size: 33.5 Litres

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.049

Efficiency: 70

Mash Thickness: 4

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.75

Primary Temp: 18 ° C

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 12/22/2018 9:35 PM

Notes: Fermentation notes:

- Main fermentation at 18°C - ~ 4 days ( Important FG).
- Diacetil rest at 18°C - ~ 3 days (Reduce the temp 3°C/day ).
- After diacetil rest yeast removal.
- Lagering at 0°C - ~ 7 days.

Author:

danbrough

Boil Size: 15 Litres

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.048

Efficiency: 72

Mash Thickness: N/A

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: 20 ° C

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 5/16/2015 4:31 AM

Notes:
Brewing notes:
Used about 38g of Willamette original recipe is Kent Goldings.
Nice dark red colour in the wort.
Got 1.057 at 14L and ended up with OG: 1.06.
Pitched at 22c.
Day 1:
Ended up running hot as on day 1.
Left in a cool room it was 22 for most of day without heat or blanket.
Day 2: Fermenting at 20, krausen might have fallen.
Day 3: Slowed considerably, krausen gone and its at 1.028.

If the mash was 70c -> FG 1.018
72c -> 1.022 which is still ok but getting sweet. Should be at most 1.018 for this style. Recipe says it should be 1.015.
Perhaps it best to keep temps rising and start low with US04.

RECIPE: MCQUAKER'S OATMEAL STOUT OG: 1.055 (13.5 °P) FG: 1.016 (4.1 °P) ADF: 70% IBU: 36 Color: 35 SRM (69 EBC) Alcohol: 5.1% ABV (4.0% ABW) Boil: 60 minutes Pre-Boil Volume: 7 gallons (26.5L) Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.047 (11.6 °P) Percent English Pale Ale LME (3.5 °L) 6.8 lbs. (3.08kg) 66.0

Steeping Grains
Flaked Oats (1 °L) 1.0 lb. (0.45kg) 9.7 Chocolate Malt (350 °L) 0.75 lb. (340g) 7.3 Victory Malt (28 °L) 0.75 lb. (340g) 7.3 Crystal (80 °L) 0.5 lb. (227g) 4.9 Black Roasted Barley (500 °L) 0.5 lb. (227g) 4.9

Hops IBU
Kent Goldings 5% AA, 60 min. 1.8 oz. (51g) 36.1

Yeast White Labs WLP002 English Ale, Wyeast 1968 London ESB, or Fermentis Safale S-04 Fermentation and Conditioning Use 11 grams of properly rehydrated dry yeast, 2 liquid yeast packages, or make an appropriate starter. Ferment at 68° F (20° C). When finished, carbonate the beer to approximately 2 to 2.5 volumes.

Partial Mash Option Reduce the English extract to 5.4 lbs. (2.45kg). Mash all of the grains, including the oats, along with 2 lbs. (0.9kg) of American two-row

Author:

bevotx

Boil Size: 3.5 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: 1.042

Efficiency: 65

Mash Thickness: 1.25

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 1.0

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 1/19/2015 2:30 AM

Notes:

Author:

ryanbaxter

Boil Size: 7 Gallons

Boil Time: 60

Boil Gravity: N/A

Efficiency: 70

Mash Thickness: N/A

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: N/A

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 1/5/2012 12:12 AM

Notes:

Author:

DCBrew

Boil Size: 25 Litres

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.058

Efficiency: 70

Mash Thickness: 2.5

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.35

Primary Temp: N/A

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 4/16/2021 7:18 PM

Notes:

Author:

truckmann

Boil Size: 6.5 Gallons

Boil Time: 90

Boil Gravity: 1.045

Efficiency: 65

Mash Thickness: 1.5

Sugar Scale: Specific Gravity

Brew Method: All Grain

Pitch Rate: 0.5

Primary Temp: 68 ° F

Priming Method: N/A

Priming Amount: N/A

Creation Date: 7/14/2015 7:33 PM

Notes: http://byo.com/stories/issue/item/2989-flanders-red-style-profile

Don't tell me you hate sour beers. If you are a regular reader of this column, you know what I am going to say next: You don't like poorly made sour beers. I run into lots of people that say they do not like sour beers. When I do, I hand them a well-made, delicately balanced sour beer, with lots of complexity, and wine-like notes. A beer with notes of cherry, caramel, some vanilla, chocolate, an oaky finish, and yes, it even has barnyard notes. What do they say then? "Hey, this isn't like the sours I tried before. I like this."

The same thing goes for IPAs, stouts, brown ales, fruit beers, and every other style that someone declares, "I hate those." Okay, I am sure some people do not like certain flavors; I get it. But more often than not, the reason someone hates a beer style is they have just been fed bad examples. I think that happens way too often with sour beers. So many contaminated beers get entered in competition as "Belgian" or "Lambic" or some other poor excuse to cover the brewer's tracks. Even when the souring is intentional, there are lots of bad examples. Think of it this way: if the base purpose of brewing a pale ale is to have created alcohol, then just because it has alcohol does not mean it is a great pale ale. The same goes for sour beers. Just because a beer is sour, that does not make it a great sour beer.

A great sour beer may not be for every palate, but they are far from nasty. When well made, they are beautifully balanced and supremely drinkable. In a beer style like Flanders red, the sour and the funky are balanced with the malt character and residual sweetness, making an intriguing and enjoyable combination.

Flanders red is often a deep red to reddish-brown color. It is a complex beer with obvious fruity notes reminiscent of cherry, currants, plums, figs, and blackberries. From the oak aging, it often has a touch of oaky vanilla and some tannic wood notes. The barnyard-like notes from Brettanomyces fermentation adds complexity. One mistake brewers make on this style is fermenting with a phenolic yeast, causing a high level of spicy phenols. At most, any phenolic character should be a restrained background note. The malt character is bready, with a touch of caramel, and has some residual sweetness to balance the tart acidic character, which ranges from just balancing to intense. Bad examples will often have too much of both sour and sweet, becoming cloying. Great examples will have a balance where the combination of sweet and sour never overwhelm the palate. A good example of the style is well-attenuated with no noticeable hop bitterness or hop character. While some commercial examples exhibit a wide range of vinegar and butter (acetic acid and diacetyl), both flavors are only acceptable in very small amounts

A good base for Flanders red consists of a large portion of Vienna or Munich malts. You can pair this up with high quality Pilsner malt or you can use all Vienna or Munich. The Vienna and Munich malts give more of a rich bready character, while the Pilsner malt is lighter and grainier.

I consider mid-color caramel malts (30-70 °L) such as CaraVienne® and caramel Munich a requirement for this style. They increase color and add residual sweetness, which helps balance the sourness. You can also use other dark caramel malts, such as caramel Munich 120 °L, to add a raisin-like sweetness to the beer. In general, these sweeter specialty malts should total 5 to 10% of the total grist.

You can use other grains such as wheat, biscuit, aromatic, and others for additional complexity. It can be a way to help differentiate your beer from other entries in competition. I recommend keeping those additional grains to no more than 10% of the total grist. What you want is for the specialty malts to accentuate the malty Pilsner/Vienna/Munich base, not outshine it.

Extract brewers should use Munich malt extract as the base. Most Munich malt extract is a blend of Munich and Pilsner (or other pale malts) in different percentages. The Munich malt in the blend adds a nice bready malt character. All-grain brewers should use a single infusion mash, in the range of 154-158 °F (68-70 °C). If you are brewing a bigger beer, use the lower end of the range. If making a smaller beer, choose the upper end of the range.

Hop flavor and hop aroma are non-existent in Flanders red. Even hop bitterness takes a back seat to the rest of the beer character. You want just enough bittering to provide a slight balance to any residual malt sweetness. Hop iso-alpha acid can also affect the ability of bacteria to replicate. The more hop bitterness in your beer, the more difficult it is for the bacteria to sour the beer. The drier and more sour the finished beer, the less hop bittering required. As far as hop selection, low alpha hops are a good choice. Avoid high alpha or highly pungent American-style hops. I prefer Kent Goldings, but many other hops work well. Just select hops that are more on the flowery or fruity side and low alpha acid. The bitterness to starting gravity ratio (IBU divided by the decimal portion of the specific gravity) generally ranges from 0.2 to 0.4. If this is the first time you are brewing this style, aim for the middle at 0.3. All hop additions should be early in the boil.

Fermentation is where you succeed or fail at Flanders red. I know many people have reported success repitching dregs from their favorite bottles of this and that beer. I have done this as well, and the results can be surprisingly good or surprisingly bad. If you are going to attempt this, try growing up the culture first in a liter of starter wort and see what that tastes like before committing to a full-sized batch of wort.

After some experimentation and fiddling around with blending my own Brettanomyces and bacteria strains, I learned that both Wyeast and White Labs have outstanding blends that make excellent Flanders red. As a bonus, they are relatively easy to work with and produce consistent results if you provide a consistent environment. My absolute favorite for this style is Wyeast 3763 (Roeselare Blend). This is a perfect blend of yeast and bacteria intended to produce the distinct flavors of the classic Flanders red and brown beers. The results are spectacular and can produce exceptionally accurate reproductions of the best commercial Flanders red ales out there. If you prefer White Labs, their WLP655 (Belgian Sour Mix I) produces great results as well.

The two most important parameters in fermenting your Flanders red are oxygen and temperature. Too much oxygen is bad and so is too much heat. Warmer temperatures speed up the process of souring, but can also lead to harsh off-flavors. The temperature where you store your secondary carboy should never exceed 68 °F (20 °C). Ideally, you would keep it in the 65-68 °F (18-20 °C) range for the entire time.

Traditionally, brewers such as Rodenbach have put their beer in large oak foeders (see photo on page 25), which both evens out temperature swings (because of their large volume of liquid) and allow very low levels of oxygen to slowly reach the beer over time. The organisms present take up this micro oxygen and affect the development of flavors important to the style. You want to oxygenate your wort before you first pitch your culture, but after that, keep the amount of oxygen that reaches the beer to a minimum (not zero). A very tiny, slow imperceptible amount. I like to use the soft rubber carboy caps (usually orange or yellow). They do not exclude oxygen very well and if you keep the surface area of the beer small, I have found they let in just about the perfect amount of oxygen. If there is a large surface area of beer present, the beer might take up too much oxygen, resulting in a poor flavor profile full of vinegar and acetone.

The most straightforward way to work with these blends is to oxygenate your wort like any other beer and then add Wyeast 3763 (Roeselare Blend). Ferment it like usual at a temperature around 65-68 °F (18-20 °C). At the end of this initial fermentation, there should be a yeast cake on the bottom of your fermenter. You need to rack the beer off the yeast cake and into a smaller vessel to minimize the headspace. When I do this, I start the process in a 6.5-gallon (25 L) carboy with 5.5 gallons (21 L) of beer and then I transfer to a 5-gallon (19-L) carboy for the second, longer fermentation. I use the smaller carboy so that the liquid portion fills up into the narrow neck of the carboy. This minimizes the amount of oxygen taken up by the beer (and organisms present) during six months to a year or more of time. I like to add some medium toast French oak cubes when I rack to the smaller carboy as a great way to mimic the flavor of the oak and the micro oxygen of the large foeders.

Now, keep in mind, this process will take time. You will probably see a little pellicle form on the surface of the beer. That is generally a good sign of healthy Brettanomyces and the slow ingress of oxygen. If you do not see a pellicle form, do not worry. You can take samples with a wine thief or even an eyedropper to measure the specific gravity and taste the progress of the souring, but do not overdo it. A sample after the first three or four months and thereafter is good. You do not want to keep disturbing the pellicle and you do not want to take so much out that the level of the liquid moves down into the widest part of the carboy. I put my carboy into a temperature stable, dark spot and forget about it for months at a time. Small temperature shifts of a degree or two over the course of a day are not a big deal and the gradual change by a few degrees with the changing of seasons is not a problem. However, large daily swings can negatively affect the results, so try to find the most stable spot in your home. Any part of a building that gets direct sun tends to have a larger temperature swing, so try to pick an interior or basement space. I am sure there are some of you that have heard of breweries making very sour beers in far less time by increasing the temperature and oxygen levels. I would urge you to be patient. Quickly soured beers that contain Brettanomyces are often harsh and unpleasant to drink. There is a reason why people covet the best of the complex soured beers. It takes a long time and an artistry to brew them. Be an artist, be patient, and craft a great beer.

Some people like very sour beers and some like the more balanced approach. Count me in on the balanced side when it comes to Flanders red. The best examples have a wonderful balance of sour and sweet. The sourness in the beer helps make up for the lack of hop bitterness, cutting the soft malt sweetness. Traditional Flanders breweries blend young and old beer, seeking to develop a balance. (Unfortunately, some use artificial sweetener to balance their beers. Ugh.) You can do the same at home, brewing a batch every year and blending various vintages to the perfect balance and character. If you are not up for that challenge, it is possible to get a similar, although not as certain, result using other methods.

One method is to brew a bigger beer, where the initial fermentation creates a bit more alcohol and a bit more residual sweetness, which affects the ability of some organisms to work efficiently. You can even start with a clean ale yeast and then pitch your mixed culture once that fermentation has finished.

A second method is to arrest the process of souring once the beer has reached the preferred level of sourness. This method is effective, but I don't always like it because the beer's character may not fully develop by the time the souring has reached the level you like. When the beer seems ready to your taste, move it to refrigeration. If you keep it below 40 °F (4 °C), the process slows down tre-mendously and the beer should re-main the same for some time. Recipes Flanders Red (5 gallons/19 L, all-grain) OG = 1.057 FG = 1.008 IBU = 16 SRM = 15 ABV = 6.5% Ingredients

5.3 lbs. (2.4 kg) Vienna malt (4 °L) 5.3 lbs. (2.4 kg) continental Pilsner malt (2 °L) 8.5 oz. (0.24 kg) Aromatic® malt (20 °L) 8.5 oz. (0.24 kg) caramel Munich (60 °L) 8.5 oz. (0.24 kg) caramel Munich (120 °L) 3.5 AAU Kent Goldings hops (60 min.) (0.7 oz./20 g at 5% alpha acid) Irish moss (15 min.) 1 oz. (28 g) medium toast French oak cubes (added in secondary) Wyeast 3763 (Roeselare Blend) or White Labs WLP655 (Belgian Sour Mix I) yeast Step by Step

I currently use Best Malz Pilsen and Vienna, but feel free to substitute any high quality malt of the same type and color from a different supplier. The Aromatic® malt is from Briess and the two types of caramel Munich are from Franco-Belges. My hops are in pellet form and come from Hop Union, Willamette Valley, or Hopsteiner depending on the variety.

Mill the grains and dough-in targeting a mash of around 1.5 quarts of water to 1 pound of grain (a liquor-to-grist ratio of about 3:1 by weight) and a temperature of 154 °F (68 °C). Hold the mash at 154 °F (68 °C) until enzymatic conversion is complete. Infuse the mash with near boiling water while stirring or with a recirculating mash system raise the temperature to mash out at 168 °F (76 °C). Sparge slowly with 170 °F (77 °C) water, collecting wort until the pre-boil kettle volume is around 6.5 gallons (25 L) and the gravity is 1.044.

The total wort boil time is 90 minutes, which helps reduce the S-Methyl Methionine (SMM) present in the lightly kilned Pilsner malt and results in less Dimethyl Sulfide (DMS) in the finished beer. Add the hops with 60 minutes remaining in the boil. Add Irish moss or other kettle finings with 15 minutes left in the boil if you please. Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. For this beer, I like a pitch rate of two packages of the liquid yeast blends. I'm not sure what that pitch rate is, given the mixed nature of these cultures, but I like the results.

Ferment around 68 °F (20 °C) until the yeast drops to the bottom and forms a layer. With healthy yeast, this should be complete in two weeks or less, but there is no need to rush it. Rack the beer to a smaller secondary container, add the oak cubes, and close with a very slightly permeable closure, such as a carboy cap. Place in a spot protected from light and check every couple of months to see how your baby is coming along. It can easily take a year or more to fully develop. Be patient. When the beer has developed the character you desire, you can rack to a keg and force carbonate or you can add priming sugar and a fresh dose of yeast to carbonate in the bottle. Be careful, if you bottle too early, there could still be significant sugars present for the Brettanomyces to continue to consume. Once the beers are carbonated, store in the refrigerator to prevent bottle bombs. Target a carbonation level of 2 to 2.5 volumes. Flanders Red (5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains) OG = 1.057 FG = 1.008 IBU = 16 SRM = 17 ABV = 6.5% Ingredients

7.2 lbs. (3.25 kg) Munich liquid malt 8.5 oz. (0.24 kg) Aromatic® malt (20 °L) 8.5 oz. (0.24 kg) caramel Munich (60 °L) 8.5 oz. (0.24 kg) caramel Munich (120 °L) 3.5 AAU Kent Goldings hops (60 min.) (0.7 oz./20 g at 5% alpha acid) Irish moss (15 min.) 1 oz. (28 g) medium toast French oak cubes (added in secondary) Wyeast 3763 (Roeselare Blend) or White Labs WLP655 (Belgian Sour Mix I) yeast Step by Step

There are many Munich extract blends out there. It is always better to choose the freshest extract available. If you cannot get fresh liquid malt extract, see if you can find a dry Munich extract instead. The Aromatic® malt is from Briess and the two types of caramel Munich are from Franco-Belges. My hops are in pellet form and come from Hop Union, Willamette Valley, or Hopsteiner depending on the variety.

Mill or coarsely crack the specialty malt and place loosely in a grain bag. Steep the bag in about 1 gallon (~4 L) of water at roughly 170 °F (77 °C) for about 30 minutes. Lift the grain bag out of the steeping liquid and rinse with warm water. Allow the bag to drip into the kettle. Do not squeeze the bag. Add the malt extract and enough water to make a pre-boil volume of 5.9 gallons (22.3 liters) and a gravity of 1.048. Stir thoroughly to help dissolve the extract and bring to a boil.

Once the wort is boiling, add the hops. The total wort boil time is 1 hour after adding the hops. Add Irish moss or other kettle finings with 15 minutes left in the boil if you please. Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Follow the fermentation and packaging instructions for the all-grain version.