Fair Brook Rye Amber Ale

I was inspired to make this after seeing that Maine Beer Company was releasing a Rye Amber Ale as a "Black Barn Exclusive" in their Freeport taproom (https://www.instagram.com/p/DQsOw9_EoVA/). This will be my first time trying a partial mash since Rye LME/DME is nowhere to be found on the market these days. I'll be using the Brew In A Bag (BIAB) technique for the Rye malt mash. I'm assuming my overall efficiency will be closer to 50% than 70%.

Brewing, Finishing, and Packaging Notes:

Brewed: Sunday, December 21st, 2025

• Mashed 2 lbs of crushed Rye malt using BIAB.
  
• Research convinced me that, since rye would be more than 20% of my grain bill, I should start with a "beta-glucan rest" to reduce wort viscosity and ultimately improve the beer's mouthfeel. I did this at 104 degrees for 30 minutes. See, e.g., https://www.brewingnordic.com/new-nordic-beer/brewing-with-rye/
  
• Next, I increased the temperature to 158 degrees and rested for 1 hour, keeping the temperature between 154-158 the entire time. For the last 30 minutes, I added the steeping grains (4 oz of chocolate malt and 4 oz of melanoidin malt) in a separate muslin bag. I removed the muslin bag of steeping grains before lifting the BIAB bag and squeezing out as much liquid as possible into the kettle.
  
• Next, I raised the temperature to 212 degrees (full boil) and added about 4 lbs of Amber LME + 0.5 oz Centennial hop pellets (60 minutes)
  
• Added 0.5 oz Cascade hop pellets at 20 minutes and then added the remaining Amber LME (about 2 lbs).
  
• Added 0.5 Cascade hop pellets at 0 minutes
  
• OG: 1.050 (.04 below target)
  
  Tested (first sample): Sunday, January 4th, 2026
  
• FG: 1.014 (1.050 OG) = 4.73% ABV
  
• Decided to raise temperature of fermenter to 69 degrees and wait at least one more week to take a second sample
  
  Tested (second sample): Friday, January 16th, 2026
  
• FG: 1.013 (barely) = 4.86% ABV
  
• I think the actual FG reading may be something close to 1.0135, in which case the ABV is about 4.8%
  
  Bottling (pre-dry hop): Thursday, January 22nd, 2026
  
• Bottled 12 12-oz bottles with one fizz drop each
  
  Dry-Hopping: Thursday, January 22nd, 2026
  
• Added 1oz of Cascade hops into mesh screen filter dropped into fermenter; planned for a 3-day dry-hop
  
• Removed mesh screen filter on Sunday, January 25th, 2026
  
  Kegging: Sunday, February 1st, 2026
  
• Filled keg with about 4-4.5 gallons of dry-hopped beer
  
• Set carbonation level at about 2.5 volumes (10 PSI)
  
  Tested Bottle Conditioning: Thursday, February 5th, 2026
  
• 2 weeks after bottling
  
• Very light carbonation, needed at least one more week
  
  Tested Keg Conditioning: Sunday, February 6th, 2026
  
• 1 week after kegging
  
• Lightly carbonated, but very close; noticeable dry-hop aroma
  
  Tested Bottle Conditioning (2): Saturday, February 14th, 2026
  
• Nicely carbonated; poor head retention
  
• Rye (malty/bready) flavor comes through more in the non-dry-hopped beer, but the overall flavor seems better in the kegged dry-hopped beer, which seems to accentuate the sweetness. I think dry-hopping with Cascade was a good choice for this beer. I would be interested in trying a Chinook dry-hop in a version with a slightly higher ABV (5.5-6%)