Mexican lager Viva México Cabrones

Mill the pilsner malts, then mix about 5 oz (142 g) of ground malt into the corn grits. For the cereal mash: In a kettle, add some 170°F (77°C) water to the grits and mix thoroughly; steadily raise the heat to 208°F (98°C) and hold there for 20 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid scorching. With the rest of the malt, mash in at 120°F (49°C), then mix in the cooked grits to bring the combined mash to about 144°F (62°C); rest 15 minutes. Over the next 15 minutes, gradually ramp to 154°F (68°C), then rest for another 15. Finally, ramp for 20 minutes to 174°F (79°C), then mash out. Recirculate until the runnings are clear, then run off into the kettle—don’t rush the lauter. Sparge and top up as needed to get about 6 gallons (23 liters) of wort, depending on your evaporation rate.

Boil for 70 minutes, adding hops according to the schedule. After the boil, do a whirlpool step: Stir or recirculate to create a vortex, add the whirlpool hops, and allow 10 minutes to steep and settle. Chill to about 50°F (10°C), aerate the wort, and pitch the yeast. Ferment at 52°F (11°C) until the gravity has dropped to about 1.022 (5.5°P), then raise the temperature to about 62°F (17°C) for a diacetyl rest. (If you have a spunding valve, attach it when the gravity has dropped to about 1.012 (3.2°P), to harness some natural carbonation from the remaining fermentation.) Once fermentation is complete and gravity has stabilized, lower the temperature to 35°F (2°C), remove or harvest the yeast, then lower to 29°F (–2°C) and lager for 3–4 weeks. Package and carbonate to about 2.7 volumes of CO2