Recipes
Beer-style: Pale Lager Family
Dad’s American Lager
This American Lager recipe can be used as a starting point for many variations. Scale down the alcohol to 3.5% and reduce the bitterness to 10 IBUs to have an American light lager. Add SINAMAR® to make a dark American lager. Reduce the percentage of adjuncts from 20% to 10% and increase the bitterness to 20 IBUs to get a premium American lager. Use either all rice or all corn as adjuncts. Use all corn as adjuncts, increase the alcohol to 5.8% and the bitterness to 30 IBUs of Cluster to get a classic American Pilsner (pre-Prohibition lager). Add some tropical or New Zealand late hops to make a hop lager. Switch the yeast to Danish Lager, American Lager, or a malty German variety for a different fermentation profile.
Malt Liquor
This Malt Liquor recipe can be adjusted to a different alcohol level, if desired. Just add or remove corn sugar first.
Working Draft Beer Co.’s Keep ‘Em Honest clone
A German-style helles from Working Draft Beer Co., in Madison, Wisconsin.
Cerebral Brewing Co.’s Standard Practice clone
Stouts and barleywines aren’t the only styles you should consider aging in barrels. This helles lands on the other end of the flavor intensity threshold and is perfect for any occasion. This beer received a gold medal in 2022 at the Festival of Barrel Aged Beers.
1188 Brewing Co.’s Silk Robes and Kimonos Rice Lager clone
A BYO reader stumbled upon their first rice lager at 1188 Brewing Co. and wants to learn more about this highly drinkable brew.
Gordon Strong’s Rice Lager
I like having a good, clean lager on tap, and this one has a refreshing quality while still being interesting.
Home Pale Lager (1915)
Home Brewing Co.’s Assistant Brew Master Alphonse Gosch gives no information as to whether this beer was lagered at low temperature. He does say the beer was racked to casks after eleven days, which suggests it was not further processed.
Gordon Strong’s Italian Pilsner
Compared to a German Pils, the late hops are the first thing to notice. The flavor and aroma hops are more prominent and the aroma can have a freshly dry-hopped character. The hops don’t need to be at the IPA level; just more noticeable than in a German Pils.
Bierkeller Columbia’s Kellerbier clone
An unfiltered Franconian lager with a bready malt character that is balanced by soft carbonation and clean Perle hops.
Rebel Queen
I like to think of this as a transatlantic lager, using a U.S.-inspired malt profile with a single British hop variety (Boadicea). I’ve often thought British hops would be well-suited to lager brewing and I think this proves it. Light and refreshing, this is perfect for summer barbecues.
Gordon Strong’s German Helles Exportbier
This beer is bolder than your typical lawnmower beer, but it is meant to reward a hard day’s work. So go cross something off your to-do list, then grab a cold one, like life was meant to be.
Confluence Brewing Co.’s Blue Corn Lager clone
“Blue Corn Lager is made like a classic American Pilsner with a twist. Blue corn makes a sweet wort, with a little bit of that corn chip flavor.” — John Martin
