Eddyline Brewing River Runners Pale Ale: Replicator
Dear Replicator, My friends keep bothering me to make a clone of Eddyline Brewing’s River Runners Pale Ale, made in Colorado. My dear buddies always drink the six-packs they buy before they return home to Montana. Alas, my palate has not had the good fortune of sampling this beer and the trips to Colorado come few and far between. Will you please help me get my friends off my back?
Dustin Strong
Miles City, Montana
Sounds like your friends need a lesson in beer manners! Very bad form to brag it up without bringing you any. Luckily for you, Eddyline CEO Brian England is more than happy to help us all start brewing it for ourselves, so long as your buddies promise to keep spreading the good word and getting others to try it as well.
Eddyline Brewing, opened in 2009 by Mic and Molley Heynekamp in Buena Vista, Colorado, is a family brewery that evolved from a number of other brewing enterprises over the previous decade. The Heynekamps and relatives/managers Brian England and Ryan McFadden established Eddyline as a brewpub specializing in wood-fired pizza with a goal of producing beer that would satisfy a clientele that might have spent the day in the rivers, up the mountains, or enjoying the astounding Rocky Mountain views — in other words, a beer that was well-suited for an active outdoor lifestyle, even if the “outdoor” part was simply lounging about outside!
The same logic was applied to the brewery itself. Upon moving to a production facility in 2011, they
immediately began canning their most popular beers to make for a nice fit with the outdoor enthusiast customer base that they had developed. Cans, after all, make for a better, safer, and more-environmentally friendly option than glass bottles! The brewery saw a rapid increase in production and sales, and was soon shopping for more capacity.
2014 provided a turning point for the brewery. Manager Brian England purchased the original Eddyline restaurant and was also appointed CEO of all Eddyline operations, and oversaw a $3 million expansion. They now produce four year-round beers (including River Runners Pale Ale), and ten other seasonal and special project beers. From a modest 400 barrels in their second summer of production, Eddyline has grown to more than 5,000 barrels in 2015, and projects to brew 7,500 barrels in 2016! Utilizing a CFT canning system with an X-ray fill level analyzer, patrons can be assured that they’re not being shorted. After all, what could be worse after a day on the river than popping open a partially-filled can?
River Runners Pale Ale is a classic American pale ale, featuring the bright, citrusy hop aromas typical of American hops like Amarillo and El Dorado. Those who love it note that it has a bright, summery, fresh, fruity aroma and an easy-drinking quality. The malts (as you’ll see in the recipe provided by Head Brewer Patrick Fowler on page 17) are very much on the “lighter” side: Whereas you’ll see many breweries producing pale ales with healthy doses of darker crystal and cara-malts, Eddyline keeps this one simple to let the hop character do what hoppy beer drinkers want it to do. The result is a beer that has a subtle supporting malt character that provides a clean and clear foundation for the subtler hop flavors that come out of it (melon, grapefruit, peach, and pine were noted).
This is a beer that’s at home with pizza (not surprising, given the brewery’s history!) and grilled meats, since both stand up well to its bittering. The fruity hop flavors also make it a nice complement to fish or a salad, since it won’t overpower the flavors of lighter dishes the way some heartier paleales might.
In recognition of its quality, River Runners Pale Ale won a gold medal at the 2012 Great American Beer Festival, and more recently a silver medal at the 2014 World Beer Cup. It also has one of the best features that any beer can have: It’s available in sixteen-ounce cans, which is (in this humble beer drinker’s opinion) the best possible package in the world. No light, no oxygen, and four more ounces of delicious beer.
With its slight haze it’s not the prettiest beer you’ll ever make, but I’m confident that the recipe that follows will get you well on your way to realizing why it’s one of the tastiest. Brew and enjoy it yourself: And let your friends know that you’d love to share it with them, but darned if you didn’t drink it all yourself. Revenge is best served cold — much like this River Runners clone!
Eddyline Brewing River Runners Pale Ale clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.013
IBU = 40 SRM = 5 ABV = 5.3%
River Runners Pale Ale is a classic American pale ale featuring the bright, citrusy hop aromas typical of American hops like Amarillo® and El Dorado®. It has a bright, summery, fresh, fruity aroma and an easy-drinking quality. The malts are very much on the “lighter” side: Whereas you’ll see many breweries producing pale ales with healthy doses of darker crystal and cara-malts, Eddyline keeps this one simple to let the hop character do what hoppy beer drinkers want it to do. The result is a beer that has a subtle supporting malt character that provides a clean and clear foundation for the subtler hop flavors of (melon, grapefruit, peach, and pine).
Ingredients
9 lbs. (4.1 kg) 2-row pale malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) crystal malt (10 °L)
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Carapils® malt
6.6 AAU Magnum hops (60 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 13.2% alpha acids)
3.5 AAU Cascade hops (10 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 7% alpha acids)
7.5 AAU El Dorado® hops (10 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 15% alpha acids)
4.5 AAU Amarillo® hops (0 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 9% alpha acids)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Amarillo® (dry hop)
0.5 oz. (14 g) El Dorado® (dry hop)
White Labs WLP017 (Whitbread Ale) or Wyeast 1099 (Whitbread Ale) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Mill the grains and mix with 3.5 gallons (13.25 L) of 165 °F (74 °C) strike water to reach a mash temperature of 153 °F (67 °C). Hold this temperature for 60 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear. Sparge the grains with 3.1 gallons (11.7 L) and top up as necessary to obtain 6 gallons (23 L) of wort. Boil for 75 minutes, adding hops according to the ingredient list.
After the boil, turn off heat and whirlpool for 15 minutes. Then chill the wort to slightly below fermentation temperature, about 65 °F (18 °C). Aerate the wort with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Ferment at 69 °F (21 °C) for six days. Add the dry hops and hold at 69 °F (21 °C) for four more days. Once the beer reaches terminal gravity, bottle or keg the beer and carbonate to approximately 2.5 volumes. You may want to cold-crash the beer prior to packaging to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours to improve the beer’s clarity.
Eddyline Brewing River Runners Pale Ale clone
(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.013
IBU = 40 SRM = 5 ABV = 5.3%
Ingredients
6 lbs. (2.7 kg) extra light liquid malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) crystal malt (10 °L)
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Carapils® malt
6.6 AAU Magnum hops (60 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 13.2% alpha acids)
3.5 AAU Cascade hops (10 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 7% alpha acids)
7.5 AAU El Dorado® hops (10 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 15% alpha acids)
4.5 AAU Amarillo® hops (0 min.)
(0.5 oz./14 g at 9% alpha acids)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Amarillo® (dry hop)
0.5 oz. (14 g) El Dorado® (dry hop)
White Labs WLP017 (Whitbread Ale) or Wyeast 1099 (Whitbread Ale) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Bring 5.6 gallons (21.2 L) of water to approximately 162 °F (72 °C) and hold there. Steep the milled specialty grains in grain bags for 15 minutes. Remove the grain bags, and let drain fully. Add liquid extract while stirring, and stir until completely dissolved. Bring the wort to a boil. Boil for 60 minutes, adding hops according to the ingredient list.
After the boil, turn off heat and whirlpool for 15 minutes. Then chill the wort to slightly below fermentation temperature, about 65 °F (18 °C). Aerate the wort with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Ferment at 69 °F (20 °C) for six days. Add the dry hops and hold at 69 °F (20 °C) for four more days. Once the beer reaches terminal gravity, bottle or keg and carbonate to approximately 2.5 volumes. You may want to cold-crash the beer prior to packaging to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours to improve clarity.
Tips for Success
From Patrick Fowler, Head Brewer: “Yeast selection is key. We like to use British ale yeasts to allow the fruitiness of the yeast to complement the same characteristics in our hop selections.” There’s a saying among chefs: “Season everything.” Never miss an opportunity to add a complementary or contrasting flavor. Why use a neutral yeast when you can use one that adds to the overall flavor profile of your beer? Yeasts that add a moderate level of esterification add a nice punch to beers — especially fruity beers — that are aiming for a particular signature characteristic. Be aware, though, that this also means keeping good, tight control over your fermentation temperatures and process so that the yeast doesn’t become the star of the show!
