London Calling
PHILOSOPHY AND DIVERSITY
Kernel’s philosophy is apparent from the simplicity of the labels on their bottles. Based on Evin’s original homebrew labels and printed on what looks like parcel paper, they starkly state the basic details about the contents. “Well it has to have your name on it and say what’s inside but hype is not our forte,” he explains. Kernel prides itself on brewing pale ales, India pale ales, “old school” stouts and porters, and London sours, but they are not confined by a core range. They draw heavily on tradition in the way that some of their beers — particularly their stouts and porters — are based on historical recipes. But they don’t allow themselves to be restricted by history. As Evin says, “you can follow a recipe faithfully but what’s the point of doing so if it’s not a good beer?”
Each member of the twelve-strong team at Kernel take turns at all brewery tasks, and whoever is brewing that day gets to choose which hops to use. “I’m happy for each batch to be different,” says Evin, “but the quality has to be there. It’s a beer designed to be itself; it’s not a cloning exercise. If you just try to brew the same recipe again and again, that becomes the limit of your ambitions.”
And this spirit of experimentation and diversity is symbolic of London’s wider brewing scene in terms of the beer, the brewing, and, of course, the people. And why wouldn’t it be? London has a population of more than 8 million people speaking 300 different languages, with more than a third of its residents citing their birthplace as somewhere outside of the United Kingdom. London’s brewers are British, non-British, male, female, gay, straight, black, white, younger, older, and all things in between.
Sam Millard from North London’s Beavertown Brewery explains that being based in a city as diverse as London has a major impact on the beer the brewery produces: “Being such a cultural crossroads it has brought brew team members and collaborators our way from across the globe, each adding their own special something to the Beavertown mix. We’ve got the world on our doorstep. It’s a really inspiring city: The food, the music, the culture, and the people are always giving us new ideas. London breweries aren’t afraid to play around and bend the rules and explore what they can do with beer styles, from those long forgotten to those not yet imagined. We’ll pick interesting things from all over the world like brewing magpies and see what we can create.”
And John Driebergen, a wonderfully charming American who occupies the position of Head Brewer at Fourpure Brewing Co. agrees: “London is a global city and I think we see that reflected back in our beer. I’m obviously a foreigner — but I love living here! I think our beer reflects the background of people like myself and people like you. It’s both global and British at the same time.”
THE SCENE
Fourpure Brewery occupies a number of large industrial units in the middle of a business district. Its bright, busy tap room marks a regular starting point of what has become known as the “Bermondsey Beer Mile,” a stroll through the back streets and commercial areas of south London that links together nine highly-respected breweries including Brew by Numbers, Partizan, and Kernel. Saturday afternoons see beer lovers moving from one to the other to drink fresh beer in amongst the brewing equipment and conditioning tanks. Dodging the early summer rain, with a glass of lip-smackingly succulent Juicebox IPA in hand, John Driebergen explains: “The Bermondsey Beer Mile developed as a sort of organic movement within the culture of London. People thought ‘Fourpure have just opened and they’ve got this nice set-up and they’re about a mile from Kernel’ and this led people to think in these terms, and it took on a life of its own. We didn’t really do anything to encourage it but we think it’s great! I think the Bermondsey Beer Mile offers a pretty good representative view of some of the best beers available in London.”
Taprooms like those along the Bermondsey Beer Mile are a fairly new phenomenon to many Londoners who are much more familiar with drinking in traditional pubs. However, they are on the increase across the city and many new breweries recognize them as a vital part of their business. Some use them to test out new recipes, others to promote their brand in an increasingly competitive market. Pillars and Wild Card Breweries, near neighbors in the same business district in Walthamstow, and Howling Hops and Crate Breweries, similarly close neighbors in an old railway yard in Hackney Wick, provide excellent examples of how a creative approach to brewery taps can produce a beer destination that drinkers are prepared to travel to from right across the city. Combining great beer with live music, the arts, fresh food, and innovative ideas like Howling Hops’ tank bar — serving ten different beers straight off the tanks — the London beer scene is drawing in new consumers all the time.
Pillars Brewery is taking that spirit of innovation one step further. In a city historically suited to dark beers by virtue of its water, four young, hard-working and enthusiastic friends (three brothers — Omar, Sammy, and Eamonn Razaq — plus their friend, Gavin Litton) have opened a brewery exclusively brewing lager in the hope of attracting drinkers who may not have previously explored craft beer. In their modern tap room they introduce people who would normally only quaff mainstream international lager to the delights of Helter Skelter — an unfiltered, malt-forward Helles Kellerbier — and Pillars’ flagship Untraditional Lager – a refreshing hybrid beer made with British malts, American hops and Czech yeast — providing, as it were, “gateway beers” to the heady world of craft. As Gavin explains, “Lager is the biggest sector of the market — if you can crack it, you’ll do well.”
GROWTH AND EXPANSION
That’s not to say that taprooms come without challenges. Even in a busy city like London, if the location is not ideal, it’s not always easy to guarantee sufficient foot traffic to justify the potential disruption to brew days. One of London’s most exciting breweries, Weird Beard, is based in Hanwell in West London, which can feel a long way from the East End/South Bermondsey brewing hubs. They choose to open their doors to drinkers just four times a year for what have become highly anticipated and very successful “open days.” And Kernel has closed its tap room altogether and replaced it with a takeaway bottle shop — not because people didn’t come, but because they felt they could no longer do what they wanted to do with the huge volume of people exploring the Bermondsey Beer Mile. “We couldn’t give people the experience they deserved,” explains Evin, “As brewers we want to interact directly with the customers. It needs to be more than just drinking in a brewery.”
And there are other challenges to brewing in London in the 21st century, not least of which is the availability of real estate for start-ups or expansion. It took Pillars more than eight months to find a suitable site due to the lack of small units in central London and the current redevelopment of many previously industrial areas for upmarket housing or retail. William Harris, of Wild Card Brewery, says it was very difficult to get the money together to open the brewery and tap room. He, Co-Founder Andrew Birkby, and Head Brewer Jaega Wise, started off cuckoo or gypsy brewing, using personal credit cards to rent out breweries in order to build up a business without capital. He says, “Brewing is a millionaires’ playground — particularly in London. It’s very hard ground to start out on.”
And sometimes, even within the business districts in which Londoners are drinking, two contradictory worlds sit side by side. It is an uncomfortable irony that the gentrification of London in which the consumption of craft beer plays a significant part, could ultimately threaten the very existence of continued independent brewing in the center of the city. As Fourpure’s John Driebergen says, “A lot of people are being forced to move to the outskirts of London or further away because of housing prices, and likewise a lot of businesses are experiencing the same thing. And it’s actually really upsetting because we’re crowding out a lot of manufacturing businesses from central London.”
As breweries like Fourpure, or North London’s Beavertown, become more successful they are faced with difficult decisions around expansion. Beavertown — a brewery originally started by Logan Plant (the son of Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant), in an American barbeque-themed restaurant and bar — has itself occupied three different locations across the city, and Sam Millard acknowledges that being based in London is “massively important” to the brewery, particularly as London cements its reputation as a craft beer city. But he explains: “It’s a tough place to grow. Space is at a premium and what space there is isn’t cheap so a lot of breweries will have a choice between finding somewhere to grow a bit further out, or hitting a level and sticking with it.”
But, despite the challenges, the London beer scene continues to grow. In the east and in the west, both north and south of the river, breweries are opening up to meet mounting consumer demand. The London Brewers’ Alliance, a loose collective of breweries in the city, identifies over 60 members on its website, but, as Evin O’Riordan speculated, the number of breweries, microbreweries, and brew pubs in operation is likely to be significantly higher, perhaps more than 100. But, rather than causing a race to the bottom in terms of standards as more and more breweries try to grab their slice of the market, this growth in production appears to be having the opposite effect. “Everyone has upped their game,” Wild Card’s William Harris says, “More breweries attract more talent, more people with proper qualifications. Everyone was pretty much making it up in the past — now the beer is better, the equipment is more sophisticated. There’s glycol systems, conical fermenters, people are working with pressure. The industry is maturing.”
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE
Kernel’s Evin O’Riordan agrees that London is moving in line with other global beer destinations: “Big cities influence each other. Cities in different countries often have more in common with each other than the surrounding, non-urban places around them. In fashion, we talk about London, Paris, New York. And it’s similar for other things. Coffee for example; even places that make bad coffee are making better bad coffee than they used to. And it’s the same with beer.”
This incentive for London breweries to maintain high quality also comes from elsewhere within the country. In the most recent RateBeer awards from January 2017, the top English beer was a London beer (Beavertown’s Tempus Project bourbon barrel-aged Spresso Imperial Stout), but the best brewery and best new brewery were both from outside of the capital: Cloudwater from Manchester and Verdant from Cornwall. And it is these inspirational breweries, with their hazy, creamy mouthfeel, hop-forward pale ales and IPAs, that are capturing the attention of many drinkers and brewers, and which indicate one of the directions in which the London scene is travelling. Kernel’s Evin O’Riordan acknowledges this as he jokes, “When Kernel first started up, people used to say that our beers were far too cloudy — they called it London murk. Now they probably say they’re not cloudy enough. Maybe we’ve become the curmudgeonly uncle saying ‘Back in my day it was cloudy enough for everyone.’”
It is possible, of course, to find hop-forward, hazy beers right across the capital. But, like most Londoners, the city’s brewers are not the type to blindly follow trends. For example, Kernel’s ambitious barrel-aging project is producing some sublime beers, and the ever-imaginative Weird Beard’s recent lineup includes a tart apricot Berliner Weisse (Sour Rangers), a red ale root beer (Roots Bloody Roots), and a richly peated India brown porter (Peat Rock). Founder and Head Brewer Bryan Spooner explains that he avoids following fads or “jumping on bandwagons” in his brewing, but agrees that they’re interesting to watch. “Last year it was sours and saisons. This year it’s probably New England IPAs. But as more breweries open it’s more challenging to get hold of American hops. People are using more English hops and more fruit.” Wild Card’s William Harris agrees: “The big things are fruits, herbal saisons, sours — there’s much more experimentation now.”
So, London brewing continues to evolve. Like the great river that bisects the city, it has the feel of something widening, carving its way, continually changing. And there’s a striking intelligence to the scene, a self-deprecating acknowledgement that things are always in flux, but that creativity and skill will find a way through. The common metaphor of London as a “melting pot” of peoples, cultures, and ideas implies a blending together of things that were once different, into something new, something more homogenous. And, in part, that’s true. But in other ways, the dynamism and variety of the London beer scene tells a somewhat different story. If there’s anything that draws the scene together it’s a commitment to cooperation, sustainability, ethical practice, and respect for beer as so much more than a simple product. But, from the “curmudgeonly uncle” quietly experimenting in an archway beneath a railway line, to the rock-and-roll kids pouring pints in a busy tap room, the main thing that draws this developing scene together is its breadth. Because this is London, and London’s unity is borne from its diversity.
London Homebrew Scene
As in all thriving beer cities, the London brewing and homebrewing scenes are growing symbiotically. Many of the successful commercial brewers in London started out homebrewing. Evin O’Riordan, a homebrewer himself, was inspired by members of the renowned Durden Park Beer Circle, a group of enthusiastic and dedicated homebrewers and scientists who have been meeting in West London since 1973. Their work, captured in the book Old British Beers and How to Make Them, paved the way for the reimagining of many of the old styles Kernel now produces.
London has become a city of homebrewers. Homebrew schools, including London Beer Lab and Beer Boars Brewschool, are welcoming more and more novice brewers each month, and homebrew clubs and networks are rapidly growing in membership. London Amateur Brewers’ (LAB) Facebook group boasts nearly 500 members, and around 30–50 members meet each month for tastings, educational talks, and Q&A sessions. The membership includes a high proportion of Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) and National Guild of Beer & Wine Judges (NGWBJ) qualified judges and prides itself on providing constructive critiques to help members improve their brews.
There are only a handful of BJCP-sanctioned competitions in the United Kingdom with LAB organizing 3 or 4 every year, including one of the biggest: The London and South East Craft Brewing Competition, held each May. The organizer, Lee Immins, explains when he first took over running the competition less than five years ago there were only 20 entries registered in the week before the closing date. This year all 350 entries were sold out within four hours. And it’s not just the volume that is increasing. Lee reports that “the quality has gone through the roof” too, with many people producing beer of a high commercial standard. The majority of entries to the competition are from all-grain brewers, but a few people are using extract or BIAB (brew-in-a-bag) methods. An increasing number of people are also using all-in-one electric systems such as Braumeisters or Grainfathers that work well for people with limited space, particularly in a crowded city like London. A few years ago, the largest category of entries was stouts but it’s now overwhelmingly American-style IPAs. But, like the commercial brewers they shadow, homebrewers are also experimenting with other styles including lagers and sours. In fact, the overall winner of this year’s competition was a pineapple Gose.
London Amateur Brewers’ meetings, and some of their competitions, are held at UBREW, a tap room and “open brewery” in Bermondsey. UBREW was set up in 2015 by Wilf Horsfall and Matt Denham, and is home to eight 10-gallon (38-L) brew systems, which are available for rent by hobbyist brewers. UBREW memberships give brewers unlimited access to a fermenter and the ability to book time on the brew systems and bottling stations. Members can also get help and advice from professional brewers should they hit a problem, and can even sell their beer in the adjoining taproom. There are other similar open breweries across London, including Brew Club in Clapton, which rents out the use of 5-gallon (19-L) Braumeisters.
There are exciting plans to bring a Home Brew Expo and Convention, the first of its kind in the UK, to London this year. The organizer, Simon Pipola, aims to bring ingredient suppliers, equipment manufacturers, and homebrewers together for a weekend of exhibits, discussions and, of course, beer. The hope is to further cement London’s place as the home of exciting and innovative beer and serve to showcase the cross-fertilization between commercial and homebrewing that is helping to raise the standards of both.
FOURPURE BREWERY’ JUICEBOX CITRUS IPA CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.058 FG = 1.013
IBU = 61 SRM = 6 ABV = 5.9%
Juicebox is a citrus IPA packed full of orange zest and aromatic hops and is packaged by Fourpure in kegs and cans. As the essential oils are held in suspension, it’s best drunk fresh!
INGREDIENTS
10 lbs. (4.5 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt (2.4°L)
0.7 lb. (0.32 kg) torrified wheat
0.3 lb. (0.12 kg) caramalt (15 °L)
0.3 lb. (0.12 kg) table sugar (15 min.)
3.8 AAU Mandarina Bavaria hops (first wort hops) (0.4 oz./11 g at 9.5% alpha acids)
18 AAU Citra® hops (0 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 12% alpha acids)
16.5 AAU Falconer’s Flight® hops (0 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 11% alpha acids)
14.3 AAU Mandarina Bavaria hops (0 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 9.5% alpha acids)
4 oz. (113 g) Citra® hops (dry hop)
1 oz. (28 g) Falconer’s Flight® hops (dry hop)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min)
1 oz. (28 g) fresh orange zest (0 min.)
White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) or Safale US-05 yeast
1⁄2 cup corn sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Mill the grains and dough-in targeting a mash of around 1.3 quarts of strike water to 1 pound of grain (2.7 L/kg) and a temperature of 154 °F (68 °C). Hold the mash at 154 °F (68 °C) for 60 minutes. Sparge slowly with 171 °F (77 °C), collecting wort until the pre-boil kettle volume is 6.5 gallons (24.6 L). Add the first wort hops to the kettle during the sparging process.
Total boil time is 75 minutes, adding the hops at the times indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil. After flameout, add the final hop addition and fresh orange zest to the whirlpool. Let steep for 20 minutes before chilling.
Chill the wort to 66 °F (19 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast and ferment at 66 °F (19 °C) until fermentation is complete. Dry hop for 3 to 4 days. Carbonate the beer to around 2.5 volumes of CO2 and allow time for the beer to condition fully.
FOURPURE BREWERY’S JUICEBOX CITRUS IPA CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.058 FG = 1.013
IBU = 61 SRM = 6 ABV = 5.9%
INGREDIENTS
6.6 lbs. (3 kg) Maris Otter liquid malt extract
0.4 lb. (0.2 kg) Carapils® malt
0.3 lb. (0.12 kg) caramalt (15 °L)
0.75 lb. (0.34 kg) table sugar (15 min.)
3.8 AAU Mandarina Bavaria hops (first wort hops) (0.4 oz./11 g at 9.5% alpha acids)
18 AAU Citra® hops (0 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 12% alpha acids)
16.5 AAU Falconer’s Flight® hops (0 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 11% alpha acids)
14.3 AAU Mandarina Bavaria hops (0 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 9.5% alpha acids)
4 oz. (113 g) Citra® hops (dry hop)
1 oz. (28 g) Falconer’s Flight® hops (dry hop)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min)
1 oz. (28 g) fresh orange zest (0 min.)
White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) or Safale US-05 yeast
1⁄2 cup corn sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Steep the crushed grains in 6 gallons (23 L) of 154 °F (68 °C) water for 30 minutes. Remove steeping bag and add liquid malt extract with the heat source off. Stir until completely dissolved. Add the first wort hops. Bring to a boil for 75 minutes, adding the hops at the times indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil. After flameout, add the final hop addition and fresh orange zest to the whirlpool. Let steep for 20 minutes before chilling.
Follow the remainder of the all-grain instructions.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS:
John Driebergen, Head Brewer at Fourpure, experimented with a number of oranges before perfecting this recipe, eventually settling on a Brazilian variety. It’s worth trying different types to achieve the right balance of citrus and hops. The orange flavor should not totally overpower the bitterness of the hops, but rather balance and complement it.
THE KERNEL BREWERY’S EXPORT INDIA PORTER CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, all grain)
OG = 1.060 FG = 1.015
IBU = 48 SRM = 40 ABV = 6%
This recipe is based on some of the Barclay Perkins (1855) and Whitbread (1856) porters that were sent out to India nearly two hundred years ago. Of course, elements of the ingredients, equipment, and processes are different, and tastes have also changed over time, so in keeping with The Kernel’s philosophy, they have made a beer that contemporary beer drinkers want to drink, rather than a blindly faithful copy of a 19th century recipe.
INGREDIENTS
9.6 lbs. (4.3 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt (2.4 °L)
0.9 lb. (0.4 kg) brown malt (38 °L)
0.9 lb. (0.4 kg) chocolate malt (330 °L)
0.9 lb. (0.4 kg) crystal malt (60 °L)
0.4 lb. (0.2 kg) black malt (500 °L)
5.6 AAU Bramling Cross hops (first wort hop) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
5.6 AAU Bramling Cross hops (15 min.) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
8 AAU Bramling Cross hops (10 min.) (1 oz./30 g at 8% alpha acids)
11.2 AAU Bramling Cross hops (5 min.) (1.4 oz./40 g at 8% alpha acids)
2.8 oz. (80 g) Bramling Cross hops (dry hop)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min.)
White Labs WLP013 (London Ale) or Wyeast 1028 (London Ale) yeast
1⁄2 cup cane sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Mill the grains and dough-in targeting a mash of around 1.3 quarts of strike water to 1 pound of grain (2.7 L/kg) and a temperature of 154 °F (68 °C). Hold the mash at 154 °F (68 °C) until enzymatic conversion is complete. Sparge slowly with 171 °F (77 °C), collecting wort until the pre-boil kettle volume is 6 gallons (23 L). Add the first wort hops during the sparging process.
Total boil time is 60 minutes, adding the remaining hops at the times indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast. Ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) until fermentation is complete. Dry hop 3 days before bottling or kegging. Carbonate the beer to around 2.4 volumes of CO2. Condition at 59–68 °F (15–20 °C), allowing time for the beer to carbonate fully.
THE KERNEL BREWERY’S EXPORT INDIA PORTER CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.060 FG = 1.015
IBU = 48 SRM = 40 ABV = 6%
INGREDIENTS
6.6 lbs. (3 kg) Maris Otter liquid malt extract
0.9 lb. (0.4 kg) brown malt (38 °L)
0.9 lb. (0.4 kg) chocolate malt (330 °L)
0.9 lb. (0.4 kg) crystal malt (60 °L)
0.4 lb. (0.2 kg) black malt (500 °L)
5.6 AAU Bramling Cross hops (first wort hop) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
5.6 AAU Bramling Cross hops (15 min.) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
8 AAU Bramling Cross hops (10 min.) (1 oz./30 g at 8% alpha acids)
11.2 AAU Bramling Cross hops (5 min.) (1.4 oz./40 g at 8% alpha acids)
2.8 oz. (80 g) Bramling Cross hops (dry hop)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min.)
White Labs WLP013 (London Ale) or Wyeast 1028 (London Ale) yeast
1⁄2 cup cane sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Steep the crushed grains in 6 gallons (23 L) of 154 °F (68 °C) water for 30 minutes. Remove steeping bag and add liquid malt extract with the heat source off. Stir until completely dissolved. Add the first wort hops and bring wort to a boil.
Total boil time is 60 minutes, adding the remaining hops at the times indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast. Ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) until fermentation is complete. Dry hop 3 days before bottling or kegging. Carbonate the beer to around 2.4 volumes of CO2. Condition at 59–68 °F (15–20 °C), allowing time for the beer to carbonate fully.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS:
Chocolate malt and crystal malt has replaced some of the black malt, which can sometimes produce burnt or astringent flavors. This recipe calls for lots of late hops and dry hopping and The Kernel brewery experiments with a number of different varieties. Bramling Cross (used here) give a traditional British character, but Columbus can also work well if you want more of a New World character.
WEIRD BEARD BREW CO.’S BLACK PERLE COFFEE MILK STOUT CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.055 FG = 1.025
IBU = 50 SRM = 44 ABV = 4%
Black Perle is one of the first beers Weird Beard produced commercially and still forms part of their core range in bottles and traditional cask. It takes its name from German Perle with which it is single-hopped. It’s a sweet stout with a rich coffee backbone.
INGREDIENTS
7.5 lbs. (3.4 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt (2.8 °L)
1.1 lbs. (0.52 kg) caramel malt (120 °L)
0.7 lb. (0.32 kg) roasted barley (525 °L)
0.6 lb. (0.28 kg) flaked oats
0.5 lb. (0.22 kg) chocolate malt (330 °L)
0.2 lb. (0.1 kg) torrified wheat
0.2 lb. (0.1 kg) lactose sugar (30 min.)
0.4 lb. (0.2 kg) lactose sugar (15 min.)
5.6 AAU Perle hops (first wort hop) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
11.2 AAU Perle hops (20 min.) (1.4 oz./40 g at 8% alpha acids)
5.6 AAU Perle hops (5 min.) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min.)
0.8 oz. (23 g) roasted whole coffee beans (secondary)
Safale US-05 American Ale or Lallemand BRY-97 (American West Coast Ale) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Mill the grains and dough-in targeting a mash of around 1.2 quarts of strike water to 1 pound of grain (2.5 L/kg) and a temperature of 154 °F (68 °C). Hold the mash at 154 °F (68 °C) until enzymatic conversion is complete. Sparge slowly with 171 °F (77 °C) water, collecting wort until pre-boil kettle volume is 6 gallons (23 L). Add the first wort hops during the sparging process.
Total boil time is 60 minutes, adding the hops and the lactose sugar as indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast and let the temperature free rise to 72 °F (22 °C). When fermentation is two-thirds complete, let the temperature free rise again to 75 °F (24 °C). At approximately 2 points away from final gravity, add the coffee beans to the fermenter. Keep it at 75 °F (24 °C) for 2 days and then cool to 41 °F (5 °C) for around 5 days. Carbonate the beer to around 2.1 volumes of CO2 and allow time for the beer to condition fully.
WEIRD BEARD BREW CO.’S BLACK PERLE COFFEE MILK STOUT CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.055 FG = 1.025
IBU = 50 SRM = 44 ABV = 4%
INGREDIENTS
3.5 lbs. (1.6 kg) Muntons light dried malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt (2.8 °L)
1.1 lbs. (0.52 kg) caramel malt (120 °L)
0.7 lb. (0.32 kg) roasted barley (525 °L)
0.6 lb. (0.28 kg) flaked oats
0.5 lb. (0.22 kg) chocolate malt (330 °L)
0.2 lb. (0.1 kg) torrified wheat
0.2 lb. (0.1 kg) lactose sugar (30 min.)
0.4 lb. (0.2 kg) lactose sugar (15 min.)
5.6 AAU Perle hops (first wort hop) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
11.2 AAU Perle hops (20 min.) (1.4 oz./40 g at 8% alpha acids)
5.6 AAU Perle hops (5 min.) (0.7 oz./20 g at 8% alpha acids)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min.)
0.8 oz. (23 g) roasted whole coffee beans (secondary)
Safale US-05 American Ale or Lallemand BRY-97 (American West Coast Ale) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Place crushed pale ale malt along with flaked oats and torrified wheat in a grain bag. Submerge the grains in 5 quarts of water that has been heated to 164 °F (73 °C). The mash should rest at a temperature of 154 °F (68 °C). Hold the mash at 154 °F (68 °C) for about 45 minutes then submerge in a second bag the remaining grains. Hold for 15 minutes. Remove both bags and wash with 1 gallon (4 L) hot water. Stir in the dried malt extract and top off with water to 6 gallons (23 L). Add the first wort hops.
Total boil time is 60 minutes, adding the hops and the lactose sugar as indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast and let the temperature free rise to 72 °F (22 °C). When fermentation is two-thirds complete, let the temperature free rise again to 75 °F (24 °C). At approximately 2 points away from final gravity, add the coffee beans to the fermenter. Keep it at 75 °F (24 °C) for 2 days and then cool to 41 °F (5 °C) for around 5 days. Carbonate the beer to around 2.1 volumes of CO2 and allow time for the beer to condition fully.
WILD CARD BREWERY’S KING OF HEARTS BLONDE CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.047 FG = 1.012
IBU = 24 SRM = 4 ABV = 4.5%
This is a slightly modified version of the recipe for King of Hearts, one of Wild Card’s core range of beers. It’s a light and refreshing pale beer with fresh aromas and a clean finish.
INGREDIENTS
4.6 lbs. (2.1 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt (2.4 °L)
4.6 lbs. (2.1 kg) extra pale Maris Otter or lager malt (1.5 °L)
0.4 lb. (0.18 kg) torrified wheat
1 AAU Centennial hops (90 min.) (0.1 oz./3.5 g at 10% alpha acids)
1.75 AAU Cascade hops (20 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 7% alpha acids)
3.1 AAU Citra® hops (5 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
2.45 AAU Cascade hops (5 min.) (0.35 oz./10 g at 7% alpha acids)
4.4 AAU Citra® hops (0 min.) (0.35 oz./10 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
7 AAU Cascade hops (0 min.) (1 oz./30 g at 7% alpha acids)
1.8 oz. (50 g) Citra® hops (dry hop)
1.8 oz. (50 g) Cascade hops (dry hop)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min.)
Safale US-05 or Lallemand BRY-97 (American West Coast Ale) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Mill the grains and dough-in targeting a mash of around 1.3 quarts of strike water to 1 pound of grain (2.7 L/kg) and a temperature of 151 °F (66 °C). Hold the mash at 151 °F (66 °C) for 80 minutes. Sparge slowly with 172 °F (78 °C) water, collecting wort until the pre-boil kettle volume is 7 gallons (26.5 L).
Total boil time is 90 minutes, adding the hops at the times indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil. After flameout, add the final hop addition to the whirlpool. Let steep for 20 minutes before chilling.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast and ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) until fermentation is complete. Cool to 41 °F (5 °C) and dry hop. Allow beer to rest on dry hops for 5 to 7 days. Carbonate the beer to around 2.5 volumes of CO2 and allow time for the beer to condition fully.
WILD CARD BREWERY’S KING OF HEARTS BLONDE CLONE
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.047 FG = 1.012
IBU = 24 SRM = 4 ABV = 4.5%
INGREDIENTS
3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) Maris Otter liquid malt extract
2.5 lbs. (1.1 kg) wheat dried malt extract
1 AAU Centennial hops (90 min.) (0.1 oz./3.5 g at 10% alpha acids)
1.75 AAU Cascade hops (20 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 7% alpha acids)
3.1 AAU Citra® hops (5 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
2.45 AAU Cascade hops (5 min.) (0.35 oz./10 g at 7% alpha acids)
4.4 AAU Citra® hops (0 min.) (0.35 oz./10 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
7 AAU Cascade hops (0 min.) (1 oz./30 g at 7% alpha acids)
1.8 oz. (50 g) Citra® hops (dry hop)
1.8 oz. (50 g) Cascade hops (dry hop)
1⁄2 Whirlfloc tablet (10 min.)
Safale US-05 or Lallemand BRY-97 (American West Coast Ale) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
STEP BY STEP
Heat 6 gallons (23 L) water to 158 °F (70 °C) then turn off the heat. Add the liquid and dried malt extract and stir thoroughly to dissolve completely. Return to heat and bring to a boil.
Total boil time is 60 minutes, adding the hops at the times indicated. Add Whirlfloc with 10 minutes left in the boil. After flameout, add the final hop addition to the whirlpool. Let steep for 20 minutes before chilling.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C) and aerate thoroughly. Pitch the yeast and ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) until fermentation is complete. Cool to 41 °F (5 °C) and dry hop. Allow beer to rest on dry hops for 5 to 7 days. Carbonate the beer to around 2.5 volumes of CO2 and allow time for the beer to condition fully.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS:
The brewery’s recipe calls for a British lager malt, which is a lightly kilned base malt. If this type of base malt is unavailable at your local homebrew shop, a high-grade Pilsen malt could be used as a substitute.
