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Homebrew Cherry Ale Recipe

A fruit beer is best described by a comment made in the BJCP guidelines, a harmonious marriage of fruit and beer.  Typically thought of as a style on its own, a fruit beer should have a base style for example a blonde ale or wheat ale, with added fruit.  Aroma and overall flavor of a fruit beer should be dominated by the type of fruit being used.  The overall appearance and mouthfeel should be very similar to the base beer style selected.  Listed below is a 5 gallon All-Grain home brew recipe for a cherry ale based off of a blonde ale.

Grains

6 lbs. American 2-row
3 lbs. Malted White Wheat
1 lbs. Honey Malt 20°L
1.5 lbs. Caramel/Crystal 20°L
1 lbs. Rice Flaked

Hops and Schedule

1 oz. Hallertauer (Pellets, 4.50 %AA) boiled 60 min.
0.5 oz. Hallertauer (Pellets, 4.50 %AA) boiled 15 min.

Yeast

German Ale Yeast – Safale K-97

Mash Schedule

Strike grains at 165 degrees.
Mash grains at 152 degrees for 60 minutes.
Sparge with 170 degree water.

Boil Instructions

Bring to boil and add hops per schedule.
At end of 60 minute boil cool wort quickly, when it reaches 80 degrees pitch yeast.

Measurements (Fruit Ale)

Since the cherry ale falls into the Fruit Beer category it has no specific style guidelines for OG,FG,SRM or IBU, it is recommended to use the style guidelines of the base style you have selected for your fruit beer.  Here are the measurements for a typical blonde ale recipe.

OG – 1.038 – 1.054
FG – 1.008 – 1.013
Color(SRM) – 3-6
IBUs – 15-28
ABV 3.8-5.5%

Ferment Instructions

Primary ferment between 63 – 70 degrees for 1 week.  Add cherries to secondary fermenter and rack beer to it for 2 weeks.  For this recipe I purchased 5 lbs of fresh Bing Cherries.  Pull the stems off and crush the the cherries.  Then cook them for about 20 minutes at about 160 degrees.  Let them cool down and add to the secondary.

Bottling Instructions

Prime with 3/4 cup corn sugar and bottle. Condition in bottle for at least two weeks.

Kegging Instructions

Fill keg, purge oxygen and set to force carbonate at 12 psi at 38 degrees for one week. Drop CO2 regulator to 4 psi before serving.

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Homebrew Pumpkin Ale Recipe

A pumpkin ale is a traditional fall seasonal beer brewed spicy, malty and smooth.  Pumpkin ales are known to be low in hop bitterness, with a noticeable pumpkin pie spice like taste.  They can be brewed using either fresh roasted pumpkin or pumpkin puree, the latter being much cleaner and easier to handle.  The homebrew pumpkin ale recipe below will have an orange amber color, pumpkin pie spice aroma, and a crisp finish.  For best results try brewing this pumpkin ale about 1.5 months before you plan to drink it, it benefits with a bit longer aging period.  The photo above was taken at our annual drunkin punkin challenge, this pumpkin ale was drank during the competition.  Listed below is a 5 gallon All-Grain homebrew pumpkin ale recipe.

Grains

9.5 lbs. American 2-row
2 lbs. Munich Malt
.5 lbs. Caramel/Crystal 80L
.5 lbs. CaraPils/Dextrine Malt

Hops/Fruit/Spices and Schedule

3.63 lbs. Canned Pumpkin (2 big cans of 100% pure pumpkin) boiled 90 min.
.75 oz. Northern Brewer (Pellets, 9.0 %AA) boiled 60 min.
1 oz. East Kent Goldings (Pellets, 5.50 %AA) boiled 30 min.
2.5 Tsp Cinnamon, boiled for 10 min.
1.5 Tsp Nutmeg, boiled for 10 min.
1.5 Tsp Allspice, boiled for 10 min.

Yeast

Safale US-56 California Ale Yeast or Wyeast 1056 American Ale

Mash Schedule

** Note the 90 minute boil. Make sure you have enough pre boil wort during calculations.
Strike grains at 165 degrees.
Mash grains at 153 degrees for 60 minutes.
Sparge with 170 degree water.

Boil Instructions

Bring to boil and add hops per schedule.
At end of 90 minute boil cool wort quickly, when it reaches 80 degrees pitch yeast.

Measurements (Spice/Herb/Vegetable Ale)

Since the pumpkin ale falls into the Spiced Beer category it has no style guidelines for OG,FG,SRM or IBU.

Ferment Instructions

Primary ferment between 63 – 70 degrees for 1 week, then rack to secondary for 2-3 weeks.  The longer racking adds better overall mouthfeel.

Bottling Instructions

Prime with 3/4 cup corn sugar and bottle. Condition in bottle for at least two weeks.

Kegging Instructions

Fill keg, purge oxygen and set to force carbonate at 12 psi at 40 degrees for one week. Drop CO2 regulator to 4 psi before serving.