Low-ish alcohol and big-ish flavor are the order of the day. I’m aiming for a sessionable ~5.3% hazy pale ale with lots of hop character.

The hop blend will be an old favorite of mine: amarillo, citra, and simcoe. But for something a little different, I’m going to use all cryo hops.

Recipe

Trying out golden naked oats for the first time today.

Batch size:      5.5 gallons
Target OG:       1.052
Target FG:       1.013
Calculated IBU:  36
Calculated SRM:  4.4

Grain bill:
8 lb  US 2-Row            (80%)
1 lb  Wheat Malt          (10%)
0.5 lb  Golden Naked Oats (5%)
0.5 lb  Honey Malt        (5%)

Mash (Batch Sparge): 154 °F @ 1.5 qts/lb

Hops:
0.4 oz Columbus      @ 60 minutes (18.5 IBU)
1.0 oz Cryo Amarillo @ 20 minute hop stand
1.0 oz Cryo Citra    @ 20 minute hop stand

1.0 oz Cryo Amarillo @ Dry hop, primary day 4
1.0 oz Cryo Citra    @ Dry hop, primary day 4
1.0 oz Cryo Simcoe   @ Dry hop, primary day 4

Yeast:
Imperial Barbarian, no starter

Notes

2021-01-18 - Forgot to check mash temp at the start. At the end it was 150. A little cooler than intended, but no big deal.

Started the hop stand at 185 °F

OG 1.052. Fermenting ambient downstairs temp. Mid 60’s.

In the winter, the house is too cold to get perfect temp control with my fermentation fridge. The room the fridge is in gets too cold and I actually need heat more than cooling. Instead I just ferment at ambient temp in a spare bathroom that stays pretty steady 64-66 throughout the day.

I’ll get around to adding heat to the fermentation fridge one of these days.

2021-01-21 - Added dry hops in the evening in a weighted fine mesh bag. One day earlier than planned. Fermentation was already looking pretty slow and I wanted to hop while it was still slightly active. Added half a campden tablet in with the hops for some oxygen protection.

2021-01-26 - Kegged. I try to minimize the time my hoppy beers spend in hdpe bucket fermenters. FG 1.010.

Hop intensity is a little lower than I wanted. I wonder if it’s related to dry hopping in the bag instead of just adding them loose.

In any case, going to let it condition warm a few more days.

2021-01-30 - Into the kegerator to chill/carb.

2021-02-07 - Tasting notes:

Appearance: Fluffy white head with ok retention. Good lacing. Nice and hazy.

Smell: Moderately intense fruity/citrusy hop aroma. It’s not leaping out of the glass like some beers, but what’s there is nice.

Taste: Similar to the aroma, but in addition there’s some background pineyness from the simcoe. Fermentation was very clean, not much yeast character.

I don’t pick out any obvious distinct flavors from the honey malt or golden naked oats. There is a background graininess, especially in the aftertaste. I suspect that’s that honey malt and/or oats. I’d be curious to try this exact recipe but replacing the honey malt and golden naked oats with flaked wheat. I wonder what the change in malt flavor would be.

Overall: Very tasty beer, though it could use a little more body and hop aroma to be its best.

2021-03-10 - The grainy taste subsided after a couple more weeks. It’s really enjoyable now.

Changes for next time

No big changes, but a few tweaks:

• I meant to mash this higher, and next time I will.
• I’m surprised I didn’t get more intensity from the cryo hops. Next time I’ll try adding them loose instead of putting them in a mesh bag. Maybe that was the culprit.
• Also just try more hops. Maybe dry hop with 4 oz cryo instead of 3 oz.
• Just golden naked oats or honey malt, not both.