Is this a Blonde?

Sunfire96

Sunfire96

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I bought an all grain kit for gruit, but then changed my mind about wanting to try brewing that style. Instead I took the Pilsner malt and White wheat from the recipe, added some Maris Otter and Crystal 60 for flavor and mash pH, and added the hopping schedule from Biermuncher's centennial blonde. Would you consider this a Blonde? According to the style guide, the SRM is a teetch too high, but with 22 IBUs, and ABV around 5%, a blonde seems like the right fit to me. Here is the recipe for "Screw it, not gruit ale":

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1015937/screw-it-not-gruit-blonde
 
Sunfire96 said:
I bought an all grain kit for gruit, but then changed my mind about wanting to try brewing that style. Instead I took the Pilsner malt and White wheat from the recipe, added some Maris Otter and Crystal 60 for flavor and mash pH, and added the hopping schedule from Biermuncher's centennial blonde. Would you consider this a Blonde? According to the style guide, the SRM is a teetch too high, but with 22 IBUs, and ABV around 5%, a blonde seems like the right fit to me. Here is the recipe for "Screw it, not gruit ale":

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1015937/screw-it-not-gruit-blonde
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Pale/blond Ale the crystal 60 turns it toward a pale. If brewing blond either kick the crystal out or use a lower lovibond crystal.
Hops looks yum
Recipie looks good that Marris otter looks like leftovers?
You've made a good choice I hope it turns out great for you.
 
Trialben said:
Pale/blond Ale the crystal 60 turns it toward a pale. If brewing blond either kick the crystal out or use a lower lovibond crystal.
Hops looks yum
Recipie looks good that Marris otter looks like leftovers?
You've made a good choice I hope it turns out great for you.
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Haha the MO is absolutely leftovers. If I had a lower L crystal I would use that, but C60 is what I have on hand. Thanks for the input!! I'm hoping for some great grapefruit nose and flavor from the C&C hop combo
 
@Hawkbox are the flaked oats for mouthfeel/head retention? Also is Caramunich a flavorful malt, or a dextrin provider? Thanks again!
 
Sunfire96 said:
@Hawkbox are the flaked oats for mouthfeel/head retention? Also is Caramunich a flavorful malt, or a dextrin provider? Thanks again!
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Caramunich is a German crystal malt, somewhat different than English or American crystals.
 
What you have going seems to be fine. You don't need any C-60 at all but if you really want to use it, you could lower the percentage and lighten things up. You're not just adding color but a whole different palate of flavors. Where C-20 will give a light candy sweetness and C-40 will add some caramel/toasty notes, C-60 will start bringing more burnt-sugar, dark fruit notes (raisin, prune) that can interfere with the balance of light malt and C-hops. It's more of a Pale Ale but it'll be a good, drinkable beer.
 
J A said:
Where C-20 will give a light candy sweetness and C-40 will add some caramel/toasty notes, C-60 will start bringing more burnt-sugar, dark fruit notes (raisin, prune) that can interfere with the balance of light malt and C-hops. It's more of a Pale Ale but it'll be a good, drinkable beer.
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I "break the rules" and add a bit of this and that grain and rarely been disappointed. Like you said, "...it'll be a good drinkable beer".
 
You need Quaker quick oats for flaked oats. I don't think the old fashioned ones are gelatinized.
 
Daniel Parshley said:
I "break the rules" and add a bit of this and that grain and rarely been disappointed. Like you said, "...it'll be a good drinkable beer".
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Yeah, it's not unusual to have aspects of a beer be "not to style" . The answer to your titular question is "well, sort of". The color is more in the APA range. But you already knew that.
If I brewed it, I might call it a blonde ale, though I's probably just hop it up a little more and make it a pale - personal preference.
If you entered it into a competition in the Blond Ale category, you might get dinged a point by some judges on color, maybe another point or two on flavor if the roast in the 60 came through.
I've seen many commercial tap and canned beers that were at least this dark and still labeled "blonde ale".
In the end it doesn't really matter. ;)
 
Hawkbox said:
You need Quaker quick oats for flaked oats. I don't think the old fashioned ones are gelatinized.
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They are, just not as extensively (think cooking steel cut oats - takes 45 minutes). You can use either old-fashioned or quick oats for brewing without a cereal mash.
 
Thanks for the input everyone! I think I'll omit the oats for now. It's a new beer style for me; I don't want to add too many new variables. Plus, hopefully the wheat addition will help with head retention? Unless I'm confusing White wheat malt for something different.
 
Nah wheat should totally help. I didn't realize you could get away with old fashioned oats, I knew the steel cut ones were out.
 
Nosybear said:
They are, just not as extensively (think cooking steel cut oats - takes 45 minutes). You can use either old-fashioned or quick oats for brewing without a cereal mash.
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So if I were to use old fashioned oats, would I add them to the mash grain and mash for 60 minutes like normal? Or would it be better to add them later to the mash? I try to mash between 150-155'F, if that makes a difference for oats.
 
Update: I removed the C60 and Maris otter from the grain bill. I'm going to try this "true to style," since this will be my first blonde brew.
 
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Sunfire96 said:
So if I were to use old fashioned oats, would I add them to the mash grain and mash for 60 minutes like normal? Or would it be better to add them later to the mash? I try to mash between 150-155'F, if that makes a difference for oats.
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Throw them in at the start of the mash, they don't need special treatment.
 
Sunfire96 said:
Update: I removed the C60 and Maris otter from the grain bill. I'm going to try this "true to style," since this will be my first blonde brew.
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As it is now, it looks more appealing to me as an actual Blonde Ale. No Crystal, no Oats (that's never in a blonde anyway), classic C-hops...I'd even drop the mash temp a little (assuming you have pretty tight control over it) to ensure it ferments out to a nice crisp finish. There's nothing like a simple, crisp, malty beer with citrusy aroma and just the right hop bite. ;)
 
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