Spoetzl Brewery: Shiner Bock clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.043 FG 1.010
IBU = 17 SRM = 16 ABV = 4.3%

Ingredients
3 lbs. (1.36 kg) 6-row pale malt
3 lbs. (1.36 kg) Vienna malt (4 °L)
2.66 lbs. (1.21 kg) corn grits
0.66 lbs. (0.29 kg) crystal malt (60 °L)
3 oz. (86 g) roasted barley (500 °L)
4.62 AAU Brewer’s Gold hops (60 min.) (0.6 oz./16 g at 8% alpha acids)
1 tsp. Irish moss
1/2 tsp. yeast nutrient
White Labs WLP940 (Mexican Lager) or Wyeast 2247 (European Lager) yeast (4 qt./4L starter)
7/8 cup (175 g) dextrose (if priming)

Step by Step
In a large kitchen pot, mix corn grits and 5 oz. (141 g) of the 6-row malt with 3.3 qts. (3.1 L) of 159 °F (71 °C) water to make a cereal mash. Hold cereal mash at 148 °F (64 °C) for 15 minutes. While cereal mash is resting, pour the rest of the grains into your brew kettle and mash in to 140 °F (60 °C). Use about 1.66 gallons (6.3 L) of water for an initially thick mash. Heat the cereal mash to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil for 30 minutes. After boiling the cereal mash, add it to the main mash and adjust temperature with water to 152 °F (67 °C). This should bring your mash thickness into the normal range. Mash for 45 minutes, then heat mash to 165 °F (74 °C). Stir frequently, and expect the temperature to keep climbing a bit after you shut off the heat. (Any temperature under 170 °F/77 °C is fine). Recirculate until wort is clear, then collect about 5 gallons (19 L) of wort, sparging with water sufficiently hot to keep grain bed between 165–170 °F (74–77 °C). Add 1.5 gallons (6 L) of water and boil wort for 90 minutes, adding bittering hops for final 60 minutes. Add yeast nutrient and Irish moss with 15 minutes left in the boil. Cool wort quickly to 54–65 °F (12–18 °C), aerate well and pitch yeast sediment from yeast starter. Ferment at 54 °F (12 °C) for 10–12 days, then let temperature raise to 60 °F (16 °C) for a diacetyl rest. This should take about 2 days, but taste beer before cooling. Rack beer to secondary fermenter and cool beer to 32–40 °F (0–4 °C). Lager for 30–45 days.

Partial mash option: Substitute the 6-row pale malt, Vienna malt, and corn grits in the all-grain recipe with 2.8 lbs. (1.3 kg) Briess light liquid malt extract, 1.9 lbs. (0.86 kg) brewer’s corn syrup, 0.25 lb. (0.11 kg) 6-row pale malt, and 1 lb. (0.45 kg) Munich malt (10 °L). Heat 1.75 gallons (6.6 L) of water in your brewpot and 3 quarts (2.8 L) of steeping water in a separate 6–8 qt. (6–8 L) pot. Place crushed grains in a steeping bag. When steeping water reaches 169 °F (76 °C), turn off heat and begin steeping grains. The temperature of the “steep” should drop to around 158 °F (70 °C). When the temperature of the steeping water falls to 148 °F (64 °C), remove grain bag from steeping water. Do not rinse grains with water or squeeze bag. Add “grain tea” from the steeping pot to your brewpot and heat to a boil. Once boiling, shut off heat and stir in malt extract. Boil for 60 minutes, adding hops once initial foaming subsides. Add corn syrup for the last 15 minutes of boil, stirring well to avoid scorching. Cool and top off to 5 gallons (19 L). Follow the remaining portion of the all-grain recipe.

Written by Chris Colby
Issue: July-August 2004