GenericAle

procedure

Generic Ale Process:

1. Put as much water as you can into a pot, leave head room for the rest of the ingredients (1-5 gal)
2. Prepare yeast starter
   • For dry yeast put 1/2 cup lukewarm water and a pinch of sugar in a bowl and add the yeast. Allow to sit for at least 10 min before pitching - ensure the yeast is active before pitching
   • Some people just toss the dry yeast directly into the wort, up to you.
3. Don't use wood utensils to stir, wash everything with warm soapy water before using

1. Steep grains (in grain sock ideally) in 152F water for 30 min (if there are no loose grains skip this), remove grain sock and squeeze out as much liquid as possible (not the ideal way to do this step but easier)
2. Bring water to a boil, remove from heat and stir in liquid and dry malt extracts, mix thoroughly.
3. Return to heat and bring to boil. It will boil over from the foam that forms, as boil over starts (but before you've made a mess) remove from heat to calm the foam, repeat until a steady boil is reached without foaming.
4. Add bittering hops (this is probably the only type of hops you are using)
5. Boil wort for 30-60min (boiling hops longer makes the wort more bitter, also effects wort but don't worry about that)
6. Optionally strain wort as you rack it
7. Add wort and enough cold water to fermenter to make 4-5 gallons of wort. This will also foam up so leave some head room.
8. Allow to cool below 90F
9. If measuring specific gravity draw a sample and cool to 60F before measuring, then discard or drink sample (to prevent contamination don't return to 'sterile' wort. You've already added 3gal of cold, non-sterile water so the point is really moot)
10. With wort below 80F (70F is better) pitch yeast and seal fermentation vessel with an airlock
11. Ferment 1-3 weeks until bubbles are at least 1min apart
12. Rack off beer into clean container leaving the yeast cake on the bottom behind, take final specific gravity
13. Boil 4oz dextrose priming sugar in a cup of water for 10 min. Allow to cool and pitch into the beer, stir well
14. Bottle, allow to condition for at least 1 week before drinking, ideally wait 3-4 weeks

Special Instructions:

• If using flavor or aroma hops add at end of boil. Last 10 minutes to taste the hops, post boil to smell them
• If using Irish moss add for last 20 min of boil
• If using adjuncts defer to recipe usually during boil or post boil
• If foam gets into the airlock it may get stuck and could potentially explode, monitor the fermentation

-- ChristopherPepe - 18 May 2009