Brewing my first beer - American pale ale

So, I brewed my first beer a couple weeks ago (pictured above). I wanted to start with something simple so I decided to make an American Pale Ale. The recipe I used is from a book called "How to Brew" by Palmer (a great book for anyone interested in getting started in homebrewing). I followed the recipe almost to a T, except instead of using Northern Brewer hops, as the recipe calls for, I had accidentally bought German Northern Brewer hops. I guess that makes this a German-American Pale Ale - I'm a big fan of cultural diversity anyway.

Let's walk through the general steps of brewing so you understand the process a little bit. The first step in brewing is to make the "wort", which is the food that the yeast eats to make the beer. Wort is a solution consisting primarily of sugars (extracted from malted grains - usually barley, but sometimes wheat, rye, or some combination of these) and isoprenes (extracted from hops).

Malted grains - sugars

Sugars extracted from grains are metabolized by yeast to produce alcohol and carbon dioxide. However, the yeast cannot metabolize all of the sugars. Some are left behind, which contribute "malty" flavors to the beer. If you have ever noticed the taste of toast or caramel in a beer, then you know what malty means. The unmetabolized sugars that remain in the beer contribute these, in addition to many other flavors. Dark beers, like porters and stouts, have flavor profiles that are very malty.

Hops - isoprenes

Hops are boiled in the solution containing the extract sugars from the grains. As they are boiled, the release molecules called isoprenes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isoprene) which contribute bitter flavors to the beer. Hops are also largely responsible for the aroma of the beer. Citrusy and spicy smells are common. There is a lot of variation in the flavor and aroma the hops can lend to the beer.

The style of beer that I was trying to make has a flavor profile that is mostly dominated by hoppiness. If you have ever had Sierra Nevada's pale ale, then you know what I was shooting for. The hops I used are on the citrusy side of the spectrum.  I tried a glass of the beer today (even though it isn't quite ready yet). It tastes really good already - almost exactly how I think an American pale ale should. The hops shine through nicely, but are not overwhelming. I am pretty pleased with the balance it has achieved. It is still a little sweet, but I am hoping that is because I am drinking it a few days premature (I really should wait until Wednesday at the earliest, but I couldn't). Anyway, I think it was a good first effort. More to come!



If you are interested, here's the recipe:

Recipe Name:         (German) American Pale Ale

Recipe Volume:      5 gallons

Yeast:                     White Labs WLP001 California Ale

Malt:	Amount	Gravity Points
1. Extra pale malt extract (LME) in boil	3.3 lbs.	40
2. Extra pale malt extract (LME) at knockout	3.3 lbs.	40
3. Crystal 60 malt	0.5 lb.	3

Calculated Original Gravity            1.049
Caclulated Boil Gravity                   1.032
Measured Final Gravity                  1.017

ABV          4.5%

Hops:	Amount	Boil Time	IBUs
1. German Northern Brewer (9.6%)	0.5 oz.	60	20
2. Cascade (6%)	0.5 oz.	30	9
3. Cascade (6%)	1 oz.	15	12
4. German Northern Brewer (9.6%)	0.5 oz.	Dry hop
5. Cascade (6%)	0.5 oz.	Dry hop

Calculated IBUs          41

Procedure
- Heat 1 gallon of water to 150-160 F, add Crystal 60, and steep for 30 minutes (maintaining temperature is not vital in this stage). Remove grain bag and let drain for 30 minutes.
- Add 3 gallons of water, bring to a boil, then turn off heat and stir in 3.3 lbs. pale LME
- Return to boil and add 0.5 oz. German Northern Brewer hops
- Boil 30 minutes, and then add 0.5 oz. Cascade hops
- Boil 15 minutes, and then add 1 oz. Cascade hops
- Boil 15 minutes, then add 3.3 lbs. extract, let sit 10 minutes to pasteurize
- Add 1.5 gallons chilled sterilized water
- Chill wort to 75 F in ice water bath
- Add wort to fermenter
- Pitch yeast

Fermentation start time - date:  6pm - 4/20/13
Bubble start time:  6am - 4/21/13
Bubble slow time:  6am - 4/23/13
Transferred to secondary fermenter:  7pm 4/28/13
Bottling date:  5/15/13

Bottle count:  42 (12 oz. bottles)
Priming sugar:  3.7 oz. (2/3 cup) cane sugar (boiled in 2 cups of water)
Bottle conditioning time:  2 weeks