I know when it’s hot outside and you read these blogs, I will normally say, “And summer is in full swing!”, today though it’s a bit refreshing outside from the insane heat, so kinda hard for me to say that. However, I am pretty prepared for hot days to come in the future and need a perfect beer to quench the thirst. This is the one I’ll be making just for that.
This recipe is perfect for those that do not want a beer that is too hoppy, quick to make, easy to drink, and a general crowd-pleaser . I’ve personally been handing this recipe out to some customers this summer, and only have received positive feed back. You know you have a good beer when people are telling you, “Ya and my wife even told me to make this one again!”. It’s a good beer.
The one thing about this beer is, it doesn’t have any grains. To me that’s a perk. It makes it that much quicker to make it. As always, if you are an all-grain brewer we do have a conversion chart to help you convert the DME into all-grain.
Summer Blonde Ale
3 lbs Amber DME
2 lbs Light DME
1 oz Hallertau Hops (60min)
.5 oz Cascade Hops (15min)
.5 oz Cascade Hops (1min)
Safale 04
OG: 1.042
FG: 1.009
SRM: 7
IBU: 24
ABV: 4.3%
Directions
- Take 2.5 gallons of water put on stove
- Add all your DME
- Bring to boil
- In the beginning of the boil add Hallertau hops
- Boil for 45 min
- Add .5 oz Cascade hops
- Boil for 14 min
- Add .5 oz Cascade hops
- Boil for 1 min
- End boil, put in fermenter, fill up to 5 gallons, pitch yeast
Primary Fermenter – 7 days
Bottle – 21 days
Conclusion
What I like about this beer is that is has a nice aroma, and a decent flavor. It is really a great beer for those days where you find yourself sweating by just walking up to the mailbox to get your mail. I hope that you will make and share with friends and family.
Side Note: If you wanted to add grains to it to make it a bit more complex I would stay away from anything too sweet or to heavy in flavor. My suggestions of somethings you could add to it would be :
Vienna – light in color a bit of a bready flavor
Carapils – no color change, just helps with head retention. Doesn’t contribute to flavor changes either.
Victory/Biscuit – Adds a bit of color, but will give a biscuit aroma or flavor. It would make it a bit more filling of a beer.
Flaked Barley – Gives a bit of head retention and also helps with mouth-feel
Related Post
When To Consider Secondary Fermentation
Jay's Brewing Blog 
January 8, 2017 at 3:25 pm
I tried this as my first ever brew. It’s two weeks now and fg is stuck at 1.014 (og ended up being 1.044). Do you think it’s safe to bottle? Thanks.
January 30, 2017 at 3:37 pm
Hello James first off thanks for the question. Let me start by saying that if the readings are consistent over three days and it holds steady it should be fine to bottle. That being said you may be able to change it by waiting but chances are it may not be very much.