Beer for a wedding

[harrymanback92]

So a guy I work with is getting married in October. His wife(and her friends) love my beer so he's asked me to brew him 15 gallons. I said yes cause he's offering to pay me for my time, cover the ingredients cost and it's a perfect excuse for me to brew all weekend. So, what should I make? He was gonna talk to his wife but he asked that I come up with ideas. I'm thinking I need to narrow it done to 10 beers. I'll only be making 3 5gallon catches, but I want to give him a wide variety to choose from.

There 's only a few catches: I can't lager, so it has to be an ale. We're on the West Coast so hoppy beers are considered normal around here, and this is not for a BMC crowd, in the Bay Area there is a real respect for craft beer, so I think I can get away with making less than typical beers.

My three house beers are: Premium Bitter, Bavarian Hefeweizen, and a West Coast IPA hopped with centennial, chinhook, simcoe, cascade, and williamette.

If you had to make a list of 10 beers for a wedding, what would you make and why? And a link to recipes would be awesome.

Help me brainstorm guys!

 

[JonK331]

Kolsch
Hoppy pale or IPA
Bitter

 

[zman]

Yoopers House Pale is a good one as is Delirum Tremerns if they like Belgians. I did 10 gallons of it for a wedding in August. This is in addition to the 30 gallons of other beers that I made for this event

 

[Braufessor]

I have made several for weddings, and probably the best one was a "festbier" I made for my sister's october wedding. did a munich/2row/vienna base, some aromatic, caramunich. Hopped with german hops and used German ale yeast, fermented in the upper 50's.
You could use something like a kolsch or german ale yeast for a "fall" beer.

Others I have done - Kolsch's and cream ales for people who want lighter beer.
Have done basic pale ales.
Probably one of the more surprising one's that went over better than I thought it might was an oatmeal brown ale - kind of like a light roasty/chocolate stout (had two other lighter beers too - but this one got snapped up way faster.)

 

[Xpertskir]

I think one of the beers should be the house beer that the couple likes best.

As for the others..I would do a quaffable ipa and something dark but not too intense for the masses, a mild porter or a nut brown.

 

[harrymanback92]

I like the idea of a brown ale, anyone got any really good recipes? All my brown ales have tasted more like porters, but I've never really followed a recipe just made my own.

 

[dayjm]

Check out the Zymurgy web site for a version of Janet's Brown Ale that is highly hopped and delicious. Not at all like a porter. I'm drinking one right now.

 

[beerguy2009]

I like the idea of a brown ale, anyone got any really good recipes? All my brown ales have tasted more like porters, but I've never really followed a recipe just made my own.

Here is a link to a recipe for a brown ale that I feel is a crowd pleaser.

http://beerrecipes.org/showrecipe.php?recipeid=1281

 

[utrobot]

West Coast IPA, Octoberfest style ale and then a kolsh/blonde type ale. I love big beers but at weddings its nice to have something very drinkable everyone can enjoy.

For mine, I will brew even on the safer side. I would go with a dry hopped pale(thats bitter for ohio), rye ale(I been brewing a very simple extract from northern brewer that turns out drinkable) and then a fruit wheat or kolsh. Only about 25% of my friends and family enjoy ipas.

You would definitely want to brew beers you are comfortable with. Even make an extra one and wait to see how they turn out. You wouldn't want to have to serve anything but your best.

Good luck.

 

[Braufessor]

I am currently experimenting with the following recipe - it is just great beer. Light enough for anyone, but seems to please everyone who is a beer lover. This next batch I am going to make it as a "cask conditioned ale." just going to use a "homemade" cask (from a corny keg, and putting a short CO2 tube in where the dip tube would be and serving it laying on its side using gravity and a touch of CO2 to replace head space - I know - that is not "real" cask, but it will serve the purpose for now). If it goes well, might invest in a "real" cask.
That would be a really cool touch to tap a cask.... Also, this has pretty fast turnaround, so you might be able to do an experimental batch first.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/the-innkeeper-limited-edition-all-grain-kit.html

 

[Newmanwell]

White IPA!!!

 

[Dolomieu]

I would go with a dry hopped pale(thats bitter for ohio)

Wtf is that suppose to mean?


Yooper has a great recipe named in a form of a question. Its basically an amber pale ale. It can be as bitter as a cleveland fan.....?? But has a sweet balance like it actual has won something in the last decade. It has won over many bmc fans at the wedding i took it too. I have gotten a ton of requests for it to be on tap, for up coming parties , and weddings.

Im hoping to have a variety at my wedding. I have a year so the barely wine is first on the list.

 

[mike20793]

Jamil's American Brown is very good and very smooth. I'm brewing a variant of it today.

 

[lew3]

Is this wedding going to be held at someplace that they are renting for the night or is it one someones private property?
I just ask because I know there are a lot of crazy alcohol laws out there. It might be worth looking into anyway.

Good luck with the brews!

 

[JonK331]

I am currently experimenting with the following recipe - it is just great beer. Light enough for anyone, but seems to please everyone who is a beer lover. This next batch I am going to make it as a "cask conditioned ale." just going to use a "homemade" cask (from a corny keg, and putting a short CO2 tube in where the dip tube would be and serving it laying on its side using gravity and a touch of CO2 to replace head space - I know - that is not "real" cask, but it will serve the purpose for now). If it goes well, might invest in a "real" cask.
That would be a really cool touch to tap a cask.... Also, this has pretty fast turnaround, so you might be able to do an experimental batch first.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/the-innkeeper-limited-edition-all-grain-kit.html

Do you know what's in that recipe?

 

[codycodycody]

IPA
Irish Red
Kolsch

mmmmmmmmmmm

 

[tugbucket]

I'm getting married in September and we're doing a:

Left Hand Milk Stout clone
- Found a clone recipe somewhere

Lemon Ginger Wheat Ale
- Brewer's Best kit wheat with 1oz of lemon zest and 2oz grated ginger (maybe the other way around )

Simcoe Rye IPA
- Based off Sweetwater IPA and after trying Laughing Dog Rocket Dog, I'm adding a pound of rye to the mash.

10# 2-row
1# Munich Light
.75# Crystal 80L
.5# Wheat
1# Flaked Rye
5oz Simcoe at 60, 30, 10, 5, 0
Dry hop with 2-3 more oz Simcoe