Rye Pale Ale: How much rye?

[seanppp]

I've not brewed with rye before but I've enjoyed a few rye IPAs and pale ales. Can anyone give me an idea as to what percentage of rye to use? For instance, what is the minimum % where you can still taste it? What is the % where it's noticable and strong, and what is the % where it's over the top?

 

[chickypad]

I think this is a lot personal taste but I find I like at least 20% to feel it's noticeable. I have gone as high as 22% rye malt plus 8% flaked rye in a pale ale that was all base malt (basically Jamil's grainbill from BCS of 29% rye but a portion replaced as flaked). It was prominant but not over the top for me, though the hubby thought it was pushing it.

 

[giraffe]

10% is noticeable. Ive used 70% in a roggen, and its nice, but that id say is the limit. But in general, if its a "rye (whatever style) beer" id go 30%. But then again I really like rye. So 10/30/70.

 

[Komocabo]

My recent batch was:
17# 2-Row
9# Rye Malt
4# Munich
1.5# Crystal Rye
.5# special roast
1# rice hulls.

10 gal batch... it's fermenting right now, which is why I remember the grain bill (brewed on Sunday)

 

[DeMerchant]

10% is noticeable. Ive used 70% in a roggen, and its nice, but that id say is the limit. But in general, if its a "rye (whatever style) beer" id go 30%. But then again I really like rye. So 10/30/70.

Agreed. I've done a few rye ales and 30-40% isn't overpowering, but the flavour certainly comes through. For a "rye PA" I'd aim to be on the lower end, so 20-30%

 

[breckenridge]

I've done a couple of red rye ales in a row; first one was about 12% rye, and nice - the rye was definitely noticeable but not over the top. Second one was 25% rye and I felt it was WAY too much for my little 5% ABV amber ale. Seemed like all of my flavor and aroma hops were wasted; the rye was just overpowering and out of balance.

The rye flavor was really compelling, though. For a while, every time I drank something else, I wished I'd had one of the 25% rye beers instead. All in all, I'd say 25% is too much for a beer that isn't supposed to scream rye.

OTOH, I'm thinking about doing a 30+% rye American barleywine one of these days...

 

[dobe12]

Definitely comes down to personal taste. I can't taste less than 20% or so. So I usually use about 30% and have used as much as 50% (part rye malt, part flaked rye) and enjoyed the beer. Others have tried a rye saison I made with 20% rye and thought it was too much.

I'd shoot for maybe 25-30% if I were you and see if you like it.

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

I recently did an IPA with approximately 30% rye. After about 2 weeks conditioning in the bottles, I thought the rye was a kick in the face. At 6 weeks it became very pleasant and warm and a really nice addition to the beer.

Did another beer with 1lb of flaked rye that I toasted a light brown in the oven before adding to the mash, I think it was about 5% of the grain bill. I cannot detect any rye spice, but I do think its contributing to the mouth feel and some other supporting flavors. The roastiness from the roasted barley might be mingling with the flaked rye making it less obvious.