American Rye BJCP Category 6D

[Punx Clever]

I'm looking to brew an American Rye for category 6D. Looking at the BJCP guidelines, they say that 50% or more of the grain bill can come from wheat, then goes to say that for a rye beer some or all of the wheat can be substituted...

So my question is: how much rye for a simple American Rye? 25%? 50%?

I'm looking to be on the high end of the OG and IBU ranges, and was originally thinking about 30% Rye, 10% Carapils, and 60% 2-row. Plan on hopping with Columbus and Crystal.

 

[chickypad]

I made what I am calling a rye IPA recently with 21% rye, I'm not sure I'd want to go much higher than that for this style. Sounds like you're thinking of something similar (i.e., higher OG and IBU). The rye makes it pretty dry and crisp, in a highly bittered beer I think any more might be too unbalanced or harsh. Just my 2 cents, this is actually my first time using rye in anything other than the How Rye I Am saison (popular entry in the recipes section) so take my comments with a grain of salt. I've never tasted a Roggenbier but I understand that they do have relatively low bitterness levels.

 

[JayDubWill]

Similar to Chickypad i've got a Rye Pale Ale fermenting right now. It will be a month or two before I can tell you how it turned out. I used 20% as well, no wheat though. From my reading anything much over 20% rye will start to impart strong rye flavor which may or may not be what your after. A "pumpernickel brown ale" paired with slices of corned beef and mustard might be interesting. Back on topic... a large percentage of rye in the mash can also lead to easily stuck sparges so the addition of rice hulls is recommended.

 

[Punx Clever]

See that's the thing though... I'm looking to be in style while highlighting the flavor of rye.

BJCP lists it like this:

Aroma: Low to moderate grainy wheat or rye character. Some malty sweetness is acceptable. Esters can be moderate to none, although should reflect American yeast strains. The clove and banana aromas common to German hefeweizens are inappropriate. Hop aroma may be low to moderate, and can have either a citrusy American or a spicy or floral noble hop character. Slight crisp sharpness is optional. No diacetyl.

Appearance: Usually pale yellow to gold. Clarity may range from brilliant to hazy with yeast approximating the German hefeweizen style of beer. Big, long-lasting white head.

Flavor: Light to moderately strong grainy wheat or rye flavor, which can linger into the finish. Rye versions are richer and spicier than wheat. May have a moderate malty sweetness or finish quite dry. Low to moderate hop bitterness, which sometimes lasts into the finish. Low to moderate hop flavor (citrusy American or spicy/floral noble). Esters can be moderate to none, but should not take on a German Weizen character (banana). No clove phenols, although a light spiciness from wheat or rye is acceptable. May have a slightly crisp or sharp finish. No diacetyl.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light to medium body. Medium-high to high carbonation. May have a light alcohol warmth in stronger examples.

Overall Impression: Refreshing wheat or rye beers that can display more hop character and less yeast character than their German cousins.

Comments: Different variations exist, from an easy-drinking fairly sweet beer to a dry, aggressively hopped beer with a strong wheat or rye flavor. Dark versions approximating dunkelweizens (with darker, richer malt flavors in addition to the color) should be entered in the Specialty Beer category. THE BREWER SHOULD SPECIFY IF RYE IS USED; IF NO DOMINANT GRAIN IS SPECIFIED, WHEAT WILL BE ASSUMED.

Ingredients: Clean American ale yeast, but also can be made as a lager. Large proportion of wheat malt (often 50% or more, but this isn’t a legal requirement as in Germany). American or noble hops. American Rye Beers can follow the same general guidelines, substituting rye for some or all of the wheat. Other base styles (e.g., IPA, stout) with a noticeable rye character should be entered in the Specialty Beer category (23).

Vital Statistics: OG: 1.040 – 1.055
IBUs: 15 – 30 FG: 1.008 – 1.013
SRM: 3 – 6 ABV: 4 – 5.5%

When I say on the high range for OG and IBU's I mean the high range of the category, so a Rye IPA would probably be out of place.

I guess at the end of the day, I'll shoot for 30% Rye and run a thinner mash with some rice hulls to prevent getting stuck.

 

[Chum]

I have an American Rye Ale fermenting right now. I used 50% 2-row and 50% rye. Sparge was a little sticky towards the end but never got stuck. Used 1.5 quarts/pound as a grist ratio. OG was 1042. I'm not sure, but I think you could leave the Carapils out and replace it with rye or wheat. Would probably give you the same outcome if you're looking at using Carapils for head retention, mouthfeel etc. My 2 cents.

 

[Punx Clever]

Ended up doing this:

1 lb rice hulls
6 lbs 2-row
5 lbs Rye
1 lb vienna

1 Oz Columbus in the mash
1 Oz Crystal in the mash

.5 oz Columbus First Wort Hop
.5 oz Columbus at fifteen
1 oz Crystal at fifteen

US-05

 

[bjkgnsnhs]

Similar to Chickypad i've got a Rye Pale Ale fermenting right now

 

[JayDubWill]

How was the sparge with that much rye? I've used crystal hops before and really like them, but im not familiar with columbus. Keep us posted when it's ready to drink! I'm drinking the 20% rye beer I made now and it's almost an exact clone of SweetWater LowRYEder.

 

[Punx Clever]

With a pound of rice hulls, and 1.5 qt water / lb grain, it went just like any other sparge. Granted, I'm running a RIMS setup so any sparging issues I might have would be caught early on in the mash... but it didn't seem to be a problem.

Columbus is a high-alpha bittering type hop that also has some really nice floral notes, crystal is a slightly spicy substitute for hallertauer. It turned out that the combination worked really well with the intense rye kick.

I've had a couple of them, and I'm enjoying them more and more, but mostly it's being saved for a homebrew festival on Saturday. I brought one into the LHBS to talk about it, and one guy in the store asked for my recipie right there after tasting it, bought the ingredients, and walked out happy.

 

[chickypad]

nice

 

[JayDubWill]

that's one nice looking beer!

 

[Punx Clever]

Thanks for the comments guys... we'll see how it does in the judging portion of the festival. I'm worried about how these statements will be taken:

"Light to moderately strong grainy wheat or rye flavor, which can linger into the finish. Rye versions are richer and spicier than wheat."
and
"Different variations exist, from an easy-drinking fairly sweet beer to a dry, aggressively hopped beer with a strong wheat or rye flavor."

While I don't think that it's to rye-y, other's might.

 

[Punx Clever]

3rd place overall at the MASH831 spring homebrew festival. Judge's described it as a "Rye Bomb"