brown ale base recipe? basic, plain jane, low ABV, "blah", etc needed

[odie]

is there such a thing as plain old, nothing special brown ale? I'm looking for a "base" recipe which I can add different thing to.

I would like to make some different brown ales and need a good starter. But since I will be adding stuff that is high in sugar I figure a kinda low ABV recipe might be a good start, or even a regular plain brown recipe and cut a couple pounds of 2-row.

What I have in mind...

honey brown (I have honey bees)
caramel brown (salted caramel baking mix, mostly sugar and artificial flavors)
pecan brown (I have sugary pecan glaze packets from a spiral hams)
maple brown (I have sugary maple glaze packets from hams)

Basically I have lots of sugary flavored baking items to use somehow...

I know most of the sugar will be fermented but hoping the "artificial" flavors remain. Seems every flavoring is artificial these days.

 

[rhys333]

Sure. Brown ale is one of those styles that you can approach in different ways, but for a bare bones straightforward brown ale you want mostly base malt, some crystal malt, and a roasted grain for colour and a little complexity. For example:

88% 2 Row
7% C80
5% Chocolate

For a little more complexity, sub in either Munich malt for maltiness or victory malt for biscuit flavor. Perhaps 10% Munich and up to 8% victory. Hop to between 20 and 30 IBUs with whatever stirkes your fancy. If you want the sugars to shine, don't go heavy on the late additions. Ferment with something reliable like the neutral US05, or no fuss WY 1968 for an English take.

If you take the base beer to betwen 4.5 and 5.5%, it should be able to handle 7-10% sugars without seeming thin and cidery. If you want lower base beer abv, then mash high for increased body. You can also add Carapils to achieve the same.

 

[brewbama]

John Palmer’s basic recipe is Base+ .5 lb Med Crystal + .5 lb Choc.

Use Pils or Pils + Munich for your base + Caramunich + Carafa with noble hops and lager yeast and you have Schwarzbier.

Use 2-row + C60 + Choc with Amer hops and Chico and you have Amer Brown.

Use Maris Otter, Mild, Pale, or Pale Ale + Med Crystal + Choc with British hops and yeast for a British version. Sub Golden Promise as the base for a Scottish version.

...and on and on.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I'm looking for a "base" recipe which I can add different thing to.

If you have Brewing Classic Styles, check out the English Brown Ale chapter for some malt ideas.

For bittering hops, take a look at EKG or Willamette.

 

[odie]

I’ve got a bunch of recipes I got off the Internet but they mostly seem to be Newcastle clones

 

[odie]

This stuff that comes with spiral ham. Maybe use them to prime kegs? Not how much flavor I might get. Only a few oz

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I’ve got a bunch of recipes I got off the Internet but they mostly seem to be Newcastle clones

Brewing Classic Styles, chapter 24 (Fruit Beers) talks about adjusting a base recipe to accent the specific fruit. Radical Brewing and/or Mastering Homebrew may also be good resources for adjusting recipes when brewing with specialty ingredients.

 

[Rob2010SS]

This was the grain bill for the brown ale that I did last year. It was ok, not enough character though and kind of basic. For just a basic run of the mill brown ale, it was ok. I'll be tweaking this to make in the next couple of weeks. Looking to go more roasty and biscuity

 

[odie]

This was the grain bill for the brown ale that I did last year. It was ok, not enough character though and kind of basic. For just a basic run of the mill brown ale, it was ok. I'll be tweaking this to make in the next couple of weeks. Looking to go more roasty and biscuityView attachment 653354View attachment 653356

No hops? Well I’m looking to add other flavors anyway

 

[Rob2010SS]

No hops? Well I’m looking to add other flavors anyway

Lol yes there's hops. Ive added a screenshot of that below. Ive also added my whole recipe sheet for you to see so it all makes sense.

View attachment Nut Brown no Brown Sugar.pdf

 

[kevin58]

My base brown ale derives from several of the browns published by Ron Pattinson... pale malt, some crystal 60 and invert sugar #2 or #3. I target the OG to be in the low 1030's and IBU's in the upper teens.