BEER RECIPE DESIGN
Five Things You Should Know
TOPICS
• The Five:Recipe Construct (refresher)Imagine the AdjectivesRealize the AdjectivesBalanceDialing In
RECIPE CONSTRUCT
RECIPE CONSTRUCT (REFRESHER)
6%6%
11%
78%
1. Base Malt or DME
2. Specialty Malts
Grain Bill Adjunct Yeast
FlavorAttenuation
CO2
Hops
BitternessAroma
Balances Malt Sweetness
CornRiceRyeOats
WheatSugarHoneyFruit
Fermentable SugarsFlavorColorBody
< 10% Fermentable SugarsFlavorColor
Bittering
Aroma
IMAGINE THE ADJECTIVES
IMAGINE THE ADJECTIVES
• Toasty
• Smokey
• Floral
• Fruity
Aroma Appearance Flavor Mouthfeel• Malty
• Toasty
• Smokey
• Bitter
• Sour
• Sweet
• Bready
• Carmely
• Choclolatey
• Toffee-like
• Peppery
• Light Body
• Medium Body
• Full Body
• Alcohol Warmth
• Creamy
• Silky
• Astringent
IMAGINE THE ADJECTIVES - BEER FLAVOR WHEEL
http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-01/infographic-day-beersci-edition-beer-flavor-wheel
REALIZE THE ADJECTIVES
REALIZE THE ADJECTIVES - BASE MALT CONTRIBUTION
REALIZE THE ADJECTIVES - SPECIALTY MALT CONTRIBUTION
REALIZE THE ADJECTIVES - HOP CONTRIBUTION
https://www.hopunion.com/aroma-wheel/
Hop Union Handy Hop Flavor Chart
REALIZE THE ADJECTIVES - YEAST CONTRIBUTION
• Flavor: Yeast add lots of character to beer. Esters, Phenols, Alcohols
• Attenuation: Dryness vs Sweetness
• Flocculation: High = Clearer Beer; Clumping Causes Yeast to Fall Faster
• Alcohol Tolerance: Fermentation creates alcohol and alcohol kills yeast. Higher alcohol beers ferment better with yeast that have higher alcohol tolerance for this reason. Keep this in mind when creating your recipe.
Know Your Yeast
REALIZE THE ADJECTIVES - YEASTWhite Labs’ Handy Chart for Yeast Selection
http://www.whitelabs.com/yeast/yeast-style-charts
BALANCE
BALANCEBU:GU = Bitterness to Gravity Ratio
Bitterness Unit
Gravity Unit
Hop Bitterness vs. Malt Sweetness
IBU = 25 OG = 1.050
GU = The last two digits of the OGBU = IBUs
EXAMPLE
BU = 25 GU = 50BU:GU = 25 / 50 = 0.5
The Higher the BU:GU the more bitter the beer1.0 = Highly Bitter | 0.5 = Balanced | 0.1 = Low Bitterness
NOTE: ATTENUATION LEVEL WILL AFFECT BU:GU
Low attenuation will reduce perceived bitterness
http://www.pencilandspoon.com/2012/11/forgot-ibu-think-about-bugu.html?m=1
DIALING-IN
DIALING IN
Try Different Yeasts
Adjust Specialty Grains
Adjust IBUs
Different Hops
Aroma Appearance Flavor Mouthfeel
Adjust Adjuncts
Trial and ErrorChange Base Malt
Revisit Adjectives
EXAMPLE RECIPE DESIGNED BY ROB MORELAND
BU = 12 GU = 77 BU:GU = 12 / 77 = 0.15
REFERENCES• Designing Great Beers by Ray Daniels: Chapter 13 , Page 125
• Standard Method Reference(SRM): TwoBeerDudes.com: http://www.twobeerdudes.com/beer/srm
• How to Brew by John Palmer, Chapter 5, Hop Varieties: http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter5-3.html
• Forget IBU, think BU:GU: PencilandSpoon.com: http://www.pencilandspoon.com/2012/11/forgot-ibu-think-about-bugu.html?m=1
• Beer Flavor Wheel: popsci.com: http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-01/infographic-day-beersci-edition-beer-flavor-wheel
• Aroma Wheel: hopunion.com: https://www.hopunion.com/aroma-wheel/
• Yeast Style Charts: whitelabs.com: http://www.whitelabs.com/yeast/yeast-style-charts