The Irish Red Ale recipe :
- Color : Red
- Alcohol content : 4.2%.
- Quantity : 20L
- Bitterness : Mild
- Brewing time : 5h
- Difficulty : Easy
Ingredients
- 3.6kg of Malt Maris Otter
- 250g of Malt Carared
- 200g of Malt Carapils
- 50g of Roasted Barley
- 15g of Houblon Target
- 2 yeast packets of Nottingham
- Total water volume : 31.5L (Preferably : Chloride / Sulfate = 1:1)
Brew our Irish Red Ale recipe step by step
Step 1
Heat 14.5 liters of water to 72°C in your brewing vessel and pour in the crushed grains.
Stir well to soak up all the malt, and don’t hesitate to crush any lumps against the sides of the tank.
Stir until the temperature drops to 67°C and hold for 1 hour.
At the same time, heat 17 liters of water to 75°C.
Step 2
Once the saccharification hour is over, move on to filtration and rinsing.
Step 3
Then heat your wort to boiling for 60 minutes.
Add your hops as soon as the boiling time begins. There are very few hops, as we’re not looking for bitterness or too much hop aroma in this style. 18-22 IBU is more than enough.
Step 4
Then cool the wort to 19°C and transfer to the fermenter, not forgetting the yeast.
Your initial specific gravity should be around 1.042.
Ferment at 18°C for the first 3 days. Then raise the temperature to 20°C for at least 4 weeks. Then rise to 22°C for a final week.
For this Irish Red Ale recipe, the final specific gravity should be around 1.010.
Step 5
Add 5g/l of sugar at bottling. You want a nice head but not too many bubbles either on this style of beer.
Over View
This type of Irish beer is quite similar to English amber bitters. The difference lies in the fact that the balance is totally on the malt side, with yeast and hop aromas taking a back seat. You’ll find biscuity malt flavors enhanced by caramelized and lightly toasted notes. After a round, warm attack, the roasted barley and small amount of hops bring a gentle bitterness that produces a rather dry, thirst-quenching finish that calls for a second sip.
With its low alcohol content, this Irish Red Ale recipe is made to be drunk in pints and in relative moderation! Brewed in January, it will be super effective for celebrating St Patrick’s Day !