Small beer recipes?

[DaveNewton]

Hi everyone I've been looking for recipes to brew in the 2-4% ABV range, and while I've found general suggestions (use less grain, etc) I've seen very few specific recipes that people can vouch for. There are some styles which are inherently low ABV (such as Berliner Weiss) but I'd like to be able to make the occasional lower ABV IPA or lager to mix it up a little, light but not insipid or bland. Any suggestions appreciated.

 

[KB]

You're asking about Session beers. I'd rather have a session beer any day than a knock me out, high ABV.

Please see the following.

Session Beer: Brewing Small with Big Flavor

Craft beer lovers and homebrewers are tapping into an idea that's existed for quite some time—session beer.

www.homebrewersassociation.org

Session Beers: Brewing for Flavor and Balance

Sharing a beer or two with friends after work or play is one of life’s many joys. Session beers, whose mild strength invites more than one round, adhere to high quality standards and are dedicated to balance and drinkability above all. Some naturally low-alcohol beer styles were “sessionable”...

www.brewerspublications.com

Hope this helps.

 

[Kevin58]

Visit Ron Pattinson's blog, Shut Up About Barclay Perkins. He has posted many recipes for low gravity pale ales, light ales, ales that were called "family ale", etc. These are recipes take from the log books of commercial breweries in London and other locales across Britain.

Shut up about Barclay Perkins

barclayperkins.blogspot.com

 

[DaveNewton]

Visit Ron Pattinson's blog, Shut Up About Barclay Perkins. He has posted many recipes for low gravity pale ales, light ales, ales that were called "family ale", etc. These are recipes take from the log books of commercial breweries in London and other locales across Britain.

Shut up about Barclay Perkins

barclayperkins.blogspot.com

Hi Kevin58,

thanks so much I look forward to checking the recipes out.

 

[DaveNewton]

You're asking about Session beers. I'd rather have a session beer any day than a knock me out, high ABV.

Please see the following.

Session Beer: Brewing Small with Big Flavor

Craft beer lovers and homebrewers are tapping into an idea that's existed for quite some time—session beer.

www.homebrewersassociation.org

Session Beers: Brewing for Flavor and Balance

Sharing a beer or two with friends after work or play is one of life’s many joys. Session beers, whose mild strength invites more than one round, adhere to high quality standards and are dedicated to balance and drinkability above all. Some naturally low-alcohol beer styles were “sessionable”...

www.brewerspublications.com

Hope this helps.

Brilliant - thanks so much for the links!

 

[xuledywo]

Hi everyone I've been looking for recipes to brew in the 2-4% ABV range, and while I've found general suggestions (use less grain, etc) I've seen very few specific recipes that people can vouch for check out. There are some styles which are inherently low ABV (such as Berliner Weiss) but I'd like to be able to make the occasional lower ABV IPA or lager to mix it up a little, light but not insipid or bland. Any suggestions appreciated.

Hi, Last week I had a mini-stroke - and thankfully it wasn't permanently damaged, I veer a bit to starboard upon occasion but who doesn't, Due to the medication I'm now on I need to curtail my alcohol intake, in itself isn't a problem, I'm dry every January anyway, but I do enjoy a good drop of ale. Hopefully, I can manage that by cutting the strength but not the body or flavor of my brews so to the point, does anyone have any recipes or suggestions for small beers, 1.5% or thereabouts, I prefer mild and ruby ales but I'll try most types and I'm sorry if there's a thread here already that covers my wishes but I couldn't find it.

 

[DaveNewton]

Hi xuledywo,

I've had some good results recently using with these recipes:

San Diego Dark Session Beer

San Diego Dark Session Ale

To brew San Diego Dark Session Ale, use a single infusion mash with 9.5 qts (9 L) of 162°F (72°C) water and settle at 152°F (67°C) for 45 minutes. Sparge […]

www.homebrewersassociation.org

Session Helles
can't find the surce of the recipe but basically Pilsner malt with a little aromatic malt, melanoidin mlt and acidulated malt for character

Session IPA

How to Brew A Session IPA In 2023 | Lower Calorie Hoppy Beer

Session IPA packs all the hops of an IPA into a much lower ABV. Learn how to homebrew this guilt-free hoppy session beer.

bisonbrew.com

And I'm very excited about a new beer from Brixton Brewery which rather than de-alcoholising a normal beer, deliberately uses a high mash temperature and the Lalleman ESB yeast which does not metabolise maltotriose, in order to keep the ABV low, but with loads of flavour.

SWITCH IT UP WITH OUR BRAND NEW ALCOHOL FREE BEER

Introducing Switch Alcohol Free Pale Ale, our new brew without the buzz Sometimes, you just don’t want another drink. And as a brewer we are… absolutely fine with that. We get that moderation is important and that after all the Christmas dos, festive feasts and NYE parties some people prefer to...

brixtonbrewery.com

I'll report back with the results!

 

[KipDM]

Hi, Last week I had a mini-stroke - and thankfully it wasn't permanently damaged, I veer a bit to starboard upon occasion but who doesn't, Due to the medication I'm now on I need to curtail my alcohol intake, in itself isn't a problem, I'm dry every January anyway, but I do enjoy a good drop of ale. Hopefully, I can manage that by cutting the strength but not the body or flavor of my brews so to the point, does anyone have any recipes or suggestions for small beers, 1.5% or thereabouts, I prefer mild and ruby ales but I'll try most types and I'm sorry if there's a thread here already that covers my wishes but I couldn't find it.

another way to do this, assuming you all grain brew, is cut your grain bill in half and make a 1/2 batch. remash your grains [also called partigyle], and make a second 1/2 batch. mix both worts and ferment. this might not be quite low enough, but the 1 partigyle beer i made [not mixing worts], results in a roughly 1/7% ABV rye pilsner that was beautiful.

also, for anyone worried about the body being too thin, you can always add a little maltodextrin to give back body.

but MOST important is: to keep your flavor, keep most [if not all] your darker/more modified grains. reduce your base grains to reduce the ABV.

 

[xuledywo]

another way to do this, assuming you all grain brew, is cut your grain bill in half and make a 1/2 batch. remash your grains [also called partigyle], and make a second 1/2 batch. mix both worts and ferment. this might not be quite low enough hardwood floor atlanta, but the 1 partigyle beer i made [not mixing worts], results in a roughly 1/7% ABV rye pilsner that was beautiful.

also, for anyone worried about the body being too thin, you can always add a little maltodextrin to give back body.

but MOST important is: to keep your flavor, keep most [if not all] your darker/more modified grains. reduce your base grains to reduce the ABV.

thank you so much for your suggestion

 

[BeerHolic]

Ordinary Bitter: OG 1.030 - 1.039
Scottish Heavy: OG 1.035 - 1.04
London Brown ale: OG 1.033 - 1.038
German Leichtbier: OG 1.026 - 1.034
American Light Lager: OG 1.024 - 1.040

and as mentioned maintain non-base malt quantities and decrease base malt quantity, keeping in mind diastatic power.