Summer Light

One of my very first light colored summer beers. Recipe probably 4-5 years old or better. I have no dates on the recipe. I haven't made it in a while so I can't remember what it was actually like. Sure glad I saved all those notes from long ago. I actually don't know if it fits in with the cream ale group but it was the closest. I also made it more workable when I typed it in to the spreadsheet. Maybe I'll blow the dust off and try it.

Brewer:	magnumice77		Email:	magnumice77@hotmail.com
Beer:	Summer Light		Style:	Cream Ale
Type:	Extract w/grain		Size:	5.25 gallons
Color:	8 HCU (~6 SRM)		Bitterness:	13 IBU
OG:	1.057		FG:	1.006
Alcohol:	6.6% v/v (5.2% w/w)
Water:	House tap water for the boil. Artesian well water from the public artesian well park for everything else.
Grain:	2 lb. American 2-row .5 lb. American crystal 10L
Steep:	1 gallon cold water. Place cracked grains in cold water and slowly heated to 152F. This should take about an hour. After reaching 152F keep there for about 15-25 minutes. Take up to 177F and turn flame off. Drain the grains through a fine strainer. Rinse the saved grains with 1 gallon 175F water into another pot. Do not rinse the grains directly into the mashed grain water just yet. Rerinse the grains 1 or 2 more times with the same rinse water. Add rinse water and mash water to brew pot. Add enough water to the brew pot to bring it up to 3 gallons.
Boil:	60 minutes	SG 1.100	3 gallons
	6 lb. Alexanders light malt extract 10 oz. Corn sugar
	Add only 3 pounds of the liquid malt extract to the brew pot. Stir to blend in and get off bottom of pot. Bring to a boil (it happens quickly with the small amount of extract) and add hops according to schedule. With 15 minutes left in boil turn the flame off and add the last 3 pounds of liquid malt extract, the corn sugar and 1 teaspoon Irish moss. Stir to blend. After blending and getting it off the bottom of the pan, bring it back to boil and finish. This helps avoid carmelizing all of the liquid malt extract. If you want higher ABV% you may substitute dried malt extract in that step. Would also make it a shade or two lighter. The use of Alexanders liquid malt extract also keeps this light in color. Dump into your fermenter (or another pot then into fermenter) through a fine mesh strainer. Add enough cold water to bring it up to 5.25 gallons. This should cool it to proper pitching temperature.
Hops:	1 oz. Saaz (3.75% AA, 60 min.) 1 oz. Saaz (3.75% AA, 15 min.)
Yeast:	11 grams Nottingham dry yeast rehydrated in 1 cup 80F water for a drier beer or 11 grams Safale 56 (now Safale 05) pitched directly onto the cooled wort for a crisper beer. You may rehydrate in 1 cup 80F water to help speed things up if desired. Safale is directly pitchable.
Carbonation:	5.5 ounces corn sugar in the bottling bucket. Bottled into 55 twelve ounce bottles.
Tasting:	Can't remember.

Recipe posted 05/01/07.