Rayface Ale

This is an all grain recreation of a tasty amber using Munton's Amber malt extract and speciality grains I made a while back. It turned out way better than the original, producing a very well balanced and deceivingly drinkable Amber ale. Use a fruitier British ale yeast and this would make an excellent strong ESB.

Brewer:	Marc Rehfuss		Email:	myr3838@ksu.edu
Beer:	Rayface Ale		Style:	American Amber Ale
Type:	All grain		Size:	5 gallons
Color:	26 HCU (~14 SRM)		Bitterness:	44 IBU
OG:	1.064		FG:	1.012
Alcohol:	6.7% v/v (5.2% w/w)
Water:	Used bottled spring water treated with 3 tsp CaSO4.
Grain:	9.5 lb. Thomas Fawcett Optic .5 lb. Toasted Optic .75 lb. British crystal 50-60L .5 lb. British crystal 95-115L
Mash:	76% efficiency
	Mashed at 150 degrees for 90 min. This helped acheive the 81% apparent attenuation. I toasted 1/2 pound of the Optic (uncrushed) for 12 min. at 350 degrees a few days prior to brewing.
Boil:	90 minutes	SG 1.046	7 gallons
	Be sure to take the Irish Moss out of the cupboard then forget to throw it into the boil for tradition's sake. :)
Hops:	.5 oz. Chinook (12% AA, 60 min.) 2 oz. Kent Goldings (4.5% AA, 15 min.) .5 oz. Chinook (12% AA, 5 min.) 2 oz. Willamette (5% AA, 2 min.)
Yeast:	one liter starter of Wyeast 1056 at high Krauzen. Oxygenated the wort prior to pitching.
Log:	Fermentation at 64 degrees (ambient was several lower) to minimize ester production. Primary 7 days. secondary for 2 weeks with Willamette pellets in hop sack.
Carbonation:	4 oz glucose for a slighly lower than normal carbonation provides for a very smooth mouthfeel.
Tasting:	Great dark red hue, excellent head and retention. Nice floral Willamette nose is accompanied by caramel notes and a slight toasty aroma from the toasted malts. Medium body, with a well balanced hop bitterness and malt. Optic seems to be an excellent substitute for Maris Otter and at least for this batch cleared much more quickly. Wonderful subtle toasted malt flavors meld well with floral malt flavors. Finishes clean with a mellow hop bitterness and just a hint of alcohol warmth. I've found my house Amber. This batch is going really fast.

Recipe posted 03/20/02.