🍺 Top-down Brew: American Lager
Recipe Variables
Variations
For steeped grains plus malt extract:
- Delete the malt lines.
- For liquid malt extract, add sugar: Liquid pilsner or light malt extract, 80, 5, 76 and sugar: Corn sugar, 20, 1, 80
- For dry malt extract, add sugar: Dry pilsner or light malt extract, 80, 3.5, 96 and sugar: Corn sugar, 20, 1, 80
Explore other malts, sugars, and hops
Results
Notes
BJCP American Lager Characteristics ingredients: "Two- or six-row barley with up to 40% rice or corn as adjuncts. Lager yeast. Light use of hops."
The base malt should be pilsner malt, two-row malt, or a mixture of pilsner and two-row. Flaked corn or flaked rice is typically between 15 to 25% of the grain bill. Corn or rice can be used if a cereal mash procedure is pursued. Small amounts (5% or less) of light specialty malts like carapils or carahell could be used for increasing foam or body.
The hops are continental European noble hops (Saaz, Hallertau, etc.) or similar American hops (Mount Hood, Liberty, etc.). Keep hop character low. Late hop additions and dry hopping might be possible, but keep these restrained.
Lager yeasts should be suitable for American pilsners. Popular choices include Mexican lager, American lager, W34/70, and Saflager S-23.
See also the American light lager style for a similar, but lower gravity recipe.
Sources
Beer-analytics.com American Lager
Strong, G. Dad's Homebrew BYO.com