Janet's Brown Ale

**kal** · Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2011 8:34 pm Post subject: Janet's Brown Ale

Recipe is here: https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/pages/janets-brown-ale

Questions? Ask below. Cheers!

Kal

RussH · Joined: 28 Feb 2011 Posts: 83

Kal, You've read my mind. One of the local Micro's (the one who gave me the wedge wire) makes a Cascadian Brown Ale, a very hoppy brown, and it's delicious. I decided I wanted something like it for a fall/winter beer, so that was my plan for my next beer. This is one of the recipes I was eying up. I think you've made up my mind for me.

rmessick · Joined: 20 Feb 2011 Posts: 123 Location: Turners Falls, MA

Janet's Brown is a great recipe, if you like hoppy beers! Everyone I know who has brewed it has received rave reviews.

-Dick

**kal** · Posted: Tue Oct 11, 2011 4:11 pm Post subject:

I just added the dry hops and tasted a sample beforehand... I can see why everyone likes this one!

Kal

RussH · Joined: 28 Feb 2011 Posts: 83

How is it Kal? I'll be dry hopping mine on tuesday. Really excited.

**kal** · Posted: Mon Nov 07, 2011 1:37 am Post subject:

I just put a keg of it in the chest freezer 2 days ago (had to wait for a spot to clear up). I'd say this one's a definite must brew again in my books if you like american style hoppy beers.

Kal

RussH · Joined: 28 Feb 2011 Posts: 83

Had the first bottle of this last night. Then the second, then the third.... This is some seriously good stuff. I want to brew it again right away, just so there's no down time between batches.

**kal** · Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2012 1:09 am Post subject:

Fast forward a few months.... the first keg is done and the second was placed in the serving freezer about 2-3 weeks ago.
This is a really nice beer that I plan on keeping in circulation. It almost has a slightly 'Porter' taste to it but with an American slant.

it's citrusy/fruity hops paired with a rich malt background of chocolate, roast, and caramel flavours and aromas.

While it's hopped as high as many America IPAs it doesn't taste it because of all the malt backbone.

The roast is very subtle. Everything you read says don't combine roasty with hoppy but for whatever reason the levels here are subdued enough that it just works. I can see why this beer has won many awards.

Kal

Sparky · Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 3:26 am Post subject:

Kal,
What efficiency level is the recipe listed?
(ie - most recipes are 70-75% efficiency)
Thanks,
Sparky

**kal** · Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 1:58 pm Post subject:

**kal** · Posted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 9:26 pm Post subject:

I made this beer again ~2 weeks ago and last night I racked out of the primary after dry hopping (1 week ferment, add dry hops to primary, leave 1 week).

The beer's now in a couple of 5 gallon glass carboys with gelatine. (My 'brite' tanks). They'll stay there for ~2 days and then kegged.

This beer is fantastic as usual. Anyone else making it recently?

Kal

Kevin59 · Posted: Thu Dec 06, 2012 6:20 am Post subject:

Kal - Just read the recipe for the first time and I think this will be one of the first few batches to brew on my new setup! Here's hoping mine comes out!

**kal** · Posted: Thu Dec 06, 2012 1:52 pm Post subject:

Like most American Ales it's an easy beer to make. Just make sure to let it ferment out properly. I usually leave it for a good 7-10 days at around 66F ambient and then add the dry hops directly to the primary and leave another 7-10 days, then rack to a secondary to clear. Leaving the beer on the primary yeast this long always helps clean things up and attenuates the beer properly.

The biggest mistakes new brewers make is trying to do things too soon (like racking) thinking that they need to take some action. 99% of the time if you think there's some issue during fermentation, the best thing to do is simply wait. A secondary fermentation is not required and will do more harm than good. Don't rush it.

Kal

Kevin59 · Posted: Thu Dec 06, 2012 3:42 pm Post subject:

Thanks for the tips Kal - much appreciated. I'll likely brew this batch as the first one to go into my 15 gallon plastic conical after I get it setup, and then I'll be sure to be patient! Smile

Castermmt · Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2012 5:52 pm Post subject:

I'm brewing this today for the second time using Wyeast 1056. It's a perfect blend of malts and hops and for a pretty big beer it's very enjoyable as well. I sat on this beer all summer and when I got back from my assignment(Pittsburgh, PA) I was able to enjoy this as one of my favorites and will always be in my cooler. If you haven't tried this beer your missing something pretty darn special. Mug

Be safe and have a Happy New year, Castermmt Mug

225 · Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 7:15 pm Post subject:

What would be a good replacement for hops, if I didn't want it to be a real hoppy beer?

**kal** · Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 1:15 am Post subject:

It's not the hop choices that make it hoppy, it's the amounts. The types of hops make it decidedly american (as do the choices of grain and yeast).

You could cut the hops in half or so.

Depends whether you mean hop flavour, aroma, or bitterness too when you say "hoppy".

If you don't like hoppy beers, I would probably make something else. Start a new thread about what types of beers you like and maybe someone can offer recipe suggestions.

Kal

Kevin59 · Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2013 11:05 pm Post subject:

**kal** · Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:31 am Post subject:

Errr, wait a second. It's supposed to be a 90 minute boil, not 60. I fixed the recipe in the original post to call for 90 minute boil. The grain amounts were right. You'll need to start off with more pre-boil. 14.9 gallons in my case but boil off rates are different for each system. Sorry about that. The grain percentages and the OG were right however. That's all that matters. With any recipe you play with the grain amounts until you get the target OG you want for you system's efficiency for the given boil duration.

The second time I made it I reduced the grain amounts slightly to account for a 60 minute boil (I didn't see the point of 90 as per the original recipe, but I wanted to stay true the first time I made it). The result seemed identical to me from what I remembered from brewing it the first time.

Looking around the interwebs, for this popular recipe some call for 60 mins boil, some for 90 min. I'm sure either will give great results. (Both have for me).

Kal

Kevin59 · Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:01 am Post subject:

No worries! I just wanted to make sure I can still do math! Cool

My first batch on my new system was this recipe, and in spite of several miscues by me that first time it still came out great. I'm having a pint now in fact.

Thanks Kal!