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Tuesday 07th of February 2012

Home Mr. Beer Red Ale
Red Ale
Written by Hunter Cobbs   
Saturday, 01 November 2008 14:53
I've been fiddling with this for a while.  Even though its not the most complicated recipe out there, it definitely turns out some great Red Ale that has a hint of spicyness and a rich flavor.

 

First, lets talk about our tools.  All I use is a standard Mr. Beer Brew Keg, and some household utensils: measuring cup, spoon, whisk, plate and 4 quart pot.

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ANYTHING that is going to touch the wort has been cleaned and sterilized using the included ONE STEP sanitizer (but only half a packet per keg, and follow standard Mr. Beer sanitation procedures).

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After sanitiation, we lay out our tools on sanitized plate and prepare to brew:

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Since this is a mixer batch, we are including two cans of Bewitched Red Ale and one can of Pilothouse Pilsner, plus brewing yeast(only ale yeast).  We place these cans in hot water so that the malt will flow more easily.

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Next, we bring our four cups of water to a boil, remove from heat, and add our cans of malt extract.  You'll likely want to use a sanitizd spoon to help free some of the malt that has adheared to the sides and back of your Malt Extract can.

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Now, we stir our pre-Wort at a medium rate (no splashing people!).  When the wort no longer drizzles from the whisk, and we have four quarts of cold water in our keg to absorb the thermal shock, we are ready to pour the wort.

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Next, we need to areate the wort so that our yeast will be able to convert the sugars and oxygen into nice alcohol.  Whisk (with a sanitized one of course)  the wort... building speed as bubles(and resistance) increase untill it looks something similar to this:

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Next, innoculate your keg with all three yeast packets from under the lids of the malt extracts.  It should look similar to this:

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Close the lid on the keg and let it sit for 5-10 minutes while the yeast hydrates and activates (before this point, the yeast has been in a dormant state waiting for a sugar and oxygen-rich environment to begin to multiply).  You should see something similar to this when you open the keg lid again.  Notice that the smooth mass of bubbles has dimished and you can see several locations wher the yeast is arlready producing CO2 in the "lumpy" texture on the edges.

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Whisk the activated yeast at a moderately low pace once the activation has begun.  Now it is time to seal your keg and place it in a 70*F, dark area to ferment and let the yeast do its thing.  The minimum fermentation time is two weeks; however, if you theif some beer at the end of that time, and its still sweet, you need to give it another week.

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