A classic summer seasonal beer is the Brooklyn Brewery Summer Ale. At 4.8% ABV and 26 IBUs, it’s a lighter ale that will pair well with burgers, outdoor activities, warm sun, and good friends.
Grain Bill
Harkening back to its English heritage, this clone recipe uses Crisp’s Best Ale Malt as the base. A smaller amount of pilsner malt keeps the color and flavor light. A mid-range mash temperature of 152˚F results in a good balance of body and fermentability. If brewing the partial mash version of this recipe, add the LME at the end of the boil to increase hops utilization and reduce the likelihood of the LME contributing too much color to the beer.
Hopping
Cascade and Amarillo hops bring a signature American hop profile to this beer. Cascades contribute the classic citrus and spice, while Amarillo dry hops bring a pleasing tropical citrus aroma.
Yeast
For yeast, Nottingham dry yeast is recommended. It’s a classic English strain with a fairly neutral flavor profile. No yeast starter is necessary for this clone recipe, but you may wish to rehydrate the yeast before pitching.
Ready to give it a try? Here’s an all-grain Brooklyn Brewery Summer Ale recipe, with a partial mash recipe below! Happy brewing!
Brooklyn Brewery Summer Ale Clone Recipe (All-Grain)
(5-gallon batch, all-grain)
Specs
OG: 1.044
FG: 1.007
ABV: 4.8%
IBU: 26
SRM: 5
Ingredients
6 lb. 5 oz. Crip’s Best Ale Malt
2 lb. 11 oz. Pilsner malt
.75 oz. Cascade hops at 60 mins (3.8 AAUs)
.75 oz. Cascade hops at 30 mins (3.8 AAUs)
.75 oz. Cascade hops at flameout (3.8 AAUs)
.88 oz. Amarillo hops (dry hop)
1 pack Nottingham ale yeast
All-Grain Directions
Mash crushed grains in about 2.8 gallons of water at 122˚F for 30 minutes. Raise temperature to 152˚F and mash for one hour. Lauter and sparge to collect about six gallons of wort in the boil kettle. Boil for an hour, adding hops according to schedule. Chill wort and transfer to a clean, sanitized fermenter. Pitch yeast and ferment at 68˚F. Dry hop with Amarillo hops in the secondary fermenter. Bottle or keg with a target carbonation of 2.6 vols CO2.
Brooklyn Brewery Summer Ale Clone Recipe (Extract)
(5-gallon batch)
Specs
OG: 1.044
FG: 1.007
ABV: 4.8%
IBU: 26
SRM: 5
Ingredients
1 lb. 5 oz. Crip’s Best Ale Malt
11 oz. Pilsner malt
1 lb. 10 oz. light dried malt extract
3 lbs. light liquid malt extract (late boil addition)
.75 oz. Cascade hops at 60 mins (3.8 AAUs)
.75 oz. Cascade hops at 30 mins (3.8 AAUs)
.75 oz. Cascade hops at flameout (3.8 AAUs)
.88 oz. Amarillo hops (dry hop)
1 pack Nottingham ale yeast
Extract Directions
Mash crushed grains in a small stockpot in about 3 quarts of water for 45 minutes. Strain wort through a colander or strainer into your brew kettle, then rinse grains with about 1.5 quarts of water at 170˚F. Add 2 gallons of water and start to heat. Once the wort is hot (but not boiling), remove the kettle from the heat to stir in your dried malt extract. Bring wort to a boil and boil for 60 minutes. Add hops according to schedule above. Five minutes before the end of the boil, stir in the liquid malt extract. Transfer wort to a clean, sanitized fermenter and top up with clean water to make five gallons. Aerate, pitch yeast, and ferment at 68˚F. Dry hop with Amarillo hops in the secondary fermenter. Bottle or keg with a target carbonation of 2.6 vols CO2.
—–
David Ackley is a beer writer, brewer, and self-described “craft beer crusader.” He holds a General Certificate in Brewing from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling and is founder and editor of the Local Beer Blog.