All-grain · 20 L (5.3 gal)
Beginner American Pale Ale Recipe
BJCP 18B · American Pale Ale
Clean, hoppy and easy to nail. It forgives small mash mistakes and is a good way to learn to control fermentation.
American Pale Ale recipe by the numbers
- Batch size
- 20 L (5.3 gal)
- Original gravity
- 1.052
- Final gravity
- 1.012
- ABV
- 5.3%
- Bitterness
- 38 IBU
- Color
- 8 SRM (15 EBC)
- Mash
- 66 °C (151 °F) for 60 minutes
- Boil
- 60 minutes
- Fermentation
- 19 °C (66 °F) for 14 days
- Bottling
- 6 g of sugar per liter (0.8 oz/gal)
About 160 kcal per 330 ml (11 oz) bottle, worked out from its original and final gravity.
American Pale Ale recipe: ingredients and steps
Batch size
Recipe for 20 liters (5.3 US gallons) into the fermenter.
Malts
| Malt | Amount | % |
|---|---|---|
| Pale ale malt6 EBC (3 °L) | 4.20 kg (9.26 lb) | 88.4% |
| Munich malt15 EBC (6 °L) | 0.30 kg (0.66 lb) | 6.3% |
| Crystal (caramel) malt120 EBC (46 °L) | 0.25 kg (0.55 lb) | 5.3% |
Hops
| Hop | Amount | When |
|---|---|---|
| Magnum13% alpha acids | 22 g (0.78 oz) | 60 minBittering |
| Cascade5.5% alpha acids | 30 g (1.06 oz) | 10 minFlavor |
| Cascade5.5% alpha acids | 30 g (1.06 oz) | FlameoutAroma |
| Cascade5.5% alpha acids | 40 g (1.41 oz) | Dry hop, 3 daysAroma (dry hop) |
You will also need
Yeast: Dry American ale yeast, such as US-05: one 11.5 g (0.4 oz) packet.
Water: About 29 L (7.7 gal): 14 L (3.7 gal) for the mash and 15 L (4.0 gal) for the sparge.
Priming sugar: 6 g of table sugar per liter of beer bottled (0.8 oz/gal), about 110 g (3.9 oz) for 19 L (5.0 gal), or 7 g per liter (0.9 oz/gal) of dextrose.
Hops: pellets, kept in the freezer until brew day.
Step by step
- Heat 14 L (3.7 gal) of water to 72 °C (162 °F), add the crushed malt and stir until there are no dough balls. Once it mixes with the grain, it drops to about 66 °C (151 °F): hold that temperature for 60 minutes, covered.
- Lift out the grain and sparge it with 15 L (4.0 gal) of water at 76 °C (169 °F). You should collect about 24 L (6.3 gal) of wort with a gravity of 1.045–1.046.
- Bring to a boil and boil for 60 minutes, uncovered. Add the 22 g (0.8 oz) of Magnum when the boil starts, and 30 g (1.1 oz) of Cascade with 10 minutes left.
- Turn off the heat, add another 30 g (1.1 oz) of Cascade and let it stand for 10–15 minutes.
- Chill as fast as you can to 19 °C (66 °F), transfer about 20 L (5.3 gal) to the sanitized fermenter and take a gravity reading: it should be around 1.052.
- Pitch the yeast and ferment at 19 °C (66 °F). After 10 days, with the gravity barely moving, add 40 g (1.4 oz) of Cascade and leave it in for 3 days.
- When the gravity holds at 1.012 for three days in a row, bottle with the sugar dissolved in a little boiled water and let it carbonate for two weeks at room temperature.
Alpha acids change from one harvest to the next. If your Magnum isn't 13%, use 22 × 13 ÷ your percentage to get the grams and keep the 38 IBU.
Water volumes depend on your setup: if your kettle boils off more or less than 3 L (0.8 gal) per hour, adjust the sparge water.
The style: American Pale Ale (BJCP 18B), with its history, its numbers and other ways to brew it.
Different setup? Recalculate with the water calculator, the IBU calculator and the priming sugar calculator.
Rating recipes and keeping a brew log need an account, which is only available in Spanish for now. English accounts are coming soon.
Frequently asked questions
How strong will this American Pale Ale be?
About 5.3% ABV: it starts at 1.052 and finishes at 1.012, and (OG − FG) × 131.25 gives that percentage.
How long until it is ready?
One brew day, fermentation at 19 °C (66 °F) for 14 days and about two weeks in the bottle: give it a little over a month.
Can I use a different bittering hop?
Yes. What matters is keeping the bitterness: if you use another hop instead of Magnum at 13% alpha acids, work out the grams from its alpha acids (or with the IBU calculator) to stay at about 38 IBUs.
What if my system does not get 72% efficiency?
Your gravity will come out different. Scale the base malt up or down (or add a little dry malt extract to the boil if you fall short) and recalculate the water with the calculator.
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Reference style: American Pale Ale in the BJCP guidelines, 2021 edition. Original recipe by Hacer Cerveza Casera, designed for a homebrew setup.