Ghost Train: A hazy citra/centennial/cascade pale ale

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foxbat

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A hazy, balanced and smooth American Pale Ale. Fruit and Citrus notes from the yeast and intense American hops are balanced against a background of extra-pale maris otter malt. Feels soft, velvety and full in the mouth. Highly drinkable and difficult to put down once started. If you sub the yeast then I recommend another English fruity style but not one so highly flocculent it clears up the haze that I believe is part of the key to the flavour and feel.

Here's the recipe. Mind your mash pH with such a pale grist. I added 4ml 60% lactic to the mash water and got a 5.6pH which is a tad high but within the good range.

Code:
Recipe: Ghost Train
Style: American Pale Ale

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 25.92 l
Post Boil Volume: 22.92 l
Batch Size (fermenter): 20.00 l   
Estimated OG: 1.046
Estimated FG: 1.011
Estimated ABV: 4.5%
Estimated Color: 5.3 EBC
Estimated IBU: 31.9 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 77.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes
Sulfate/Chloride: 65/130 (yes, really)

Ingredients:
------------
Amt        Name                                     Type         %/IBU         
30.09 l  Morrisons Yorkshire Vale                 Water            -             
6.82 g   Calcium Chloride (Mash 60.0 mins)        Water Agent      -             
2.73 g   Epsom Salt (MgSO4) (Mash 60.0 mins)      Water Agent      -             
1.35 g   Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 mins Water Agent      -             
0.46 g   Salt (Mash 60.0 mins)                    Water Agent      -             

3.38 kg  Maris Otter Extra Pale (2.5 EBC)         Grain         81.0 %        
0.33 kg  Wheat Malt (5.0 EBC)                     Grain          8.0 %         
0.33 kg  Oats, Flaked (2.0 EBC)                   Grain          8.0 %         
0.13 kg  Pale Caramalt (12.0 EBC)                 Grain          3.0 %         

10.00 g  Centennial [9.80 %] - Boil 60.0 min      Hop           11.3 IBUs     
15.00 g  Centennial [9.80 %] - Boil 15.0 min      Hop            8.4 IBUs      
15.00 g  Citra [12.00 %] - Boil 15.0 min          Hop           10.3 IBUs     
25.00 g  Cascade [8.60 %] - Boil 1.0 min          Hop            1.1 IBUs      
15.00 g  Citra [12.00 %] - Boil 1.0 min           Hop            0.9 IBUs      

1.0 pkg  Burton Ale (White Labs #WLP023)          Yeast

25.00 g  Cascade [8.60 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days      Hop            0.0 IBUs      
20.00 g  Citra [12.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days       Hop            0.0 IBUs      

Mash Schedule: Single Infusion BIAB, Medium Body, Batch Sparge

Total Grain Weight: 4.17 kg
----------------------------
Name       Description                    Step Temp     Step Time                     
Mash In    Add 25.09 l of water at 68.8   66.0 C        60 min                        

Sparge: Soak-the-bag sparge for 15 minutes (5.00l) of 75C water

My brew day went without a hitch with all numbers being hit as expected. My WLP023 was second generation, saved back from an overbuilt starter 3 months back. Fermentation took off like a rocket and was down to a lower than predicted 1.007 in 4 days giving me an ABV of 5.1% before bottling.

I tried a bottle 1 week into carbonation and while it was good, the flavours were still a bit muddled together. Tried another bottle a week later and it's a different beer. Fruity, citrus and well balanced. It feels full and silky in the mouth and is hard to stop drinking once you start. Best served at cellar temperature - I feel that a full fridge chill mutes the fruitiness. I'll leave you with a picture of a glass I started supping before remembering to take a photo!

pint.jpg
 

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