Crank Arm Road Hazard Recipe

Sanitize & prepare

If using city water, treat with one Campden tablet per 20 L (optional). Heat 3.5 gallons (13 L) of strike water to about 166°F (74°C) to target a mash temperature of 152°F (67°C) once grains are added. Add gypsum to the strike water if using and stir to dissolve.

Add the crushed grains (Pale Ale malt, Munich, Crystal 40L, Carapils) and flaked oats to the mash tun. Dough in gently and stir to eliminate dry pockets. Target mash temperature: 152°F (67°C). Hold for 60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to maintain even temperature.

After 60 minutes, perform a mash out by raising the temperature to 168°F (76°C) and hold for 10 minutes, or stop enzymatic activity by removing grain bed and proceeding to lautering.

Vorlauf (recirculate) until the runoff is clear. Sparge with enough 168°F (76°C) water to collect ~6.0 gallons (22.7 L) of wort in the boil kettle. Typical sparge volume will be ~3.0 gallons (11 L) depending on system losses.

Bring collected wort to a vigorous boil. Once boiling begins, start a 60-minute timer.

60 minutes

Add Magnum hops (0.5 oz) for bittering at the start of the 60-minute boil.

15 minutes remaining

Add 1 tsp Whirlfloc or Irish moss (optional) to help clarity.

10 minutes remaining

Add Cascade (1.0 oz) and Centennial (1.0 oz) hops for flavor and aroma. Keep the boil rolling for the remaining time.

At flameout, turn off the heat and cover the kettle to let the hops steep for 10 minutes (hop stand). This will extract additional aroma without adding more bitterness.

Cool the wort quickly to yeast-pitching temperature (~68°F / 20°C) using an immersion chiller, counterflow chiller, or an ice bath. Aim to cool to target within 20–30 minutes to reduce infection risk and produce a clearer beer.

Transfer cooled wort to a sanitized fermenter, aiming for a total volume of approximately 5.25 gallons (20 L). Aerate vigorously by shaking, splashing, or using an aeration stone with sterile air/oxygen for 60–90 seconds.

Pitch the yeast (one packet of dry yeast or a properly sized starter for liquid yeast) into the fermenter at ~68°F (20°C).

Ferment at 66–68°F (19–20°C) for primary fermentation. Expect active fermentation to last 4–7 days depending on yeast activity and temperature.

After primary activity slows (specific gravity stable for 2 days), crash cool to 50–55°F (10–13°C) for 24–48 hours if possible to help clarify (optional).

One to three days after primary fermentation has slowed (typically on day 4–6), add Cascade dry hops (1.0 oz) directly to the fermenter. Keep dry hops in contact for 3–5 days for fresh-hop aroma. Avoid leaving longer than 7 days to prevent grassy notes.

Prepare priming sugar by dissolving 3.0 oz (85 g) corn sugar in 0.5 cup (120 ml) of boiling water, cool and add to a sanitized bottling bucket.

Rack beer from fermenter to bottling bucket, mixing gently with priming solution to distribute evenly. Bottle into sanitized bottles and cap, or keg and carbonate to ~2.3 volumes CO2 (approx. 11–12 psi at 68°F).

Age bottles at room temperature (68–72°F / 20–22°C) for 10–14 days to carbonate, then condition cold for 3–7 days before drinking. Kegged beer can be force carbonated or conditioned for 5–7 days before serving.