Name: Marshall Street Bar and Grills Irish Coffee Cream Ale Recipe
Cook time: 24 h
Total time: 24 h
Yield: 53 servings
Cuisine: Irish
Ingredients: 6 lbs Pale Ale malt (2-row); 2 lbs Pilsner malt; 0.75 lbs Flaked oats; 0.5 lbs Crystal/Caramel 40L; 0.25 lbs Carafoam or Carapils; 0.5 lbs Lactose (for creaminess); 0.5 oz East Kent Goldings (pellets); 0.25 oz Fuggle or Bramling Cross (pellets) - aroma/finish; 2.5 oz Medium-roast coffee (whole bean, for cold steep); 1 pcs Vanilla beans; 1 tsp Irish moss or Whirlfloc (fining); 3.25 oz Priming sugar (dextrose) for bottling; 1 packs Ale yeast (Irish ale / British ale strain e.g., Wyeast 1084 or Safale S-04); 4.5 gal Water (target mash ~150°F/65°C)

Med Bag of Chips

Ham, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, and arugula.

Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, and mustard in a whole wheat wrap.

Fit Turkey Wrap

This smooth and sessionable ale brings the cozy charm of its namesake drink. Notes of rich coffee and vanilla blend with toasted grain for a silky cream finish. Light-bodied but full-flavored, it’s a perfectly balanced twist on a classic: comforting, festive, and easy to enjoy.

Heat 4.5 gallons of brewing water to approximately 165°F (74°C) to reach a mash temp of ~150°F (65°C) when grains are added.

Heat strike water

Add the crushed Pale Ale malt, Pilsner malt, flaked oats, Crystal 40L, and Carafoam to the mash tun. Mix thoroughly to avoid dough balls. Hold at 150°F (65°C) for 60 minutes to extract fermentable sugars and body for a smooth, light finish.

Mash

Raise the mash to 168°F (76°C) for 10 minutes to stop enzymatic activity and improve lautering. Then begin recirculation until runnings are reasonably clear.

Mash out

Sparge with enough 170°F (77°C) water to collect approximately 6.5–7.0 gallons of wort in the kettle (adjust for system boil-off).

Sparge

Bring the wort to a vigorous boil. Once boiling, add 0.5 oz East Kent Goldings hops and start a 60-minute timer.

Bring to a boil

With 15 minutes remaining in the boil, add 1 tsp Irish moss or Whirlfloc. At 5 minutes remaining add 0.25 oz Fuggle (or Bramling Cross) for aroma.

Add finings and small hop addition

With 10 minutes remaining in the boil, add the 0.5 lb lactose. Stir until fully dissolved. Note: lactose is unfermentable and will add body and sweetness resembling the 'cream' character.

Add lactose (optional)

At the end of the boil, chill the wort quickly to about 68°F (20°C) using an immersion chiller or plate chiller to minimize infection risk and preserve hop and malt character.

Chill wort

While wort is chilling (or the day before), coarsely grind 2.5 oz of medium-roast coffee beans and cold-steep them in 16–20 oz (about 500–600 ml) of cold, filtered water for 12–18 hours in the refrigerator. After steeping, filter or strain through coffee filter to remove grounds and reserve the clear coffee extract.

Prepare cold-steeped coffee

Split and scrape 1 vanilla bean; add both the scraped seeds and the bean pod to a sanitized jar with ~2 oz (60 ml) of vodka to extract quickly and sanitize for a few hours. Alternatively, sanitize the vanilla bean by briefly steaming and add directly to the fermenter later. Reserve the vanilla extract.

Sanitize and add vanilla

Transfer cooled wort to a sanitized fermenter, leaving break material behind. Top up with water if needed to reach 5.25 gallons. Aerate vigorously (shake or use an aeration stone) and pitch the yeast (one pack or rehydrated slurry) at 66–68°F (19–20°C).

Transfer and pitch yeast

Allow to ferment at 66–68°F (19–20°C) for 5–7 days until vigorous activity slows and specific gravity has dropped quickly. This strain will produce clean esters and help accentuate the malt and coffee notes without heavy fruity esters.

Ferment

After active fermentation subsides (typically day 5–7) and SG is near target (~1.010 for cream ale session strength; adjust based on original gravity), cold crash to 40–45°F (4–7°C) over 24–48 hours to clarify. Rack the beer to a sanitized secondary or leave in primary and gently add the cold-steep coffee extract and sanitized vanilla extract (or the scraped bean and pod). Stir or gently mix to incorporate without adding oxygen. Let condition for 3–7 days to allow integration of coffee and vanilla; taste periodically to avoid over-extraction of coffee bitterness or harsh vanilla.

Cold crash and add coffee & vanilla

Verify final gravity (expected FG ~1.008–1.012 depending on mash efficiency and lactose). Ensure fermentation is complete and beer is stable before packaging.

Check final gravity

Dissolve 3.25 oz (92 g) of priming dextrose in 12 oz (350 ml) boiling water, cool to room temperature and add to a sanitized bottling bucket.

Prepare priming sugar

Rack beer gently onto the priming solution to avoid aeration. Bottle into sanitized bottles and cap, or transfer to a keg and carbonate to ~2.2–2.4 volumes CO2. If kegging and force-carbonating, you can omit priming sugar.

Bottle or keg

Allow bottles to condition at 68–72°F (20–22°C) for 10–14 days for carbonation to develop, then chill before serving. If keg conditioned, carbonate until target CO2 reached and serve cold.

Condition

Serve cold in a pint or tulip glass at 40–45°F (4–7°C). The beer should present light-bodied creaminess, toasted grain malt, gentle coffee and vanilla aroma. Enjoy sessionably.

Serve

Pale Ale malt (2-row)

Pilsner malt

Flaked oats

Crystal/Caramel 40L

Carafoam or Carapils

Lactose (for creaminess)

East Kent Goldings (pellets)

Fuggle or Bramling Cross (pellets) - aroma/finish

Medium-roast coffee (whole bean, for cold steep)

Vanilla beans

Irish moss or Whirlfloc (fining)

Priming sugar (dextrose) for bottling

Ale yeast (Irish ale / British ale strain e.g., Wyeast 1084 or Safale S-04)

Water (target mash ~150°F/65°C)

Irish Coffee Cream Ale

Make Irish Coffee Cream Ale Recipe in just 24h . This smooth and sessionable ale brings the cozy charm of its namesake drink. Notes of rich coffee and vanilla blend with toasted grain for a silky cream finish. Light-bodied but full-flavored, it’s a perfectly balanced twist on a classic: comforting, festive, and easy to enjoy.

Irish Coffee Cream Ale

Descriptors

Tasting Notes

Food Pairings

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