Earth Rider Pale Ale V.1 Recipe

1. Heat Strike Water

Heat 4.0 gallons of brewing water to 166°F (approx) to achieve a mash temperature of 152°F when grains are added. Target mash temp: 152°F (67°C).

2. Mash In

Add the crushed Pale Malt, Vienna Malt, Caramel 20L and Carahell to the mash tun. Pour the strike water in and stir thoroughly to eliminate dough balls. Hold mash at 152°F (67°C) for 60 minutes.

3. Mash Out

Raise temperature to 168°F (76°C) for 10 minutes to stop enzymatic activity (mash out).

4. Vorlauf until wort runs clear, then sparge with ~3.0 gallons of 170°F (77°C) water to collect approximately 6.5–7.0 gallons of wort in the boil kettle.

5. Boil

Bring wort to a vigorous boil and boil for 60 minutes total.

6. 60 min - Bittering

At the start of the boil (60 minutes remaining), add 1.0 oz Centennial (pellet) and 1.0 oz Cascade (pellet) for bittering. Note: this split adds a clean, balanced American bitterness with citrus backbone.

7. 15 min - Flavor/Aroma & Additives

With 15 minutes left in the boil add 1 tsp Irish Moss or Whirlfloc and 1 tsp yeast nutrient (if using). Also add 0.5 oz Citra and 0.5 oz Amarillo at 15 minutes for flavor and aroma retention.

8. 5 min - Hop Flavor

At 5 minutes left, add 0.5 oz Citra and 0.5 oz Amarillo for late-hop flavor and top-note aroma.

9. End of Boil - Whirlpool

When the 60-minute boil ends, turn off heat and cool for 5 minutes, then add the remaining 1.0 oz Citra (or the reserved hop charge) directly to the kettle and stir or whirlpool for 10–15 minutes at ~170–180°F to extract additional aroma without adding bitterness. Let trub settle for a few minutes before chilling.

10. Chill wort quickly to 66–68°F (19–20°C) using an immersion chiller or plate chiller. Transfer chilled wort to a sanitized fermenter, leaving most trub behind. Top up with additional water if necessary to reach 5.25 gallons of wort in the fermenter (typical batch size for this grist/efficiency).

11. Pitch Yeast

Aerate or oxygenate the wort (vigorous shake or pure O2 60–90s). Rehydrate or prepare your yeast according to manufacturer instructions and pitch at 66–68°F (19–20°C).

12. Primary Fermentation

Ferment at 66–68°F (19–20°C) for 5–7 days or until vigorous activity slows. Expect noticeable krausen within 24–48 hours.

13. Diacetyl Rest

After primary attenuation slows (typically day 5), raise temperature to 68–70°F (20–21°C) for 24–48 hours to encourage diacetyl cleanup.

14. Dry Hop

Rack beer to a secondary vessel or leave in primary and add dry hop blend (Citra 0.5 oz + Amarillo 0.5 oz) after active fermentation has mostly finished (around day 4–7). Dry hop for 3–5 days at fermentation temperature to impart bright hop aroma.

15. Cold Crash & Clarify

After dry hopping, cold crash to near 34–38°F (1–3°C) for 24–48 hours to drop hop particles and improve clarity. Rack gently to bottling bucket, leaving sediment behind.

16. Prime and Bottle

Dissolve 4 oz (by weight) priming sugar in 8 oz boiling water, cool, and add to sanitized bottling bucket. Transfer beer to bottling bucket and gently mix to distribute priming sugar. Bottle and cap. Target carbonation: moderate (approx 2.4–2.6 vols CO2).

17. Bottle Conditioning

Condition bottles at 68°F (20°C) for 10–14 days, then cold condition for a few days before tasting. Allow 2–3 weeks total for flavors to mature.

18. Estimated OG: 1.052–1.055 (depends on mash efficiency). Estimated FG: 1.010–1.012. ABV: ~5.0–5.5%. Adjust hop varieties and timing to dial bitterness vs aroma. Water profile: slightly sulfate-forward (e.g., Ca: 50 ppm, SO4: 150 ppm, Cl: 50 ppm) will accentuate hop crispness.