Vixen

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

A celebration of local ingredients. We brewed this amber ale with over 24 lbs per barrel of maple syrup from Stonyhill Sugarhouse in Fletcher, VT.

Crush grains to a coarse grist. Heat 6 gallons of water to strike temperature of 166°F to achieve a mash temp of 152°F when grain is added (adjust volumes for system loss).

Crush & Heat

Add crushed grains to the strike water and mix thoroughly to avoid dough balls. Hold at 152°F for 60 minutes for balanced body and fermentability.

Mash Rest

Raise mash to 168°F for 10 minutes (mash out) to stop enzymatic activity and improve lautering. Vorlauf until runoff is clear.

Mash Out

Adjust water with gypsum and calcium chloride before mashing: dissolve the salts in a small amount of water and add to the mash tun to reach a balanced profile favoring a medium sulfate/chloride ratio (accentuate malt and hop balance).

Sparge with ~3 gallons of 170°F water to collect approximately 6.5–7.0 gallons of wort pre-boil (adjust for your system).

Bring wort to a vigorous boil and boil for 60 minutes total. At 60 minutes remaining (start of boil) add 1 oz Northern Brewer hops for bittering. At 15 minutes remaining add 1 oz Willamette hops for flavor and aroma. Add any kettle finings at 15 minutes if desired.

Boil Schedule

At flameout, whirlpool for 10–15 minutes and chill wort quickly to ~68°F using an immersion or plate chiller to minimize oxidation and preserve hop aroma.

Whirlpool/Chill

Maple syrup can be added in stages. For this recipe (aiming to recreate ~24 lbs per 31 lb barrel scaled proportionally to a 5 gallon batch) add maple in the last 10 minutes of the boil to sanitize and integrate flavor while preserving aroma. Use 24 lbs maple syrup total for a single barrel scale; for a 5 gallon homebrew scale, reduce proportionally (example: ~2.4 lbs for a 5-gal if the original was 24 lbs/31 gal). If using full-size quantities, ensure boil is controlled to avoid scorching and excessive caramelization. Stir gently to incorporate.

Adding Maple Syrup

Optionally, dissolve a measured portion of maple syrup (or pasteurized maple concentrate) and add after primary fermentation to preserve maple aroma. If adding after fermentation, pasteurize the syrup (heat to 160°F for several minutes) or treat with a small Campden dose to avoid contamination and wild fermentation. Account for fermentability — additional fermentable sugars will lower final gravity and may increase attenuation.

Alternative Post-Fermentation Addition

If using maple sugar, add during the last 5 minutes of the boil so it dissolves completely and contributes fermentable sugars and deeper maple character.

Maple Sugar

Cool wort to ~65–68°F (for clean American ale profile). Aerate the wort thoroughly (oxygenate or shake) and pitch the rehydrated or starter-grown ale yeast. Add yeast nutrient at this time.

Pitching

Ferment at 66–68°F for 5–7 days until vigorous fermentation slows. Monitor gravity. The addition of maple increases fermentability; expect a lower FG than a plain amber if most maple was boiled in.

Primary Fermentation

Rack to secondary after primary activity slows (optional) and condition at 60–65°F for 1–2 weeks to allow flavors to mature and any harsh maple notes to mellow. If dry-hopping with 0.5 oz Willamette, add at this stage for 3–5 days then remove.

Secondary / Conditioning

If bottling, calculate priming sugar for desired carbonation (roughly 3.5 oz corn sugar for 5 gallons targeting ~2.4–2.6 volumes CO2). Boil priming sugar in 1 pint water, cool, add to bottling bucket, rack beer gently on top to mix without introducing oxygen and bottle. If kegging, carbonate to target volumes and force carbonate or use keg priming method.

Bottling / Kegging

Age bottles/keg for 2–4 weeks to allow carbonation and integration of maple character. Longer aging (4–8 weeks) often improves complexity and mellows maple notes.

Aging

Pale 2-Row Malt

Vienna Malt

Crystal / Caramel 60L

Munich Malt

Roasted Barley (for color, small amount)

Brewing water (adjusted for target profile)

Gypsum (CaSO4) - sparingly, for hop accentuation

Calcium chloride (CaCl2) - to balance sulfate

Northern Brewer hops (bittering)

Willamette hops (aroma/flavor)

Dry hop Willamette (optional)

Pure maple syrup (Stonyhill Sugarhouse or equivalent)

Maple sugar (optional, for fermentability and deeper aroma)

American ale yeast (e.g., Wyeast 1056 / US-05)

Yeast nutrient

Corn sugar (for bottle priming) or priming calculator equivalent

Campden tablet (optional, for stabilizing maple if used post-fermentation)

Fancy Pants Maple Ale

GRAND BANKS

7oz bistro filet, house – made spicy Southwest steak sauce, crispy fried onions, brew fries, and small mixed green salad

PUB STEAK

Grilled Cabot Cheddar

Herb marinated grilled chicken thighs, seasonal veggie, small mixed green salad, and potato salad

GRILLED CHICKEN THIGHS

Grilled Chicken Victoria

Shaved steak, Cabot cheddar, peppers, caramelized onions

Philly Cheese Steak

Make Fancy Pants Maple Ale Recipe in just 12h . A celebration of local ingredients. We brewed this amber ale with over 24 lbs per barrel of maple syrup from Stonyhill Sugarhouse in Fletcher, VT.

Fancy Pants Maple Ale Recipe

Descriptors

Tasting Notes

Food Pairings

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