Kolsch

Classification: kolsch, German ale, extract

Source: Tom Culliton (culliton@clark.net), r.c.b., 11/8/95

If you want a quick recipe, you need a quick yeast. The fastest one that I know is the Wyeast 1007 "German Ale", using it you can have a batch ready in under 3 weeks. Here is a nice extract based Kolsch recipe using it. Easy, quick, plenty of character for the real beer drinkers, but still something almost anyone can enjoy.

Ingredients:

4 lb can Alexanders Pale Malt Extract
1.4 lb can Alexanders Pale Malt Extract "Kicker"
1 lb rice syrup solids
1 oz Liberty hop pellets (5.2%), boiling, 45-60 minutes
1/3 oz Saaz hop pellets (54.%), flavor, 15 minutes
2/3 oz Saaz hop pellets (5.4%), finishing, 5 minutes
1 tsp Irish moss, 20 minutes (optional)
Wyeast 1007 "German Ale" yeast - started 24 hours ahead

Procedure:

Bring 5 gallons of water to a boil, remove heat, dissolve malt and rice syrup solids, and bring back to a boil. Add boiling hops and boil for 30-45 minutes. Add Irish moss. Add flavor hops and boil for 10 more minutes, add finish hops and boil for 5 more minutes. Remove heat and cool wort as rapidly as possible. Transfer to carboy, pitch yeast and mix/aerate vigorously. Ferment (primary only) for ~10 days at 70-75F.

Prime with 3/4 cup (5 oz) corn sugar dissolved in 2 cups (16 oz) of boiling water, at bottling time. Should bottle condition in 7 to 10 days.

Notes: Using a shorter boil will help keep the color light, but will decrease hops character and protien precipitation. BE WARNED! Wyeast 1007 ferments vigorously, even volcanically. Make sure that you have enough head space in your carboy, or use a large diameter blow off tube.

Specifics:

OG - 1.041
FG - 1.010