Cream Ale by Eric Beer (All Grain Kit)

Brewed this for my wife, didn't last long after the neighborhood hit the kegerator. Well balanced. I like what the flaked corn does to the beer. There's already another of these kits sitting at my house waiting my next brew session and spring drinking.

This turned out to be much better than I would have ever expected. My O.G. was 1.062 & F.G was 1.009 so it finished out well with US 05. Putting my ABV. at 6.8% or so. This is one smooth & tasty beer. I'm normally an IPA guy but I will be doing this again for my second tap.

I brewed this ale at a mash temp of 150 (recirculation mash system), used Wyeast 1056, 14 days in primary (SS Brewbucket @ 67 degrees) then to my corny keg for 1 day at 65 degrees, crashed to 35 degrees for 1 day then 11 psi for 14 days.....perfect brew, this reminds me of a midwest old style brew (grain belt?) I really am not into clarity so that is not a big deal to me, I am into clean, great finish and taste. and good lace down the glass ware. Overall this is a 8.5 out of 10, I will brew it again and compare it to the first one. I like lighter brews not to hoppy, so this is a great brew that came in 5% ABV, perfect for a school night! Pairs well with seafoods. Just for note I would like a bit more body, so I may play with the mash temp, but not much.

This is a good beer to please a lot of different palates at a party. It's definitely got enough (but not too much) flavor for your friends who may be scared of homebrew beer.

I let it sit in the primary for almost 2 weeks at 65F (using Safale US-05 dry yeast), then racked it to keg condition for another week at the same temp. I carb'd it and it was ready to go at about the 3.5 week mark. I used a clarifier and a mesh hop strainer during brewing and had no problems with beer clarity.

I definitely suggest this if you're looking for a quick, light beer.

I've brewed this beer twice this summer to have something lighter on tap. This cream ale is a great light body and mild hopped beer, but still carries a nice ABV around 5%. Both times I brewed this beer I used safale US-05 dry yeast, but the fermentation temps were quite different.

The first time I was able to ferment around 68F. Fermentation was slow and steady, finishing after a week, and racked to a secondary for another week. Very clean tasting beer was wonderful clarity. You would think I had used a filtration system.

The second time fermentation was much warmer at 74F. Very fast primary fermentation and racked to a secondary after 6 days. After only 4 days in the secondary (gravity had been stable at 1.010) I went ahead and kegged. I was drinking my first pint after only 14 days. Certainly my fastest brew-to-drink time! The beer has slightly more sweetness, a light hint of fruity esters, and a slight haze, but overall it's still great. Would it be better fermented at a colder temp for a longer time? I think so, but keeping fermentation cool during the summer in the South is a struggle.

If you use a mesh strainer to catch lose hops before the wort goes into the primary fermenter, and rack to a secondary fermenter, you'll end up with a really clear, golden beer that will be enjoyed by all.