It was early 2004 when the Amarillo Hop variety (from Washington State, USA) first appeared in Australian brewing stores. This exciting new hop caused an immediate frenzy amongst “hophead” brewers and quickly became the “go to hop” (in the USA) for big American ales, IPAs, Double IPAs, etc. With such a strong following, it wasn’t long before Amarillo popped up under Australian commercial beer labels, often referred to as “Golden Ale”. This lighter version of the English Pale Ale style, with Amarillo as its “niche hop”, quickly became popular. Now, Australian Golden Ales (although not always brewed with Amarillo hop) carry a “quasi” beer style status and are known for being aromatic and flavorsome with a clean finish and high drinkability. This recipe looks to capture the essence of Golden Ale; displaying a tightly packed white head with aromas of orange, melon and stone-fruit, subtle sweet malt/hop flavors followed by a clean bitter finish.
FLAVOR PROFILE:
Color: Gold
Bitterness: Medium
Body: Medium
Approx. Alcohol Volume: 4.6%
Carbonation Method: Natural
Ingredients
1.7kg Australian Pale Ale
1 kg (2 lbs) Light Dry Malt
200g (7 oz) Crystal Malt
5og (2 oz) Amarillo
11g BRY-97 yeast
1 x 250g Coopers Carbonation Drop
Made to 23 liters (6 gallons).
STEP 1: Mix
Place the Crystal Malt Grain in a plastic zip-lock sandwich bag and crack it using a rolling pin. In a good sized pot (around 8 liters/ 2 gallons), mix with 2 liters (1/2 gallon) of hot water (not boiling) and let steep for about 1hr. Remove the grain; add 2 liters (1/2 gallon) of water and 500g (1 lb) of Light Dry Malt then bring to the boil. Add 25g ( 1 oz) of Amarillo Hops and boil for 10 min then remove from the heat. Set the pot in a cold/ice water bath to cool then strain into a fermenting vessel. Add the Australian Pale Ale and the remaining 500g (1 lb) Light Dry Malt, stir to dissolve then top up with cool water to the 20 liter (5 gallon) mark and stir thoroughly. Check the brew temperature and top up to the 23 liter (6 gallon) mark with warm or cold water (refrigerated if necessary) to get as close as possible to 18°C (64°F). Sprinkle the dry yeast or stir in liquid yeast, fit the lid and try to ferment at 18°C (64°F).
STEP 2: Brew
On day 4 or after the foam has subsided, add the remaining 25g (1 oz) of Amarillo hops (we recommend wrapping the hops in a mesh cleaning cloth, pulled straight from the wrapper). Fermentation has finished once the specific gravity is stable over 2 days. It should finish in the range of 1006 – 1010.
STEP 3: Bottle
Bottle the brew with 2 carbonation drops per 750ml bottle.
STEP 4: Enjoy!
Allow to condition for at least 2 weeks in the bottle. To take advantage of the fresh hop characters, drink this brew early. Expect the alcohol content to be around 4.6% ABV.
Download the Golden Ale Recipe here