Honey Rye Beer, Zomething Ryfferent Options

[dmtaylor]

I'm looking to make a beer that showcases rye malt so I can get a really good idea of what it contributes to flavor. Also I was recently reading about local history, and it seems the German settlers grew quite a bit of rye around here back in the old days. Also, there was a decent honey business here. So then I was thinking... what might the Germans have been brewing way back when, with the use of a high proportion of rye, and perhaps a bit of honey? I'm not saying that they truly used these ingredients for brewing 150 years ago... but I'm thinking that they very well might have since there was no doubt plenty of it laying around. So...... I came up with an idea for a German-American rye beer recipe, which I plan to make a little later this year. What do you all think? Will this taste any good? Will it be nasty? Have you tried anything similar? My thought was to use about 50% rye malt, and add a few specialty malts and spicy hops, and a clean yeast, which would all accentuate but not overpower the character of the rye. Do you think this recipe will accomplish that goal? Most important of all, will it taste any good? Without further adieu, here it is:

Honey Rye Beer
3 gallons

OG=1.051
ABV=5%
IBU=24
SRM=8

2.75 lb Rye Malt
1.5 lb American 6-row
0.625 lb Amber Malt (home toasted from American 6-row)
0.625 lb American Munich
0.3 lb Gambrinus Honey Malt
0.3 lb Wildflower Honey
1 lb Rice Hulls (avoid a stuck mash)
0.75 oz Tettnanger (4.5% alpha, 60 minutes)
0.25 oz Tettnanger (4.5% alpha, 15 minutes)
WLP029 Kolsch Yeast

Mash at 151 F. Add the honey after the boil, at flameout. Might throw in some homegrown Hallertauer hops in place of some of the Tetts. Ferment at 65 F. Prime as normal.

Thoughts? I'm all ears. Thanks in advance.

--
Dave

[Coiz]

Two Rivers, WI? Wow, I used to travel back there from Denver every summer as a kid to visit my grandparents. My dad grew up there.

I think going with 3 gallons on something like this is a good idea. My first impression is that 50% rye will be pretty overpowering but I guess that's what your looking for, a distinct rye flavor. I've never used honey malt but I think .3# of honey will not be enough to make a difference. I just brewed a honey porter where I added 3# to the wort when it was cooled to around 150 degrees then continued cooling the rest of the way. No one could even taste the honey after it was fermented. I had to add .4# dissolved in warm water to the keg to get a lightly sweet flavor. I guess the type of honey makes a big difference too, I used grade A clover honey.

If the honey malt adds a lot of honey character I would think that you should hit your described target with 50% rye and the light honey addition. I'll be curious to hear how this comes out. Interesting idea.

[calvey]

I just did a 'honey blonde' with honey malt and noticed no difference or honey flavors. In addition, I plugged the honey malt into my recipe at 25 L and just put a touch in... well, the beer turned into what I am calling a Dirty Blonde. I swear it's more than 25L. Maybe it's just the batch I have, I don't know. Be careful with the color.

[dmtaylor]

Thanks for the input, guys. I've made honey blonde ales on a couple of occasions and it seems to me that about 4-5% honey malt in addition to the real honey adds just a hint of honey flavor but is not overpowering. Also I haven't noticed any darkening problems at that percentage. Sure, it adds a touch of color but it's not a huge effect.

I think I'll keep the recipe as-is for now. I won't be brewing it until probably the September-ish timeframe so there is still time to make tweaks if we think of anything else before then.

--
Dave