Line 67: | Line 67: | ||
|color=2-5 (4-10 EBC) | |color=2-5 (4-10 EBC) | ||
}} | }} | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==External Links== | ||
+ | *[http://www.allaboutbeer.com/homebrew/cream_ales.html The Girl Next Door: Cream Ales] - All About Beer Magazine |
Revision as of 03:19, 18 September 2008
Cream Ale is an indigenous American beer style. Usually brewed with lager yeast at warmer ale temperatures, it is a light-colored, mild-flavored beer, with a base similar to an American pale lager and often a distinctive corn flavor from the use of corn adjuncts. In its heyday, cream ale was also known as Common Beer or Present Use Ale.
In the U.K., the term "Cream Ale" is sometimes used to describe nitrogen-dispensed beers, now more commonly called Smooth Ale.
Contents
History of Cream Ale
Once common in the United States, especially in the upper Midwest, Cream Ale was one of the few indigenous American beer styles to have survived Prohibition in the United States, due in part to its popularity in Canada, where Prohibition was less widespread and shorter.
Types of Cream Ale
In addition to standard cream ales, in the area around Louisville a distinct style of dark, sometimes slightly sour beer arose which was sometimes called Common Beer or Dark Cream Common; this style is now most frequently called Kentucky Common.
Brewing Cream Ale
The keys to cream ale brewing are yeast strain and temperature control. Historically, lager yeast was generally used, but because refrigeration was not generally available, fermentation temperatures were high, as was the case with Steam Beer. Some modern brewers use both ale and lager strains, usually pitched together at the beginning of the fermentation. However, there is no evidence that this was a method known before Prohibition.
To avoid excessive ester production from the lager yeast, temperature control is essential. A fermentation temperature of approximately 68 degrees F is often a good balance, especially when both ale and lager yeasts are used, but you will need to experiment based on your individual yeast and wort characteristics.
The grist for a cream ale usually includes a mixture of six-row American pale barley malt and corn adjuncts, which can give a distinctive DMS-like corn flavor and aroma that many consider characteristic of this style.
Competition Styles
Both the GABF and the BJCP recognize this style.
BJCP Style Guidelines
Cream Ale
| |||||||||
|
GABF Style Listings
American-Style Cream Ale or Lager
| ||||||
A mild, pale, light-bodied ale, made using a warm fermentation (top or bottom) and cold lagering. Hop bitterness and flavor range from very low to low. Hop aroma is often absent. Sometimes referred to as cream ales, these beers are crisp and refreshing. Pale malt character predominates. Caramelized malt character should be absent. A fruity or estery aroma may be perceived. Diacetyl and chill haze should not be perceived. Sulfur character and/or sweet corn-like dimethylsulfide (DMS) should be extremely low or absent from this style of beer. |
|
External Links
- The Girl Next Door: Cream Ales - All About Beer Magazine