Bergman’s Notorious Blonde Ale

5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains; OG = 1.052; FG = 1.012; IBU = 25; SRM = 7; ABV = 5.2%

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. 11 oz. (0.76 kg) Briess Light dried malt extract
• 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) Briess Light liquid malt extract (late addition)
• 0.75 lbs. (0.34 kg) corn sugar (15 mins)
• 1.0 lb. (0.45 kg) Pilsner malt
• 0.75 lb. (0.34 kg) Vienna malt
• 0.25 lb. (113 g) crystal malt (20 °L)
• 5.5 AAU Centennial hops (60 mins) (0.45 oz./13 g of 12% alpha acids)
• 2.5 AAU Willamette hops (15 mins) (0.5 oz./14 g of 5% alpha acids)
• 0.66 oz. (19 g) Mt. Hood hops (0 mins)
• 1 tsp. Irish moss
• Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or US-56 dried yeast (1.5 qt./~1.5 L yeast starter)
• 1.0 cup corn sugar (for priming)

Step by Step:

Place crushed grains in a nylon steeping bag. In a large kitchen pot, heat 3.0 qts. (2.8 L) of water to 163 °F (73 °C). Submerge grain bag in water and let steep at 152 °F (67 °C) for 45 minutes. (If temperature drops below 148 °F (64 °C), heat to 152 °F (67 °C) again.) While grains are steeping, heat 1.5 qts. (~1.5 L) of water to 170 °F (77 °C) in a sauce pan. Also, begin heating 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water to a boil in your brewpot.

When steeping is done, place a colander over your brewpot and lift the grain bag into it. Pour the "grain tea" through the bag (which will strain out most of the grain bits), then rinse the bag with the 1.5 qts. (~1.5 L) of 170 °F (77 °C) water.

Heat the (roughly) 3 gallons (11 L) of wort in your brewpot to a boil, then stir in dried malt extract. (It will foam a bit, so don’t pour all the extract in at once.)

Bring the wort back to a boil, add the first charge hops and boil for 60 minutes. Add liquid malt extract, Irish moss and flavor hops with 15 minutes left in boil. Add aroma hops at the end of the boil.

After the boil, put a lid on your brewpot and cool the wort (either in a cold-water bath in your sink or with a wort chiller). Cool until the side of the brewpot no longer feels warm. Transfer wort to your fermenter and top up to 5 gallons (19 L) with cool water. Aerate the wort and pitch your yeast.

Ferment at 68 °F (20 °F). When fermentation slows to halt, rack to secondary. Bottle with corn sugar (or keg) one week later.