Schools Out for Summer!

Every year I brew a few beers for my work parties (Winter and End of School Year). In the past I have tried to incorporate an item from the student's school lunches. I call this series, The Best Ale in the Universe. Recently the district switched food providers and very little has looked appetizing in a beer, so I decided to forgo the food item and keep it simple. I wanted beers that would appeal to the widest range of drinkers, so I went with a Belgian Pale and a Blonde.

Belgian Pales are easy drinkers and in my opinion a little boring. I wanted to put a slight twist on the beer to spice things up a little. I wanted a tartness that a slight bacterial or brett infection would give, but I didn't have the time, so went with a little acid malt. This is my first time using the malt, so I will see how it comes along. In addition to the acidulated malt, I added some fresh Meyer lemon zest and pink peppercorns at flameout. Finally, I used some late addition Amarillo hops to give the beer a nice citrusy and tropical fruit component.

The Blonde is pretty straight forward, simple malt bill, a little added sugar, and northern brewer hops. I hope it will come out as a balance between malt and hops. I have never brewed a blonde before so I ma interested to see how this beer comes out.

Spring Forward Belgian Pale Ale: Pilsner Malt, Wheat Malt, Honey Malt, and Acidulated Malt. Norther Brewer Hops at 60, Amarillo at 15, and flameout. Meyer Lemon Zest and Pink Peppercorns. White Labs Belgian Style Pale Blend.

Blonde: 2-Row, Wheat Malt, Sucrose. Northern Brewer at 60 and 15. US-05.