Michigan Summer Ale: Coriander Wheat Ale

Summer time in Michigan is all about being outside. Our winters keep us cooped up, and as soon as the weather turns for the better, Michiganders flood to the outdoors. For me, canoeing down the Huron River is my all time favorite weekend activity. So, I wanted to brew a beer that would be a great sidekick on the water. My goal is to create session strength, easy drinking, and Michigan inspired beer. 

Luckily for me I live near Adventures In Homebrewing which sells grain from Michigan Malt, a local organic "micro malting operation." 


American wheat beer comes to mind, when thinking about a light summer ales. I split the base malt 50% Michigan Malt 2-row, 50% Michigan Malt Wheat Malt, and added some Caravienne for some color and toasted nut flavors. (Just a note, I do consistently get a 3-5% drop in efficiency when using Michigan Malt).  I chose Saaz hops because of it's spicy, herbal characteristics that will accompany the citrus from coriander. The coriander is very subtle in this recipe. The small addition provides subtle hints of citrus and pine, but is not over powering. Coriander needs a little prep work to bring out the oil aromas and flavors. When using coriander, roast the seeds in a small frying pan. When there is consistent popping, remove the seeds form the heat, cool, and place them in a zip lock bag. Then take a rolling pin and aggressively roll over the seeds to crack their shells. This makes the 
coriander seeds much more aromatic and pungent. Finally, I decided to use a fresh culture of Bell's Oberon Yeast, to round out the flavors. Bell's Oberon Yeast is a little more complex than California Ale, or American Ale yeast. All together I am very pleased with how this beer turned out.

Saaz + Coriander

Batch Size: 5.5 gallons

OG: 1.053
FG: 1.010
ABV: 5.5%
IBU: 22
SRM: 5

Grain:
5lbs Michigan Malt 2-Row
5lbs Michigan Malt Wheat 
8 oz Caravienne Malt

Mash: Single Infusion, 1.25 water/grain ratio
60 minutes @ 150 degrees F
10 minutes @ 168 degrees F

Boil:
1.25 oz Saaz @ 90 minutes (3.0%)
1.25 oz Saaz @ 10 minutes (3.0%)
.5 oz Coriander  (14g)(lightly roasted and cracked) @ 5 minutes

Fermentation:
194 billion cells of Cultured Oberon Yeast
14 days primary @ 66 degrees F
7 days primary @ 66 degrees F + .5 oz Saaz

Chilling with the pre-chiller

TASTING NOTES