Carlton Draught AG recipe

[TheWiggman]

I've read in numerous threads and from good advice that BB pale malt is the malt to use. I've got JW pilsner and ale malt in stock and Cheeky Peak only do BB in on special order. I've got many mates here in my home town who are Carlton Draught devotees - dead-set haven't been able to get a VB on tap here for the life of me. It's like the Victorians don't drink it. Anyway...

Planning to brew this weekend following standard above advice but don't have BB pale. Do I use -

• JW pils
• Mix of JW pils and JW ale
• Weyermann pils
• Gladfields ale

Remembering I'm trying to go for CD. Yes maybe we can all make better beer with ale yeast, specialty malts, Amarillo blah blah but I'm targeting the delicate CUB mouse piss and little in the way of anything else.

If none of the above are suitable then I'm bailing on it and doing a XXXX Bitter clone with my leftover Cluster flowers, oh baby.

 

[labels]

I have been asked by my bro-in-law for a Carlton Draught clone, anyone here have a good recipe that they can share?

I did search but most of the hits that came back were "worst beers you've ever tasted"

Yes, I have succeeded in replicating this beer, albeit by accident. Although I don't have records of the exact recipe I can tell you the following.

Malt: Use BB ale malt (not lager malt), plus a small percentage of medium crystal - say 5%
Hops: Use Pride of Ringwood pellets at 60mins only - to around 20ibu
Yeast: Use Wy2042 and ferment at the right temperature, fermentation temperature control is critical.

This produced a fine example of an Aussie Draught lager beer, very, very similar to Carlton Draught.

Despite what others may say, to copy a standard draught lager and get it right is a great achievement and a great sense of satisfaction of accomplishment and not something most home brewers can do. Carlton Draught is a long, long way from one of favourite beers but is nevertheless a well brewed beer with exceptional consistency.

EDIT: This is an old topic, but I hope someone might get some useful information from my post and succeed

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Would you mash single infusion at about 64 or 65?

 

[dicko]

@ labels.....no sugar??

 

[TheWiggman]

Planning to brew this weekend following standard above advice but don't have BB pale. Do I use -

• JW pils
• Mix of JW pils and JW ale
• Weyermann pils
• Gladfields ale

*cough*

 

[labels]

I did not add sugar to the Carlton clone. I used a single infusion mash for 60 mins at 65C.

 

[Bribie G]

Using BB ale malt you don't have to add sugar. For example many of the "all malt" lagers (including the dreadful Brewers Brite from the old Bluetongue brewery, now defunct) don't actually taste all that malty. However sugar would give that really dry quaffability-on-a-hot-day effect that you get in many brews such as Blondes, xtra dry and lo carb megaswills.

 

[labels]

I'm with Bribie on this one, the sugar is used at commercial brewing level in much the same way as dilution is used. To max out the brewhouse to maximize return. Sugar is not part of the flavor profile anyway.

You can produce nice dry lagers on a home brewing level without sugar. Use a lager malt which is lightly kilned, minimal use of crystal malts, a mash temp of 65-66C for 90mins and a 1 hour boil (longer for more colour/caramelisation) and a yeast which attenuates well.

 

[thebigwilk]

I got a sixth place in this years vic brew comp in the Aussie lager category I used wyeast 2124 fermented at 19c from start to finish it was done in four days filtered it kegged it lagered it for a few weeks used 90% pils 7% crystal 3% cane sugar. 90 min boil POR hops at 90 min 28 IBUs. go figure ?
Cheers!

 

[mxd]

haven't made one yet

but one that I tried and seemed ok to me was a simple
4kg JW ale
400 g sugarz
POR at 60 to 20 to 22 IBU
mash at 63 ish

tried it at 18 degrees with us 05 and 10 degrees with 34/70 and 18 degrees with s-189

they were all fine (tried at different times), the recipe owner thought the s-189 was his preference but was going to stick with us05 as it was easier for his temp control.

 

[TheWiggman]

Well I'm not sure if I'm invisible or all you bullies just chose to ignore me, but I chickened out and am doing a XXXX Bitter clone instead.
Cheeky Peak are getting a bag of BB pale malt in for me, a few weeks away but will do my next lager with that as recommended.
For now I'm off to my room to play Dungeons & Dragons with my online REAL friends...

 

[Bribie G]

You should download a couple of Steam games and really improve your social standing. Are you using Cluster in the XXXX?

 

[TheWiggman]

Ahh if only there were time for games when you have to brew.

Main differences -

XXXX Bitter
JW pilsner* malt, 250g light crystal, 350g sugaz, Cluster at 60 mins (and maybe some late, I love me some Cluster)

Carlton Draught
BB pale malt, 350g sugaz, PoR at 60 mins

Both with 2042.
They're similar but hey, that's Aussie lagers for you. If I'm after a CD clone then I want something that tastes like CD, as opposed to something similar but maybe better. Or worse, shudder.
* My first effort with MHB-sourced MEU(?) malt made a closer beer, I'm thinking JW pils isn't the best for it.

 

[Bribie G]

Inspired by this magnificent thread a couple of days ago I whipped up a mega lager, 40L batch to fill two kegs.

BB pale 75% of gravity
Mix of white and raw supermarket sugar 25% of gravity

To an OG of 1047

Single addition of latest season POR pellets to 23 IBU that could be a bit overkill, but I used to enjoy the distinct bitterness of the old time Carlton Draught before it became wanky "Brewery fresh".

For yeast, I had sachets of Brewcraft Premium Lager yeast and Brewcraft European Lager yeasts I got from the LHBS. I've never used either so I just mixed them, rehydrated, and they are hammering away in good health at 18 (garage ambient)

Ten days at ambient then I'll lager for ten at near freezing.

I just got back from t'club where I had a couple of VBs. Quite enjoyed them believe it or not, for what they are.

edit: looking at another old thread I reckon I've probably got myself a mix of S-23 and W 34/70. Let the best yeast win

 

[Garfield]

To the lords of hombrew wisdom - brand new here... just signed up to post on this thread!

Been hombrewing for a few months, mostly pale ales and porters. You guys inspired me to try my first lager to impress my mates (with no taste in good beers) with the carlton clone which was as posted early on. I mostly followed the recipe but made a few changes - a half batch made with extract:


Recipe:
Batch Size (L): 13L
Total Grain (kg): 1kg light LME
Cane Sugar (kg): Argh can't remember sorry (just enough to bring OG up)
Total Hops (g): 12.00 Pride of Ringwood
Yeast: 1 packet S-23
Original Gravity (OG): 1.052
Method:
60min Hops boil with fast chill down to 13'C
Pitched rehydrated yeast S-23
Fermented at 13°C for five days
Diacytel rested slowly up to 19°C over four days
Lagered at 0°C for ten days only.

But my problem is this...

I was ready to bottle after the 10 day lager but I measured the SG to find its still 1020! Foolishly I hadn't checked garvity until now. It tastes nice and clean but very sweet, so definately still fermentables in there. Here's where I need your help:

1. Had I have been checking SG occasionally, would I have waited for a certain SG before diacytel rest or a certain SG before the lager phase? I was kinda flying blind
2. What should I do - keep lagering? How long? Will the gravity continue to drop? Should I warm it back up to 13'C? Repitch yeast? Let the cat piss in it?

I think it has potential to be good. Just need damage control.

Cheers

P.S. feels good to finally post after months of reading this forum.

 

[micblair]

75:25 Pale/dextrose
20 IBU POR, single bittering addition.
15 million cells ml W-34/70, fermented at 15-17C.
Mash and ferment as dry as your skills and equipment will allow.