Brew Dudes Homebrewing Blog

American Wild Ale – Jar of Destiny

On June 17, 2026

As the Jar of Destiny challenge continues, Mike presents his take on an American Wild Ale. This beer came from the 18th pick in the series.

This style (28C Wild Specialty Beer) was one of the harder ones for the challenge as it does not fit neatly into three months. An American Wild Ale usually takes time, patience, and mixed fermentation. This beer was still a work in progress. Let’s see what Mike has to say.

The Recipe & Brewing Process

Batch Size:
About 4 to 5 gallons

Grain Bill:
50% Pale Malt
33% White Wheat
17% Light Munich
1% Caramunich II

Hops:
10 grams Fuggles for the full boil.

IBUs:
5 IBUs

Mash Schedule:
Mash at 155°F for 60 minutes

Water:
Spring water and tap water
Sulfate added to control chloride
Lactic acid added for mash pH

Original Gravity:
1.055

Fermentation:
Windsor Ale Yeast was pitched first.
It fermented for about five or six days.
Wyeast Roselare Blend was pitched after primary fermentation slowed.

Mike brewed a pale base beer with wheat and Munich malt. The goal was to give the microbes something to work on.

The beer was lightly hopped with Fuggles. The low hopping rate helped support the mixed fermentation.

Fruit Addition:
2 pounds tart cherries
1 pound raspberries
Fruit was thawed, blended, and added to the beer.

Gravity Before Fruit:
1.020

What We Learned

The fruit addition was very recent when we tasted the beer. It had been on fruit for less than one day, but the plan is to let the beer sit on fruit for three or four months. Mike may bottle it in Belgian-style bottles with corks. The goal is a highly carbonated, reddish-purple beer later in the year. At this point, the beer already had clear sour ale character in the aroma. The mixed fermentation was also noticeable in the flavor.

There was some funky, leathery Brett character and the beer also had a lactic sourness on the back of the palate. The sourness was present, but it was not too aggressive. There was also a light acetic note. The Roselare blend worked faster than expected. Within one month, the beer had noticeable sour character. The fruit should add more sugar and start more fermentation. The beer should continue changing over the next few months.

This challenge showed that American Wild Ale needs more time than most Jar picks. Still, the early sample was promising. The beer was complex, sour, and funky already. We will see where it goes after fruit aging.

BREW ON!

Sweet Stout – Jar of Destiny

By John Krochune

On June 10, 2026

In Style Profiles, Videos

We are back with another Jar of Destiny beer. My pick from the 18th one was a Sweet Stout. For the challenge, I brewed a milk stout.

This beer was based on a Left Hand Milk Stout clone recipe that I found that recipe through the AHA. I modified the recipe based on my own preferences and the final beer was dark, smooth, and balanced between roasty and sweet flavor notes. Let’s get into it.

Jar of Destiny Milk Stout Recipe

This recipe is for a 5 US Gallon batch.

Water
Added Calcium Chloride/Gypsum to get PPMs in the 80 range and balanced profile.
Ca: 82 PPM
SO4: 82 PPM
Cl: 85 PPM

Grain Bill
7.0 lb (3.18 kg) Golden Promise malt – 62% of the bill
1.0 lb (0.45 kg) Simpsons Roasted Barley – 9% of the bill
0.75 lb (340 g) Briess 60° L Crystal malt – 7% of the bill
0.75 lb (340 g) Weyerman Light Munich malt – 7% of the bill
0.75 lb (340 g) Thomas Fawcett Pale Chocolate malt – 7% of the bill
1.0 lb (0.45 kg) Flaked Barley – 9% of the bill

Special Ingredient
1 pound (0.45 kg) of Lactose

Hops
8.5 g of Magnum hops 12.3% AA) – added at 60 minutes to go in the boil
28 g of Kent Goldings hops (5.3% AA) – added at 10 minutes to go in the boil

Yeast
1 Packet of Safale US-05

Directions:

Mashed at 152°F (67°C) for 60 minutes and boiled for 90 minutes, following hop schedule. Added lactose with 15 minutes to go in the boil. Ferment at 70°F (21°C) for two weeks.

Original Gravity: 1.065
Final Gravity: 1.018
ABV: 6.43%
IBU: 19
SRM: 41

Tasting Notes

Mike got more dark chocolate than coffee from this beer. He also picked up a dessert-like character. The roast character was clear, but not harsh or biting. Any more roast may have pushed it too far. The crystal malt added a pleasant caramel note. The lactose supported the malt sweetness and body.

The pale chocolate malt worked well with the roasted barley. It helped avoid an ashy roast character. The beer had a lingering semisweet chocolate chip finish. The body was medium-full, but not too heavy. It was not so sweet that one pint felt like enough. That balance was what I wanted from this batch.

Final Thoughts

This Sweet Stout came together well for the Jar of Destiny challenge. The beer had smooth roast, chocolate, caramel, and a balanced sweetness. It did not become heavy or cloying. The pale chocolate malt was a good choice for this recipe. It kept the darker flavors rounded and smooth.

The fermentation needed a little help from warmer temperatures. The extra week helped the beer finish properly. I would bottle some of this beer and let it sit for later. It has the right character for that treatment.

BREW ON!

Links To The Jar of Destiny Series Results
Check out the British Strong Ale post
Check out the Black IPA post
Check out the International Amber Lager post
Check out the Belgian Tripel post
Check out the Double IPA post
Check out the Kölsch post
Check out the English IPA post
Check out the Wood-Aged Beer post
Check out the Belgian Golden Strong Ale post
Check out the American Amber Ale post
Check out the German Pils post
Check out the Brett Beer post
Check out the Munich Helles post
Check out the Imperial Stout post
Check out the Foreign Extra Stout post
Check out the Belgian IPA post
Check out the Eisbock post
Check out the Czech Dark Lager post
Check out the California Common post
Check out the American Light Lager post
Check out the Pale Kellerbier post
Check out the Belgian Pale Ale post
Check out the Trappist Single post
Check out the Classic Style Smoked Beer post
Check out the Czech Amber Lager post
Check out the Gueuze post
Check out the Irish Stout post
Check out the Tropical Stout post
Check out the Schwarzbier post
Check out the American Wheat Beer post
Check out the Cream Ale post
Check out the American Stout post
Check out the Winter Seasonal Beer post
Check out the Rauchbier post

Adventures in Attenuation – British Brown Ale

By John Krochune

On June 3, 2026

In Experiments, Recipes, Videos

Mike brewed and we tasted a British Brown Ale for this post. Mike has been thinking more about attenuation in his beers. This batch was part of that ongoing experiment.

Not a surprise, but this experiment is a part of his return to British-style brewing. These are styles he brewed often years ago and he wants to bring it back.

Specifically for this experiment, he used liquid yeast and made a starter. The result was a balanced brown ale with good drinkability.

The Recipe & Brewing Process

This beer was built around a simple British Brown Ale grain bill. Mike wanted malt character without relying on crystal malt.

Batch Size: 3.5 US gallons

Water Profile:
Mike used a 50/50 mix of spring water and our tap water.
Calcium: 70 ppm
Magnesium: 9 ppm
Sodium: 58 ppm
Sulfate: 123 ppm
Chloride: 135 ppm
Bicarbonate: small amount from mixed water

Grain Bill:
72% Pale malt
16% Light Munich malt
8% Viking Cookie malt
4% American chocolate malt

Hops:
UK Goldings
Single 60-minute addition
About 43 IBUs

Yeast:
Wyeast 1318 London Ale III
2 liter starter

Mash:
152°F for 90 minutes

Original Gravity: 1.049
Final Gravity: 1.012
Attenuation: 75%
ABV: About 5%

Our Notes

The beer poured dark amber to brown with ruby highlights. It had an off-white head and medium-light carbonation. The aroma had toasted bread, biscuit, and brown bread notes. The Viking Cookie malt seemed to drive much of that character.

In the flavor, we picked up toasted biscuit, bread crust, and earthy UK Goldings. The hop character was firm but not harsh. Mike wanted enough bitterness to keep the specialty malt from taking over. That balance worked well in this beer. The body was medium-light, which fit the drier finish. The beer still had enough malt character to feel complete.

Conclusion

This British Brown Ale worked well as both a recipe and attenuation experiment. The London Ale III yeast reached 75% attenuation. which matched the high end of its listed range.

The beer finished dry, balanced, and very drinkable. It had enough malt depth without using crystal malt. Mike may use Special Roast next time instead of Cookie malt. He may also test crystal malt again in future batches. For this version, the American chocolate malt and Munich worked well together. The beer felt like one of Mike’s best brown ales in a long time.

BREW ON!

Craft A Brew Stone Pale Ale Kit – Grain to Glass

By John Krochune

On May 27, 2026

In All Grain, Beginner, Videos

We headed out on a rainy brew day to make a full grain-to-glass video featuring a Stone Pale Ale kit from Craft a Brew. The weather was miserable, but the brewing setup made things easy. The kit was created in partnership with Stone Brewing and included pre-measured ingredients, detailed instructions, and clearly labeled hop additions. That simplicity made the brew day move quickly, especially with the hops already portioned for each stage.

The Recipe & Brewing Process

Let’s go through the recipe!

Stone Pale Ale Clone Recipe

Batch Size: 5 gallons

Grain Bill:

8 lb 5 oz Briess Two Row Malt
1 lb 2 oz Briess Munich Malt
1 lb Briess Caramel 60L
4 oz Briess Caramel 80L

Hops:

0.75 oz Columbus at 60 minutes
1.4 oz Ahtanum at 10 minutes
2.2 oz Ahtanum at flameout

Yeast:

Imperial Yeast A07 Flagship

Water Additions:

Spring water
4 to 5 grams gypsum
1 Whirlfloc tablet at 15 minutes

Fermentation:

Fermented about 10 days at 65°F
Cold crashed for 2 days
Kegged and carbonated for 3 days

Stats:

Original Gravity: 1.056
Final Gravity: 1.012
ABV: 5.4%

The finished beer poured a deep golden copper color with a persistent foamy head. The aroma had some candied orange peel, light peach character, and noticeable malt richness. The flavor leaned malt forward, but still finished fairly dry thanks to the yeast performance. Mike thought the bitterness could have been pushed even further to better match the aggressive bitterness people usually expect from older Stone beers. I actually liked the smoother balance and long lingering bitterness.

Final Thoughts

This kit really captured the old school homebrewing experience. Everything arrived neatly packaged and clearly labeled, making the brew day simple and enjoyable. The pre-measured hops especially removed a lot of the hassle from timing additions. The finished beer had a rich malt backbone, pleasant hop character, and a clean dry finish that made it very drinkable. It also fermented quickly and was ready much sooner than the suggested timeline. Overall, it was a fun project and a nice reminder that brewing kits can still produce excellent beer without overcomplicating the process.

Use code: THEBREWDUDES for 20% off ingredients.

Brew ON!

Hallertau Blanc SMaSH Beer Review & Tasting

By John Krochune

On May 20, 2026

In Hops, Videos

We brewed another SMASH beer to figure out what Hallertau Blanc hops bring to a beer. This German hop variety was released in 2012 from the Hop Research Center and is known for white wine characteristics.

For this batch, we kept things simple with a single malt and a single hop. The goal was to isolate the hop character and really understand what Hallertau Blanc contributes in aroma and flavor. We also wanted to see how it compared to other modern hop varieties that lean heavily tropical or citrus-forward.

Hallertau Blanc SMaSH Beer Brewing Process

This was a one gallon SMASH beer using two row malt from Rahr and Hallertau Blanc hops throughout the boil and dry hop schedule.

Recipe

Batch Size:
1 gallon

Water:
2 US gallons of Spring water

Grain Bill:
2 pounds of Rahr 2-Row Malt

Hop Schedule:
Hallertau Blanc hops, 1 ounce total (28 grams)

7 grams at 60 minutes
7 grams at 15 minutes
7 grams at flameout
7 grams dry hop after chilling

Yeast:
3 grams of Safale US-05 dry yeast

What Did We Think?

The aroma immediately gave us white grape and bubble gum notes with some lime-like citrus characteristics. Mike also picked up lychee qualities while I noticed more white wine character as the beer warmed in the glass.

Flavor-wise, the beer leaned bright and crisp with lemon, white grape, citrus rind, and lime zest flavors. The hop had a lighter body and clean finish that worked really well with the pale malt backbone. We also agreed there was a lemongrass quality that sat somewhere between lemon and lime.

Yakima Valley Hops describes Hallertau Blanc as having aromas of white grape, cassis, lemongrass, and grapefruit with a distinctive white wine character. After tasting this beer, we thought the white grape and lemongrass descriptions were especially accurate.

We talked about possible applications for this hop and thought it would work very well in lighter beers. Pilsner-like beers, American wheat beers, and New England Pale Ales all seemed like strong options. We also thought blending it with Citra or tropical New England IPA hops could add an interesting white grape dimension.

In Conclusion, We Conclude

Hallertau Blanc turned out to be a really interesting modern German hop variety. It delivers bright citrus character while adding unique white wine and white grape qualities that stand apart from typical tropical hops.

This hop feels especially suited for lighter-bodied beers where its delicate flavors can shine through cleanly. It also seems like a great blending hop for New England styles where brewers want to add more complexity beyond standard tropical fruit flavors.

Brew ON!