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Cabana Lager


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#1 BuxomBrewster

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 02:45 PM

Hey Ken...I was looking at your website and your Cabana Lager looks like something I'd like to try. Basic grain bill:6 lb pale 2 row1.5 lb Vienna1 lb flake corn8 oz wheat maltThe question is, what do I substitute for the wheat? I'm allergic to wheat, so it can't go in.

#2 MolBasser

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 02:48 PM

Oatmeal would be a somewhat close choice.Both will throw a haze in a light lager like that and lend some mouthfeel. I would go more like 4-6oz oatmeal to get a similar affect.BrewBasser

#3 MtnBrewer

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 02:51 PM

Maybe rye? I've usually been told that you need at least a pound of rye and preferably two in order to taste it (in a 5-gallon recipe). But in a light lager like this, that rule might not hold.

#4 BuxomBrewster

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 03:03 PM

Oatmeal sounds good. I really like the oatmeal brown I'm drinking right now.

#5 DaBearSox

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 03:04 PM

I bet it still would be mighty tasty just leaving the wheat out of it. I have noticed Ken likes to ad wheat malt to all his recipes...probably more for mouth feel, head retention etc rather than taste...

#6 MolBasser

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 03:07 PM

rye would be cool, but it has a very distinct flavour while oats and wheat are far more neutral.For a lawnmower (cabana boy) beer, I think oats are a better substitute for wheat than rye.Although rye is a very interesting choice. Less haze than wheat. Somewhat less mouthfeel too.BrewBasser

#7 MolBasser

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 03:08 PM

I bet it still would be mighty tasty just leaving the wheat out of it. I have noticed Ken likes to ad wheat malt to all his recipes...probably more for mouth feel, head retention etc rather than taste...

Cara-pils would be a good sub for those attributes.BrewBasser

#8 DaBearSox

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 03:14 PM

Cara-pils would be a good sub for those attributes.BrewBasser

Always thinkin...He is def right on that one...but I guess wait till Ken has time to chime in on the subject...he is the recipe master

#9 MtnBrewer

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 04:34 PM

rye would be cool, but it has a very distinct flavour while oats and wheat are far more neutral.For a lawnmower (cabana boy) beer, I think oats are a better substitute for wheat than rye.Although rye is a very interesting choice. Less haze than wheat. Somewhat less mouthfeel too.

You might be right. I have no idea what constitutes a good lawnmower beer. I suggested the rye because it wasn't as neutral as oats and wheat. :P In my world, neutral is not a good quality.

#10 MolBasser

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 04:37 PM

You might be right. I have no idea what constitutes a good lawnmower beer. I suggested the rye because it wasn't as neutral as oats and wheat. :P In my world, neutral is not a good quality.

Neutral is the way of the lawnmower/cabana beer.BrewBasser

#11 MtnBrewer

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 04:40 PM

Neutral is the way of the lawnmower/cabana beer.BrewBasser

Yeah, that's why it's foreign to me.

#12 Big Nake

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Posted 22 April 2009 - 07:27 PM

Yeah, just use something that will lend some head stability and mouthfeel. It's a small amount so you could easily use CaraPils or CaraFoam if you have them. If you don't have those then go with oatmeal and see how it comes out. Good luck with it & let us know how it comes out. Cheers.

#13 BuxomBrewster

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Posted 23 April 2009 - 10:09 AM

Yeah, just use something that will lend some head stability and mouthfeel. It's a small amount so you could easily use CaraPils or CaraFoam if you have them. If you don't have those then go with oatmeal and see how it comes out. Good luck with it & let us know how it comes out. Cheers.

Will do. I went with the oatmeal. This will be my first time doing a Lager and playing with water chemistry. Our water is really hard, so I'll be mixing in distilled.

#14 orudis

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Posted 24 April 2009 - 08:28 AM

I've found this very helpful for calculating the proper RO dilution. Hopefully the author has migrated here from the other place. We also have very hard water, for really light beers I often use 90% RO water.

#15 Big Nake

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Posted 24 April 2009 - 12:52 PM

We also have very hard water, for really light beers I often use 90% RO water.

This could be good for a very soft & delicate beer like an American Standard, Pilsner, etc. The area in the Czech Republic where Pilsner Urquell is brewed has ultra-soft water, I believe. I mentioned this in the Blonde Ale thread, but I just put a pilsner on tap that I made with Wyeast 2001 Pilsner Urquell and I just left the water alone (filtered, but not diluted). It's good, but it's a little clunky. I have some others in secondary where I went 50/50 distilled-filtered but I should probably think about doing a few more of these and use a greater percentage of RO or distilled. I wish I had some Cabana Lager right now because it's sunny, 80° and beautiful here today! Cheers.

#16 BuxomBrewster

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Posted 07 September 2009 - 07:55 PM

We just kegged the Cabana Lager and it's wonderful. Nice, light, but flavorful. We're bringing most of the keg to our church picnic next Sunday along with a British Brown Ale I concocted. It will be fun to share with those who might appreciate a good beer. The church is providing a keg of something commercial, probably BMC. I expect to have about half a keg for us afterward. I think I'll be making this one again. :cheers: Thanks for the great recipe!

#17 Big Nake

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Posted 08 September 2009 - 05:51 AM

I'm glad it came out well. That beer can be a tough assignment because the smallest thing could stand out. What was your yeast again? Cheers & have fun at the picnic!

#18 BuxomBrewster

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Posted 08 September 2009 - 06:58 AM

I used the White Labs Mexican lager yeast. The only change from your recipe was to use oatmeal instead of wheat because of my gluten intolerance.

#19 Big Nake

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Posted 01 April 2010 - 03:45 PM

I had the White Labs 940 up & running for a good part of the last 3 months and I made five lagers with it. The last one (and lightest one) just went on tap. It was meant to be a Cerveza Clara, similar to Cabana Lager but it's not the same recipe. I just threw this recipe together from what I had and the small sample I had this afternoon tasted like I was walking down a Mexican beach. I don't know who is looking for a beer like this, but I think this version is hands down the best example of this (mostly unknown style to homebrewers) beer. It may become the new Cabana Lager because it's that good.

Cerveza Clara

6 lbs Rahr Pilsner Malt
2 lbs Vienna
1½ lbs flaked corn
¼ oz Tradition 4.5% plus ¼ oz Hallertau Mittelfruh 4.1% plus ½ oz Tettnanger 4.7% for 60 minutes
½ oz Tettnanger for 5 minutes
White Labs 940 Mexican Lager yeast (on it's 5th use)

OG: 1.050, FG: 1.012, IBU: 22, SRM: 3, ABV: 4.8%


The hops were just leftovers from bags that I had partially used... you could just use one of these hops and get it in the 4-4½ AAU range. I did do a 3:1 distilled-to-filtered tap in the mash and a 1:1 ratio in the sparges. It's been in the 70s the past few days around here so it seems like the perfect time to have this beer on tap. Cheers.

#20 Big Nake

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Posted 11 July 2013 - 01:13 PM

I am resurrecting an old thread here.  I made a batch of Cabana Lager (Durst Turbo Pils, Vienna, flaked corn, all Hallertau hops, WLP940 yeast) and applied the distilled-water knowledge to this pale, light beer for the first time.  I sampled some last night and it came out as good as I could ever imagine.  I know that this is "almost nobody's" idea of beer (at least homebrewers, anyway) but I am hopped up over the fact that I can make such a clean, delicious, refreshing and satisfying style like this and have it come out so nicely.  This is something I make every spring and/or summer and this is the best batch I have made of it yet.

 

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