There are two ideas at work with this simple, hoppy, blond, Belgian-inspired recipe. The first idea is to use ingredients and techniques that provide typical Belgian character without using crude spices or the usual yeasts.
The second idea is to annoy traditionalists, just for sport.
ALL-GRAIN
OG: 1.048
FG: 1.006
IBUs: 35
ABV: 5%
MALT/GRAIN BILL
8 lb (3.6 kg) Belgian pale ale malt
1 lb (454 g) Belgian wheat malt
HOPS SCHEDULE
1 oz (28 g) Styrian Goldings at 45 minutes
2 oz (57 g) East Kent Goldings at 15 minutes
DIRECTIONS
Mash in: 122°F (50°C) for 30 minutes.
Step 1: 152°F (67°C) for 45 minutes.
Mash out: 168°F (76°C) for 10 minutes.
Boil for 90 minutes.
YEAST
This is where you play. Try your favorite non-Belgian yeast strain, cleaner European strain such as S-33, or anything unconventional such as WLP670 White Labs American Farmhouse Blend.
BREWER’S NOTES
Prime and bottle-condition to 4.0 volumes of CO2 in convivial 75 cl (750 ml) bottles.
Recipe is built to yield a batch size of 5 gallons and assumes 72% brewhouse efficiency.