I have some grain and I need a recipe/brew style idea

[pointyskull]

I was given a 5 lb bag of Zwickel Bavarian Style Lager malt blend grain, part of their Reverence Home Brew Series (http://www.homebrewblends.com/urban-che … -tips.html). There’s minimal info on the packaging as to the grain type specifics other than its supposed to make an Urban Chestnut clone of their Bavarian lager.

I’m still an extract brewer, plus I can’t brew lagers (no cold fermentation abilities at this time), but I would like to use this grain somehow in a DIY extract kit.

Problem is I’m at a loss on how where to begin my morph-a-homebrew search.

I would take any and all ideas on the best way to put this bag of malt blends to tasty fermented use…

[abrown001]

Did it just come with grain and no extract? That’s what I’m inferring from the website. The website seems to say that you’ve got 2-row and pilsner malts. If this was a kit, it probably came with Hallertau hops.

Since this is all base malt, the starches aren’t converted into sugars yet. I’d suggest you try a small batch of all-grain or a regular-sized batch of partial mash, since you’ll have to do a mash anyway to get much use from these grains.

If you don’t mash, you’ll get hazy, starchy beer and very little character from the grains. If you’re set on doing this, crush the grains and throw a pound in with the specialty grains for each batch you do. These are neutral grains and would be at home in almost any beer style.

If I were you, I’d use a mesh bag and strainer and do a 2.5 gallon batch as per the instructions but ferment with an ale yeast (pitch it on the yeastcake of something you already have perhaps.) If you’re near a good homebrew shop, you could pick up some other grains and do a partial mash recipe like any on our host’s website.