I’ve been making my Golden Sombrero Blonde Ale for years now, and I’d say it’s by far the most asked for beer that I make.  From family gatherings to golf tournaments, its light body, refreshing citrus aroma and taste, with a crisp slightly dry finish pair well with any occasion.  I normally make this beer with Briess 2 row, but I have tried a few others that didn’t quite stack up. Whether it be efficiency, flavor, head retention or color. I haven’t found a 2-row malt that I like more than Briess. But since working with Montana Craft Malt, I thought what better beer to try and showcase their 2 row, and see how it stacks up in comparison. 

The recipe is simple with nothing to hide behind just like any blonde ale should be.
88% MCM 2 Row
12% Crystal 20L. 

This beer is by far my easiest one to brew and in terms of hitting the numbers the most repeatable for OG and FG. Except for when I’ve tried other malts, Viking and Great Western were always a couple points lower on OG and the beers didn’t quite have the same character or head retention.  No one really noticed but I could tell they were a little lighter and lacked body, malt flavor, and head retention so back I stuck with Briess… but what would MCM have to offer?

The brew day went off without a hitch and I couldn’t be happier with the results:

Obviously, I need more brew days with MCM 2-row so I can collect more data.  But out of the 4 beers I’ve made using their malt each OG has been higher than the expected target OG. 

The beer changed so much that my wife even asked if I had altered the recipe. With Briess it is light, crisp, and refreshing with a slightly dry finish. With MCM it has a subtle malty aroma, fuller body, slightly better head retention, and a crisp malt-forward finish. The appearance is similar to Briess, though Briess has a lighter yellow color while MCM shows a slightly deeper golden tone. Both clear up beautifully, and both versions are bursting with citrus aromas and flavors from the Citra hops. The votes have been evenly split among those who noticed the difference. If you want a slightly fuller-bodied blonde, MCM 2-row is the way to go. To keep it closer to style, you could split the 2-row evenly with their Pilsner malt, which is also excellent. Personally, I prefer the MCM version and will definitely be brewing it again.

Style: Blonde Ale
Efficiency: 80%
Boil Time: 60 minutes
Mash Schedule: 60 minutes @ 152°F / 66.7°C
ABV: 5.0%
OG: 1.048
FG: 1.013–1.008
SRM: 3.4
IBU: 21

16 Gallon Batch (60.6L)
Malt

• 24 lb / 10.89 kg MCM 2-Row
• 3 lb / 1.36 kg Crystal 20L

Hops

• 0.5 oz / 14 g Magnum — First Wort
• 2 oz / 57 g Citra — 10 min
• 3 oz / 85 g Citra — 1 min
• 3 oz / 85 g Citra Lupomax — Dry hop 3 days (or 6 oz / 170 g Citra regular pellet hops)

Yeast

• White Labs California Ale (WLP001)

5 Gallon Batch (18.9L)
Malt

• 7.5 lb / 3.40 kg MCM 2-Row
• 0.94 lb / 0.43 kg Crystal 20L

Hops

• 0.16 oz / 5 g Magnum — First Wort
• 0.63 oz / 18 g Citra — 10 min
• 0.94 oz / 27 g Citra — 1 min
• 0.94 oz / 27 g Citra Lupomax — Dry hop 3 days (or 1.88 oz / 53 g Citra regular pellet hops)
  (Hop amounts depend on AA. 21 IBUs)

Yeast

• White Labs California Ale (WLP001)

By Justin T. Grounders Brewing Co.
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