Homebrew Summer: B.Right.On
Ocean Beach Brewery's head brewer shares the recipe for his Great American Beer Festival gold-medal-winning pale ale
Even those of us who appreciate every style of beer, from English mild to Belgian quad, Grodziskie to gueuze, and any type of lager or IPA the brewing world throws at us, have one style we adore above all others. For me, it’s a Brett saison. For Jim Millea, head brewer for OB Brewery, it’s a solid pale ale. So, when he signed up to provide a homebrew-scaled version of one of his recipes for San Diego Beer News‘ fourth-annual Homebrew Summer program, he went with his Ocean Beach brewpub’s house pale, B.Right.On. That hoppy gem earned Millea a gold medal at the 2018 Great American Beer Festival (and was a key contributor to the business being named Small Brewpub of the Year at that competition), so this should be a reliable recipe for homebrewers at all experience levels. Just scroll to download that helpful how-to and don’t miss Millea’s additional tips along the way.
New pro-am beers will continue to debut weekly, so check back with San Diego Beer News on a regular basis (or subscribe to our free weekly email newsletter and we’ll send all the recipes and release information straight to your inbox). Cheers and happy homebrewing!
Jim Millea
Head Brewer, OB Brewery
Why did you choose to share this recipe and do you have any tips for homebrewers?
I love many styles of beer, but pale ales is generally my go-to. Over 20 years ago when I received an excellent gift, a homebrew kit, the very first recipe I brewed on it was a pale ale. Originally a dry malt-extract brew, over the years that followed I transitioned to all-grain brewing and refined my recipes. Fast-forward to the opening of OB Brewery, where I had my first opportunity as a professional to create my own beers on a bigger scale, and the very first beer I brewed was…a pale ale. I like using a little bit of light crystal malt and Carafoam to add some malt character, body and stability, plus late hop additions for flavor. This recipe calls for a 15-minute addition, although I have played with changing the timing to five minutes and/or whirlpool hops, as well, if you want to add a little more hop flavor. And dry-hopping after fermentation with Cascade gives it a pop of freshnessI hope you enjoy using this recipe and have fun making it your own!
