Jasmine Rice Ale (Original)
Jasmine Drift Boat Ale
A low-bitterness jasmine rice ale with a delicate green-tea finish
Ghost River Original · Brewed and enjoyed · 2-gallon experimental batch
Original targets: ~6% ABV · 10 IBU · ~7 SRM (unverified estimates). Brewer’s confirmed observation: The jasmine tea character was very subtle. A stronger-tea second batch is planned, not yet tested.
Original targets: ~6% ABV · 10 IBU · ~7 SRM (unverified). Brewed and enjoyed; jasmine was subtle.
About This Beer
Jasmine Drift Boat Ale began with ingredients left over from other brewing projects. I combined pale malt, wheat, Crystal 40L, jasmine rice and a little pale dry malt extract. Then, as an experiment, I added jasmine green tea.
The beer turned out very nice, but the jasmine was more of a background note than a prominent flavor. The original version is preserved here, together with a modest tea-increase experiment planned for the next batch.
Recipe at a Glance
| Specification | Original formulation |
|---|---|
| Finished batch size | 2 U.S. gallons |
| Method | Mash with cooked rice + late dry malt extract |
| Target OG | ~1.058 (unverified) |
| Target FG | ~1.010 (unverified) |
| Target ABV | ~6.0% (unverified) |
| Target IBU | ~10 (unverified) |
| Target SRM | ~7 (unverified) |
| Yeast | Kveik Yeastery K.14 Eitrheim |
| Boil | 60 minutes |
| Original carbonation target | About 2.3 volumes CO₂ |
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Amount | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 2-row pale malt, crushed | 10 oz | Base malt and mash enzymes |
| White wheat malt, crushed | 4 oz | Wheat contribution |
| Crystal 40L, crushed | 4 oz | Malt character and color |
| Jasmine rice, cooked | 1.0 lb | Rice adjunct; lighter character |
| Pale ale dry malt extract | 8 oz | Late-boil fermentables |
| Hallertau Mittelfrüh | 0.25 oz | 60-minute addition |
| Hallertau Mittelfrüh | 0.10 oz | 5-minute addition |
| Jasmine green tea | 5 g | Flameout steep |
| Kveik Yeastery K.14 Eitrheim | Appropriate pitch | Fermentation |
| Table sugar for bottle conditioning | Original suggests 4.5 g per 1-liter bottle | Verify with a priming calculator before use |
Water Volumes From the Original Notes
| Stage | Volume |
|---|---|
| Mash water | 1.65 gallons |
| Sparge water | 1.88 gallons |
| Target preboil volume | 3.0 gallons |
| Target postboil volume | 2.0 gallons |
Water-volume caution: These are the original planning figures. Your actual preboil and postboil volumes depend on grain absorption, rice-water contribution, evaporation, and kettle losses. The large intended boiloff should be verified against your equipment.
Brewing Instructions
- 1
Cook the rice. The original directions call for cooking 1 lb jasmine rice in about 2 quarts of water for roughly 30–40 minutes, until very soft. Cool it near mash temperature. Keep track of the rice-cooking water when planning total liquid volume.
- 2
Mash. Combine the crushed 2-row, white wheat, Crystal 40L and cooked rice. Hold around 154°F (68°C) for 60 minutes. The rice starch must be converted using enzymes from the malt. With a large rice proportion and relatively little enzymatic grain, verify conversion; extending the mash or reformulating with more diastatic malt may be necessary if conversion is incomplete.
- 3
Sparge. The source suggests 1.88 gallons of sparge water at 170°F (77°C) and a 3-gallon preboil. Adjust to your actual equipment and avoid overly hot grain-bed conditions.
- 4
Boil for 60 minutes. Add 0.25 oz Hallertau Mittelfrüh at the start. Add 0.10 oz with 5 minutes left.
- 5
Add extract. With about 5 minutes remaining, briefly remove the kettle from direct heat and dissolve 8 oz pale ale DME. Stir carefully before resuming the boil.
- 6
Steep the tea. At flameout, allow the wort to cool to approximately 175°F (79°C), add 5 g jasmine green tea, and steep 5 minutes. Remove tea promptly. Tea varieties differ; long or hot steeps can increase astringency.
- 7
Cool and ferment. Chill to an appropriate temperature for the selected Kveik culture. The original plan suggests 85–95°F (29–35°C) for warm fermentation or 68–72°F (20–22°C) for a cooler variant. Use the specific strain manufacturer’s recommendations, confirm stable gravity, and do not assume completion solely because warm fermentations may be rapid.
- 8
Package safely. When gravity is stable, calculate priming sugar for the real batch volume, beer temperature and target carbonation. The original document’s per-liter sugar figure is a note, not a verified universal dose. Use only pressure-rated bottles.
From My Brew Kettle: A Leftovers Experiment
Some of the most interesting brewing ideas come from looking at what you have left over from other batches.
That’s how Jasmine Drift Boat Ale began. I gathered what I had available and decided to try something different. Then I added jasmine tea to see how it would work with the mild malt character and gentle Hallertau hops.
The beer was very nice. The jasmine character was there, but it was real subtle. It didn’t dominate the flavor or aroma.
I plan to make this one again and increase the tea. The original version is worth keeping, but I’m interested in seeing what happens when the floral note comes forward a little more.
Planned Batch Two: More Jasmine
| Version | Jasmine tea for 2 gallons | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Original | 5 g | Brewed; subtle tea character |
| Proposed next trial | 7.5 g | Not brewed; suggested 50% increase |
| Possible later trial | 10 g | Experimental only; not a proven dose |
For a clean comparison, change the tea quantity alone while keeping the tea variety, steep temperature, and five-minute contact time the same. Record aroma, flavor, and any astringency. An alternative is to trial measured additions in small samples before committing to the whole batch.
Important Brewing Notes
- Gravity and ABV estimates need recalculation. The listed OG, FG and ABV may not be supported by the actual extract and conversion yield. Measure, don’t invent.
- Rice conversion deserves attention. Cooked rice provides starch, but starch still needs enzymatic conversion in the mash.
- Tea is easy to overdo. Increase gradually; the aim is a floral beer, not an astringent one.
- Verify carbonation. Calculate priming rates from total beer volume and conditions rather than treating the recipe’s per-bottle figure as universally safe.
Explore More at Ghost River Brews
The original 5 g jasmine version was brewed and enjoyed. Stronger-jasmine alternatives are proposed experiments, not tested results.
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