10C - American Brown Ale

American Brown Ale, as a recognized style, has some unique roots among American beer styles. It comes by way of California by way of a Texas homebrew competition. One story goes that California homebrewers were making a dark brown ale with John Bull Dark Malt Extract, crystal and chocolate malts, and lots of local hops. It was a very popular kit and began winning many local and regional California homebrew competitions. The owner of DeFalco's Home Wine and Beer Supplies in Houston found the beer on a trip to California. He was also a member of the FOAM Rangers, the local Houston homebrew club which puts on The Dixie Cup, one of the country's largest and arguably one of the most unique homebrew competitions. In the early 1990's, there weren't as many styles as there are now. So the Dixie Cup decided to include a category called "California Dark". It was an immediate success for the competition. As sometimes happens, the AHA picked up on the popularity of the style but for some reason named it "Texas Brown Ale" in honor of the first competition in which it was in its own category, The Dixie Cup.

Many still call American Brown Ales by the name "Texas Brown Ale", but the style seems to be different. Texas Brown Ales are considered bigger versions of the American Brown Ale style.

During the beginning of the craft beer movement in America, the USA fell in love with brown ales. Prior to this period, most were just imitations of Newcastle or other sweet English brown ales or dry Yorkshire versions. One of the first commercial versions was created by a brewer named Pete Slosberg at Pete's Brewing Company. Pete's Wicked Ale was born. It was darker and hoppier than the English examples, emphasizing its signature Brewer's Gold hops for aroma, and people loved it. The style soon spread across the country and became a favorite in many microbreweries and brewpubs. Today the style can vary widely, from very hoppy, very bitter beers to those with a more subtle hop profile. Some have some residual sweetness and a rich malt profile to balance the hops while others finish dry, allowing the hops to shine through.

Some important factors to consider when brewing an American Brown Ale at home is that it is a very "American" beer. This means you must use a clean American yeast and American hops with the characteristic citrusy and fruity character. If you decide to use an English yeast, ferment at the lower end of the yeast's tolerance to restrain the fruity esters. The grain bill should include crystal and other dark malts that provide the typical caramel, toasty and/or chocolate flavors and aromas.

• Aroma: American Brown Ales are malty, sweet and rich, often exhibiting a chocolate, caramel, nutty and/or toasty character. Hop aroma is typically low to moderate but some versions may feature a stronger hop aroma, a citrusy American hop character, and/or a fresh dry-hopped aroma (all are optional). Fruity esters are moderate to very low and using a clean American ale yeast will help restrain the yeast derived character which would be out of place in this style. The dark malt character is more robust than other brown ales, yet stops short of being overly porter-like. The malt and hops are generally balanced but some show a big hop presence. Moderately low to no diacetyl should be evident.
• Appearance: The beer should be light to very dark brown in color, very clear, and exhibit a low to moderate off-white to light tan head.
• Flavor: American Brown Ales should have a medium to high malty flavor (often with caramel, toasty and/or chocolate flavors), with medium to medium-high bitterness for balance. The medium to medium-dry finish provides an aftertaste having both malt and hops. Hop flavor can be light to moderate, and may optionally have a citrusy character (although it's optional,it is highly recommended for competition). There should be very low to moderate fruity esters. Moderately low to no diacetyl in the flavor.
• Mouthfeel: ABA's should have a medium to medium-full body. More bitter versions may have a dry, resiny impression as the hops shine through. There will be moderate to moderately high carbonation. Stronger versions may have some alcohol warmth in the finish.
• Overall Impression: ABA can be considered a bigger, maltier, hoppier interpretation of Northern English brown ale or a hoppier, less malty Brown Porter, often including the citrus-accented hop presence that is characteristic of American hop varieties.
• Comments: A strongly flavored, hoppy brown beer, originated by American home brewers. Related to American Pale and American Amber Ales, although with more of a caramel and chocolate character, which tends to balance the hop bitterness and finish. Most commercial American Browns are not as aggressive as the original homebrewed versions called "Texas Brown Ales," and some modern craft brewed examples. IPA-strength brown ales should be entered in the Specialty Beer category (23).
• Ingredients: Well-modified pale malt, either American or Continental, plus crystal and darker malts should complete the malt bill. American hops are typical, but UK or noble hops can also be used. Moderate carbonate water would appropriately balance the dark malt acidity.
• Vital Statistics: OG: 1.045 – 1.060 FG: 1.010 – 1.016 IBUs: 20 – 40 SRM: 18 – 35 ABV: 4.3 – 6.2%.
• Commercial Examples: Bell’s Best Brown, Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale, Big Sky Moose Drool Brown Ale, North Coast Acme Brown, Brooklyn Brown Ale, Lost Coast Downtown Brown, Left Hand Deep Cover Brown Ale.

References: Information for this page was adapted from the 2008 BJCP Style Guidelines, Brewing Classic Styles, 80 Winning Recipes Anyone Can Brew, by Jamil Zainasheff and John J. Palmer, the paper entitled Brown Ale Makes a Comeback! written by Jaime Jurado in 2001 and published in the journal The Brewer International, and the blog article entitled The History of American Brown Ale & American Pale Ale (Kind of) appearing in La Petite Brasserie and written by Brad Petit.

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