If you have brewed a few batches already and want to try Japanese Rice Lager, this is a straightforward, all-grain route to it. The backbone is Pilsner malt, with Sorachi Ace 14.9% doing most of the work in the boil.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Japanese Rice Lager |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.044-1.052 |
| Final Gravity | 1.008-1.012 |
| ABV | 4.5-5.5% |
| IBU | 18-30 |
| SRM | 3-6 (pale gold) |
| Difficulty | Intermediate (lager patience required) |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Pilsner malt, at a steady temperature to build the fermentable sugars this style needs. Sparge slowly so you do not lose efficiency. |
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2
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Boil · ~60-90 min Bring the wort to a boil and work through the hop schedule, starting with Sorachi Ace 14.9%. This is also where you will add any fining agent for a clearer finished beer. |
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3
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Ferment · 12C (54F) Pitch Wyeast 2278 Czech Pils once the wort has cooled to fermentation temperature and hold it steady. Primary fermentation is the most active week, do not rush it. |
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4
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Condition · 4 weeks at 3C (37F) Rack to secondary (or leave in primary if your recipe calls for it) and let the beer round out at a cool, steady temperature. This step does more for the final flavor than people expect. |
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5
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Package · 1 day, then wait Bottle or keg once gravity has held steady for a few days in a row. Give it time to carbonate and, for bigger styles, additional time to mellow before your first taste. |
That’s the shape of brew day and the weeks after it. For the exact grain bill, hop schedule, and full step-by-step instructions with amounts, use the recipe card below.
What You Will Need
Sourcing your own ingredients locally is always fine, but if you want to skip a homebrew store trip, here is what’s in stock in our shop right now:
- Base and specialty grain: Grains & Adjuncts (e.g. My Brew Supply Flaked Maize Premium Beer Making Grain)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Amarillo Hop Pellets 1 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. Craft A Brew – Safale S-04 Dry Yeast – Fermentis)
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. Carboy Caps 4 Pk Silicone Caps)
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Dextrose 50 Lb)
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. Northern Brewer Homebrewing Starter Kit w/Equipment, Chinook IPA)
Serve It Right
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A Japanese Rice Lager is best served in a pilsner or mug, it fits the body and carbonation of this style better than a straight pint glass. Here is one from our shop: |
Ingredients & Gear for This Batch
Grain / Adjuncts |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter |
Priming Sugar |
Equipment |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Japanese Rice Lager
Equipment
- 1 Mash tun or large pot
- 1 Brew kettle
- 1 Fermenter
- 1 Airlock
- 1 Hydrometer
- 1 Thermometer
- 1 Auto-siphon
- 1 Bottles or keg
- 1 Wort chiller or ice bath
- 1 Propane burner or heat source (if brewing outdoors)
- 1 Grain mill (if milling your own grains)
- 1 Sanitizer (e.g. StarSan)
- 1 pH meter or pH strips (optional)
- 1 Refractometer (optional)
Ingredients
For the Mash – Liquor 13 Litres (23 Pints) – Mash Time 1 hr – Temperature 65°C (149°F)
- 10 lb Pilsner malt Quantity 4.7 kg
- 1 lb Flaked rice Quantity 500 g
For the Boil – 27Litres (47 1/2 Pints) – Boil Time 1 hr – 15 mins
- 1/2 oz (Hops) Sorachi Ace 14.9% When to add -At start of boil (IBU 21.0)
- 1/4 oz (Hops) Sorachi Ace 14.9% When to add -For last 15 mins of boil (IBU 4.0)
- 1/4 oz (Hops) Saaz 4.2% When to add -At turn off (IBU 0.0)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other-When to add -For last 15 mins of boil
To Ferment – 12°C (54°F) – Conditioning 4 weeks at 3°C (37°F)
- 1 Wyeast 2278 Czech Pils Yeast
Instructions
- Heat 13 liters (23 pints) of water to 65°C (149°F) in a mash tun or large pot. Add the Pilsner malt and flaked rice to the water and stir well to combine.
- Maintain the temperature at 65°C (149°F) and let the mash rest for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, sparge the mash with hot water to extract as much wort as possible.
- Bring the wort to a boil in a brew kettle. Add 1/2 oz (14.9 g) of Sorachi Ace hops at the start of the boil.
- Boil the wort for 1 hour. Add 1/4 oz (7 g) of Sorachi Ace hops and 1 tsp of Protofloc during the last 15 minutes of the boil. Add 1/4 oz (7 g) of Saaz hops at the turn off.
- After boiling, cool the wort to 12°C (54°F) using a wort chiller or by placing the kettle in an ice bath.
- Transfer the cooled wort to a fermenter and pitch the Wyeast 2278 Czech Pils Yeast. Seal the fermenter with an airlock and ferment the beer for 5 weeks at 12°C (54°F).
- After 5 weeks, transfer the beer to a secondary fermenter or keg and condition for 4 weeks at 3°C (37°F).
- Carbonate the beer by adding priming sugar to the bottles or force carbonate in a keg.
- Enjoy your Japanese Rice Lager!
Get the fermentation temperature right on Japanese Rice Lager and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Japanese Rice Lager the Style It Is
Japanese Rice Lager sits in a well-established style family, and the version most homebrewers land on today reflects decades of small adjustments by brewers chasing balance rather than novelty.
Expect a beer that leans on pilsner malt and sorachi ace 14.9% once it is finished conditioning. Wyeast 2278 Czech Pils is the yeast strain behind that profile, so keep an eye on your fermentation temperature.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 4.5-5.5%
- Bitterness: 18-30 IBU
- Color: 3-6 (pale gold)
- Serving temp: 40-45F (4-7C)
- Glassware: a pilsner or mug
- Food pairings: grilled chicken, tacos, light appetizers
Common Questions
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes, the grain bill and hop schedule scale linearly with batch size. Just make sure your equipment, mash tun and boil kettle both, can actually handle the volume you are scaling to.
What is the biggest mistake homebrewers make with this style?
Rushing the schedule. Pulling a beer off yeast too early or skipping conditioning time is the most common way to shortchange a recipe like this one.
Can I substitute a different yeast strain?
You can, but expect the flavor profile to shift. Stick close to the same yeast family (English ale, American ale, Belgian, lager, etc.) if you want a result close to what this recipe is aiming for.
Keep Exploring
Once you have this one down, here are a few more homebrew recipes worth trying next:
Browse the full homebrew recipe collection for more styles, or if you are just getting into the hobby, start with one of our homebrewing starter kits for new brewers.
This recipe is for adults of legal drinking age. Please brew and drink responsibly, and always sanitize your equipment thoroughly to avoid infection.
