Ruby Mild Beer is not a complicated beer to brew, but it rewards attention to detail. Pale Malt forms the base of the mash here, and Golding 5.5% carries the hop character through to the glass.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Ruby Mild Beer |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.032-1.040 |
| Final Gravity | 1.008-1.012 |
| ABV | 3.0-3.8% |
| IBU | 12-25 |
| SRM | 10-25 (amber to dark brown) |
| Difficulty | Beginner |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Pale 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 Golding 5.5%. 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 · 22C (72F) Pitch Wyeast 1187 Ringwood Ale 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 · 3 weeks at 12C (54F) 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. Weyermann Chocolate Rye Malt 1 Lb)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Chinook Hop Pellets 8 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. LalBrew Nottingham Brewing Yeast (2 Pack), Make Beer at Home)
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. 3 Gallon Clear Glass Italian Carboy)
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Corn Sugar Dextrose Bottling Priming Sugar 1 lb Highly Fermentable N)
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. Deluxe Bottling Kit Craft a Brew Homebrew Bottler Equipment Home Bre)
- Pour it right when it’s ready: a tulip glass shows off the color and holds the aroma better than a straight pint glass
Serve It Right
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A Ruby Mild Beer is best served in a pint, 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 Brewmaster-42147-MB Flaked Corn (Maize), 1 Lb Bag (Pack of 10) |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter |
Priming Sugar |
Equipment |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Ruby Mild Beer
Equipment
- 1 Large pot or kettle (at least 30 liters)
- 1 Fermentation vessel (carboy or bucket, at least 30 liters)
- 1 Airlock and stopper for fermentation vessel
- 1 Immersion chiller or other cooling equipment
- 1 Thermometer (preferably with a range of 0-100°C or 32-212°F)
- 1 Hydrometer and test jar for measuring specific gravity
- 1 Mash tun or large container for mashing grains
- 1 Strainer or sieve for sparging and straining wort
- 1 Large spoon or paddle for stirring
- 1 Bottling bucket or kegging equipment for packaging the finished beer
- 1 Bottles or kegs for storing and serving the beer
- 1 Tubing and siphon for transferring beer between vessels
Ingredients
For the Mash, Liquor 12.3 Litres (21½ Pints), Mash Time 1 hr, Temperature 66°c/150 °F
- 10 lb Pale Malt Quantity 4.5kg
- 5½ oz Medium Crystal Malt Quantity 150g
- 5½ oz Chocolate Malt Quantity 150g
- 4½ oz Torrified Wheat Malt Quantity 125g
For the Boil, 27 Litres (47½ Pints), Boil Time 1 hr, 10 mins
- 1 oz (Hops) Golding 5.5% When to add, At start of boil (IBU 18.1)
- ½ oz (Hops) Golding 5.5% When to add, At turn off (IBU 0.0)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other, When to add, For last 15 mins of boil
To Ferment, 22°C (72°F), Conditioning at least 4 weeks at 12°C (54°F)
- 1 Wyeast 1187 Ringwood Ale
Instructions
Mash:
- In a large pot or kettle, heat the 12.3 liters of water to a temperature of 66°C/150°F.
- Add the grains to the water and stir well to ensure there are no lumps.
- Cover the pot and let it sit for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, strain the liquid (wort) from the grains and sparge with additional hot water to rinse out any remaining sugars.
Boil:
- In a large pot or kettle, bring 27 liters of water to a boil.
- Once the water is boiling, add 1 ounce of Golding hops and let it boil for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, turn off the heat and add 1/2 ounce of Golding hops and 1 tsp Protofloc.
- Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes.
Fermentation:
- Cool the wort to 22°C (72°F) and transfer it to a fermentation vessel.
- Pitch the Wyeast 1187 Ringwood Ale yeast and let the mixture ferment for 8 weeks.
- After fermentation is complete, condition the beer for at least 4 weeks at a temperature of 12°C (54°F) before serving.
Enjoy!
- Once the beer is properly conditioned, it's ready to drink.
- Serve it chilled and enjoy the delicious malty and chocolaty flavors of the Ruby Mild Beer.
Get the fermentation temperature right on Ruby Mild Beer and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Ruby Mild Beer the Style It Is
There is nothing exotic about the roots of Ruby Mild Beer, it grew out of practical brewing choices, local ingredients, and the tastes of the people drinking it.
What you get in the glass is a beer that leans on pale malt and golding 5.5%, with a finish shaped by Wyeast 1187 Ringwood Ale. Get the fermentation temperature right and the rest of the process is mostly patience.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 3.0-3.8%
- Bitterness: 12-25 IBU
- Color: 10-25 (amber to dark brown)
- Serving temp: 50-55F (10-13C)
- Glassware: a pint
- Food pairings: pub food, sausages, mild cheeses
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.
