Mexican-Style Lager

This recipe is for a Corona-style Mexican light lager beer. The recipe came from Mike Williams of American Brewmaster in Raleigh.

About two hours before you plan on making the beer, make a yeast starter. In a small pot, bring 2-3 cups of water to a boil. Dissolve in about one tablespoon of malt extract and boil for a minute or two. Put on the lid, remove it from the heat, and let it cool. When room temparature, put in a mason jar and add the yeast. By the time you're done making the beer, your yeast should be very bubbly and active. When recipe calls for you to pitch the yeast, pour the contents of the jar into the fermenter. This gives the yeast a head start, which reduces the probability of any undesireable organisms contaminating your beer.

Put 1 GAL water into boiling pot, add malt extract, rice syrup, Irish Moss, and boiling hops. Bring to boil, reduce heat, boil for 15 minutes.

Add Finishing Hops. Boil 5 more minutes.

Remove from heat, cool, add to fermenter with enough water to make 5 gallons. Add aromatic hops to fermenter. Pitch the yeast when it feels cool to the touch.

When fermentation is complete, bottle with 1/2 TSP priming sugar per bottle. Age for at least 10 days.