Owyhee Sagebrush Rim Amber Ale

Late sun on red rock and sage

An amber ale named for the Owyhee River, 6.5%, with wild sage and juniper, for a long evening on the canyon rim.

Brewed to order

Owyhee River amber ale wears a label of rust-red canyon walls, a gliding bird and clumps of sagebrush. It is coloured in burnt orange, cream and sage green, with wild sage and juniper berries in the recipe.

ABV: 6.4%
IBU: 32
Colour: 14SRM
OG to FG: 1.0641.015

Amber ale, 6.5% ABV
Wild sage and juniper berries
Toffee malt with a dry finish
32 IBU, 14 SRM copper colour
Rust, cream and sage green label

In the glass

14SRM

Toffee and toasted bread, a breath of sage, piney juniper, firm dry finish

Serve: 48°F in a nonic pint
Alongside: Smoked trout, grilled lamb, sharp cheddar

Red rock walls rise on both sides of the label. A bird hangs in the cream sky. Sagebrush sits low in the foreground, the same grey-green as the brush around the rim.

Toffee and toasted bread up front, then a breath of sage and a resinous pine note from the juniper. The finish is dry and firm. Open one when the light goes orange and the rods are leaning on the truck.

Juniper berries go in crushed, ten minutes from the end of the boil. Crack them right before they drop so the oils are bright, and leave the sage for flameout.

The numbers

6.4%Alcohol by volume

(1.064 − 1.015) × 131.25

32Bitterness, IBU

Bitterness only means anything against the style. This one is a American amber ale with sage and juniper.

14Colour, SRM

The swatch above is this number on the standard reference ramp, not an impression of it.

Gravity1.064 down to 1.015 — 77% apparent attenuation.

Details

River: Owyhee River
Style: amber ale
ABV: 6.5%
Tasting notes: toffee, toasted bread, wild sage, juniper, pine, dry finish
Colors: burnt orange, cream, rust red, sage green, dark brown

Make it yourself

A home brew day set up in a garage: kettle steaming on a burner, mash tun and chiller beside it.

At a glance

Style: American amber ale with sage and juniper
Gravity, OG → FG: 1.064 → 1.015
ABV: 6.4%Derived from OG and FG
Bitterness: 32 IBU
Colour: 14SRMdeep amber
Difficulty: Second batchthe sage and juniper need careful timing and a light hand.
First pint: 35 daysFrom brew day, including conditioning
Brew day: 2 h 10 minKettle on to kitchen clean. The rest is the yeast.
You supply: brew kettle, mash tun, fermenter with airlock, wort chiller, hydrometer, thermometer, sanitiser, bottling or kegging gear
Written for: 5 gal (18.9 L)
Efficiency assumed: 72%Brew-in-a-bag, full-volume. House guidance

Grain bill

6 malts · 12.31 lb for 5 gal

Piles of pale, amber and dark malted barley on a wooden bench beside a scale.

Milled grain, weighed for each batch size. The percentage is each malt's share of the grist and stays the same at every size.

Malt	% of grist	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
Pale 2-row	77.2%	2.38 lb (1.08 kg)	9.5 lb (4.31 kg)	28.5 lb (12.93 kg)
Munich	8.1%	4 oz (113 g)	1 lb (0.45 kg)	3 lb (1.36 kg)
Crystal 60L	8.1%	4 oz (113 g)	1 lb (0.45 kg)	3 lb (1.36 kg)
Victory	4.1%	2 oz (57 g)	8 oz (227 g)	1.5 lb (0.68 kg)
Crystal 120L	2%	1 oz (28 g)	4 oz (113 g)	12 oz (340 g)
Pale chocolate	0.5%	0.3 oz (7 g)	1 oz (28 g)	3 oz (85 g)
Total grain	100%	3.08 lb (1.4 kg)	12.31 lb (5.58 kg)	36.94 lb (16.75 kg)

Hop schedule

5 additions · 60 min boil

Whole green hop cones and hop pellets on slate, one cone split to show the yellow lupulin.

Pellet hops, weighed in grams. Boil times count down to the end of the boil, so 60 minutes means the first thing in the kettle.

Hop	Use	Time	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
Magnum	Boil	60 min	4.3 g (0.15 oz)	17 g (0.6 oz)	51 g (1.8 oz)
Cascade	Boil	10 min	7.1 g (0.25 oz)	28 g (1 oz)	85 g (3 oz)
Juniper berries, crushed	Boil	10 min	3.5 g (0.13 oz)	14 g (0.5 oz)	43 g (1.5 oz)
Dried wild sage	Boil	Flameout	1.8 g (0.06 oz)	7.1 g (0.25 oz)	21 g (0.75 oz)
Centennial	Boil	Flameout	7.1 g (0.25 oz)	28 g (1 oz)	85 g (3 oz)

Yeast and pitch

Wyeast 1272 American Ale II · 2 liquid packs for 5 gal

Wyeast 1272 American Ale II. Pitch at 64°F.

Yeast	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
Wyeast 1272 American Ale II	1 liquid pack	2 liquid packs	4 liquid packs

One pack per 5 gal, and one more above 1.060 OG in a batch over 3 gal. Never fewer than one. House guidance

Water

8.23 gal into the mash for 5 gal

Full-volume brew-in-a-bag: all the water goes in at the start and there is no sparge. Volumes are the total to heat, so the kettle has to hold the mash and still leave room to boil: the 12-pack kit sells a 5 gal stockpot and the 12×12 kit a 30 gal kettle for that.

Water	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
Into the mash	2.15 gal (8.1 L)	8.23 gal (31.2 L)	20.2 gal (76.5 L)
Boiled off	0.5 gal (1.9 L)	1.25 gal (4.7 L)	1.25 gal (4.7 L)
Held by the grain	0.25 gal (0.9 L)	0.98 gal (3.7 L)	2.96 gal (11.2 L)
Left as trub	0.15 gal (0.6 L)	1 gal (3.8 L)	1 gal (3.8 L)
Into the fermenter	1.25 gal (4.7 L)	5 gal (18.9 L)	15 gal (56.8 L)

Boil-off, grain absorption and trub are typical figures for a stovetop pot and a propane kettle, not measurements of your own gear. Brew once, note what you end up with, and adjust. House guidance

Water profile Moderate minerals with a balanced sulfate to chloride ratio keep the malt round and the hops crisp.

Mash

154°F · 60 min

The mash turns starch into sugar. Hold the temperature steady and the beer finishes the way the recipe intends.

Rest154°F for 60 minutes
Strike waterHeat to 164°F; the grain cools it to the rest temperature. House guidance
Mash-outRaise to 168°F and hold 10 minutes, then lift and drain the bag. House guidance

Mash ina warmer rest keeps the caramel body round

Boil

60 min · 5 hop additions

Hops go in on a countdown from the end of the boil. Early additions give bitterness; late ones give aroma.

Length60 minutes
60 minMagnum
10 minCascade
10 minJuniper berries, crushed
FlameoutDried wild sage
FlameoutCentennial
15 minA kettle fining (whirlfloc or Irish moss) clears the beer if you have one. House guidance

Chillto 64°Fpitch cool so the yeast stays quiet and clean

Fermentation

2 steps · first pint in 35 days

A glass fermenter of amber beer with foam on top and an airlock.

The recipe's own schedule, in order. Temperature control matters more than almost anything else on this page.

7 days at 64°F
3 days at 68°F to finish clean

First pint 35 days from brew day.

Packaging and carbonation

2.4 volumes CO₂ · bottle or keg

Plain aluminium cans and a small keg on a workbench beside a priming-sugar measure.

Target 2.4 volumes of CO₂.

Bottling	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
Corn sugar to prime	1.03 oz (29 g)	4.12 oz (117 g)	12.37 oz (351 g)
12 oz bottles it fills	12	50	144

Dissolve the sugar in a little boiled water, stir it gently into the beer, then bottle. The amount is worked out for 68°F, the warmest the beer got while it fermented.

Kegging Set the regulator to 10.2 psi at 38°F.

Kegging instead Skip the bottles with 3 × 5 gal ball-lock kegs, 1 × 5 lb CO₂ tank, 1 × dual-gauge regulator, 1 × gas and beer lines with picnic taps: the kegging upgrade for the 15 gal home brewery, $594.

Brewer's notes

3 tips

Crush the juniper berries just before they go in, so the resin is fresh.From the recipe
Add the sage at flameout only; boiled sage turns harsh.From the recipe
Taste at day 10 and give it the warm rise only if it still reads sweet.From the recipe

A fermenter, airlock, siphon, hydrometer, thermometer and bench capper. — The kit

Every kit size

Ingredients only

Ingredient kit · 12-pack batch

$30.29

$2.52 a bottle

Grain milled, hops bagged per addition, yeast, priming sugar and 12 caps, for 1.25 gal.

Includes Pale 2-row · Munich · Crystal 60L · Victory · and 12 more

Every item in this kit · 16 items

Ingredients

Pale 2-row$5.442.38 lb (1.08 kg) · Milled to order
Munich$0.654 oz (113 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 60L$0.724 oz (113 g) · Milled to order
Victory$0.362 oz (57 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 120L$0.181 oz (28 g) · Milled to order
Pale chocolate$0.050.3 oz (7 g) · Milled to order
Magnum (60 min)$1.504.3 g (0.15 oz)
Cascade (10 min)$1.507.1 g (0.25 oz)
Juniper berries, crushed (10 min)$1.503.5 g (0.13 oz)
Dried wild sage (flameout)$1.501.8 g (0.06 oz)
Centennial (flameout)$1.507.1 g (0.25 oz)
Wyeast 1272 American Ale II$11.991 pack · Liquid yeast, shipped cold
Milling and kitting$31

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$0.401 oz · Primes to 2.4 volumes of CO₂
Crown capsIncluded12

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

Ingredient kit · 12×12 batch

$195.78

$1.36 a bottle

Grain milled, hops bagged per addition, yeast, priming sugar and 144 caps, for 15 gal.

Includes Pale 2-row · Munich · Crystal 60L · Victory · and 12 more

Every item in this kit · 16 items

Ingredients

Pale 2-row$65.2728.5 lb (12.93 kg) · Milled to order
Munich$7.773 lb (1.36 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 60L$8.673 lb (1.36 kg) · Milled to order
Victory$4.341.5 lb (0.68 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 120L$2.1712 oz (340 g) · Milled to order
Pale chocolate$0.543 oz (85 g) · Milled to order
Magnum (60 min)$7.1851 g (1.8 oz)
Cascade (10 min)$11.9785 g (3 oz)
Juniper berries, crushed (10 min)$5.9943 g (1.5 oz)
Dried wild sage (flameout)$2.9921 g (0.75 oz)
Centennial (flameout)$11.9785 g (3 oz)
Wyeast 1272 American Ale II$47.964 packs · Liquid yeast, shipped cold
Milling and kitting$81

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$4.9612.4 oz · Primes to 2.4 volumes of CO₂
Crown caps$6144

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

Complete home brewery

Complete home brewery · 12-pack batch

$224.11

$18.68 a bottle

Bought separately $245.65 · you save $21.54

All the equipment, then the ingredient kit, for 1.25 gal. Works on a kitchen stove.

Includes 5 gal stainless stockpot · Fine-mesh brew bag · 1.5 gal glass fermenter with drilled bung · 3-piece airlock · and 26 more

Every item in this kit · 30 items

Equipment

5 gal stainless stockpot$49.991
Fine-mesh brew bag$9.991
1.5 gal glass fermenter with drilled bung$17.991
3-piece airlock$2.491
No-rinse sanitizer, 4 oz$12.991
Hydrometer and test jar$15.991
Digital probe thermometer$14.991
Mini auto-siphon with tubing$13.991
Spring-tip bottle filler$5.991
12 oz amber bottles$16.9912
Wing capper$19.991
Brewery wash, 1 lb$9.991
0.1 g kitchen scale$14.991
Long stainless spoon$8.991

Ingredients

Pale 2-row$5.442.38 lb (1.08 kg) · Milled to order
Munich$0.654 oz (113 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 60L$0.724 oz (113 g) · Milled to order
Victory$0.362 oz (57 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 120L$0.181 oz (28 g) · Milled to order
Pale chocolate$0.050.3 oz (7 g) · Milled to order
Magnum (60 min)$1.504.3 g (0.15 oz)
Cascade (10 min)$1.507.1 g (0.25 oz)
Juniper berries, crushed (10 min)$1.503.5 g (0.13 oz)
Dried wild sage (flameout)$1.501.8 g (0.06 oz)
Centennial (flameout)$1.507.1 g (0.25 oz)
Wyeast 1272 American Ale II$11.991 pack · Liquid yeast, shipped cold
Milling and kitting$31

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$0.401 oz · Primes to 2.4 volumes of CO₂
Crown capsIncluded12

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

Complete home brewery · 12×12 batch

$1,291.78

$8.97 a bottle

Bought separately $1,413.56 · you save $121.78

All the equipment, then the ingredient kit, for 15 gal. You supply a propane tank and water.

Includes 30 gal stainless kettle with ball valve and thermometer · 72 · 30 gal brew bag · 50 ft copper immersion chiller · and 29 more

Every item in this kit · 33 items

Equipment

30 gal stainless kettle with ball valve and thermometer$3991
72,000 BTU propane burner and stand$991
30 gal brew bag$44.991
50 ft copper immersion chiller$1291
7.9 gal fermenting buckets with lids and airlocks$89.973
No-rinse sanitizer, 32 oz$32.991
Brewery wash, 4 lb$34.991
Hydrometer and test jar$15.991
Refractometer$29.991
Digital thermometer$24.991
½" auto-siphon with tubing$24.991
Bottling buckets with spigots$55.982
Bottle filler$5.991
12 oz amber bottles (6 cases)$119.94144
Bench capper$59.991
Mash paddle$24.991
Digital scale$24.991

Ingredients

Pale 2-row$65.2728.5 lb (12.93 kg) · Milled to order
Munich$7.773 lb (1.36 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 60L$8.673 lb (1.36 kg) · Milled to order
Victory$4.341.5 lb (0.68 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 120L$2.1712 oz (340 g) · Milled to order
Pale chocolate$0.543 oz (85 g) · Milled to order
Magnum (60 min)$7.1851 g (1.8 oz)
Cascade (10 min)$11.9785 g (3 oz)
Juniper berries, crushed (10 min)$5.9943 g (1.5 oz)
Dried wild sage (flameout)$2.9921 g (0.75 oz)
Centennial (flameout)$11.9785 g (3 oz)
Wyeast 1272 American Ale II$47.964 packs · Liquid yeast, shipped cold
Milling and kitting$81

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$4.9612.4 oz · Primes to 2.4 volumes of CO₂
Crown caps$6144

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

The creator

Sunny Bhalo

@sunnybhalo

Fishes the Owyhee River.

See everything by @sunnybhalo

How it was made

1 iteration led here; the saved one is marked

1 Saved

Remixes

No remixes yet — make your own version.

Where this came from

“a beer brewed for Owyhee River, Oregon”

river beer · made October 29, 2026

0 — nothing entered the score yet, at the Derby's published weights, since October 29, 2026. Views are not counted.

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