White River Trout Cream Ale

Mist lifting off the bluffs at first light

A 5.1% cream ale named for the White River, honeyed and dry, for slow evenings on the dock.

Brewed to order

White River Trout Cream Ale carries a label of spotted trout gliding through clear blue-green water. The label is tan and cream with white lettering, sage reeds and pale river stones.

ABV: 5.1%
IBU: 25
Colour: 14SRM
OG to FG: 1.0511.012

Cream ale, 5.1% ABV, 25 IBU
Toasted bread, honey and sweet corn
Flaked corn for a light, dry body
Spotted trout in blue-green river water
Cream and tan label, white lettering

In the glass

A glass of Cream Ale: brilliant very pale straw, white head.

14SRM

Toasted bread, honey and sweet corn, a light caramel middle, gentle herbal bitterness, dry finish

Serve: 40°F in a straight pint glass
Alongside: Pan-fried fish, cornbread, smoked cheddar

Two spotted trout drift through blue-green water on a cream label, with reeds and smooth stones along the bank. Behind them, the White River runs glassy and green under limestone bluffs, mist still hanging in the trees.

It pours a deep honey colour with a soft white head. Toasted bread and sweet corn up front, a little caramel in the middle, then a clean, dry finish with a quiet herbal bite. Open one when the rods are packed away and the light goes gold.

Flaked corn is the quiet hero here. Stir it well into a 150°F mash and it lightens the body, so the crystal malt reads as honey instead of syrup.

The numbers

5.1%Alcohol by volume

(1.051 − 1.012) × 131.25

25Bitterness, IBU

Bitterness only means anything against the style. This one is a Cream ale.

14Colour, SRM

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

Gravity1.051 down to 1.012 — 76% apparent attenuation.

Named for the White River

Ozarks, North Arkansas · AR

The water it is named for

Water type: Tailwater

Details

River: White River
Style: cream ale
ABV: 5.1%
Tasting notes: toasted bread, honey, sweet corn, light caramel, herbal hops, dry finish
Colors: cream, tan, white, sage green, slate blue, golden 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: Cream ale
Gravity, OG → FG: 1.051 → 1.012
ABV: 5.1%Derived from OG and FG
Bitterness: 25 IBU
Colour: 14SRMdeep amber
Difficulty: Second batchthe cool fermentation and long cold rest ask for steady temperature control.
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, wort chiller, fermenter with airlock, thermometer, hydrometer, fridge or chamber with temperature control, bottling bucket or kegging setup, sanitiser
Written for: 5 gal (18.9 L)
Efficiency assumed: 72%Brew-in-a-bag, full-volume. House guidance

Grain bill

5 malts · 9.88 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	65.8%	1.63 lb (0.74 kg)	6.5 lb (2.95 kg)	19.5 lb (8.85 kg)
Flaked corn	15.2%	6 oz (170 g)	1.5 lb (0.68 kg)	4.5 lb (2.04 kg)
Crystal 60	10.1%	4 oz (113 g)	1 lb (0.45 kg)	3 lb (1.36 kg)
Victory	5.1%	2 oz (57 g)	8 oz (227 g)	1.5 lb (0.68 kg)
Crystal 120	3.8%	1.5 oz (43 g)	6 oz (170 g)	1.13 lb (0.51 kg)
Total grain	100%	2.47 lb (1.12 kg)	9.88 lb (4.48 kg)	29.63 lb (13.44 kg)

Hop schedule

2 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
Cluster	Boil	60 min	7.1 g (0.25 oz)	28 g (1 oz)	85 g (3 oz)
Liberty	Boil	10 min	3.5 g (0.13 oz)	14 g (0.5 oz)	43 g (1.5 oz)

Yeast and pitch

SafAle US-05 · 1 dry pack for 5 gal

SafAle US-05. Pitch at 60°F.

Yeast	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
SafAle US-05	1 dry pack	1 dry pack	3 dry 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

8.04 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	2.1 gal (7.9 L)	8.04 gal (30.4 L)	19.62 gal (74.3 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	0.2 gal (0.7 L)	0.79 gal (3 L)	2.37 gal (9 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 Soft to moderate water with chloride and sulfate in balance suits the round malt and light hops.

Mash

150°F · 60 min

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

Rest150°F for 60 minutes
Strike waterHeat to 160°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 cooler rest keeps the finish dry under the crystal malt

Boil

60 min · 2 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 minCluster
10 minLiberty
15 minA kettle fining (whirlfloc or Irish moss) clears the beer if you have one. House guidance

Chillto 60°Fa cool start keeps the yeast quiet and the beer clean

Fermentation

3 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 62°F
3 days at 66°F
2 days at 34°F

First pint 35 days from brew day.

Packaging and carbonation

2.6 volumes CO₂ · bottle or keg

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

Target 2.6 volumes of CO₂.

Bottling	12-pack batch · 1.25 gal	Classic · 5 gal	12×12 batch · 15 gal
Corn sugar to prime	1.15 oz (32 g)	4.58 oz (130 g)	13.74 oz (390 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 66°F, the warmest the beer got while it fermented.

Kegging Set the regulator to 12.3 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

Stir the flaked corn well into the mash so it never clumps.From the recipe
Keep the first three days of fermentation at 62°F for a clean, soft profile.From the recipe
Give the cold conditioning its full two weeks; the beer brightens and smooths out.From the recipe

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

Every kit size

Ingredients only

Ingredient kit · 12-pack batch

$19.08

$1.59 a bottle

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

Includes Pale 2-row · Flaked corn · Crystal 60 · Victory · and 8 more

Every item in this kit · 12 items

Ingredients

Pale 2-row$3.721.63 lb (0.74 kg) · Milled to order
Flaked corn$1.086 oz (170 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 60$0.724 oz (113 g) · Milled to order
Victory$0.362 oz (57 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 120$0.271.5 oz (43 g) · Milled to order
Cluster (60 min)$1.507.1 g (0.25 oz)
Liberty (10 min)$1.503.5 g (0.13 oz)
SafAle US-05$6.491 pack · Dry yeast
Milling and kitting$31

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$0.441.1 oz · Primes to 2.6 volumes of CO₂
Crown capsIncluded12

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

Ingredient kit · 12×12 batch

$130.84

$0.91 a bottle

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

Includes Pale 2-row · Flaked corn · Crystal 60 · Victory · and 8 more

Every item in this kit · 12 items

Ingredients

Pale 2-row$44.6619.5 lb (8.85 kg) · Milled to order
Flaked corn$13.014.5 lb (2.04 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 60$8.673 lb (1.36 kg) · Milled to order
Victory$4.341.5 lb (0.68 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 120$3.251.13 lb (0.51 kg) · Milled to order
Cluster (60 min)$11.9785 g (3 oz)
Liberty (10 min)$5.9943 g (1.5 oz)
SafAle US-05$19.473 packs · Dry yeast
Milling and kitting$81

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$5.4813.7 oz · Primes to 2.6 volumes of CO₂
Crown caps$6144

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

Complete home brewery

Complete home brewery · 12-pack batch

$212.90

$17.74 a bottle

Bought separately $234.44 · 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 22 more

Every item in this kit · 26 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$3.721.63 lb (0.74 kg) · Milled to order
Flaked corn$1.086 oz (170 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 60$0.724 oz (113 g) · Milled to order
Victory$0.362 oz (57 g) · Milled to order
Crystal 120$0.271.5 oz (43 g) · Milled to order
Cluster (60 min)$1.507.1 g (0.25 oz)
Liberty (10 min)$1.503.5 g (0.13 oz)
SafAle US-05$6.491 pack · Dry yeast
Milling and kitting$31

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$0.441.1 oz · Primes to 2.6 volumes of CO₂
Crown capsIncluded12

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

Complete home brewery · 12×12 batch

$1,226.84

$8.52 a bottle

Bought separately $1,348.62 · 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 25 more

Every item in this kit · 29 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$44.6619.5 lb (8.85 kg) · Milled to order
Flaked corn$13.014.5 lb (2.04 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 60$8.673 lb (1.36 kg) · Milled to order
Victory$4.341.5 lb (0.68 kg) · Milled to order
Crystal 120$3.251.13 lb (0.51 kg) · Milled to order
Cluster (60 min)$11.9785 g (3 oz)
Liberty (10 min)$5.9943 g (1.5 oz)
SafAle US-05$19.473 packs · Dry yeast
Milling and kitting$81

Packaging

Corn sugar for priming$5.4813.7 oz · Primes to 2.6 volumes of CO₂
Crown caps$6144

Guide

Printed brew guideIncluded1

The creator

John

@john

Tight line, quiet feet, zero slack.

See everything by @john

Remixes

No remixes yet — make your own version.

Where this came from

river beer · made September 16, 2026

0 — nothing entered the score yet, at the Derby's published weights, since September 16, 2026. Views are not counted.

cream ale
white river
trout
fly fishing
homebrew recipe
flaked corn
craft beer
river
limestone bluffs
morning mist