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I've got a recipe for a wild strawberry blonde (I recently asked for tips on prepping fresh strawberries). Well, I'm finally going to brew this, but...corn?

The blonde recipe I'm looking at right now has ±1.125# of flaked corn.

Tips and thoughts on a grain substitute? Any general tips or resource links on grain substitution is also welcome.

Disclaimer

I get it, corn is a respectable adjunct. But it's also the characteristic of many lagers and pilsners I dislike the most. And 20+ years of homebrewing (on and off) and appreciating craft beer, corn on the nose and palate really turn me off.

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Sound more like a Cream Ale recipe, Blonde Ale shouldn't have corn. It can be up to 25% wheat though, I would replace the flaked corn with flaked wheat, or just 2-row to remove it completely.

I've done this Strawberry Blonde before, it turned out nice. Used real strawberries, ditched the fruit extract, did all grain. Recipe is in the dl docs. https://www.morebeer.com/products/strawberry-blonde-ale-grain-beer-kit.html

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  • +1 for the recipe link! My recipe is "cloud-sourced" from beersmith, so I expected some understanding between cream and blonde, but the quality of some recipes I've found appear to be hacks—in the computer sense of messing around with code vs. being an inexperienced collection of ingredients.
    – javafueled
    Commented May 10, 2016 at 13:28
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I think wheat when I think fruit beers. So I'd say 1:1 replacement with wheat. You could experiment with traditional malted, flaked or torrified wheat. In some ways, the are similar in others they are not. I like torrified wheat used in small amounts like you need here as a substitute.

I'd also suggest table sugar at a lower replacement ratio. This would keep the beer dry like with the corn, but without the corn flavor contribution.

You could also just go with more base malt without too much trouble.

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There is absolutely nothing wrong with using corn in a blonde ale in this circumstance. Strawberries have a very subtle flavor on beer and you usually need to use in excess of 1 lb. per gallon to get any flavor from them at all. The corn will add little to no flavor, but it will cut the malt flavor and let the strawberry flavor come through more. If you really object to the corn, I'd recommend using table sugar in an amount that would give you the same gravity contribution.

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