Centennial Blonde Recipe (All-Grain): 5 to 30 Gallons
An all-grain Centennial Blonde recipe you can brew at 5 to 30 gallons: 4.1% ABV and 20 IBU, with the grain bill, hop schedule, yeast and step-by-step process.
In this post
Centennial Blonde at a glance: 4.1% ABV, 20 IBU, OG 1.040. A light, crisp 4% blonde ale with a gentle Centennial bitterness and a touch of Cascade. It’s one of the most-brewed homebrew recipes of all time, because nearly everyone likes it.
Recipe credit: Centennial Blonde by BierMuncher on HomeBrewTalk, the #1 recipe on HomeBrewTalk’s all-time Top 100. We’ve put it in our recipe card, scaled to 5 gallons at 72% efficiency, and kept the brewer’s gravity and hop schedule. See the original for the brewer’s own notes and the discussion.
Bräu Supply recipe · All-grain
Centennial Blonde
Grain · for 5 gal into the fermenter
| 6.7 lb (3.04 kg) | Pale 2-row malt | 80% |
| 0.7 lb (0.32 kg) | Carapils | 8% |
| 0.5 lb (0.23 kg) | Crystal 10 | 6% |
| 0.5 lb (0.23 kg) | Vienna malt | 6% |
Hops
| 0.25 oz (7 g) | Centennial · 9.5% AA | 55 min |
| 0.25 oz (7 g) | Centennial · 9.5% AA | 35 min |
| 0.25 oz (7 g) | Cascade · 7.8% AA | 20 min |
| 0.25 oz (7 g) | Cascade · 7.8% AA | 5 min |
Yeast and water
| 1 pkg | Nottingham dry ale yeast (or US-05) | |
| Water | Balanced water. | |
Process
- Mash: 150°F (66°C) for 60 minutes
- Boil: 60 minutes
- Ferment: 64 to 66°F (18 to 19°C) for 10 to 14 days
- Condition: Cold crash and package; ready in about 3 weeks
- Carbonate: 2.5 volumes of CO₂
Brew it on
Based on 72% brewhouse efficiency and about 5.5 gal after the boil for a 5 gal batch. Adjust the base malt if your system runs higher or lower. Hops scale in a straight line; larger kettles extract a little more bitterness.
About this recipe
The brewer’s idea was simple: pair Centennial for bittering with Cascade for flavour and aroma, keep the IBUs low, and let a light, clean malt bill carry it. Carapils and a little crystal and Vienna give it more body and colour than a 4% beer usually has.
How to brew it
- Mash at 150°F (66°C) for 60 minutes.
- Boil 60 minutes, adding the hops on schedule.
- Chill to 64°F (18°C), oxygenate and pitch the yeast.
- Ferment at 64 to 66°F (18 to 19°C) until the gravity is stable.
- Cold crash for a day or two to clear it.
- Package at about 2.5 volumes of CO₂.
Tips
- This is the beer to brew for friends who “don’t like craft beer”. Serve it cold and fresh.
- It’s also a great first recipe on a new system: simple, forgiving and quick to drink.
Frequently asked questions
Why is it called Centennial Blonde?
Because of the hops: Centennial for bitterness, with Cascade late in the boil.
Can I use US-05 instead of Nottingham?
Yes. Both are clean, fast American-style ale yeasts.