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Negra Modelo (Dark Mexican Lager) | Homebrew Recipe

This blog provides information for educational purposes only. Read our complete summary for more info.

The Negra Modelo is an OG favorite, and for good reason. It's a balanced easy drinker with a rich flavor and a hint of bitterness. This is a great beer for beginners and experienced brewers alike. Check out our video below where Ross and Kyle walk you through the steps of the brew day with the usual shenanigans (but this one's different because there are chips and queso, and queso makes everything better). Brewed with Pilsner malt, Tettnang and Hallertau hops, and Mexican lager yeast. You can't go wrong with this one. Check out the recipe and tell us what you think in the comments. 

 

Pinche cheve guey! 

 

Full Brew Day Video

This recipe is for a 5 gallon batch and it is tailored for our 10 gallon 120 volt brewing system. Watch us use it in the video below.

Benchmarks

  • SG: 1.043
  • FG: 1.012
  • ABV: 5.5%

Ingredients Needed

Grains

  • 8 lbs Pilsner Malt
  • 1 lbs 8 oz Vienna Malt
  • 4 oz Crystal 60 Malt
  • 2 oz Chocolate Malt

Hops

  • 2 oz Tettnang hops
  • 1 oz Hallertau hops

Yeast

Brew Day Instructions

Water

Fill your kettle with 7.22 gallons of water. Add a campden tablet to remove chlorine.

Mash

Finely crush your grain. Heat your water to 156F. This recipe calls for a 60 minute mash.

Hops

Once your mash is done, pull your grains, hook them above your kettle, and let them drain. While you’re waiting for your grains to drain, set your controller to 100% power to start a boil.

This recipe calls for a 60 minute boil with one hop addition:

  • 60 minute - 2 oz of Tettnang hops
  • 60 minute - 1 oz of Hallertau hops

Yeast and Fermentation

Once you've added all your hops, chill your wort to 68F, transfer to a fermenter, and pitch one pack of Mexican Lager Yeast (White Labs #WLP940).

We fermented this at room temperature for one week. To learn more about pressure fermenting, subscribe to our YouTube channel and check out our recent video on pressure fermentation.

Tasting

This is an easy drinker but it still has a nice hint of bitterness. Knock a few of these back with some chips and queso and - like Ross says -you'll be "havin' a nice time". You can really pick up on the pilsner malt and the hop flavor is nice and subtle. It's like being whisked off to Mexico, and you don't even have to leave your house!

We highly recommend you try this one out. It's a pretty straightforward recipe, great for brewers who are just starting out. Let us know what you think, and be sure to check out our video here. Salud!

If you like this recipe you'll like:

 

Portrait of Kyle Brown

Kyle Brown is the owner of Clawhammer Supply, a small scale distillation and brewing equipment company which he founded in 2009. His passion is teaching people about the many uses of distillation equipment as well as how to make beer at home. When he isn't brewing beer or writing about it, you can find him at his local gym or on the running trail.

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5 Comments

  • BW
    Comment Author: Bryan Walsh

    FYI this recipe seems to yield 1.043 SG, and with the potential for a FG of 1.012, the ABV is likely to be about 4.4 ABV. Not 5.5 as the article here states.

  • S
    Comment Author: Shreyas

    Hi!

    I loved the recipe and I brewed a smaller batch. Thank you for the recipe.

    Greetings from Canada:)

    Shre

  • D
    Comment Author: Dan

    How many gallons does this recipe yeild. 10 gals? I have a 5 gal system and will need to adjust the recipe. Yes, I want your cool system and need to save my pennies.

    Thanks… you guys are beautiful hoppy beer people !

    Dan

  • K
    Comment Author: KLH

    Hey, great video. Question though… do you have a water profile for this one, or is the recipe in brewfather?

  • R
    Comment Author: Rein

    Hi!
    Are the malts colors in your recipes given in lovibond or ebc degrees?
    i suppose, l is correct :)