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Styles · California Common

Beer style · BJCP 2021 19B

California Common

Amber and Brown American Beer

Published ranges These are the ranges the BJCP 2021 guidelines publish for this style.

Original gravity
1.048–1.054
Final gravity
1.011–1.014
Bitterness
30–45 IBU
Color
10–14 SRM (20–28 EBC)
Alcohol
4.5–5.5 % ABV

What it is

A lager yeast fermented warm in shallow vessels, giving a beer that is mostly clean but carries a light fruity lift. Toasty amber malt meets the rustic, minty-woody bite of American Northern Brewer hops.

Flavor

What a California Common should taste like, on the three wheels the studio scores every recipe against. The shaded ring is the style’s range on each axis, from 0 at the center to 5 at the edge.

Hops

Herbal and resin/pine, with room for earthy/woody, floral or spice.

Malt

Grainy, toasty and caramel, with room for bready/biscuit or sweet/honey.

Fermentation

Clean, with room for fruity esters.

Hops that suit it

The traditional choice

What California Common has classically been brewed with.

Also right on character

Varieties whose loudest notes all sit on this style’s hop wheel, best fit first. How much to use is the recipe’s question; these are the ones that taste right.

And 27 more hops whose character fits. These are the 24 that fit best.

Yeasts that suit it

Strains the lab made for beers like this one, whose fermentation character sits inside the style’s wheel. A strain sold by several labs is listed once; its page names the others.

And 78 more yeasts whose character fits. These are the 24 that fit best.

Style numbers, names and vital statistics are from the BJCP 2021 Beer Style Guidelines, where you will find the official descriptions. The descriptions and flavor wheels here are Beerwright’s own. Beerwright is not affiliated with or endorsed by the BJCP.