Steve973
Well-Known Member
Hey all,
It has been a while since I last posted, but I have not given up on brewing at all. So far, my best beer has been a slight approximation of an English barleywine. My friend and I had originally intended to brew an ESB, but I bought a lot of extra Maris Otter pale malt, and we decided to use all of it and make a stronger beer. Here is what we used:
15.0 lbs Maris Otter Pale
3.0 lbs Belgian Biscuit
2.0 lbs 40L Crystal
1.0 oz Northern Brewer @ 60 minutes
1.0 oz Northern Brewer @ 45 minutes
1.0 oz Kent Goldings @ 30 minutes
1.0 oz Kent Goldings @ 15 minutes
Specs:
OG 1.090
FG 1.023
Color 18.0 SRM
Alcohol 9%
Bitterness 72 IBU
This beer is certainly clean and tasty, but it lacks the malt aroma and flavor of a real English barleywine, and it could use a bit more mouthfeel to be truer to the style. JW Lee's Harvest Ale, in its many incarnations, is a good inspiration for an English barleywine. Mine definitely lacks the caramel/toffee/raisin flavor that makes Lee's so interesting. I'm thinking of ramping the base malt up to about 18 lbs and adding a bunch more crystal. Any other suggestions?
It has been a while since I last posted, but I have not given up on brewing at all. So far, my best beer has been a slight approximation of an English barleywine. My friend and I had originally intended to brew an ESB, but I bought a lot of extra Maris Otter pale malt, and we decided to use all of it and make a stronger beer. Here is what we used:
15.0 lbs Maris Otter Pale
3.0 lbs Belgian Biscuit
2.0 lbs 40L Crystal
1.0 oz Northern Brewer @ 60 minutes
1.0 oz Northern Brewer @ 45 minutes
1.0 oz Kent Goldings @ 30 minutes
1.0 oz Kent Goldings @ 15 minutes
Specs:
OG 1.090
FG 1.023
Color 18.0 SRM
Alcohol 9%
Bitterness 72 IBU
This beer is certainly clean and tasty, but it lacks the malt aroma and flavor of a real English barleywine, and it could use a bit more mouthfeel to be truer to the style. JW Lee's Harvest Ale, in its many incarnations, is a good inspiration for an English barleywine. Mine definitely lacks the caramel/toffee/raisin flavor that makes Lee's so interesting. I'm thinking of ramping the base malt up to about 18 lbs and adding a bunch more crystal. Any other suggestions?