Matrimonium Old Ale Recipe.. Any Ideas??

I am brewing an Old Ale as a wedding present for my brother. He specifically wanted a nice big Old Ale with very little hop character. Can anybody let me know if anything seems off?




Matrimonium

19A-Strong Ale-Old Ale



Wort Volume Before Boil: 6.60 US gals Wort Volume After Boil: 6.08 US gals
Expected OG: 1.087 SG
Expected FG: 1.020 SG
Apparent Attenuation: 75.5 %
Expected ABV: 9.0 %
Expected IBU (using Tinseth): 30.1 IBU
Expected Color (using Morey): 14.7 SRM
BU:GU ratio: 0.34 Approx Color:
Boil Duration: 90.0 mins
Fermentation Temperature: 66 degF


UK Pale Ale Malt 20.60 lb
US Caramel 40L Malt 1.80 lb
US Caramel 20L Malt 1.80 lb


UK Fuggle 4.5 % 2.40 oz 23.3 Loose Whole Hops 60 Min From End
UK Fuggle 4.5 % 1.92 oz 6.8 Loose Whole Hops 10 Min From End



White Labs WLP007-Dry English Ale



Mash Type: Full Mash

Schedule Name: Single Step Infusion (69C-156F)


Rest at 156 degF for 60 min


I am planning on putting it into secondary with bourbon soaked french oak spirals and cocoa nibs. :rockin:

Bump!

Why such a big late hop addition if you're going for low hop character? How long are you going to age this before serving/giving away?

You also have over 3.5lbs of crystal malt, which is going to give you a very high FG, given your OG and mash temp. I'm not saying you necessarily need to change this, but I would expect to see something around a 1.025-1.030 FG, just so you know. The oak will help to balance this, however, and the bitterness from the cocoa might do so as well.

At first glance, preboil volume of 6.6 gallons and final batch size of 6 gallons for a 90 minute boil seems off.

Might be some ideas for you here:
The OFFICIAL 11-11-11 Old Ale Thread - The HBT Anniversary Series

Love the fuggles. But I agree the late addition may give you more hops than you're after. Maybe go 1 oz at 20 min to put some flavor in there and remove the 10 minute addition. Keep the IBU 30 or less.