Next Step for Improving my Mild

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Chip

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Good day all.

I have a this recipe for a simple mild ale that I enjoy. Having said that everything can be improved and tweaked for a different brew. What suggestions can be offered to make some changes. I enjoy a malty and slightly sweet ale as opposed to a more bitter or hoppy beer.

6 lb Pale Liquid Extract
1 lb Crystal Malt - 60L
.75 oz Glacier for 60 min
.75 Glacier for 15 min
1 pk Nottingham yeast

OG for this has been consistent at 1.038 with FG at 1.008. My last batch I pitched on top of a yeast cake from the same recipe and it has a much smoother after taste - better brew. I regenerate the dry yeast in just water for about 30 min before pitching.

I use dry malt for priming but the next batch will be going into a Tap-a-Draft set up.

Thanks in advance for your comments and suggestions.

I use the late extract technique with about 1 lb of extract going in the boil for the full 60 min with the remainder going in for 15 min.
 
yeah, i'd definitely switch out the glacier for some fuggle and add a small amount of chocolate malt. orfy knows what he's talking about ;)

you may also want to try a slightly different yeast. nottingham ferments out very dry and has very little character to add. a different british ale yeast or american ale yeast might be good for leaving some residual sweetness and character.
 
+2 add some nice english hops (Fuggles, East Kent Goldings) for your 15 minute addition, say about .5 oz. And get yourself an english yeast to leave some sweetness.
 
You could try a different yeast strain, like the Safale S-04. I believe it's slightly less attenuating than Nottingham. You could experiment with different grains; I've used a small amount of Special B myself. 2 ounces of chocolate malt and 2 ounces of roasted barley gives it a lovely deep ruby colour.
 
I've made a decent mild using Windsor yeast, but you need to baby it through fermentation in my experience. Orfy definitely knows his milds so be sure to give his Mild Mannered Ale a try - it's a definite winner.
 
Thanks for the advice and help. I used Orfy's recipe as the starting point and excluded the chocolate malt as I wanted a lighter color. My local shop did not have Fuggles and they recommended the Glacier as a substitute.

I am trying to work my taste bud education bit by bit so I will start the next batch with different hops, then different yeast, and then add in the chocolate.
 
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