ESB recipe - comments?

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

TrannyRock

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2009
Messages
58
Reaction score
5
Location
Birmingham, AL
Having brewed 5 extract kits, I've decided it's time to branch out to designing my own recipes. I've been going nuts with the free trial of Beersmith and I think this recipe is going to be my first effort.



4 lbs Extra Light Dry Extract (3.0 SRM) Dry Extract 50.00 %

3 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 37.50 %
8.0 oz Biscuit Malt (23.0 SRM) Grain 6.25 %
8.0 oz Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 6.25 %

1.00 oz Chinook [13.00 %] (60 min) Hops 33.3 IBU
1.00 oz Progress [6.25 %] (10 min) Hops 5.8 IBU

1 Pkgs SafAle English Ale (DCL Yeast #S-04) Yeast-Ale


I'm going to try the stovetop partial mash promulgated by DeathBrewer. Then I suppose I'll primary for a week and secondary for another (maybe two).

Since I am very new at this, I thought I would seek comments on the recipe before I order my supplies.



Also:
I have several other recipes I plan to order at the same time to save on shipping - is it appropriate to post them here for feedback as well?
 
Youll definitely want to add some crystal malt in there. Probably between 0.5 and 1 lb. 40L or 60L with a british crystal being preferred. I'm also not sure the oats are really going to add anything. I recently made an ESB with 8 oz of biscuit/victory malt and it was borderline too much. You might want to cut it back to 4-6 oz. I've never used progress hops so I can't comment on those but s-04 is a good yeast choice.
 
I would skip the secondary and just keep it in primary for 2-3 weeks. If after that it isn't clear enough for you either crash cool it for a or add some gelatin for a week.
 
I'd also split up the Progress. Perhaps take .5 oz at 30 minutes and .5 oz at 10 or 5 minutes. I'd try to get both some flavor and aroma in there.

Where did you get Progress? It's not that common.
 
Adding the crystal was my first thought, and also I'll say that when I used biscuit I was surprised at how strong the flavor of it was for how little I used (.25lb).
 
Biscuit is awesome for this. I agree with Coastarine that it will stick out. 8 oz. is on the high side.
 
I'm drinking a Sierra Nevada ESB right now, which claims to have American and UK hops. I'm enjoying it!
 
Thanks for all the advice. As much forethough/time/money/etc. as I'm putting into this, I need to be producing some drinkable beer.

FYI - Austin Homebrew lists Progress hops in their catalog. That's where I'm ordering all this stuff from.
 
The Chinook are most certainly out of place; the bitterness from that hop can be quite harsh and off-putting. If you'd like to use a high-AA% variety, Galena is an excellent choice and quite clean. Progress is a good choice as well.

As far as the grain bill, I'd suggest trimming down to the Biscuit to just a few ounces to add a complementary touch without being overpowering. It's powerful stuff. I'm not sure that the oats will be adding anything, so I'd leave them out. You're missing a vital ingredient- crystal malt! Between a .5 lb and 1 lb will be perfect; my own ESB recipe uses both crystal 40L (8 oz)and 120L(4 oz).

What is your BU:GU ratio? I'd target a ratio of .80 for an ESB, perhaps slightly higher.
 
Back
Top