Had my first taste of a MILD

I brewed a Black Cat Moorhouse clone and bottled it tonight, Having never tasted a British MILD I was unsure what to really expect except all you guys seemed to love it.

Well - after all the bottles were full and the bucket was starting to burp I poured out a glass and took a sip . . . . ok a gulp (sips are useless).

VERY VERY good.. sort of a smokey malty maybe molasses??? smooth

I can not wait for it to carb up a little (1.8oz corn sugar).

3.1%ABV which is a little low (mini mash got a little high - fixed that problem)

CHEERS

3.5lb Extra Pale LME

1.5lb Pale Ale Grain
10oz Chocolate Malt
0.5oz Peated Malt
6oz Crystal 60L

3/4 oz Fuggle 60 min
1/4oz Fuggle 15 min

White Labs English Ale 002

1.8 oz corn sugar carbing - could have gone 2oz I suppose

Milds are nice. I just bottled the NB mild ale kit last weekend. The ABV came out way low, too (~2.5% or so), because the Windsor ale yeast just didn't attenuate, but man, even the hydro samples tasted great. Can't wait for it to carb up.

I don't really like peated malt in a mild (nay- I really don't like peated malt at all). You did well by not overcarbing- it really destroys the delicacy of a well-balanced mild.

My 10der and Mild swap mild is very lightly carbonated and it's perfect.

This was my first experience with peated malt and my mind has now stored this away for another time. I can not think of another style that would use it but . . . . it's a tool I can whip out at some point if I want that smoky flavor.

I just ordered a clone recipe kit from Austin Homebrew for Black Cat. It was the price of the kit that made the decision for me...$20.99 or so. I was curious to know what their cheapest ingredient kit was and scoured their inventory. This was the only one at this price I believe. 'Twas a fun hunt.

Hopefully I'll be brewing it up by Thursday night. So how did your clone turn out after it carbed?

I just tried the first bottle of my Mild the other night, same yeast too, I was very happy with it. The only thing I'm bummed about is that it turned out more pale ale-colored, rather than a brown ale.

What's a good commercial mild to try?

Homercidal said:

What's a good commercial mild to try?

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I'm partial to both the Moorhouse Black Cat and Theakston Traditional Mild, if you can find them in your area. The BJCP has Motor City's Ghettoblaster listed as a commercial example.

SkinnyShamrock said:

I just tried the first bottle of my Mild the other night, same yeast too, I was very happy with it. The only thing I'm bummed about is that it turned out more pale ale-colored, rather than a brown ale.

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Keep in mind that there are Pale Milds as well. Basically you can think of Pale Mild as Ordinary Bitter with less hops bitterness and no flavor/aroma hops.

Bob

NQ3X said:

Keep in mind that there are Pale Milds as well. Basically you can think of Pale Mild as Ordinary Bitter with less hops bitterness and no flavor/aroma hops.

Bob

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Bob,

What might some benchmark traditional examples of a pale mild be? You know, for research!

Jason

flyangler18 said:

I'm partial to both the Moorhouse Black Cat and Theakston Traditional Mild, if you can find them in your area. The BJCP has Motor City's Ghettoblaster listed as a commercial example.

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Ahh, sweet! A Brown Mild was already on my short list of what to brew next.

Johnny9 said:

Ahh, sweet! A Brown Mild was already on my short list of what to brew next.

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I'll be brewing mine again this weekend!

flyangler18 said:

Bob,

What might some benchmark traditional examples of a pale mild be? You know, for research!

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Mine, of course.



Seriously, here's the AHA style listing:

English-Style Pale Mild Ale
English pale mild ales range from golden to amber in color. Malt flavor dominates the flavor profile with little hop bitterness or
flavor. Hop aroma can be light. Very low diacetyl flavors may be appropriate in this low-alcohol beer. Fruity-ester level is very low.
Chill haze is allowable at cold temperatures.

Original Gravity (ºPlato): 1.030-1.036 (7.5-9 ºPlato)
Apparent Extract/Final Gravity (ºPlato): 1.004-1.008 (1-2 ºPlato)
Alcohol by Weight (Volume): 2.7-3.2% (3.2-4.0%)
Bitterness (IBU): 10-20
Color SRM (EBC): 8-17 (16-34 EBC)

Unlike BJCP, AHA don't list benchmarks. Commercial examples are extremely difficult to find in USA. The vast majority of those are going to be brewpub offerings. Bottled or canned Mild of any type is hard to find here, and are usually not at their best; Mild is a style best consumed fresh, within sight of the brewery (a lot like Witbier).

The best pint I've ever had, Pale Mild or any other style, is Timothy Taylor's Golden Best. Chelsea Brewing Co.'s Standard Ale is probably the freshest example you'll find here in the Eastern USA, and it's a fairly good example of the style. The Ship Inn, NJ's first brewpub, brews a very fine Mild which is sort of in between Dark and Pale; if you ever want to check that one out, Jason, let me know, 'cos it's my local.

Cheers,

Bob

The Ship Inn, NJ's first brewpub, brews a very fine Mild which is sort of in between Dark and Pale; if you ever want to check that one out, Jason, let me know, 'cos it's my local.

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Quite possible, my good man! SWMBO and I will be in Philly the weekend after next seeing Ira Glass; perhaps we'll have chance to meet up after all.

Dunno what's on my agenda for that weekend. Shoot me a PM and we'll see about snagging some local HBTers for a meet-n-greet.

Edit: Dunno if The Ship will have Mild on at that time, but hell! Can't really go wrong there if you're into British stuff.

Bob

Grinder posted his recipe --- I'm a little leery of the peat ..... but how about some recipe posts on other Mild Ales

SleepySamSlim said:

Grinder posted his recipe --- I'm a little leery of the peat ..... but how about some recipe posts on other Mild Ales

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Certainly!

This is a 5 gallon batch:

OG 1.036
TG: 1.009
18 IBU
16 SRM

6 lbs Maris Otter
7 oz Crystal 60L
5 oz Crystal 120L
3.5 oz Pale Chocolate
2 oz Black Patent

.85 oz 5.5%AA Goldings @ 60 minutes

Mash high (158°) for 40 minutes; this will favor the long chain dextrins and get good 'chew' factor from this 3.5% ABV session ale.

Ferment at 68° with Wyeast 1028 London Ale yeast.

Carbonate to 1-1.5 volumes; use a carbonation chart for amounts. Do not go over 1.5 volumes- the carbonic bite will destroy the delicacy of this style.

Yea - my brew is one of the least popular of all my batches EXCEPT for one friend that is from England. She loves it.

Mine's under my drop-down.

Grinder12000 said:

Yea - my brew is one of the least popular of all my batches EXCEPT for one friend that is from England. She loves it.

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That's unfortunate, and quite the opposite with the reception that my mild receives!

I'm not sure people like the peat and the fact that the ABV is not in the 6 range!

Grinder12000 said:

I'm not sure people like the peat and the fact that the ABV is not in the 6 range!

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I like peatiness in my single malt, but generally abhor it in my beer. The single exception to that is Oskar Blues' Old Chub; there is just a hint of peated smoke there and it works nicely.

IMHO peated malt dosent have a place in a mild.

I have a very good one in my drop down. Give it a try and let me know.

It is similar to flyangler18's but with some biscuit and different % of crystal malts.

Reverend JC said:

IMHO peated malt dosent have a place in a mild.

I have a very good one in my drop down. Give it a try and let me know.

It is similar to flyangler18's but with some biscuit and different % of crystal malts.

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JC,

I'd love to swap a few with you and compare, since our recipes are so similar; I'm set to brew mine again this weekend.

Jason

Send me a pm with you address. Mine is bubbling away right now from sundays brew.