Help with Best Bitter recipe

[Sachibachi]

Hi,

I want to brew an English bitter and am trying to design a recipe based on the limited ingredients I have available. I am fairly new to brewing so I may be way off the mark which is why I would love some feedback/suggestions. I'm looking for something on the higher malt scale with a bit of body, but not too much as I would like it to be an easily drinkable one, and with nice, but not overpowering, hop aroma in the finish. This is what I have so far:

Grain:
6.6lb amber liquid extract 91.7%
8oz munich malt 7%
1.6oz chocolate malt 1.4%

Hops:
60min: 1.25 Northern Brewer 8.5%aa
15min: 0.75 Fuggles 4.5%aa
5min: 0.5 Fuggles 4.5%aa
Flameout: 1oz East Kent Golding 5%aa

Safale S-04

Beersmith gives me the following numbers:
ABV 4.4% (OG: 1.046)
IBU: 37.2
Color: 13.6


I'm stuck with amber liquid extract unfortunately as that's all I have. It is from Brupaks which I think is similar to Munton's but I have no idea what its composition is. I also have some crystal malt but was thinking that the amber extract is probably already taking care of that so shouldn't add any more?

I also have some flaked oats; but not sure these would fit this recipe.

I have never used fuggles before so would be interested to hear what you think of the hop additions. I've seen one recipe online that uses EKG at 15min and Fuggles for dry hoping. Should I swap round the EKG and Fuggle additions in mine?

Thanks

 

[JKaranka]

You need to mash the Munich. Fuggles is nice: Earthy and spicy. EKG is more floral with that typical subtle orange flavour. I'd consider only amber LME and the oz of Chocolate malt. Doesn't amber already have crystal malt in it?

 

[Sachibachi]

I usually steep the Munich for 30min at 165F in a brew bag. Is this not good? I was thinking of adding Munich just to give a slightly more complex body but do you think it's not right for this recipe?

I definitely want some slight floral notes in the flavour so have re-thought the late additions to:
15min: 0.75oz fuggles
5min:0.5oz fuggles
5min: 0.5oz EKG
Flameout: 0.5oz EKG
Would love to know your thoughts on this. Will the two hops balance out well with these additions?

I boil 4.0 gal and then top up with 1.5gal for a total of 5gal in the fermenter.

 

[Sachibachi]

OK I've been doing some reading and i now grasp the difference between mashing and steeping which i didn't before! I will keep the grains to amber extract and chocolate. Any thoughts on the hop additions?

 

[JKaranka]

I'd split the 5m addition into 15m and flameout. With bitters I like late hops but just enough. Fuggles /EKG is classic. Just aim for the spice to floral ratio you like. Fuggles can be more refreshing.

 

[Sachibachi]

Thanks for all your help with this; it is very useful. I think I will go for more fuggles in the flavor and more EKG in the aroma if that makes sense. So:

15min: 1oz Fuggles, 0.5oz EKG
Flameout: 0.75oz EKG, 0.25oz Fuggles

In terms of total quantity of hops, does 1.5oz at 15 and 1oz at flameout seem good or a bit much for the style?

 

[JKaranka]

Seems fine. You can dial from there. Lots of bitters are pale and hoppy, while this one would be amber and aromatic. Make sure it has some bitterness but don't overdo it.

 

[Sachibachi]

Brilliant, thanks a lot for your help. I'm going to aim for around the 35IBU mark i think. Hopefully it'll turn out well!

 

[JKaranka]

0.8 IBU to OG seems like a reasonable target to start