According to CAMRA, May is Mild Month. Anyone brew one?

[tiredofbuyingbeer]

If so, post pictures and/or recipes.

I brewed a modified version of this recipe back in April, which I'm now enjoying.

Volume: 5.5 gallons
3 lbs, 10 oz. Maris Otter
0 lbs, 15 oz. flaked barley
1 lb, 12 oz. Invert no. 3
0 lbs, 4 oz. chocolate malt
1/3 oz. Fuggle @ 60 min.
1/3 oz. Fuggle @ 30 min.
1/3 oz. Fuggle @ 5 min.

Brewed with S-04 @ 64 for 2 weeks. Bottled @ 1.8 vols CO2.

It's clearer than the picture suggests. The flaked barley flavor is quite prominent, with just a bit of chocolate. Very drinkable.

 

[rhys333]

Looks good. I should try brewing one of these since I'm a Yorkshire expat. Looks like about 13% invert sugar there. How did it work out for you?

 

[ong]

I did a great little ruby mild last month that I'm drinking now. About 3.2% ABV, just under 20 IBUs.View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1494112648.421011.jpg

 

[tiredofbuyingbeer]

Looks good. I should try brewing one of these since I'm a Yorkshire expat. Looks like about 13% invert sugar there. How did it work out for you?

It's not cidery or anything, like you might expect from so much sugar. I suspect the invert just dried it out (FG ~1.005) and added color.

The more intrusive adjunct in this beer is definitely the flaked barley. It's noticeable in the way that corn is noticeable in adjunct lagers. Not bad, but definitely the thing to keep out if you don't want that flavor.

The only other mild I've tried firsthand is Yard's Brawler here in the US. That seems to be an all-malt beer that loads up on specialty malts for flavor (chocolate, maybe honey). I'd say I prefer the Brawler, but I like this beer. It's definitely lighter in body and alcohol, so it's probably closer to the style. I'd go with 3.5/5.

 

[rhys333]

I don't mean to hijack, but this has me thinking and I may brew a mild this weekend using grains I have on hand. I'd like to take mine in the direction of a low ABV dark mild, with dark fruit flavors and a little chocolate. Because I'm using domestic 2 Row, I may add a portion of Victory malt. Something like:

DARK MILD 1.037-1.012
80% 2 Row
6% Victory
4% ea. C40 & C120
3% ea. Pale Chocolate & Black Patent
EKG @ 60 & 15. 20 IBU
Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire

Alternately, I could drop the victory and go heavier with the pale chocolate malt:

84% 2 Row
4% ea. C40 & C120
5% Pale Chocolate
3% Black Patent

 

[Weezy]

Pale Mild
OG 1.045
84% TF Optic
8% Baird's Carastan Light
4% Crisp pale chocolate
4% special roast

Northdown@60, 30, & flame out for a total of 29-30 IBUs

West York

 

[roadkizzle]

I don't think I'll be getting a mild on tap for May. I only have room in my kegerator for one keg and right now there's a Maibock to celebrate May... I drink it slowly so it'll last a while probably. Then I'll have a small keg of pils that I'll need to drink so I can start fermenting another lager.

But I've made 2 milds within the last couple of months based on the 1909 Maclay Mild recipe. I had no idea how to stop fermentation at 60% attenuation though especially with the invert sugar being very fermentable. So I dropped the OG to 1.048 so it would be reasonable ABV with a higher attenuation. It ended up coming out to 3.5-4% abv so I was happy.

It was delicious, and it will be going back on tap as soon and as often as I can.

 

[jwalk4]

Kegging my Mild tonight!

 

[jwalk4]

@tiredofbuyingbeer , as promised!

Classic Mild: Thin head that sticks to the glass, rich coffee/toffee/caramel/coffee-chocolate notes, low OG but feels fuller due to the carbonation level and right serving temp.

Cheers, to CAMRA!

 

[rhys333]

Classic Mild: Thin head that sticks to the glass, rich coffee/toffee/caramel/coffee-chocolate notes, low OG but feels fuller due to the carbonation level and right serving temp.

Cheers, to CAMRA!

Looks really nice.

 

[rhys333]

I'll be brewing mine next weekend now, as the yeast I wanted needs to be ordered in. I'm going with classic ingredients, and my challenge will be getting decent body and mouthfeel at 3%.

It gets me thinking though... adding about 20% rye would be an easy (nontraditional) way build in some body without all the residual sugars.

 

[Weezy]

Rye milds are nice!

 

[rhys333]

Well, just brewed mine today:

80% 2Row
6% Victory
4% ea. C40 & C120
3% ea. Pale Choc. & Black Patent
EKG @ 60 & 15
WY 1187 Ringwood.

Fingers crossed!

 

[tiredofbuyingbeer]

@tiredofbuyingbeer , as promised!

Classic Mild: Thin head that sticks to the glass, rich coffee/toffee/caramel/coffee-chocolate notes, low OG but feels fuller due to the carbonation level and right serving temp.

Cheers, to CAMRA!

Nice color. Very visually appealing beer.

 

[jwalk4]

Thanks!

I pulled out my Inkbird and hooked it up to my kegerator, and set the beer to cellar temps.

Now I pour a little more roughly to mimic a more "northern style" pour and get a nice creamy head.

The warm temps and rough pours has changed the character of the beer quite a bit. The Brown Malt is not quite as upfront as it was when the beer was colder.

The beer is beginning to have a bit of a metallic finish as well, which means I should probably start drinking it faster.
Milds are meant to be fresh, you know.

 

[rhys333]

I'd like to propose HBT members try to develop a uniquely North American version of mild. We could run with it here if the OP agrees, or start a dedicated thread for it. Thoughts on that?

 

[tiredofbuyingbeer]

I've been setting mine out of the fridge for 20 minutes and doing a rough pour. For some lightly carbonated English beers, I'll use a syringe to throw the carbonation out and get a creamy head, but I've found for this one that I like just pouring vigorously.

Polished off three in an hour, and now I'm done. Very quaffable.

 

[tiredofbuyingbeer]

I'd like to propose HBT members try to develop a uniquely North American version of mild. We coulld run with it here if the OP agrees, or start a dedicated thread for it. Thoughts on that?

That's fine with me. Happy to see where it goes.

 

[jwalk4]

I'd like to propose HBT members try to develop a uniquely North American version of mild. We could run with it here if the OP agrees, or start a dedicated thread for it. Thoughts on that?

I make a brown ale that I consider to be a Canadian Brown Ale (Not a bjcp categoty). Not hoppy like its American counterpart, but standard to above average strength, british ingredients and a clean fermenting, Amber lager-like finish. Closest thing I could relate it to would be an alt, but with more caramel flavors. I've never entered it in a comp before because I'm not sure how judges would react to my interpretation.

I think I could try that in Mild gravity ranges.

 

[rhys333]

I'm thinking since American styles tend towards the bolder side of things, I might do something that pushes malt flavor and hop aroma without being bitter or high alcohol. Perhaps dark fruit malt plus rye or a crazy adjunct, piney hops under 25 IBU and ABV at 4 or less. Maybe clean yeast, or something with character like Denny's Favorite or 1332 Northwest.

 

[jwalk4]

Share the recipe. I'll get in on that.

 

[Devon]

I didn't set out to brew a mild, but my Black Sheep clone didn't fully attenuate for some strange reason, finishing around 3.5%.

 

[rhys333]

Share the recipe. I'll get in on that.

I think I'll need to taste the traditional one I just brewed before I start experimenting, but the gears are already turning. I'm just shooting from the hip now, but maybe:

67% Domestic 2 Row
15% Rye
8% Victory
8% C120
2% Black
1.5 oz ea. Chinook & Simcoe @ 3-5 & dry hop (5 gal batch)
WY Northwest 1332

1.040-1.045 and maybe 68-72% attenuation from warmer mash. Body and spice from the rye, dark fruit from the C120 and Black, and healthy dose of late hops flavor and aroma without bitterness. Guessing it would be on the dark amber side, but not too dark. There's a chance the hops might be overdoing it a bit. I might also lower the rye to 10% just so it's not treading in rye beer territory.

Any other ideas?

 

[Weezy]

I lile that recipe as a modern interpretation. I was working on a colonial porter recipe that was lower on barley, since barley malt went mostly to spirits industry at the time. 6-row, oats, brown malt and roasted barley to mimic poor malting practices, C90, blackstrap molasses, cluster.

 

[brhenrio]

3lb asbourne mild malt
2lb 13 oz marris otter
1lb caramel 120
6 oz black patent
1 oz fuggles fwh
Wyeast 1275

View attachment 1495602219929.jpg

 

[brhenrio]

And a backlit one to show the colour the darker picture couldnt. Nice deep red colour. Missed the mark on my mash temp and it is a bit thin but a good beer overall.

View attachment 1495602624800.jpg

 

[ericbw]

I did a great little ruby mild last month that I'm drinking now. About 3.2% ABV, just under 20 IBUs.View attachment 399400

What's that recipe?

 

[jwalk4]

I lile that recipe as a modern interpretation. I was working on a colonial porter recipe that was lower on barley, since barley malt went mostly to spirits industry at the time. 6-row, oats, brown malt and roasted barley to mimic poor malting practices, C90, blackstrap molasses, cluster.

I'd march against the Red Coats for that beer!

 

[tiredofbuyingbeer]

One thing to remember about mild as a style is that historically it actually had a very wide range of gravity. "Mild" doesn't refer to "low gravity." It refers to younger beers that lacked the sharp taste of keeping beers. So if you end up with a 4.5% American mild, I don't think that would be too objectionable. You might be in brown ale territory, but UK brown ales were originally just the marketing term for bottled milds.

Pattison claims he's found American mild brewing records here. But he's reading "present use" as another term for "mild," and I'm not sure that's true with American present use ales.

 

[rhys333]

Bottled my traditional mild this evening and I'm pleased with it so far. Mashed at 156F and got 70% attenuation with Ringwood (1.039 - 1.011 and 3.5% abv). Nice malty flavors with dark fruit and a very low roast. Good body too. Looking forward to tasting it again after carbonation. Now I need to start thinking about that American Mild!

View attachment 1497244301220.jpg

 

[deere322]

I've brewed a quite a few Milds and discovered that I don't particularly care for Crystal in my recipe.

Here is one that turned out fantastic....



https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=464920

 

[rhys333]

Well, my mild ale has been bottled, but its a bugger getting them to carb up. Usually a week at 68F and they're good, but this Ringwood strain is being stubborn. I have them now at 75F so hopefully I'll be able to report back next week. I can say that I'm really happy with the flavors though.

 

[rhys333]

I’d like to hear your opinions on my attempt at an American Mild Ale recipe (below). I’m using North American ingredients (UK Black Patent and C120 being the exceptions), with Victory for malt character and Rye for body. Low bitterness, but plenty of hop flavor and aroma. I’m thinking Chinook because it works well for me in darker beers, plus I have it on hand. One of the questions I have is whether the hops will undermine what makes Mild Ale special. I’m thinking WY1450 Denny’s Favorite or WY1332 Northwest to accentuate malt and mouthfeel. US-05/1056 would be backup. Appreciate your thoughts and suggestions.

NORTH AMERICAN DARK MILD (1.041-1.012, 3.7% abv, 20 IBU)
61% 2 Row
20% Rye
10% Victory
5% C120
4% Black Patent
3oz Chinook @ 3 minutes
3oz Chinook dryhop, 5 days.

 

[brhenrio]

NORTH AMERICAN DARK MILD (1.041-1.012, 3.7% abv, 20 IBU)
61% 2 Row
20% Rye
10% Victory
5% C120
4% Black Patent
3oz Chinook @ 3 minutes
3oz Chinook dryhop, 5 days.

This would ve too hoppy imo, without any bitterness to balance the malt.

 

[cyberbackpacker]

Maybe start with a historical American Mild recipe and go from there!

Some info and numbers:

http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2012/10/american-mild-ale.html

Recipe:

http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2012/10/lets-brew-wednesday-1834-vassar-double.html

 

[Trail]

I brewed a dark mild last Sunday. Recipe was the Brainstorm dark mild from BYO, but I substituted hops and yeast:

Modified Brainstorm Dark Mild
(5 gallons/19L, extract w/ grains)
OG = 1.037 FG = 1.009
IBU = 36 SRM = 22 ABV = 3.7%
Ingredients
4.5 lb. (2.0 kg) extra pale malt extract

14 oz. (0.40 kg) crystal malt (40 °L)
3 oz. (85 g) chocolate malt
1 oz. Kent Goldings hops (90 minutes)
0.5 oz Northern Brewer hops (70 minutes)
Safale S-04 yeast


The original recipe used all Goldings and Wyeast 1098, and was ~24 IBU.

I'm moving it out of my fermentation fridge and into my cellar tonight or tomorrow to make room for the next batch

 

[rhys333]

Well, I'm really happy with the traditional Mild I brewed a few weeks back. The flavors are right where I want them. My dad tells me it tastes like the ones he used to drink back in Yorkshire.

The beer is more ruby in colour than the pic suggests. It pours with a creamy head that settles to a thin cap that stays.

View attachment 1499900844578.jpg

 

[catdaddy66]

Well, I'm really happy with the traditional Mild I brewed a few weeks back. The flavors are right where I want them. My dad tells me it tastes like the ones he used to drink back in Yorkshire.

The beer is more ruby in colour than the pic suggests. It pours with a creamy head that settles to a thin cap that stays.

That looks delicious! And very high praise from your dad. Great job!

 

[Trail]

Jealous! My mild still hasn't dropped clear. I raised the temps to 20c to let it finish up before I cold crash it hard Friday.

 

[rhys333]

It's almost Mild Month again!

I'm thinking about playing around with higher amounts of flaked barley. Anyone tried using 15 to 20% in a dark mild?