Blackburne's Brown Ale

[dragonfyre]

So, before I go any further, I am a chess player/teacher. Almost all of my brews will have the title of some chess theme with the others reflecting my hometown's history. This one is all about a Grandmaster named Joseph Henry Blackburne from Manchester, England. In his heyday, back in the late 1800's, he was one of the best players in the world but was notorious for being a drunk. Legend has it that for one tournament's appearance fee, he demanded a case of Scotch whisky, which he finished before the halfway point of the tournament. Since I am not brewing whisky but beer, I came up with this Northern English Brown Ale in his honor. Please critique and feedback is very welcomed.

Recipe: Blackburne's Brown Ale BIAB
Brewer: Dan K
Asst Brewer:
Style: Northern English Brown Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
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Boil Size: 3.36 gal
Post Boil Volume: 2.61 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 2.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 1.78 gal
Estimated OG: 1.050 SG
Estimated Color: 19.7 SRM
Estimated IBU: 21.9 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 60.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 75.3 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
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Amt Name Type # %/IBU
4.00 gal Boston, MA Water 1 -
3 lbs 4.0 oz Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 2 71.7 %
1 lbs Brown Malt (Crisp) (65.0 SRM) Grain 3 22.1 %
4.0 oz Caramel Malt - 120L (Briess) (120.0 SRM) Grain 4 5.5 %
0.5 oz Peated Malt (Simpsons) (2.5 SRM) Grain 5 0.7 %
0.20 oz First Gold [7.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 12.6 IBUs
0.50 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 7 -
0.40 oz East Kent Goldings (EKG) [5.00 %] - Boil Hop 8 6.1 IBUs
0.50 oz Challenger [7.50 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 5 Hop 9 3.2 IBUs
1.0 pkg London Ale Yeast (Wyeast Labs #1028) [12 Yeast 10 -


Mash Schedule: BIAB, Medium Body
Total Grain Weight: 4 lbs 8.5 oz
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Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Saccharification Add 14.77 qt of water at 157.2 F 152.1 F 75 min
Mash Out Heat to 168.0 F over 7 min 168.0 F 10 min

Sparge: If steeping, remove grains, and prepare to boil wort
Notes:
------
Stir mash every 15 minutes!

 

[Brewsncrabs]

I like the way you choose the name of your beer. The recipe looks good. If you are following exact style guidelines, I am not sure if peated malt belongs. But if you like it, go for it. Your bitterness is on the low end, but again, your preferences make the rules here. You may want to reduce the brown malt as it is at 22% (10% is the suggested max)of your grain bill and could overpower the Maris Otter. You could replace the difference with more MO and add some chocolate or pale chocolate to get your SRM back in line. I would also suggest swapping out the Briess 120 with an English Extra Dark crystal malt from Bairds, Crisp, or Fawcett if you can get it. The flavor of the English crystals are better IMHO. It was suggested to me a while back on this board, and I now use English crystals in almost everything. Even my non brewing friends could tell the difference and gave positive feedback.

 

[dragonfyre]

As an Islay single-malt lover, I personally like peated malt and I'm going for something different with this one. Thank you for the feedback!

 

[Brewsncrabs]

That's why we brew our own! We can do what we like! Enjoy!


Beer and crabs were meant for each other!