Strong Bitter Common Room ESB

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This is getting better everyday, the banana aroma has pretty much disappeared. It's almost in the keg a week and I had a pint last night...it was really really nice, it will only get better!
 
So I have the marris otter but I only have Fawcett crystal 45l , dark crystal I 85L, and dark crystal II 120L as well as amber at 35L. Any suggestions on the crystal breakdowns?
 
1st glass from the keg and its delisious. Still a bit young but in a couple more weeks it will be perfect, so the last pint will be great Hahahha could be clearer but sure it'll clear more in the keg. I didn't cold crash this one like I usually do. View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1447204836.859432.jpg
Will definetly be making this one again. But I think try to ferment at lower temp this one got up to about 68 would rather keep it near 60
 
Has anyone thought of turning this into a Dark Mild? I wonder if 0.25 lb of a dark malt (chocolate malt, debittered black malt, extra brown malt) would add or detract from the beer.
Also, I have been thinking of replacing 30% of the base malt with oak smoked malt... hmm, beer ponderings...
 
Just got the ingredients to brew this next week. Going to try Wyeast London III. Never used it before, but judging by the responses that others have said about it, it'll make a great bitter.
 
I was looking at brewing this in the next couple days.

I'm a little confused by your mash temps:
"60 min Mash In Add 13.75 qt of water at 173.3 F 154.0 F
10 min Mash Out Add 8.00 qt of water at 198.3 F 168.0 F "
Is that meant to be mash at 154F and mash out at 168F? What is the 173F and 198F?
 
Dennis said:
I was looking at brewing this in the next couple days.



I'm a little confused by your mash temps:

"60 min Mash In Add 13.75 qt of water at 173.3 F 154.0 F

10 min Mash Out Add 8.00 qt of water at 198.3 F 168.0 F "

Is that meant to be mash at 154F and mash out at 168F? What is the 173F and 198F?
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Correct. The 173 and 198 are the temps of the water added to hit the target temp.

I do biab, so I just hit 154 and 168 respectively since I do full volume mash.
 
Thanks! Looking forward to brewing it. The only thing I'm doing different is the first bittering addition. I only have an ounce of EKG. I'm going to do .5oz EKG and something else to hit the IBU for the bittering addition, I've seen an award winning ESB use chinook. I have some of that. I have willamette too. I actually have quite a variety, I'm just trying to figure out what I'm going to use. Any suggestions? The rest will be the same as your hop bill.
 
Dennis said:
Thanks! Looking forward to brewing it. The only thing I'm doing different is the first bittering addition. I only have an ounce of EKG. I'm going to do .5oz EKG and something else to hit the IBU for the bittering addition, I've seen an award winning ESB use chinook. I have some of that. I have willamette too. I actually have quite a variety, I'm just trying to figure out what I'm going to use. Any suggestions? The rest will be the same as your hop bill.
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I used this recipe before and only used willammette. I read that it is the 'American ekg'.
 
So I brewed this yesterday. I'm pretty excited to try it. The only changes I made was a bit more crystal 110/caramunich3 to hopefully bring in a darker color. And I only had an ounce of EKG, so the bittering addition was 1oz chinook + 1/2 oz EKG. The wort was so tasty. Thanks a lot for the recipe. I came out at 1.056.
 
bellinmi88 said:
Love this beer. I used Columbia hops with late additions...very nicely balanced. Mashed at 154 with an OG of 1.058 and a FG of 1.018. Great recipe.
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Don't want to veer too far off topic, but that looks like a great crock.
 
Here's mine

IMAG1261.jpg
 
Brewed this up a while ago. Slight modifications of using Willamette/golding and chocolate instead of dark crystal. Brew with what you've got. Fermented at 20C as my last S-04 batch didn't have much English-ness to it.

Kegged it up after 3 weeks. A little off - no doubt from that 20C fermentation. 2 weeks later, awesome. Great beer, well balanced malt, hops, and esters. Very happy to have had a second keg lying in wait for when the first kicked. Might be time to brew up another batch so that when this keg kicks there's another already conditioned. Did I mention keg conditioned? Yes, I did that. Good times.
 
This recipe is great! I've brewed variations of this a few times switching between the pale 2-row and marris otter ... both are excellent! This one is just about always on tap :rockin:

ESB.jpg
 
Anyone ever dry hop this? About 1oz of EKG would probably be the way to go but I also have the following hops:

Summit, Topaz, Cascade, Nugget, Citra, Challenger, Tettnang, Haltauer, Mt. Hood, Willamette, Vic Secret, Galaxy, Amarillo, Sapphire, Centennial, Fuggles, Target, Belma, Northern Brewer, Saaz, Aurora, Styrian goldings, El dorado, Falconer's Flight
 
So I brewed this 19 days ago and my S-04 is still slowly but surely chugging along. I've used this yeast multiple times in the past and had a few bad experiences with off-flavors due to lack of temp control. Every time I've used it in the past, it's always been a savagely fast ferment, which I believed to be due, in part, to high ferm temps. So I got ahold of some temp control gear and gave it a go. I thought it was fermenting at such a reduced rate because of my new equipment, but I think this is the most drawn out fermentation I've experienced yet. So my question is, 1) do my thoughts on the slow ferm rate makes sense? And 2) given the low carb level for this brew, do you all think I'd be good to bottle in a couple days or am I risking the dreaded bottle bombs?
For clarification, when I say slowly, I mean the airlock taps about once every 10-15 minutes. Thanks for your advice!
 
ArmyATCBrewer said:
So I brewed this 19 days ago and my S-04 is still slowly but surely chugging along. I've used this yeast multiple times in the past and had a few bad experiences with off-flavors due to lack of temp control. Every time I've used it in the past, it's always been a savagely fast ferment, which I believed to be due, in part, to high ferm temps. So I got ahold of some temp control gear and gave it a go. I thought it was fermenting at such a reduced rate because of my new equipment, but I think this is the most drawn out fermentation I've experienced yet. So my question is, 1) do my thoughts on the slow ferm rate makes sense? And 2) given the low carb level for this brew, do you all think I'd be good to bottle in a couple days or am I risking the dreaded bottle bombs?
For clarification, when I say slowly, I mean the airlock taps about once every 10-15 minutes. Thanks for your advice!
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19 days is long for that yeast and a "normal" gravity alright.
What temperature are you at at the moment?

It can be that the airlock activity is just from already produced gas escaping from the beer and that the yeast is already finished.
You will only really know if you measure a sample.
At this stage the yeast shouldn't give off any off flavors if you increase the temperature.
So I would measure a sample and then increase the temperature by 2 or 3 degrees over the next few days and then take another sample to see if it is really finished. If the measurement has changed then leave it for another few days and measure again.
Nothing worse than all that work going to waste because your beer is overcarbed.
 
So, weirdest thing... I woke up the morning after posting this question and all activity had stopped. Maybe I should try asking opinions on my things... Thanks for the input @shenanigans!
 
ArmyATCBrewer said:
So, weirdest thing... I woke up the morning after posting this question and all activity had stopped. Maybe I should try asking opinions on my things... Thanks for the input @shenanigans!
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Even if the airlock has stopped, it could still be fermenting. I agree that that is a long period to be fermenting, but like shenanigans said, take a sample measurement, it's the only way to be sure.
 
Well, it was a while ago I brewed this now and finished my last bottle a couple weeks ago. So I guess if I don't post my results then I never will.

This brew is a variation on the common room ESB. Not intentional, but the results were for absolutely amazing.

This is the situation:
I had got a fast fermenter conical for Christmas and I had just moved into a new place. I didn't have a stand set up for the conical so hadn't planned on using it for this brew. I thought I had all my ducks in a row, but when in the whirlpool stage I realized I couldn't find my rubber bungs, they were still packed somewhere! So I figured I could makeshift a stand for the conical and that I did. Within a few hours of pitching my S-04 it was off to a roaring start. A couple days later, there was no activity at all, the day after the krausen had completely disappeared. Not only was the conical leaking out of two areas in the bottom, but it wouldn't make a positive seal in the top! I was forced to transfer to a glass carboy. I collected the yeast from the collection ball and dumped it back into the carboy, and got it back into suspension as much as possible without oxidizing it too much. But the effort was too little too late. The yeast had completely stalled out. Between leaking and transferring I had lost a gallon of brew, I was a little deflated.

A couple days after the realization that this brew was not going to kick in again, I had my saison brewday. I had built up a rather large starter of WLP568 Belgian Saison yeast blend. I usually build up starters of yeasts I haven't used before to save some for use later (saves $$). So I figured, what the hell, either this works or it doesn't. I dumped about 200ml of the Saison yeast into the carboy and the next day it had taken right back off again. It finished at 1.009.

I didn't know what to expect from this brew. I am a big fan of a good ESB, and almost as much so with saisons. It was a very confusing brew. The carbonation was spot on and it had carb'd up within a week. It tasted amazing. I mean, the smell at first would give off the aroma of a farmhouse ale. But when I gave it a taste I was confronted with a wonderful malt back bone and a punch from bittering addition (it was a little more than this recipe called for).

This ESB/Saison hybrid was not just a happy accident. I loved it so much, I am going to try and replicate it. I miss this brew like a lost relative. I have tasting notes in other corners of the internet, but don't want to drag this on. So, here's a pic or two.
2016-02-23_21-20-23_HDR.jpg
I can't figure out how to post pics from my computer if anyone wants to let me know how this is done. It seems I can only upload from an URL
 
Dennis said:
Even if the airlock has stopped, it could still be fermenting. I agree that that is a long period to be fermenting, but like shenanigans said, take a sample measurement, it's the only way to be sure.
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Good call, @Dennis. I check gravity twice with about 48 hours in between and bottled after I got the same reading twice. Better safe than sorry! I'm pretty excited for this brew!

Cheers!
 
This was the second all grain that I ever did sometime early last year I think.
I gave it another go about a year later:

OG: 1.056
FG: 1.013 (1.0126 actual)
Yeast: WLP002 (Fuller's strain).

This beer pours with a nice frothy slightly re-dish head with a big malt aroma. On the pale it's got a full body caramel up front with residual hop bitterness that keeps it from getting too sweet - has a nice hop aroma too.
I used the Brun'Water full amber profile, but next time (if using this yeast) I would use the dry profile and keep the same ingredients, or mash 2 degrees lower with the dry profile.
I am tempted to try it with Wyeast 1028 yeast next for less residual sweetness.

It's so hard to snap a picture because I want to drink it as soon as I pour it!:mug: Lovely mahogany color!

20160509_182442.jpg
 
Inspired to give this a go tomorrow with a coupe adjustments. Going to go with Marris Otter and a touch of Victory malt and all EKG. Got some brew time allotted this weekend as a fathers day gift to myself!
 
bluebarnaclebrewing said:
Inspired to give this a go tomorrow with a coupe adjustments. Going to go with Marris Otter and a touch of Victory malt and all EKG. Got some brew time allotted this weekend as a fathers day gift to myself!
Click to expand...

I went with 4% Victory and I think it was just a little too much. Next time I would try 2% for a little of the nutty touch. Overall turned out great though.
 
bluebarnaclebrewing said:
I went with 4% Victory and I think it was just a little too much. Next time I would try 2% for a little of the nutty touch. Overall turned out great though.
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Yeah, everyone wants to add victory to this recipe for some reason. Even 2% is too much for me. I recommend leaving it out completely.
 
I brewed this up again a couple weeks ago. Made a split batch to try and recreate what I did the first time (by fluke, read previous posts) and the originally intended recipe. Looking forward to both.
 
KingBrianI said:
Yeah, everyone wants to add victory to this recipe for some reason. Even 2% is too much for me. I recommend leaving it out completely.
Click to expand...

Sometimes you just fall in love with an idea!

After letting it settle down a bit in the keg I have changed my tune a bit. I would still do victory again but just tone it down to 2%. The beer has mellowed out really nice.
 
So I just bottled this tonight. I went with Marris Otter l, medium crystal and 120L American crystal. My LHBS didn't have dark English crystal. I have only been brewing for less then a year and this is my first ESB. I made 3 gallons . I had a little left over and chilled it after taking it from the bottling bucket. It's a little sweet but with out any conditioning that's to be expected. I think that after a couple of weeks in the bottle this is going to be exactly what I expected. Thanks to the creator of this recipe/thread. I really enjoyed making this and I know this is going to be a good beer. I will try to get I pic up of the sample I am drinking now.
 
I brewed this up on Wednesday morning and god knows how it will turn out as it didn't go well!!

Turned on the electric boiler when I got up, hoping to mash in before taking my daughter to school. Was too late by a few minutes so had to take her and then carry on when home again.

Got back home and turned the boiler on again to get the temp back up, a while later I wondered why the water was getting cooler, and realized the element in the boiler wasn't working!

Emptied boiler, cleaned element, filled boiler and managed to get the water up to temp and the mash on.

Then while trying to boil the wort, the element failed again so I added the worth to 3 pots on the hobs and split the hops as best I could.
Took forever to get to a rolling boil (must have been near it for a while though) and in the end I reckon I only managed a proper boil for 45 minutes or so before having to rush out to take the girlfriend to an appointment... so no time to chill properly and just shoved the boiler in the fridge. Got home 4 hours later and wort was still at around 167 degrees!!!!
Got the immersion chiller in and cooled it quickly and then back in fridge to add yeast when down to the right temp.

Oh and also, my last brew I got 58% efficiency, and this time I scaled the recipe to try and get 68% as I was going to try and improve my crush... ended up with 1060 rather than 1054 so may need to water this down a little depending on the FG!!

Disaster brew day. You never know though, maybe it will be lovely!! A 4 hour hop stand may be the way forward!
 
Good.
I'll stick with S-04 then.
The two packs I have are getting close to their best before date anyway.

I'm going to brew this next weekend but will change the bittering hops from EKG to Target as I have a lot of it I want to use up.
Should be good as I have only had good experience using Target as a bittering hop and not only in English styles.
For example anytime I see a recipe with Centennial for bittering I always use Target as it's about half the price for me and is just as smooth. Didn't try it a lot later in the boil though. :mug:
 
I made this for the third time a few days ago.. I love the original recipe but this time I wanted to try something new. I changed the fuggles with Saaz. I'll reply with my findings after I keg this one.
 
Shenanigans said:
Good.

I'll stick with S-04 then.

The two packs I have are getting close to their best before date anyway.



I'm going to brew this next weekend but will change the bittering hops from EKG to Target as I have a lot of it I want to use up.

Should be good as I have only had good experience using Target as a bittering hop and not only in English styles.

For example anytime I see a recipe with Centennial for bittering I always use Target as it's about half the price for me and is just as smooth. Didn't try it a lot later in the boil though. :mug:
Click to expand...


I made this a couple months ago with Target. It was perfect.
 

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