English Ales - What's your favorite recipe?

[InspectorJon]

It is made by squeezing juice from sugar cane and boiling it in an open kettle until it reaches the proper syrup consistency. So it is not diluted it is concentrated. It has a molasses kind of flavor. I don’t know what temperature they boil it to. I think the temperature would determine inversion?

 

[Colindo]

It contains no proteins, which is unusual for pure sugar cane juice and/or molasses. But yeah, if it is just boiled, it might be similar to raw cane sugar, just with lots of water still there.

For inversion you need acid, boiling alone does not suffice.

 

[balrog]

For those near a QFC (and maybe elsewhere in the Kroger empire), this popped up in another group and may be of interest - not clear if it's out of date or they're just giving up on golden syrup in general, it's in the "world food" shelves :
View attachment 866116

Current status - eating 75%-off mince pies...

My last AMZ order of 6-11oz bottles was about $28USD. AMZ has them at $36USD now so the price apparently did not make it across the Atlantic.

 

[shoreman]

Those of you in the US, where are you getting your UK hops? It’s fairly easy to get EKG & Fuggle, but looking for hops such as Challenger, Progress, Target, First Gold, Pilgrim, etc. in 1-2oz bags. thanks for any links.

 

[tracer bullet]

Northwest Hop Farms for me: https://northwesthopfarms.com/

 

[Brewskey]

Those of you in the US, where are you getting your UK hops? It’s fairly easy to get EKG & Fuggle, but looking for hops such as Challenger, Progress, Target, First Gold, Pilgrim, etc. in 1-2oz bags.

Farmhouse Brewing is a decent spot for hops, they have the more common ones like EKG, Fuggle, Challenger and Target. I ended up having to buy a pound of First Gold from Hop Alliance when I couldn't get it anywhere else.

 

[shoreman]

Thanks I’ll check them out.

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

Daleside Bitter on cask, in Stockholm of all places.
I don't complain though, it's a good beer served by a cellarmaster who knows what he's doing.

 

[balrog]

served by a cellarmaster who knows what he's doing.

A vanishing breed, that.

 

[bwible]

Those of you in the US, where are you getting your UK hops? It’s fairly easy to get EKG & Fuggle, but looking for hops such as Challenger, Progress, Target, First Gold, Pilgrim, etc. in 1-2oz bags. thanks for any links.

^^ This

Been going on for some time. I haven’t been able to find any for ages. Even at the big places. Some people buy them from Yskima hops or other growers directly. I’d like to find some myself.

 

[balrog]

sny

i feel stoopid, but what are you looking for? I don't recognize that.

 

[bwible]

i feel stoopid, but what are you looking for? I don't recognize that.

Typo. Should have been any. Old eyes, tiny phone, tiny keyboard

 

[Brewskey]

Too quiet in here.... Drinking a mild, kind of a kitchen sink recipe. This is the first time I've used S-04 in years, I think the esters are pretty nice.

 

[Witherby]

I just tapped a keg of ordinary bitter. Something along these lines is becoming my standard recipe for a bitter.

OG 1.037
FG 1.008
ABV 3.8 %
31.1 IBUs

5 lbs Golden Promise (Simpsons) 63.7%
1 lb Munich Malt (IREKS) 12.7%
1 lb White Wheat Malt 12.7%
4.0 oz Caramalt Malt - 55L (Bairds) [Vorlauf] 3.2%
1.6 oz Carafa Special I (Weyermann) [Vorlauf] 1.3%
8.0 oz Turbinado sugar [Boil] 6.4%

36.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min 24.2 IBUs
28.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min 6.8 IBUs

0.5 pkg Nottingham Yeast
0.5 pkg Windsor Yeast

14.00 g Bramling Cross [5.80 %] - dry hop

Mashed at 152F. Started fermentation at 63F and let it free rise.

I added Munich to boost the maltiness and used Turbinado instead of invert to see if I could tell the difference (I couldn't) and may not go back to using invert. I guess I've given up on being a purist.

I used a floating dip tube and it is still pretty hazy. Hopefully time in the fridge will clear it up, but my experience with this yeast combo is that it won't ever be super clear.

 

[tdf]

I just tapped a keg of ordinary bitter. Something along these lines is becoming my standard recipe for a bitter.

View attachment 867319

OG 1.037
FG 1.008
ABV 3.8 %
31.1 IBUs

5 lbs Golden Promise (Simpsons) 63.7%
1 lb Munich Malt (IREKS) 12.7%
1 lb White Wheat Malt 12.7%
4.0 oz Caramalt Malt - 55L (Bairds) [Vorlauf] 3.2%
1.6 oz Carafa Special I (Weyermann) [Vorlauf] 1.3%
8.0 oz Turbinado sugar [Boil] 6.4%

36.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min 24.2 IBUs
28.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min 6.8 IBUs

0.5 pkg Nottingham Yeast
0.5 pkg Windsor Yeast

14.00 g Bramling Cross [5.80 %] - dry hop

Mashed at 152F. Started fermentation at 63F and let it free rise.

I added Munich to boost the maltiness and used Turbinado instead of invert to see if I could tell the difference (I couldn't) and may not go back to using invert. I guess I've given up on being a purist.

I used a floating dip tube and it is still pretty hazy. Hopefully time in the fridge will clear it up, but my experience with this yeast combo is that it won't ever be super clear.

Thanks for sharing the recipe. Great looking beer!

 

[corncob]

I just tapped a keg of ordinary bitter. Something along these lines is becoming my standard recipe for a bitter.

View attachment 867319

OG 1.037
FG 1.008
ABV 3.8 %
31.1 IBUs

5 lbs Golden Promise (Simpsons) 63.7%
1 lb Munich Malt (IREKS) 12.7%
1 lb White Wheat Malt 12.7%
4.0 oz Caramalt Malt - 55L (Bairds) [Vorlauf] 3.2%
1.6 oz Carafa Special I (Weyermann) [Vorlauf] 1.3%
8.0 oz Turbinado sugar [Boil] 6.4%

36.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min 24.2 IBUs
28.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min 6.8 IBUs

0.5 pkg Nottingham Yeast
0.5 pkg Windsor Yeast

14.00 g Bramling Cross [5.80 %] - dry hop

Mashed at 152F. Started fermentation at 63F and let it free rise.

I added Munich to boost the maltiness and used Turbinado instead of invert to see if I could tell the difference (I couldn't) and may not go back to using invert. I guess I've given up on being a purist.

I used a floating dip tube and it is still pretty hazy. Hopefully time in the fridge will clear it up, but my experience with this yeast combo is that it won't ever be super clear.

Why do you stick with the Windsor/Nottingham? The flavor? What other dry strains have you tried with these?

I'm just curious. I spent all of the hot parts of last year looking for a workable dry yeast for smallish English ales. I had mixed feelings about the Co-pitch because of the time required to get any kind of clarity. Without checking my notes, it took an extra week and a half (a long time for one of these brews), and then never got *really* clear. I did like the flavor contribution of the yeast, although it didn't knock my socks off.

But I'm pretty focused on clarity.

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

I just tapped a keg of ordinary bitter. Something along these lines is becoming my standard recipe for a bitter.

View attachment 867319

OG 1.037
FG 1.008
ABV 3.8 %
31.1 IBUs

5 lbs Golden Promise (Simpsons) 63.7%
1 lb Munich Malt (IREKS) 12.7%
1 lb White Wheat Malt 12.7%
4.0 oz Caramalt Malt - 55L (Bairds) [Vorlauf] 3.2%
1.6 oz Carafa Special I (Weyermann) [Vorlauf] 1.3%
8.0 oz Turbinado sugar [Boil] 6.4%

36.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min 24.2 IBUs
28.00 g East Kent Goldings [5.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min 6.8 IBUs

0.5 pkg Nottingham Yeast
0.5 pkg Windsor Yeast

14.00 g Bramling Cross [5.80 %] - dry hop

Mashed at 152F. Started fermentation at 63F and let it free rise.

I added Munich to boost the maltiness and used Turbinado instead of invert to see if I could tell the difference (I couldn't) and may not go back to using invert. I guess I've given up on being a purist.

I used a floating dip tube and it is still pretty hazy. Hopefully time in the fridge will clear it up, but my experience with this yeast combo is that it won't ever be super clear.

Looks really nice, I'd juice up the flavour hops a bit but I personally like fairly hoppy bitters. That's quite a lot of wheat, if you were to dial it down a bit you might get better clarity quicker.

 

[An Ankoù]

@InspectorJon The internet says it contains 31% Carbohydrates 29 of which are sugars, so I guess it is heavily diluted. Since it doesn't say anything about being inverted, it is probably quite far from Lyle's but you could always invert it yourself.

Tate & Lyle Golden Syrup (the most common over here) contains 85% carbohydrates of which 100% are sugar.
I wonder if the 2% in Steen's is some kind of thickening agent like cornstarch.
EDIT
Are you sure about that 35%, @InspectorJon ? It looks like 14g per 21g serving, but the photo on google is quite blurred. That's nearer 70%

 

[Miraculix]

Why do you stick with the Windsor/Nottingham? The flavor? What other dry strains have you tried with these?

I'm just curious. I spent all of the hot parts of last year looking for a workable dry yeast for smallish English ales. I had mixed feelings about the Co-pitch because of the time required to get any kind of clarity. Without checking my notes, it took an extra week and a half (a long time for one of these brews), and then never got *really* clear. I did like the flavor contribution of the yeast, although it didn't knock my socks off.

But I'm pretty focused on clarity.

Same for me.

Good old s04 ticks all the boxes for me. Either this one or notti for me if dry.

 

[Witherby]

Same for me.

Good old s04 ticks all the boxes for me. Either this one or notti for me if dry.

I'm not a fan of S04. I like Verdant for hoppier bitters. I'm not super worried about perfect clarity and I like the flavor and predictability of the fermentation of this combination. Funny thing is, I haven't tried Windsor or Nottingham on their own. I should probably do that.

I'm really trying to push my OG lower and lower and still make a flavorful beer. It is easy to overdo the bittering and overdo the late hops. I'll be inching my way back up, but I think that will mean an ounce of dry hop rather than a half ounce for now.

If the wheat is part of the problem for clarity, I'd rather have a nice head than perfect clarity. 1 pound was my standard amount for best bitters. I have lots of wheat malt to use, so I'll stick with a pound for simplicity sake. I like nice round numbers!

It has only been in the fridge for 3 or 4 days. I'll report back in a week or two, if there is any left by then! Sharing with my homebrew club tonight.

 

[Shenanigans]

M36 Liberty Bell from Mangrove Jacks is apparently a mix of Notti and Windsor.

 

[Colindo]

M36 Liberty Bell from Mangrove Jacks is apparently a mix of Notti and Windsor.

I'm pretty sure it is just S-04. It behaves and tastes the same for me. M15 has a lower attenuation, so could well be Windsor or S-33.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

If the wheat is part of the problem for clarity, I'd rather have a nice head than perfect clarity. 1 pound was my standard amount for best bitters. I have lots of wheat malt to use, so I'll stick with a pound for simplicity sake. I like nice round numbers!

6-8% torrefied wheat is pretty normal here, so I'd suggest going to half a pound if you want a round number. Bitter shouldn't be that hazy.

With Windsor it's worth noting that it drops pretty well, but is very "dusty" or whatever the opposite of sticky is. So you can pour a perfectly clear pint of a Windsor beer from a bottle if you're careful, and ditto from cask with a widge, but kegs tend to make a bit of a mess of it.

I have reasons to believe M36 is a mix of Windsor and Notty but haven't proved it to my complete satisfaction, ditto that it's not S-04.

 

[Shenanigans]

This second generation WY1469 has way more yeast on top than first use with a Landlord clone attempt.
Hopefully I get more expressive esters too.

View attachment 864608

Might also be because the OG was 20 points higher than the Landlord clone too.

This ended up very tasty, actually got an OG of 1.065 and an FG of 1.013 so nearly 7%.
It was a Youngs Special Ale clone I previously brewed with MO and Verdant.
Much prefer this version as the fruity Verdant dominated last time; this is much more balanced.
It's more like an English IPA and I wouldn't hessitate to use 1469 for an IPA in thre future as long as a some sugar is added to help dry it out.
Dangerously quaffable

Picture is not the best as it has a lighter colour and is crystal clear.

 

[Wigglebutts Brewery]

6-8% torrefied wheat is pretty normal here, so I'd suggest going to half a pound if you want a round number. Bitter shouldn't be that hazy.

With Windsor it's worth noting that it drops pretty well, but is very "dusty" or whatever the opposite of sticky is. So you can pour a perfectly clear pint of a Windsor beer from a bottle if you're careful, and ditto from cask with a widge, but kegs tend to make a bit of a mess of it.

I have reasons to believe M36 is a mix of Windsor and Notty but haven't proved it to my complete satisfaction, ditto that it's not S-04.

I use 8oz torrified wheat in bitters and wlp002 “fullers” yeast. Everything drops out in a couple weeks…

 

[DuncB]

The one time I used Windsor it took weeks to clear and decided never again. Plenty of other options around for me.

 

[Miraculix]

I'm not a fan of S04. I like Verdant for hoppier bitters. I'm not super worried about perfect clarity and I like the flavor and predictability of the fermentation of this combination. Funny thing is, I haven't tried Windsor or Nottingham on their own. I should probably do that.

I'm really trying to push my OG lower and lower and still make a flavorful beer. It is easy to overdo the bittering and overdo the late hops. I'll be inching my way back up, but I think that will mean an ounce of dry hop rather than a half ounce for now.

If the wheat is part of the problem for clarity, I'd rather have a nice head than perfect clarity. 1 pound was my standard amount for best bitters. I have lots of wheat malt to use, so I'll stick with a pound for simplicity sake. I like nice round numbers!

It has only been in the fridge for 3 or 4 days. I'll report back in a week or two, if there is any left by then! Sharing with my homebrew club tonight.

Verdant is completely over the top, if you ask me. I've never had a British pint in the UK that had a yeast derived flavour intensity that was even close to what verdant delivers.

For everything American hop forward, I love this yeast though.

Btw. S04 changed during the last one or two years. So if you haven't had a never pack, it's worth trying again.

 

[Colindo]

I find Verdant is the only one that can compete with the liquid yeast strains. Those are usually much more fruit-forward. If Verdant would precipitate faster, it would be my go-to dry yeast for British beers.

 

[An Ankoù]

The one time I used Windsor it took weeks to clear and decided never again. Plenty of other options around for me.

Windsor is horrible stuff. I won't have it in the house.
In reply to @Miraculix , i find verdant to work just fine, but i trnd to use it at the lower end of the temperature range.

 

[An Ankoù]

I find Verdant is the only one that can compete with the liquid yeast strains. Those are usually much more fruit-forward. If Verdant would precipitate faster, it would be my go-to dry yeast for British beers.

And therein lies the rub.
It does clear well in bottled beers, though.

 

[Miraculix]

English bitters are about balance, in my humble opinion. The intensity of verdant makes it almost impossible to integrate it in a balanced way into the beer. I've tried it at lower and at warmer temps, didn't make much of a difference for me. Ten percent verdant or maybe twenty and the rest Nottingham works kind of. But I got a bit sensitive and don't like the specific flavour any more in a bitter.

 

[Miraculix]

Premium secret tip: Use it for a Caribbean stout!

 

[An Ankoù]

English bitters are about balance, in my humble opinion. The intensity of verdant makes it almost impossible to integrate it in a balanced way into the beer. I've tried it at lower and at warmer temps, didn't make much of a difference for me. Ten percent verdant or maybe twenty and the rest Nottingham works kind of. But I got a bit sensitive and don't like the specific flavour any more in a bitter.

Agreed with the balance thing. I'm fascinated by the way different yeasts work differently for different people. VIPA works amazingly for me, but I've only ever used it with bottled beers (just got some kegs and getting used to them). On the other hand I went through a phase of using Nottingham and MJ-M42, which is Nottingham repacked and It's the closest I've come to to giving up! Two out of three brews stunk of open sewers. Sometimes the yeast cleaned itself up, but others were still tainted after a year in the bottle. I cleaned, sterilized, dismantled and bleached, exposed the whole kit to massive gamma radiation etc etc and nothing worked. Then I got a stinker and decided to put some nutrient in the beer, which reduced the problem dramatically. I've never been able to bring myself to use Nottingham or its homologues since. No other yeast has behaved like this, but I had about 6 or 8 bad ones with Nottingham.
The moral of the story is that what works for me might not work for you and vice versa. I think yeast is more sensitive to tiny differences in water chemistry than we give it credit for.

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

I've been using a roughly 50/50 mix of MJ M42 and Brewly's Belgian yeast the past few brews.
Both dry, the Belgian is a fairly "mild" non diastatic variety. When put in a starter and mixed with a more neutral yeast it gives a nice pronounced fruitiness but it's in the background.

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

And I had to dump my latest brew and will rebrew a bitter either this sunday or monday. We were going away and I made the decision to leave it until we got back home.
Unfortunately I had spilled a bit of wort on the outside of the bucket near the lid and some mold had grown, nothing inside the bucket but better to play safe in a situation like that...

 

[DuncB]

I've just brewed / finishing brewing a dark mild using White labs Burton ale yeast WLP 023,
consequently got a nice fresh load of yeast in the fermentasaurus collection bottle and wondering re ideas for a brew using that.
Open to suggestions, not a barley wine as I use WLP099 for that and brew one in August each year.

 

[Halfakneecap]

I've just brewed / finishing brewing a dark mild using White labs Burton ale yeast WLP 023,
consequently got a nice fresh load of yeast in the fermentasaurus collection bottle and wondering re ideas for a brew using that.
Open to suggestions, not a barley wine as I use WLP099 for that and brew one in August each year.

I really liked that yeast for TT landlord type bitters. The esters played well with UK hops i think

 

[Miraculix]

I've just brewed / finishing brewing a dark mild using White labs Burton ale yeast WLP 023,
consequently got a nice fresh load of yeast in the fermentasaurus collection bottle and wondering re ideas for a brew using that.
Open to suggestions, not a barley wine as I use WLP099 for that and brew one in August each year.

Well... A bitter of course!

 

[Shenanigans]

I've just brewed / finishing brewing a dark mild using White labs Burton ale yeast WLP 023,
consequently got a nice fresh load of yeast in the fermentasaurus collection bottle and wondering re ideas for a brew using that.
Open to suggestions, not a barley wine as I use WLP099 for that and brew one in August each year.

The recipe on post #4 of this thread is a very nice IPA brewed with WY1275 Thames Valley.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/anyone-brewed-an-ipa-with-ekg.140192/

WLP 023 Burton is supposed to be the White Labs equivelent.
They are similar but not the exact same.

I find WLP023 to be fairly neutral and to tease some more esters out of it, so that it's not overpowered by the hops in an IPA, I usually ferment a few degrees warmer than I would for say WLP002 or WLP005 for example.
Normally for those I let then run at room temperature in my basement at 18oC and for WLP023 I bump it up to 20 or 21oC.

I've brewed the linked recipe with about 10 times with 5 different yeasts and all turned out good but for some reason it tastes much better when bottled than from the keg, probably due to carbonation level and temperature.

 

[DuncB]

I'm aiming for about 1.3 vols and will serve on the beer engine.
Malt bill suggested is quite similar to the five points best bitter grain bill.
So many ale recipes are.
I fermented the mild much cooler than the recommendation of 20 to 24 C on the white lab info.
I fermented a big starter of 1.5 litres with the mild recipe at 18C once dropped to final I raised to 20.5C.
I'm not sure if it's estery, hope not as that's not fitting a mild style.
Think I'll just use it in my standard five points Frist and hops see how it compares to my usual wlp013 version which I've made several times.