English Ales - What's your favorite recipe?

[Shenanigans]

If they last that long

I'll try my best

 

[corncob]

The Christmas mild I made from odds and ends left in the closet, at the last minute, on a whim, is 17 days old and might be the best I have ever brewed. I guess that is how it goes.

fermentable	pounds	% mash bill
Ashburne mild	5.5	61%
6-row	0.5	6%
biscuit	0.25	3%
Flaked barley	1	11%
crystal UK 75	0.5	6%
crystal UK 150	0.25	3%

That was the malt bill, plus a quarter pound of dark muscovado and 0.75lb table sugar. 1.035-1.011 for 3.1% ABV, with 17-18 IBUs from a 60min addition of Goldings. The yeast was a sixth consecutive pitch of Verdant--I am going to add some thoughts to the old Verdant thread, but for whatever reasons, the "fruit salad" flavor is much diminished in this one, although the overall flavor screams "fruity English.

I know it is not dark, but I can't get brewer's caramel and I do NOT miss the roast in this one. A few ounces of chocolate or black would make it a brown ale. It is nutty and savory, sweet but not syrupy, rich but refreshing. I was shooting for a little more attenuation, but I am glad I didn't get it. The mouthfeel is just enough to not be too thin. I was rushing this one, so I carbed and served in the fermenter (7 gallons in my Fermzilla). I suspect it won't survive until Epiphany.

 

[Miraculix]

The Christmas mild I made from odds and ends left in the closet, at the last minute, on a whim, is 17 days old and might be the best I have ever brewed. I guess that is how it goes.
View attachment 865177

fermentable	pounds	% mash bill
Ashburne mild	5.5	61%
6-row	0.5	6%
biscuit	0.25	3%
Flaked barley	1	11%
crystal UK 75	0.5	6%
crystal UK 150	0.25	3%

That was the malt bill, plus a quarter pound of dark muscovado and 0.75lb table sugar. 1.035-1.011 for 3.1% ABV, with 17-18 IBUs from a 60min addition of Goldings. The yeast was a sixth consecutive pitch of Verdant--I am going to add some thoughts to the old Verdant thread, but for whatever reasons, the "fruit salad" flavor is much diminished in this one, although the overall flavor screams "fruity English.

I know it is not dark, but I can't get brewer's caramel and I do NOT miss the roast in this one. A few ounces of chocolate or black would make it a brown ale. It is nutty and savory, sweet but not syrupy, rich but refreshing. I was shooting for a little more attenuation, but I am glad I didn't get it. The mouthfeel is just enough to not be too thin. I was rushing this one, so I carbed and served in the fermenter (7 gallons in my Fermzilla). I suspect it won't survive until Epiphany.

Where are the missing ten %?

Is it your secret ingredient???

I bet it's gummy bears!!!

 

[Halfakneecap]

Hope it turns out great! For me a dark mild is the perfect beer around this time of year. As the cold settles in, that extra crystal chewiness of malt is certainly welcomed. I really liked this recipe.

Haha im in australia, its normally hot as hell at christmas. Its unseasonably cool here, top of 24c todayand low humidity, very pleasant. Would be one of the coolest christmas day's ive ever had, its usually 30c and humid as hell.

But i do agree, cool weather and mild go very well together.

 

[Halfakneecap]

Where are the missing ten %?

Is it your secret ingredient???

I bet it's gummy bears!!!

Muscavado and table sugar?

 

[Halfakneecap]

The Christmas mild I made from odds and ends left in the closet, at the last minute, on a whim, is 17 days old and might be the best I have ever brewed. I guess that is how it goes.
View attachment 865177

fermentable	pounds	% mash bill
Ashburne mild	5.5	61%
6-row	0.5	6%
biscuit	0.25	3%
Flaked barley	1	11%
crystal UK 75	0.5	6%
crystal UK 150	0.25	3%

That was the malt bill, plus a quarter pound of dark muscovado and 0.75lb table sugar. 1.035-1.011 for 3.1% ABV, with 17-18 IBUs from a 60min addition of Goldings. The yeast was a sixth consecutive pitch of Verdant--I am going to add some thoughts to the old Verdant thread, but for whatever reasons, the "fruit salad" flavor is much diminished in this one, although the overall flavor screams "fruity English.

I know it is not dark, but I can't get brewer's caramel and I do NOT miss the roast in this one. A few ounces of chocolate or black would make it a brown ale. It is nutty and savory, sweet but not syrupy, rich but refreshing. I was shooting for a little more attenuation, but I am glad I didn't get it. The mouthfeel is just enough to not be too thin. I was rushing this one, so I carbed and served in the fermenter (7 gallons in my Fermzilla). I suspect it won't survive until Epiphany.

I used to use a little Dingemans Biscuit in my milds. Lovely warm toasty breadiness. Might have to get some more. Looks delicious!

 

[corncob]

I bet it's gummy bears!!!

Would.

But only the red and orange ones for an English.

But, no, it was sugar.

 

[Colindo]

This is one of the test Best Bitters I did for the BJCP competition coming up. 100% Pale malt but with lots of Savinjski Goldings.

Very nice floral character and I also like the clarity and foam stability that I got. This particular bottle was quite overcarbed, hence the large bubbles. I'll need to make extra sure to get clean bottles for the competition beer. But very happy with the general direction this is going.

For the final beer I dialed down the Savinjski from 1g/l to 0.75g/l, but added the same amount of Fuggle to give more complexity. And also quite a dose of crystal malt. I think for BJCP judges it might help to really get the flavours in their face instead of being subtle. Hopefully it'll work.

 

[corncob]

...the foam on that sucker, though

 

[Halfakneecap]

View attachment 865422

This is one of the test Best Bitters I did for the BJCP competition coming up. 100% Pale malt but with lots of Savinjski Goldings.

Very nice floral character and I also like the clarity and foam stability that I got. This particular bottle was quite overcarbed, hence the large bubbles. I'll need to make extra sure to get clean bottles for the competition beer. But very happy with the general direction this is going.

For the final beer I dialed down the Savinjski from 1g/l to 0.75g/l, but added the same amount of Fuggle to give more complexity. And also quite a dose of crystal malt. I think for BJCP judges it might help to really get the flavours in their face instead of being subtle. Hopefully it'll work.

I really like just Maris Otter or similar for bitter. I have some on the way, im going to do just that. Maris Otter, Bramling Cross ( bittering and late ) and Verdant

 

[UdonPete]

I really like just Maris Otter or similar for bitter. I have some on the way, im going to do just that. Maris Otter, Bramling Cross ( bittering and late ) and Verdant

I brewed this with Verdant IPA and it was very good : https://beerandbrewing.com/blackberry-bitter-english-pale-ale-recipe/

 

[Halfakneecap]

I brewed this with Verdant IPA and it was very good : https://beerandbrewing.com/blackberry-bitter-english-pale-ale-recipe/

I have Verdant, so i think ill go all Maris Otter and the hop schedule from this recipe, thanks!

 

[Colindo]

@Halfakneecap I would consider moving the last addition to the whirlpool. Not sure exactly why they boil for 2 min, but I have had great aroma from Bramling Cross in the whirlpool.

I like Maris Otter in low-gravity beers, but for the competition I wanted to make sure my malt base does not taste like everyone else's, so I went with standard British pale malt plus Crisp Cara Gold and some Crystal 150. I'll see how it turns out.

 

[HM-2]

IMO CaraGold is a great malt and somewhat underused, especially outside of the UK. I really like a British pale ale that's 90% MO and 10% CaraGold, it accentuates the nuttiness you can often get from a good quality MO (as I've waxed lyrical about on here before, Warminster's floor malted MO is the king of British base malts).

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

I've got a bitter that will be brewed tonight. Base split 50/50 MO/UK Vienna, 5% each amber and wheat, 8% invert 2.
1.040 OG 35-40 IBU. ~21L post boil vol.
It will get a Challenger 60 min bittering charge then 20g 20 min addition, 20g 15 min hopstand and 10g dry hop.
All late addition homegrown "Böle" hops.

 

[Colindo]

@HM-2 That sounds like I did the right thing. My grist is

80% British Pale
10% Cara Gold
6% Torrefied Wheat
3% Paul's Crystal 150
1% Chocolate

I added the torrefied wheat at the last minute because I wanted to make sure foam stability is excellent. I think Ringwood used 6% in their beers, hence the number.

 

[HM-2]

Looks like it'd make a pretty enjoyable beer. I often use wheat, though usually malted, in regions around 3-5% in my British beers for foam stability. What are you planning on fermenting it with?

 

[Miraculix]

@HM-2 That sounds like I did the right thing. My grist is

80% British Pale
10% Cara Gold
6% Torrefied Wheat
3% Paul's Crystal 150
1% Chocolate

I added the torrefied wheat at the last minute because I wanted to make sure foam stability is excellent. I think Ringwood used 6% in their beers, hence the number.

What's the connection between adding the wheat within the last minute of the mash and foam stability? Limited enzymatic activity regarding protein chopping?

 

[HM-2]

What's the connection between adding the wheat within the last minute of the mash and foam stability? Limited enzymatic activity regarding protein chopping?

I think the "last minute" bit referred to the recipe creation rather than when in the mash it went in.

 

[Colindo]

@Miraculix Exactly just as @HM-2 said.

The beer is currently fermenting on WLP007. 0.75L starter for 10L of wort. Pitched at 18°C, fermented at 21°C. I wanted something really flocculant so that clarity issues don't even arise.

 

[HM-2]

The higher attenuation of 007 should offset the relatively large proportion of crystal and unmalted wheat nicely.

 

[Miraculix]

I think the "last minute" bit referred to the recipe creation rather than when in the mash it went in.

@Miraculix Exactly just as @HM-2 said.

The beer is currently fermenting on WLP007. 0.75L starter for 10L of wort. Pitched at 18°C, fermented at 21°C. I wanted something really flocculant so that clarity issues don't even arise.

Ahhh... Overthinking. A true classic .

 

[An Ankoù]

@Halfakneecap I would consider moving the last addition to the whirlpool. Not sure exactly why they boil for 2 min, but I have had great aroma from Bramling Cross in the whirlpool.

I like Maris Otter in low-gravity beers, but for the competition I wanted to make sure my malt base does not taste like everyone else's, so I went with standard British pale malt plus Crisp Cara Gold and some Crystal 150. I'll see how it turns out.

You should be able to get Cháteau cara gold in Germany- you can order t fro Brouwland in Begium. It is 120 ebc as opposed to Crisps cara gold which is 12 enc. I's a lovely crystal malt and you could use it to dispense with both the Crisps and the crystal 150 in your recipe. I'm currently using it in a French lager.

I got a bag of (Paul's) Maris Otter from them, too, for a cheaper price than I can buy it from most outlets in England.

 

[Cheshire Cat]

You should be able to get Cháteau cara gold in Germany- you can order t fro Brouwland in Begium. It is 120 ebc as opposed to Crisps cara gold which is 12 enc. I's a lovely crystal malt and you could use it to dispense with both the Crisps and the crystal 150 in your recipe. I'm currently using it in a French lager.

I got a bag of (Paul's) Maris Otter from them, too, for a cheaper price than I can buy it from most outlets in England.

AA
Does Chateau Cara gold compare to Crisp Extra Light?

 

[Colindo]

@An Ankoù Interesting malt. There is a German shop that has most of Crisp's malts at the moment. I did order the Paul's one from Brouwland, but had no use for 120 EBC caramel malts. I used some from Germany and also Crisp Extra Light before and never liked them as much as Crystal 150. I only ever drank one British beer that had Cara Gold on the ingredient list and that one had a lovely malt flavour. I'm pretty sure it was the Crisp one.

 

[An Ankoù]

AA
Does Chateau Cara gold compare to Crisp Extra Light?

I've never used Crisp Extra Light, so I can't say. Crisp malts seem a bit hard to get hold of now that Geterbrewed has dicontinued them. It could well be similar, though. Minch for HBC do a crystal at 113 ebc. i haven't done a side-by-side. Curiously the crystal was called for in Wheeler/Protz interpretation of Lutèce Paris Lager. I thought I'd use a continental one instead. (They also call for amber malt, which I've subbed with melano).

 

[An Ankoù]

@An Ankoù Interesting malt. There is a German shop that has most of Crisp's malts at the moment. I did order the Paul's one from Brouwland, but had no use for 120 EBC caramel malts. I used some from Germany and also Crisp Extra Light before and never liked them as much as Crystal 150. I only ever drank one British beer that had Cara Gold on the ingredient list and that one had a lovely malt flavour. I'm pretty sure it was the Crisp one.

Crisp caragold is a completely different kettle of fish at only 12 ebc: something between Château cara clair and cara blonde. I've never tried it though so I don't know.
Can you remember what the bee was?

 

[Colindo]

Not at all, it's a crystal malt around 120 ebc but it seems a bit lighter than the English medium crystal of around 150 ebc. I suppose Minch Malt's crystal 113 ebc from HBC is about the closest I've seen yet it seems not as "heavy" as our crystal malts.

Crisp Extra Light also has 113 EBC. At least in the continental European EBC scale. The British IOB uses a thinner wort and gets lighter EBC values, for Crisp Extra Light that is 100 EBC, hence the alternative name "Crystal 100".

The beer I tried was a Kentish farm beer from the National Heritage trust, with local hops and grains. It was very pale, with just pale malt and Cara Gold quoted.

 

[HM-2]

Crisp caragold is a completely different kettle of fish at only 12 ebc: something between Château cara clair and cara blonde. I've never tried it though so I don't know.
Can you remember what the bee was?

IIRC as you say Chateau Cara Gold is a totally different animal to Crisp, and does roughly equal a 100-120 EBC extra light crystal. I've not used it personally.

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

Eating gingerbread with stilton, left over chistmas sausage and drinking mild. All while brewing bitter. Feels good to be on Christmas break!