English Ales - What's your favorite recipe?

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I'm a big fan of this one

Very Small Modern IPA
Author: Terry Foster
Issue: September 2015
Very Small Modern IPA
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.037 FG = 1.009
IBU = 27 SRM = 7 ABV = 3.6%

Ingredients
7 lbs. (3.2 kg) Maris Otter pale ale malt
0.75 lb. (0.34 kg) Bairds Carastan malt (35 °L)
4 AAU UK Fuggles hops (90 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 4% alpha acids)
8 AAU UK Target hops (0 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 8% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) First Gold hops (dry hop)
Wyeast 1028 (London Ale) or White Labs WLP002 (English Ale) yeast

I subbed EKG exclusively because it's what I had on hand. Did a split batch with Wyeast 1968 and 1469. I preferred the 1968 but both were great beers!
 
JKaranka said:
Excited for this one over here! Proper British barleywine in HBT for once!
Click to expand...

5 days into fermentation I took a reading.
11-22-16- 1.034 7.865% ABV

Brought my fermenter from my lower level which is at a constant 58F and has been up on the main level at 65F. it's still fermenting and cloudy at the moment and will take a reading within the next few days.
Shooting for 1.024 to hit my target.

It smells wonderful!
 
MORRELLS VARSITY BITTER CLONE
The pint of choice for C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien during the Oxford years.

6 US gallons = 5 Imperial Gallons = 22.7 Litres

GRAINBILL:
83.3% = 7.6 lb = 3.45 kg, English Pale Malt
8.7% = .79 lb = 359 g, Torrified Wheat
8% = .73 lb = 332 g, English Crystal Malt

MASH at 151-153°F/66-67°C for 90 minutes

HOPS:
.6 oz = 17 g, Challenger, 60 minutes
.25 oz = 7 g, Target, 60 minutes
.3 oz = 8.5 g, Goldings, 30 minutes
.55 oz = 15.5 g, Goldings, 5 minutes then steep until chilled

YEAST:
Safale S-04/Whitbread-B, ferment warm around 70°F/21°C

STATS (assuming 75% mash efficiency and 75% yeast attenuation):
OG: 1042
FG: 1011
ABV: 4%
IBU: 30
COLOUR: 9°SRM/18°EBC
 
brewbama said:
MORRELLS VARSITY BITTER CLONE
The pint of choice for C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien during the Oxford years.

6 US gallons = 5 Imperial Gallons = 22.7 Litres

GRAINBILL:
83.3% = 7.6 lb = 3.45 kg, English Pale Malt
8.7% = .79 lb = 359 g, Torrified Wheat
8% = .73 lb = 332 g, English Crystal Malt

MASH at 151-153°F/66-67°C for 90 minutes

HOPS:
.6 oz = 17 g, Challenger, 60 minutes
.25 oz = 7 g, Target, 60 minutes
.3 oz = 8.5 g, Goldings, 30 minutes
.55 oz = 15.5 g, Goldings, 5 minutes then steep until chilled

YEAST:
Safale S-04/Whitbread-B, ferment warm around 70°F/21°C

STATS (assuming 75% mash efficiency and 75% yeast attenuation):
OG: 1042
FG: 1011
ABV: 4%
IBU: 30
COLOUR: 9°SRM/18°EBC
Click to expand...

Just to mention that Challenger and Target were introduced after the inklings dissolved. More likely to have Fuggles for bittering, less wheat (1-2%, or maybe same of unmalted barley) and some invert sugar syrup. Flaked barley and more British ingredients if post WW2, more American hops, corn, sugar and malted barley if pre-WW2.
 
Looks like it's based on Roger Protz's real ale almanac recipe, so would be a modern marstons/refresh brewed one
 
Whitbread's Pompey Royal (with cheese)

Brewing tomorrow, from Dave Line's book, adjusted in Beersmith.


Type: All Grain
Batch Size: 6.00 gal
Boil Size: 7.90 gal
Boil Time: 90 min
OG 1.047
IBU 56.1 Rager
EST ABV 5.1%
Mash @ 150 90 min


6 lbs 5.0 oz Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 1 68.7 %
9.2 oz Crystal Dark - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 2 6.3 %
1 lbs 2.4 oz Barley Syrup (0.0 SRM) Extract 3 12.5 %
1 lbs 2.4 oz Brown Sugar, Dark (50.0 SRM) Sugar 4 12.5 %
1.50 oz Fuggle [4.10 %] - Boil 90.0 min Hop 5 23.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Bramling Cross [5.10 %] - Boil 90.0 min Hop 6 19.3 IBUs
0.54 oz East Kent Goldings (EKG) [4.50 %] - Boil 90.0 min Hop 7 9.3 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 8 -
1.00 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Boil 10.0 mins) Other 9 -
0.54 oz East Kent Goldings (EKG) [4.50 %] - Steep/Whirlpool
1.0 pkg Whitbread Ale (Wyeast Labs #1099) [124.21 ml]
 
Brewing an imperial brown stout for next year: several pounds of brown and amber malt, a few ounces of patent malt. 100+ estimated IBU and ~30SRM.
 
I like this one lately.

1940 Whitbread Porter

It comes in as light beer calorie wise at 102 cal per 12 oz, and it has an excellent, traditional london porter flavor profile and color.

2.25 lb 2 Row Pale Malt
2.5 lb 6 Row Pale Malt
8 Oz Brown Malt
8 Oz Chocolate Malt
.03 lb Flaked Oats
.75 lb #3 Invert Sugar

IBU 25
.85 Oz Fuggle @60
.85 Oz East Kent Goldings @ 45 Mins

Yeast S-04
 
2.5 gallon batch?

bucfan1234 said:
I like this one lately.

1940 Whitbread Porter

It comes in as light beer calorie wise at 102 cal per 12 oz, and it has an excellent, traditional london porter flavor profile and color.

2.25 lb 2 Row Pale Malt
2.5 lb 6 Row Pale Malt
8 Oz Brown Malt
8 Oz Chocolate Malt
.03 lb Flaked Oats
.75 lb #3 Invert Sugar

IBU 25
.85 Oz Fuggle @60
.85 Oz East Kent Goldings @ 45 Mins

Yeast S-04
Click to expand...
 
JKaranka said:
I found the one I brewed. Aimed at og of 1.035 (I bumped up the grist compared to the actual 1940s stuff). Undershot a bit but it was surprisingly tasty.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=563504
Click to expand...

Would it ruin that beer to use pilsner malt instead of MO? I have a couple of pounds of brown malt and a whole sack of pils. Not sure how well they play together, but I'm looking for some low-alcohol winter beers.
 
z-bob said:
Would it ruin that beer to use pilsner malt instead of MO? I have a couple of pounds of brown malt and a whole sack of pils. Not sure how well they play together, but I'm looking for some low-alcohol winter beers.
Click to expand...

It would be different but I bet still drinkable. Maybe up the brown slightly and reduce the pilsner a tad. Ultimately that should overpower it.
 
Ended up more with a double brown stout with an OG of 1.085. Fermentation has slowed down after five days but still keeps on going. It has a chocolate brown colour. Very curious given it only has six ounces or so of properly dark malts (patent).
 
That's depressing. I haven't been to the England in about 15 years. How has the pub and beer scene changed? You hear horror stories of pubs closing, but you also hear about craft brewing evolving, including more experimental styles. Cambridge in 1993 is where I learned that BMC isn't really beer.

Here's my pale mild recipe. There were a half dozen attempts before I narrowed it down to this:

3 gal batch

4# Golden Promise
3oz Crisp pale chocolate
3oz Bairds Carastan
3oz Flaked Oats

Goldings 9g @ 60 min
9g @ 20 min

West Yorkshire yeast

Cold brewed coffee concentrate goes good in this too.
 
Weezy said:
That's depressing. I haven't been to the England in about 15 years. How has the pub and beer scene changed? You hear horror sites of pubs closing, but you also hear about craft brewing evolving, including more experimental styles. Cambridge in 1993 is where I learned that BMC isn't really beer.

Here's my pale mild recipe. There were a half dozen attempts before I narrowed it down to this:

3 gal batch

4# Golden Promise
3oz Crisp pale chocolate
3oz Bairds Carastan
3oz Flaked Oats

Goldings 9g @ 60 min
9g @ 20 min

West Yorkshire yeast

Cold brewed coffee concentrate goes good in this too.
Click to expand...

Love love love that yeast.
 
I brew bitters all the time and last night I threw together this recipe. I guess it's not too far off from the others that I've brewed. Any thoughts or suggestions? (11.5-gallon batch)

21 lbs Pale Ale Malt
1.5 lbs Wheat Malt
12.0 oz Crystal, English Dark
4.0 oz Roasted Barley
2.00 oz Challenger [7.40 %] - Boil 60.0 min
1.75 oz EKG [4.10 %] - Boil 30.0 min
1.75 oz Fuggle [4.50 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 min
1.0 pkg West Yorkshire Ale (Wyeast Labs #1469)

Calcium 91
Magnesium 7
Sodium 23
Sulfate 150
Chloride 97
 
Derp said:
I brew bitters all the time and last night I threw together this recipe. I guess it's not too far off from the others that I've brewed. Any thoughts or suggestions? (11.5-gallon batch)

21 lbs Pale Ale Malt
1.5 lbs Wheat Malt
12.0 oz Crystal, English Dark
4.0 oz Roasted Barley
2.00 oz Challenger [7.40 %] - Boil 60.0 min
1.75 oz EKG [4.10 %] - Boil 30.0 min
1.75 oz Fuggle [4.50 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 min
1.0 pkg West Yorkshire Ale (Wyeast Labs #1469)

Calcium 91
Magnesium 7
Sodium 23
Sulfate 150
Chloride 97
Click to expand...

Projected IBU and OG/FG?
good choice of yeast.
 
Derp said:
35 IBUs and 1.053, although the last few brews have come in 2 or 3 points low.

I love 1469. I've been using it and 1318 London Ale III for most of my English styles of late.
Click to expand...

sweet looks good enough to me.

FYI both 1318 and 1469 work well on NEIPA's too :) (If your into Hoppy beers of course)
 
For a bitter that big I'd bump the IBUs up a bit, although that's just personal preference.

also you could mineralise your water more, again personal preference

I'd also dry hop it, say 2-3oz of ekg/fuggle/target etc
 
Hanglow said:
For a bitter that big I'd bump the IBUs up a bit, although that's just personal preference.

also you could mineralise your water more, again personal preference

I'd also dry hop it, say 2-3oz of ekg/fuggle/target etc
Click to expand...
I bumped the IBUs up to 42, added 2 oz of EKG dry hops and adjusted the water to:

Calcium 115
Magnesium 7
Sodium 30
Sulfate 203
Chloride 100

Your suggestions were all things that I'd been debating in my mind, so we'll see how it turns out.

Cheers!
 
Derp said:
I bumped the IBUs up to 42, added 2 oz of EKG dry hops and adjusted the water to:

Calcium 115
Magnesium 7
Sodium 30
Sulfate 203
Chloride 100

Your suggestions were all things that I'd been debating in my mind, so we'll see how it turns out.

Cheers!
Click to expand...

Looks good. I enjoy a fairly snappy bitterness in a bitter, with some slight dry hop.
 
I've been a big fan of Ron Pattison's blog called "Shut up about Barclay Perkins". Loads of brewing history from across the pond and tons of great recipes. I've probably brewed about 5-6 of them with excellent results.

The most recent one I brewed was this- http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2016/11/lets-brew-1954-tennants-gold-label.html

1954 Tennant's Gold Label Barleywine.
(posts of my brew day are on page 136 of this thread)

So I thought I'd share the recipe after having a few nips off of my 2.5 gallon cornie which has progressed into a glorious beer ringing in at 9.4% after only being 4 weeks old.
After kegging and bottling half (bottles will sit for a year and keg will be drank within the next few months, maybe, if I can keep my grubby hand off of it.)
It bodes well after being outside in subzero weather and pulling a generous sample to warm the cockles.

1954 Tennant's Gold Label

All grain
6 gallon batch
Boil size 11 gallons
Mash 90 min. @ 149F
Boil length 3 hours
OG 1.110
FG 1.029
63 IBU
9.4% abv

15 lbs 7.3 oz Maris Otter
4 lbs 10.6 oz Flaked Maize
3.9 oz Acid Malt (helps the mash I guess but not necessary)
2 lbs 7.3 oz Invert #1 homemade
2.06 oz Fuggles 120 min 4.1%AA
.94 oz EKG 90 min 4.5% AA
.94 oz EKG 60 min
.94 oz EKG 30 min
Whirlfloc
Yeast Nutrient
Oxygen 1 min.

I used 7.9 gallons of my hard water from the hose bibb outside for my mash. 5 gallons of RO for the sparge.
Achieved 11 gallons for the 3 hour boil.
Chilled wort from 212F to pitching temp of 56F in 15 minutes.
Pitched a 5 day old slurry of S04 and let it ferment for one month.
Kegged 2.5 gallons and bottled 12-375 ml bottles, 6-12 oz bottles and 1- 22 oz bottle.

Sample from the fermenter was fruity, booze, orange-like jammy marmalade, thick malt back bone, bitter and dry.

After 4 weeks the booziness subsided. Aroma of fruity nail polish, slight booze, malt and corn. Taste is extremely smooth, corn comes out but with a depth of malt mixed in, fruit, orange jam, initially sweet in the finish but changes quick to a bitter dryness leaving your lips smacking for more. Very warming in the face.
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1484098689.916878.jpg
 
I'm going to brew an ESB this weekend to use up the last of a bag of pale ale malt, and hop with Fuggle and Willamette. Which should I use for bittering and which for aroma? I know they're closely related, and both are dual-purpose hops, so will it make any difference?

At first I was planning to use the Fuggle for bittering since the Brits do that and use EKG for aroma. Then I thought it might taste more British-ish to add the Fuggle late for the aroma. I don't know if I have USA Fuggle or UK Fuggle (it probably says on the package)

Here's the grain bill, and I'll be using S-04 yeast:
American pale ale malt, 3°L, 78%
Corn grits, 11%
Crystal 60°L, 9%
Special B, 150°L, 2%
 
St. Austell Tribute is a good beer with late williamette, although it uses it in conjunction with styrian goldings which are fairly different from fuggle even if they are descended from it

I'd use the Willamette late or blend them both. Fuggle can be good in high quantities too, I think Adnams did a beer called Extra that was highly hopped with fuggles, it was a lovely drop.


That's quite a lot of crystal too, although if you like that then go right ahead :) You'll need to cook the grits too, apologies if you know that already
 
z-bob said:
I'm going to brew an ESB this weekend to use up the last of a bag of pale ale malt, and hop with Fuggle and Willamette. Which should I use for bittering and which for aroma? I know they're closely related, and both are dual-purpose hops, so will it make any difference?

At first I was planning to use the Fuggle for bittering since the Brits do that and use EKG for aroma. Then I thought it might taste more British-ish to add the Fuggle late for the aroma. I don't know if I have USA Fuggle or UK Fuggle (it probably says on the package)

Here's the grain bill, and I'll be using S-04 yeast:
American pale ale malt, 3°L, 78%
Corn grits, 11%
Crystal 60°L, 9%
Special B, 150°L, 2%
Click to expand...

I'd remove the special b and reduce the crystal. If you want more colour add an ounce of a roast malt like chocolate or patent.
 
Thanks for the reply. Part of this experiment is to see whether I really need to cook the grits -- I'm not using normal grits, I'm using nixtamalized corn flour (masa harina.) It's already cooked and I'm hoping it's fully gelatinized. If not, my mash efficiency will be terrible and I'll know not to do that again, but it shouldn't ruin the beer. :)

What is a reasonable amount of medium crystal? 5%-6%? This is not really a style I'm familiar with. I was just thinking "half a pound ought to be about right" without taking into account I'm only making a small batch. (about 3 gallons) I forgot to scale it.
 
JKaranka said:
I'd remove the special b and reduce the crystal. If you want more colour add an ounce of a roast malt like chocolate or patent.
Click to expand...


Does this look better? The only fixed amount is the 70 oz of pale malt, because that's how much I have. (I could supplement it with some pils malt if I have to, but I'd rather not do that)

FERMENTABLES:
70 oz - American - Pale Ale (81.9%)
10 oz - Grits (11.7%)
4.5 oz - American - Caramel / Crystal 60L (5.3%)
1 oz - United Kingdom - Roasted Barley (1.2%)
 
z-bob said:
What is a reasonable amount of medium crystal? 5%-6%? This is not really a style I'm familiar with. I was just thinking "half a pound ought to be about right" without taking into account I'm only making a small batch. (about 3 gallons) I forgot to scale it.
Click to expand...

10% medium crystal in an ESB is perfectly acceptable IMO. Special B maybe isn't as traditional but if you dig that dark raisin flavour it gives then go for it.
 
I think I'm going to go back to the original recipe, but dial back the crystal 60 to about 5.4 ounces (use 1/3 pound instead of 1/2.) I'm using the Special B like it was crystal 150, and at 2%, I don't think there will be any noticeable difference. I could be wrong...

And split the Fuggle; use half of it at 60 minutes and half at 30, then finish with Willamette. Depending on how well the grits convert, the ABV will be somewhere between 5 and 5.5%, and the IBU's around 40.
 
z-bob said:
Does this look better? The only fixed amount is the 70 oz of pale malt, because that's how much I have. (I could supplement it with some pils malt if I have to, but I'd rather not do that)

FERMENTABLES:
70 oz - American - Pale Ale (81.9%)
10 oz - Grits (11.7%)
4.5 oz - American - Caramel / Crystal 60L (5.3%)
1 oz - United Kingdom - Roasted Barley (1.2%)
Click to expand...

This looks good. I guess this thread follows British strong bitters (such as Fullers' ESB), which I think tend to be less malty and dark than the American take on them. I've not seen any American strong bitters here in the UK, but the recipes posted often are dark and not particularly bitter.

With crystal malt quantities. You don't need it in a strong bitter. Lost do use some (2-5%) is quite typical, but you could use amber malt instead, or brewers' caramel, or a medium coloured invert.
 
JKaranka said:
This looks good. I guess this thread follows British strong bitters (such as Fullers' ESB), which I think tend to be less malty and dark than the American take on them. I've not seen any American strong bitters here in the UK, but the recipes posted often are dark and not particularly bitter.

With crystal malt quantities. You don't need it in a strong bitter. Lost do use some (2-5%) is quite typical, but you could use amber malt instead, or brewers' caramel, or a medium coloured invert.
Click to expand...

Very informative, thank you. What about a small amount of brown malt? (just curious)

What I'm going for is malty and bitter (the balance tipped towards bitter), but not heavy. As long as it's drinkable the color doesn't matter much, but amber-to-copper would be nice.
 
Brown is mainly for porters and stouts in my book but you could replace 1/2lb of amber by 1/4lb of brown. Roughly. Lots of people don't like it in pale ales such as bitters.
 

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