How does my Session ESB look?

[schiersteinbrewing]

Add 1/2teaspoon Burton Salts to 6.5gal RO water

6oz Aromatic Malt
6oz Brown Malt
2oz Crystal 90l
2oz Crystal 120l
2lbs Light DME 60min
2lbs Light DME 15min
1.25oz Challenger (7.5%AA) 60min
.75oz Challenger (7.5%AA) flame out
Mangrove Jack Burton Union M79 Dry Yeast

OG 1.040
FG 1.012
IBU 36.6
Color 11 SRM

Any suggestions?
This is my first attempt at formulating an extract recipe and a session beer. Typically do AG, but time constraints have made squeezing out an AG brew very difficult. So I figured why not play with extract for awhile. When I started brewing I did 2-3 extract kits then went full bore into AG.

 

[JKaranka]

Too complicated! You are trying to make a regular bitter after all. Definitively drop the brown malt and the aromatic malt. What about 4.5lb of DME, 4oz Crystal 90L and 4oz Amber malt? According to my brewers friend calculations you get 7SRM which is perfect for the style. With Challenger you want to move some of the 60m addition to 20m or so to keep a bit of the hop bite in the flavour. I like M79 but you might find it a bit too dry if you don't like light body. You could consider some terrified wheat to overcome that (2-4oz).

Completely different thought: if you like darker and more complex beers, have you thought about making a dark mild?

 

[schiersteinbrewing]

Thanks for the help.

4oz Crystal 90
4oz Amber malt
2lbs Light DME 60 min
2.5lbs light DME 15min
.75oz Challenger 7.5%AA 60min
.50oz Challenger 7.5%AA 15min
.75oz Challenger 7.5%AA flame out

OG 1.037
FG 1.012
IBU 35.6
Color 7.6 SRM
ABV 3.3%


I was trying to shoot for something similar to Ska Brewing ESB (http://skabrewing.com/brews/special-e-s-b/) and following this BYO article https://byo.com/mead/item/600-esb-style-profile and Brewing Classic Styles. Shooting for an ABV of 3-4%.

I don't mind a dry beer at all. I just used the m10 for an altbier and m84 for an Oktoberfest so far I'm liking the results of their yeasts. Plus it's cheaper and my LHBS carries it.

I don't mind a complex dark beer at all, haven't made a dark mild yet.

 

[Qhrumphf]

You're looking for a good Ordinary Bitter then. I like the one in my dropdown, but it's not the most traditional "to style", full and malty end for sure. A good classic Bitter is really good at 5-7% crystal malt, maybe 5% invert sugar (or not, very traditional but not mandatory), and the rest Maris Otter. Good and simple, with modest late hops. I shoot for ~35-40 IBUs in both Ordinary and Best Bitters, with small 15-20 minute hop addition (half to 3/4 ounce or so) and sometimes a small flameout addition and/or dry hop.

 

[slym2none]

You could consider some terrified wheat to overcome that (2-4oz).

How do they scare the wheat, and what is the result?

:cross:

 

[Gavin C]

I'd ditch the burton salts. Using these does not factor in how the Burton-on Trent brewers blended their water sources to get their desired profiles.

A session ESB is essentially and ordinary bitter. Just make one of them.

 

[schiersteinbrewing]

Could I sub special roast for the amber malt? My LHBS doesn't have amber.

 

[Qhrumphf]

I believe Special Roast is closer to Brown Malt than Amber Malt. I don't mind a little Special Roast in a Bitter though.

 

[JKaranka]

I've never seen any Briess malts. The colour of Crisp amber is around 30-35 lovibond while the special roast is 50. The description sounds also a bit more like brown malt as mentioned above. I can see 2-4oz working fine. I like the 'bite' of the amber more than much roast flavour. Toasty and dry.

 

[Remmy]

Session ESB? I'm confused.

 

[schiersteinbrewing]

Session ESB? I'm confused.

As I have now learned a Session ESB is just an Ordinary Bitter. It was a lack of knowledge about the style on my part.

 

[Qhrumphf]

As I have now learned a Session ESB is just an Ordinary Bitter. It was a lack of knowledge about the style on my part.

He's confused because his "regular" strength beers are 12%, and his "session" beers are 12.5%. Neither of which a good ESB will make.

 

[schiersteinbrewing]

He's confused because his "regular" strength beers are 12%, and his "session" beers are 12.5%. Neither of which a good ESB will make.

Exactly.

 

[Remmy]

He's confused because his "regular" strength beers are 12%, and his "session" beers are 12.5%. Neither of which a good ESB will make.

Easy there, pal.

My ESB recipe is pretty decent and comes in at 5.5% ABV...which, I guess, is technically an Imperial Bitter? :fro:

 

[Qhrumphf]

Easy there, pal.

My ESB recipe is pretty decent and comes in at 5.5% ABV...which, I guess, is technically an Imperial Bitter? :fro:

So by @Remmy standards, basically water?