British Brewer

Recipe: Chiswick ESB (ver 1.0)

The recipe and process can be found online here. Feedback on this recipe can be found here.

This is my first attempt at brewing one of my all time favorite ales, the beer I would drink the most consistently, Fullers ESB.  This ale is one of the first British ales to become widely available in the US, along with Bass.  Unfortunately, as with Bass, the flavour of Fullers ESB in the US pales in comparison to a fresh pint served in a Fullers Pub in London.  Fullers ESB is also the winner of 7 CAMRA Best ESB awards, Two Best Beer of Britain awards, and two US Beverage Tasting Institutes “World Champion Bitter” medals, among many other honors.

Fullers ESB is probably ‘the’ classic London ESB, an Extra Special/Strong Bitter classed English Pale Ale.  As discussed in the post on creating your own beer recipes (here), ESB brews tend to have more of a balance with the malt and bitterness.  This beer is a fine example.  Written up in the The Real Ale Almanac as an:

Explosion of malt and hops and cooper’s marmalade.  Enormous attack of malt and fruit with hop underlay; profound finish with strong Goldings character and hints of orange, lemon, gooseberry and some tannin.

Beer has been brewed at the Fullers Brewery site in Chiswick, known as the Griffen Brewery, since the time of Oliver Cromwell.  The brewery existed as a variety of partnerships with its namesake, John Fuller, joining the firm in 1829.  In 1845 John Fullers son, John Bird Fuller, was joined by Henry Smith of the brewery Ind Smith, and John Turner, Smiths brother-in-law and head brewer. They formed the company Fuller, Smith & Turner, as it is still know today.  Descendants of these 3 families are still actively involved in the day to day running of the company today.  More on Fullers here.

On to the ingredients.  Standard practice these days is for the the brewery to be forthcoming with its basic ingredients and Fullers in no exception.  The site proclaims the malt mix to include Pale Malt (base), Crystal and Goldings, Northdown, Target and Challenger hops.

The Real Ale Almanac confirms the  brewers website and includes the addition of Maize.  Maize is used in brewing to boost the ABV in the same way as cane sugar.  But unlike cane sugar Maize is not 100% fermentable, containing 20% non-fermentable sugars and therefore will not dry the beer as much as cane sugar leaving some sweetness behind.  The almanac estimates the bitterness at 35 IBU’s, colour of 16 SRM and a FG of 1013.  The website provides two ABV values, 5.5% in the cask and 5.9% in the keg or bottle.

Next stop is to input the ingredients into the beer calculus system on hopville.com and balance the quantities in order to create a workable recipe conforming to the constraints above.

Base Malt: Given this is an extract recipe we need to replace the Pale Malt with a combination of Light DME and Dark DME in order to get the colour and sugar levels high enough without having to use too much crystal malt to boost the colour and in turn overpower the beer.  As stated in our research and from personal experience, this is a balanced beer with neither hop nor malt overpowering.

Specialty Grains: Both the Almanac and the web site state the use of Crystal and Maize as the primary specialty grains.  After fiddling around on the calculator it became clear we need to use Crystal 120L to get both the caramel, nutty flavour and the deeper colour.  Even after using 120 Crystal and the Dark DME the OG of the beer comes in over the recommended 1054-1059 range needed to get the 5.5-5.9% ABV.  After consulting some books the recommendation was to add a tiny amount of Black Malt to kick the SRM up to 16 without having to add too much sugar or altering the flavour profile too much.

Hops: The website and Almanac called for quite the mix of hops.  Due to the hop shortage, which we are told is about to come to an end,  both Northdown and Challenger Hops are really hard to come by.  After some research on the BYO hop chart and Brew365, the recommendation is to substitute the Challenger with Perle given it has a similar Alpha % and taste profile. For Northdown the recommendation is to add additional Target following the same reasoning. Only time will tell if this is the right decision, this is why this recipe is Version 1.0.  Given the tasting notes call for a strong Goldings aroma and flavour we should go with the Goldings for the Flavour hop.  Its now up to Hopville to calculate the appropriate quantities of Bittering and Flavour hops to reach the 35 IBU target.

Yeast: The yeast profile for this brew definitely calls for fruit. The high ABV calls for a yeast with high attenuation. The choice for version 1.0 is Wyeast London Ale.  The strain is from the right region and this is a London Ale after all.  Wyeast London ESB was up for consideration, but the recipe called for a higher attenuation.

Chiswick ESB (BJCP Beer Style: Extra Special/Strong Bitter, category: English Pale Ale)

• 5 Gallon, 90 min boil
• OG 1059, FG 1013
• 5.9% ABV
• 35 IBU
• 16° SRM (Copper to Deep Copper)
• Ready to drink in 6-7 weeks

Base Malt and Fermentables:

• 3 lbs Light Dry Malt Extract (90 mins)
• 3 lbs Dark Dry Malt Extract (90 mins)

Specialty Grains:

• 11 oz Flaked Corn (Maize)
• 5 oz Crystal Malt – 120L
• 1 oz Black Malt

Hops

• Bittering Hop – 0.8 oz Perle (90 mins)
• Bittering Hop – 0.5 oz Target (90 mins)
• Aroma Hop – 0.7 oz Kent Goldings (15 mins)

Yeast

• Wyeast London Ale (#1028) (Attenuation 73-77%, Flocculation: Medium Low)

Other Additions

• 1 tsp Irish Moss (30 mins)
• Packet of Isinglass Liquid (to help remove any lingering proteins given the low flocculation level of the yeast)

Process

• Please follow the process guidelines outlined in my post here.  You will require all the equipment specified here. I found the maize flakes clogged up the strainer while rinsing the specialty grains. I will be researching the best way to incorporate maize when I get a chance.
• Primary Fermentation: 5-7 days at 65-75°
• Secondary Fermentation: 2 weeks at 55° (if you can otherwise just 5-7 days in the same location as the primary)
• Prime and store in the bottle for at least 2 weeks before consuming
• Peak flavour will be reached after 4 weeks in the bottle

Getting Started Pt 5 – Priming and Bottling

…and drinking of course. As my friend Liz Knox asked for more quotes in my posts I will give them. Given we are about to bottle and store away the fruits of our labors to prepare them for consumption I thought this was appropriate.

Filled with mingled cream and amber I will drain that glass again. Such hilarious visions clamber Through the chambers of my brain — Quaintest thoughts — queerest fancies Come to life and fade away; Who cares how time advances? I am drinking ale today. – Edgar Allan Poe (American short-story Writer, Editor, Poet and Critic, 1809-1849)

This is the final post in our getting started series.  I have to say they have been fun to do and have helped me analyze and question my own techniques and process, improving them along the way.  As I noted in the first post of this series, brewing is a journeyman profession.

As with all the other steps in our process I have included photos, again from the Best Bitter I used in both the brewing and fermentation post.  Lets get on to business

Bottling Equipment

Equipment and Additional Ingredients

There are some basic equipment requirements when it comes to bottling beer.

1) Bottles –  You can either reuse beer bottles from brews acquired at the store or go to a homebrew supplier and buy them there.  If you reuse commercial beer bottles make sure they are not screw tops as these require additional equipment not commonly available at homebrew suppliers.

Ensure the bottles are made from dark coloured glass.  Over exposure to bright light can cause the beer to get a skunky smell caused by a chemical reaction in the hop oil from an over exposure to ultraviolet light. Whatever your choice, the bottles need to be cleaned thoroughly and dried before bottling can commence using a bottling brush and some HOT water.

Bottles typically come in 3 sizes, either 12 oz, 16 oz, or 22 oz.  There are others including growlers and wine bottles. The choice is yours. My only advice is to use a bottle that provides enough ale for a single serving.  Remember homebrew ales contain live yeast and a small amount will settle to the bottom of the bottle as part of the priming process. We do not want any of the sediment to get into a poured ale which happens if the bottle is swished around while pouring from glass to glass or placed back on the counter half full, churning the yeast in the process.  So either decant into a jug or pour a bottle into a single glass.

2) Bottle Caps and a Capper – Regardless of the bottle size you choose the bottle tops are one standard size (except the wine bottle) and one standard bottle cap though there are a couple of different varieties on offer. There is the standard pry-off cap, it can come in plain metal or decorated with a logo.  Some commercial breweries sell surplus caps through homebrew suppliers.  The second type of cap is a pry-off cap with a special oxygen-scavenging liner that can help reduce oxidation and staling, especially useful in higher alcohol beers such as Imperial IPA or Barelywine which bottle condition for many months.

Bottle Cappers come in a variety of shapes and sizes from automated to incredibly manual. I use a simple manual twin-lever device with a magnet to hold the cap in place.

3) Priming Sugar – In order to create the CO2 in bottled conditioned beer it is necessary to create a mini fermentation by adding some additional sugar for the remaining yeast to convert to CO2. The amount of sugar is too small to make any real change to the final ABV.

Each ale recipe can have its own priming ingredient and methodology. Typically cane sugar is used, it is easily consumed by the yeast and has no flavour, colour or aroma characteristics once fermented. It needs to be highly soluble and dissolve quickly into the beer. Some recipes call for Dried Malt Extract, or syrup, both which require boiling for 15-20mins and left to cool before adding to the bottling bucket.  Unless mentioned, all recipes on this site will use confectioners sugar, typically 3/4 cup to 1 cup depending on the level of carbonation.  Do not go over a cup or risk some mini explosions as bottle caps are forced off from too much pressure being created in the bottle.  Confectioners sugar is very fine and dissolves easily into the beer.

We also need a bottling bucket, preferably with a spigot, a siphon, racking cane, and a sanitized long wooden or plastic spoon to gently mix the sugar into the beer.

Process

1) After the ale has been in the secondary fermenter, typically for 5-7 days or as instructed by the recipe, it is ready to be bottled.  First assemble the equipment outlined above, if the priming sugar has been boiled, ensure it has been cooled to room temperature before we begin.

2) Next, attach the siphon tube to racking cane.  If any hops or other adjuncts were added to the secondary fermentation it may be necessary to attach a small filter to the end of the racking cane to avoid any particles getting into the bottled beer.

3) Remove airlock from the carboy, insert racking cane and siphon off into a clean bottling bucket being very careful to avoid the sediment sitting on the bottom of the carboy.  I tilt the carboy forward as the beer drains to ensure we get as much beer out of the bottle leaving all the sediment behind.

Ensure the siphon tubing is coiled around the bottom of the bottling bucket and the beer does not splash as it enters the bucket. Splashing causes the beer to aerate. At this stage of the brewing process oxygen is our enemy.  We need a little oxygen to re-invigorate the remaining yeast cells to replicate and consume the small amount of priming sugar, but too much will lead to stale beer. Too much oxygen can also cause the yeast to over produce leaving a lot of sediment and create cloudy beer with a heavy yeast taste, again bad.

Adding 3/4 cup of priming sugar

Stir gently to avoid overly aerating the beer

4) Transfer the now filled bottling bucket to the bottling area, mix the priming sugar or solution to the beer and stir very gently so as not to aerate the beer.

Case of 12 oz beer bottles

Filling the bottle

5) Position empty bottle under the bottling bucket spigot and fill bottle leaving about 1/2 inch open at the top.  Don’t worry about the oxygen in the top of the bottle, the CO2 generated by the priming sugar will force it to the top of the bottle and away from the precious ale.

Place cap on now filled bottle

Place capper over bottle like so

Push down on levers, crimping the cap around the edge of the bottle

and you are done

Don't forget to clean and santize your equipment!

6) Put caps on bottle and store in a dark cool place for as long as the recipe states.  Two weeks is usually enough to test a bottle to check for successful carbonation, but I would let the ale sit for a couple of weeks before cracking open the case proper.  Most ales will hit a peak at around 1 month in the bottle, higher ABV ales can rest for months and sometimes years. Yeah sure, not in my house.

Finally, sit back, crack open a brew, and pour (remember one single pour leaving the small amount of sediment in the bottom of the bottle) and quaff down the fruits of your hard earned labor.  Brewing is a fun process, and its fun to discover the flavours, aromas, and colours created by the various combination of hops and grain and the various strains of yeast.

Have fun and please leave comments on the this page about any additional tips and tricks you have found helped you while on your own brewing adventures.

Recipe: Abbots Special Bitter (1st Pass)

This recipe and process can be found here. Recipe feed for this pass can be found here.

Greene King Abbot Ale

Abbots Special Bitter is my first attempt at creating one of my wife’s favorite British Ales, Greene King Abbot Ale.  She describes the ale as “smooth with a nice hint of apples”.  It is this hint of fruit we will try to recreate in this classic Extra Special/Strong Bitter classed English Pale Ale.

Greene King Abbot Ale is steeped in history. Brewed in the old English town of Bury St Edmunds in the heart of Suffolk, the brewery sits along side the historic ruins of the old “Great Abbey” where, according the Doomsday Book, the local Abbot hired “cerevisiarii” or ale brewers as servants over 1000 years ago.  The ale is still made from water drawn from the chalk heavy wells used all those years ago.

According to the Greene King web site the ale contains no wheat, is made from malted barley, is 5.0% ABV, and uses finings to clear the ale. On the brewing process page they claim to use Fuggles and Challenger hops.

Next stop was to check the The Real Ale Almanac by Roger Protz. This is the bible of Real Ales covering every ale in the British Isles. The book provides tasting notes, descriptions of the brewery and its process, water source and ingredients (where available).  From the almanac we get Pale Malt, Amber Malt, Crystal and the use of cane sugar. We also get an IBU of 30 and OG of 1048 and 90 min boil time.  I could find nothing on SRM so I did some hands on research and purchased a can of draft Abbot Ale from the local Blanchards. I observed a copper to light brown colour, an SRM of approx 12-13. Not exact science I know, but it was a fun piece of research to carry out. It is often necessary to make sacrifices for ones research.

Finally I inputted all these variables into Hopville.com and played around with the mix of quantities until I came up with something near to the constraints provided above.

Base Malt: I replaced the Pale base malt with Light DME. Nuff said. I used a little cane sugar (as stated in the alamanc to bring the OG to 1050 and get the final ABV as near 5.0% as I could).

Specialty Grains: This proved difficult. We need to get the colour to around an SRM 13 and give a strong malt flavour to balance the moderately  bitter 30 IBU.  The almanac called for Amber and Crystal malt. To give colour without adding to the OG I used an Crystal 80 and then made up the ABV with Amber.  The Crystal 80L should provide a moderate caramel flavour.

Hops: Given the higher Alpha % I went with Challenger as the bitterness hop and Fuggles as the aroma and used the quantities required to bring the IBU to approx 30.

Yeast: This is guess work.  We want a yeast that provides fruity esters (for the apple taste) and a high attenuation to get a 5.0 ABV from an OG of 1050.  I like to use the liquid yeasts with yeast starters so checked out the current strains available from Wyeast and White Labs. We also know they use finings, used to brighten an ale and remove yeast and proteins left behind from the primary fermentation.  This would hint to the brewer using a yeast with low to medium flocculation as finings are not typically required when using high flocculating yeast.

Abbots Special Bitter (BJCP Beer Style: Extra Special/Strong Bitter, category: English Pale Ale)

• 5 Gallon, 90 min boil
• OG 1050, FG 1012
• 5.0% ABV
• 30 IBU
• 13° SRM
• Ready to drink in 6-7 weeks

Base Malt and Fermentables:

• 4 lbs 12 oz Light Dry Malt Extract (90 mins)

Specialty Grains:

• 12 oz Amber Malt
• 8 oz English Crystal 80L

Hops

• Bittering Hop – 1.25 oz Challenger (90 mins)
• Aroma Hop – 1 oz English Fuggles (10 mins)

Other Additions

• 1 tsp Irish Moss (30 mins)
• 2 oz Cane Sugar (after boil is complete)

Process

• Please follow the process guidelines outlined in my post here.  You will require all the equipment specified here.
• Primary Fermentation: 5-7 days at 65-75°
• Secondary Fermentation: 2 weeks at 55° (if you can otherwise just 5-7 days in the same location as the primary)
• Prime and store in the bottle for at least 2 weeks before consuming
• Peak flavour will be reached after 4 weeks in the bottle

On Tap (6th Dec 2009)

A lot of activity in the workshop this week. Time for an “On Tap” update.

Primary

• Abbots Special Ale (1 day) – this is my first attempt at a Greene King Abbot Ale clone
• Lord Fatbottom Ale (9 days) – cannot believe the fermentation is still going strong, its going to be a strong brew

Secondary

• Kentish Best Bitter (3 days)

Bottle Conditioning

• Dogfish Head 90 min IPA clone (dry hopped in the secondary for 7 days, cold conditioned in fermenter for 7 days and then bottled for 3 months) – now 2 weeks in the bottle and I tried the test bottle to see if the priming sugar had worked. It had 🙂 The flavour was getting their but this beauty is going to definitely need at least 3 months to bring out the malt, the hop flavour is very prominent

Drinking

• British ESB in the keg (stored at 55°) served using BeerGas system
• Old Ale in the bottle (1 month in the secondary, 1 1/2 months bottle conditioned) only 5 left 🙁

Beer Styles – Creating your own English Pale Ale recipe

I noticed in my first recipe post (here) that I inserted jargon around beer style categories and used acronyms such as BJCP without actually giving any detail as to meaning and importance. My bad, but it got me thinking that a write up on beer classifications would provide a great framework to begin discussions around recipe creation as we begin to build and review different recipes.

BJCP Logo

The Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) is a non-profit organization whose purpose (taken from their website):

…is to promote beer literacy and the appreciation of real beer, and to recognize beer tasting and evaluation skills. We certify and rank beer judges through an examination and monitoring process.

The BJCP was founded in 1985 and has administered the Beer Judge Examination to 5,299 individuals worldwide. 3,126 are currently active judges in the program, with 481 holding the rank of National or higher. Since we started keeping detailed records, our members have judged over 510,871 beers and we have sanctioned over 3,805

For the current year (2009), 58 exams have been registered. Exams have been given to 570 examinees. Organizers have registered 310 competitions. More detailed statistics can be found in the Database Reports section of the website. competitions.

(My italics) By creating a set of standards for judging beer the BJCP has created a defacto standard for classifying beer now used by almost every homebrew calculator, book, website, and in almost all beer competitions.  These classifications provide a great starting point for the new homebrewer to begin researching their own new recipes.

Each style listed by the BJCP contains a number of sub-categories outlining general characteristics, guidelines, and requirements an ale is assessed against when placed into competition.  These guidelines include aroma, flavour,  appearance, and mouthfeel.  Assessment requirements include Specific Gravity (OG & FG), colour (SRM), bitterness (IBU’s), and Alcohol By Volume (ABV).  A recommended range of values is provided for each of the above.  These guidelines therefore provide an excellent place to start when beginning to craft your own recipe.

Given the focus of this blog lets focus on the various categories of British ale. A complete style guide can be found here.  Arguably the most popular British Ale style is “Category 8 – English Pale Ale”.  English Pale Ale is broken down into 3 sub-categories:

• Standard/Ordinary Bitter
• Special/Best/Premium
• Extra Special/Strong Bitter.

It is not uncommon to hear the phrase “A pint of Best”, or “pint of your Ordinary” in an English Pub.  Each brewery would typically have one of each of the 3 categories, each with its own unique flavour, aroma, colour and strength.

Standard/Ordinary

So lets translate the above table into English.  With a recommended ABV of 3.2-3.8% these styles of ale are low alcohol making them light and easy to drink.  The low alcholol level accounts for a lower OG.  With a FG around 1.007 most of the sugars have been converted into alcohol and with IBU’s in the high 20’s-30’s give these ales quite a dry and bitter taste. A higher ABV would smooth the bitterness out but this is not the case here.  The SRM dictates a light yellow to copper colour so a light Crystal Malt may be used giving us a hint of caramel flavour.

Some commercial examples of Ordinary Ale include: Fuller’s Chiswick Bitter, Adnams Bitter, Young’s Bitter, Greene King IPA, Tetley’s Original Bitter, Brakspear Bitter, Boddington’s Pub Draught (All good session beers and great with pub food).

Special/Best/Premium

As the above table highlights a pint of Best is very similar to the Ordinary. The similar bitterness profile combined with the higher ABV leaves a smoother, more balanced malt flavour but with the bitterness still coming through. A high FG still gives a dry ale but not as dry as the ordinary and the darker colour (gold to copper) provides for potentially more crystal malt or a darker strain and a stronger caramel flavour.

Some commercial examples of Best Bitter include: Fuller’s London Pride, Adnams SSB, Young’s Special, Shepherd Neame Masterbrew Bitter, Ruddles County Bitter (all have been personal favorites of mine).

Extra Special/Strong Bitter

Strong Bitter is most commonly served as an ESB and is probably my favorite overall English Pale Ale category.  This ale is the most balanced in flavour between hop and malt thanks to both the high OG and IBU.  The deeper golden to deep copper colour gives a richer caramel taste with the opportunity to use some of the darker or roasted malts in small quantities giving a nuttier, biscuit like quality.  This category provides the greatest flexibility to the brewer given the wide range of values which is reflected in the wide variety of ESB’s on the market.

Some commercial examples of ESB include: Fullers ESB, Adnams Broadside, Shepherd Neame Bishop’s Finger, Young’s Ram Rod, Samuel Smith’s Old Brewery Pale Ale, Bass Ale, Whitbread Pale Ale, Shepherd Neame Spitfire, Marston’s Pedigree, Morland Old Speckled Hen, Greene King Abbot Ale, Bateman’s XXXB, Shipyard Old Thumper.

Bringing it all together –

So now its our turn to figure out our own British Bitter recipe.  The easiest way to begin is to use a brewers calculator, such as the one found at  Hopville.com, and construct a recipe.  As we add ingredients the calculator updates SRM, IBU, ABV, OG and FG helping us structure the perfect ale.  To check whether your ale conforms to your chosen category simply select your style in the calculator and it will  compare your recipe against the BJCP guidelines and provide the appropriate feedback.

Remember as we are only focused on extract based recipes for English Pale Ale use Light Dry Malt Extract as the base malt with maybe some Amber DME for a darker colour. For specialty grains play around with the various degrees of Crystal malt for colour and flavour, maybe a small amount of black or toasted malt such as Victory for nutty overtones.  For hops Fuggles, Target, Kent Goldings, and Williamette are all good places to start. To get going and perfect your own brew.

Of course there is no substitute for actually trying one out.  So give it a shot and please post recipes in the comments or email me with a description and I will post them.

A taste of home

My copy of “Brew Your Own British Real Ale” arrived in the post yesterday (thanks to the wonders of Amazon Prime and free 2-day shipping).  I got an early start at the book after finding the ONLY chair at the YMCA in Hanover put out for parents to watch their little ones hit (or not) tennis balls at each other around the court.

My first impressions of the book are positive.  The science is thorough, the technique is strong and I am learning new stuff on every page.  I also like the use of quotations at the beginning of every chapter, something I have never seen used in a homebrew book before.  A couple made me stop and reflect and I thought I would share.

From the beginning of the “About” chapter:

There is a nice old-fashioned room at the “Rose and Crown” where bargees and their wives sit of an evening drinking their supper beer, and toasting their supper cheese at a glowing basketful of coals that sticks out into the room under a great hooded chimney and is warmer and prettier and more comforting than any other fireplace I ever saw.  There was a pleasant party of barge people around the fire.  You might not have thought it pleasant, but they did; for they were all friends or acquaintances, and they liked the same sort of things, and talked the same sort of talk.  This is the real secret of pleasant society.  – E. Nesbit, The Railway Children, 1906

and finally the quotation used at the beginning of the first chapter:

Cenosilicaphobia – The fear of an empty glass.  -Anonymous

a horrible thought and something I may need to get tested for, this is why I have the ESB in the keg.

Some interesting Christmas present ideas….

…for those that make beer and those that love to drink it.

In my daily reading of the blogosphere I came across a cool post and some great books I wanted to highlight.

First up a post from ex-pat beer scholar, zythophile, a pint pot that solves the problem of a beer getting overly warm in the palm (or for those who like it chilled, condensation getting on your hands).

classic quote here:

The pint glass is normally a triumph of function over form, being, too often, an extremely ugly container for a very fine product.

I have asked santa for a couple myself but for those that cannot wait Amazon has some in stock, check it out here.

I am always researching techniques and recipes and there is a wealth of knowledge online and in books.  One big source of ideas comes from homebrew recipe books.  I already have one called “Clone Brews: Homebrew Recipes for 150 Commercial Beers“. This is not only a great source for brewing techniques but also provides guidance on crafting your own unique recipes.  As the title suggests it the pages are filled with 150 recipes drawn from all over the world including the infamous Famosa Lager from Guatemala, the Maccabee Premium from Israel, and the Ngoma Awooyo Special from Togo. It has a great list of British Ales(Fullers, Courage), Irish (Guinness) and some US favorites (Magic Hat, Red Hook, Sam Adams) with some of the more famous Belgium brews thrown in (Duval, Chimay Red).

I was surfing around yesterday and came across this gem, “Brew Your Own British Real Ale“.  If there was a book the BritishBrewer should own it would be this one.  It has actually been out of print since 1998 but due to the rise in popularity of homebrewing the book is being re-issued next year.  I looked it up on Amazon, and from the sample pages Amazon provided I noted an extensive knowledge-base on techniques and tips for brewing authentic Brtitsh real ale.  Most importantly it had a 100 recipes including all the beers I used to love, and yes I have drunk every single one on the list. My long suffering parents can attest to this fact mainly due to the existence of probably one of the best pubs in the world ever just 5 min walk from my house growing up in New Malden called “Woodies“. Had 7 real ales on tap and rotated them constantly.  Always something new to try and sometimes I would somehow manage to get through all 7 in a session, would be rude not to.

I digress, these recipes are priceless as a number of these breweries are no longer in business.  I cannot wait to brew a Wadsworth 6X or a Flowers and write back here with my findings.  Check out the book here, used copies are available (I have ordered one) and you can pre-order the new edition.

Happy reading

Getting Started Pt4 – Fermentation