Best Bitter

[Tron]

Going to give a Best Bitter a go, looking for a rich but not overpowering toffee flavor(without using the caramelization method) hence the Molasses.
Thoughts?


Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 34.15 l
Post Boil Volume: 29.31 l
Batch Size (fermenter): 25.00 l
Bottling Volume: 23.60 l
Estimated OG: 1.048 SG
Estimated Color: 24.3 EBC
Estimated IBU: 31.7 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 79.6 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
4.50 kg Pale Malt, Maris Otter (5.9 EBC) Grain 1 83.3 %
0.60 kg Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (118.2 EBC) Grain 2 11.1 %
0.30 kg Molasses (157.6 EBC) Sugar 3 5.6 %
30.00 g Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 60.0 Hop 4 14.7 IBUs
25.00 g Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 5 10.1 IBUs
25.00 g Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 6 3.6 IBUs
20.00 g Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 10.0 Hop 7 3.2 IBUs
1.0 pkg English Ale (White Labs #WLP002) [35.49 Yeast 8 -


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Medium Body
Total Grain Weight: 5.40 kg
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 13.30 l of water at 73.1 C 66.7 C 60 min
Mash Out Add 7.45 l of water at 93.7 C 75.6 C 10 min

Sparge: Fly sparge with 18.51 l water at 75.6 C

[Barley Water]

I'm not sure you are going to get a toffee flavor from molasses, what you might end up with is a rummy flavor and perhaps some dried fruit. Since you said you don't want to mess with carmelizing some wort, maybe trying adding some darker crystal, it will also tend to make the beer more complex. By the way, carmelizing is very easy, just pull off some first runnings then boil them while the rest of the sparge is going, I do it on the kitchen stove and it works great. By the way, WLP02 can you give a touch of diacetyl which really tastes great with the caramel, I just love that in a nice bitter.

[Tron]

The main problem with caramelizing the wort is that my boiler sits on top of the cook, under the extractor fan, so i have no access to the cooker while i'm brewing!
Previously i did a dark mild and same recipe again with molasses and it tasted like more it had more caramel. perhaps it was the interaction with the other dark malts that produced it?

Perhaps i should figure out a way to caramelize some wort

[Barley Water]

You might try turning on the heat at the same the you start collecting the wort, you will hopefully carmelize more of the worth naturally. The other advantage of doing that is you don't waste as much time waiting to get things up to a boil.

[far9410]

Or you could dissolve some dme and caramelise that before you start

[themadhippy]

Perhaps i should figure out a way to caramelize some wort

el cheapo electric kettle?

[Tron]

Well my brew kettle is an electric burco(although i have shinies in the garge nearly finished)
I just put it on top of a thick wooden chopping board on top of the hob so that i can use the extractor and not have to wipe the walls down after a brewday LOL.
humm i've got an old camping stove in the garage, might be able to do it on that

[orlando]

You could swap out the crystal for some caramalt.

[nobby]

I would drop the crystal and molasses and add 250 Amber and 500 Munich malt. I do this and its a lovely malty bitter.