Suggest a nice malty medium strength ale recipe.

[MightyMouth]

Planning my next brew and I want to make a nice malty beer about 5.5%. Something with a nice but mild hoppy aroma and not too bitter. Maybe something with challenger hops but I am open to any and all suggestions.

[Matt]

Hi MM,

I've brewed the following several times, its a variant offspring from the Challenger/Coniston Bluebird discussions and would fit your description - malty but not too hoppy. I have only brewed it to 4.7% though as I am a wuss

Devil's Haircut

34 IBU
4.7% ABV

… based on 68% eff:

MO 4.6kg
Medium Crystal 255g
Belgian Biscuit 155g
T Wheat 100g

Challenger (5.6% AA) 35g full boil
Golding (4.1%) 20g last 15 mins
Challenger 20g last 5 mins
Challenger 20g 1 min from end

Fermented with Gervin/Nottingham.

[richard_senior]

Publish and be damned they say!

Burnside Best
~~~~~~~~~

3.4kg Maris Otter
40g crystal malt
10g black malt
10g roasted barley

Strike at 80 degrees with about 10L of water, MIX VERY WELL!
Mash for 1.5 hours. Sparge at 70 degrees to 27L

1.5 hour boil with 40g Challenger hops
add 200g muscovado sugar with 10g challenger finishing hops and finings, last 15 minutes of the boil. Chill wort, decant to sterile FV, leave overnight with lid and airlock on, decant again to a second steralie FV.
pitch safale yeast (blue packet, sprinkle directly into wort) and ferment at 20 degrees until fermentation has completed and the beer has fallen bright (usually about 7 to ten days)

Put in pressure vessel with one hop cone (whole or as near as you can get), and 150g of white sugar. Leave for 3 weeks.

Put thick 1L glass in freezer for two days.
Fill glass and drink responsibly, until you are responsible.

[MightyMouth]

Thanks guys, I like the look of that devil's haircut, how would using safale04 effect it I wonder? I dont really like the Nottingham yeast as every brew I have made with it has seemed a bit bland and one dimensional.

I think I will give that a go.

[richard_senior]

My experience of safale is that it seems to produce quite a crisp finish. If you use SB12 with the recipe above you'll get a slightly fruitier flavour.
I'm straying into jilly goolden style pretention here, but I think if you want hoppy, you need crispy!
Addendum : I think the secret to malty AND hoppy, is dry hopping.

[Matt]

Thanks guys, I like the look of that devil's haircut, how would using safale04 effect it I wonder? I dont really like the Nottingham yeast as every brew I have made with it has seemed a bit bland and one dimensional.

I think I will give that a go.

Hi MM,

Have to agree, I'm quite bored of the Nottingham too. I wouldn't hesitate to use the S-04 but personally would ferment on the low side to keep esters under control, to keep the maltiness foremost.

Matt

[MightyMouth]

Hi MM,

Have to agree, I'm quite bored of the Nottingham too. I wouldn't hesitate to use the S-04 but personally would ferment on the low side to keep esters under control, to keep the maltiness foremost.

Matt

Thanks, I'll do that.

[Matt]

MM

Hope all goes well.

Cheers,

Matt

[MightyMouth]

Just finished this brew, all seemed to go well, had a mate over while brewing so didn't get a chance to take any pics. Efficiency was lower than expected but not too far off so should turn out well. Thanks to Matt for the recipe looks like a goodun.

[Matt]

No worries, glad it went well