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Sorry, I should have added that mine is a counterflow heat-exchanger, like you find in domestic boilers. Probably a bit quicker than using a pipe/hose contraption. The reason for using a pump is for consistent flow rate, plus you can get blockages or ver slow transfers when just using gravity...

Ok, so mine is slightly lighter. Not a massive difference in colour. Early flavour observations: Trial jar sample: Tastes very good, even this early on. Slight toffee flavour (choice of crystal?) Similar roastiness to real version. Not sure I'd want more. Yeast flavour not hugely...

Final gravity of the real deal: I hope mine carries on a little further then.

Colour comparison, side-by-side. Letting them come to room temp before sampling, plus I will flatten the bottled version:

I've hit predicted final gravity@1017 already (less than three days), though I can see small amounts of carbonation in the trial jar. I will rouse the yeast and raise to 20c or thereabouts.

I use one. See recent threads where I have commented. I recommend re-circulating, but you can do a single pass in probably about 5 minutes as you drain your boiler - may only get you to the low 20s depending on water temp though. Recirculating lets you hit your pitching temp bang-on. You will...

This is the sort of thing I'd recommend for your mash, if you don't have something similar already: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/K-Type-thermocouple-thermometer-TM-902C-50-C-to-750-C-/161480931769?hash=item25990379b9:g:t0UAAOSwl8NVZr2~

I always purge a litre or so of boiling water in my mash tun before filling it. This warms the walls and the insulation. I also leave a k-type thermocouple dangling in the mash so I can monitor temperature in the centre. The cable fits underneath the mash tun lid. Stirring half-way helps...

I've probably hit around 200g in a 23 litre batch. With dry hopping you can go pretty mad, but remember about diminishing returns. Russian River (the guys who make Pliny) add several staged dry hop additions. Not sure what that achieves.

Nice. You'd make the guys at Stone Brewery blush.

I always find that younger beers can be rough in the alcohol department, but they tend to smooth out. I don't get obvious off-flavours anymore, but that is another ting which yeast can help correct in time. I sometimes wonder if people who are managing to get really quick turnarounds are just...

For all we know, the chocolate malt could be a late addition in the mash, so I guess it's probably easiest to adjust to taste. I'll get some other seasoned drinker ps to do an A/B and report back here on how the balance is.

Yes, 30g roast and 50g choc. Tried to see how much roasted barley would be required to hit 20 SRM, but I reckon it would taste too roasty. The only reason that I thought "mild" was, I tried to imagine what adding all those malts together would taste like. You could always mash a mini wort of...

Brought this down to 16.5c and the Wyeast 1968 slowed down to around half the speed it was working at for 17.5c. So, I've brought the temp up to 17.5c and will hold it at that now, just to make sure I have a solid fermentation. For the first time, the krausen has also pushed all the way into...

The Harvey's/Sussex yeast could also be a good choice as to me, the yeast flavour of these two beers is quite similar.

I reckon you could possibly make a dark mild (not that I've made one myself, but I have drunk them!). This would maybe be what I'd try anyway: Original Gravity (OG): 1.046 Colour (SRM): 21 Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 75 0.750 kg Lager Malt (37.71%) 0.500 kg Wheat Malt (25.14%)...

Looks good.

I've had a bad pint if Jaipur on cask, but generally I find their bottles excellent. Maybe you did get a bad one. I've become more aware of how freshness is important with beer (maybe this deserves a new thread). I had a half pint of Brewdog Born To Die yesterday and it was incredible for its...

Oh, theirs isn't drier through attenuation, but just by the fact that their beer is closer to 100% pale malt so more fermentable and less malty. I think your recipe sounds great, so I'd go with it as is.

Keep an eye out for it. May be available in Waitrose. It'll be lighter in colour than this though, and possibly drier.