ESB v3

[Covrich]

According to the Wyeast site ...

http://www.wyeastlab.com/yeast-strain/london-ale

... 75% is "bang in the middle" but ironically using the formula ...

Attenuation = 100 % * (starting gravity − current gravity) / (starting gravity − 1)

... an OG of 1054 and a FG of 1014/5 gives an attenuation of 75% which is what's desired.:thumb:Personally, I like a dry Bitter which is why I use the Gervin Ale yeast. However, according to BrewersFriend this has an attenuation of 77% ...

https://www.brewersfriend.com/yeasts/-gervin-ale-by-muntons-gv-12/

... which is at the top of the attenuation range of the Wyeast!:thumb:God I love this bobby!:headbang:Even the "experts" can't seem to agree!

That is the wrong yeast

http://www.wyeastlab.com/yeast-strain/london-ale-iii

That is the one I used, its actually the boddingtons strain apparently

Dont get me wrong I dont mind gervin yeast, I just find it a bit boring and bland I like yeast bringing something to the party. Sadly I have found all my English styles have been considerably better for the use of liquid yeast. I say sadly because well the use of dry yeast is a nice convinience but the additional hassell of Liquid has been beneficial in my expereince.

 

[Dutto]

I think my own taste buds are shot ...:wave:... and after 60 years of smoking, drinking spirits and living in India and the Middle East for many years I'm not really surprised!:thumb:Keep us posted.

 

[Sheepish]

Ok, I’ve weighed the hops still in the 15x20 cm plastic silver vacuum pack bag and the weights are...

bittering hops Target 38g (60 min)
flavouring hops Challenger 20g (20 min) and Northern Brewer 22g (10 min)
aroma hops East Kent Golding 33g (0 min)

So if you know how much a 15x20 cm bag weighs...

Well I got round to brewing this today and the bags, after being fished out of the bin, weigh 5g each

 

[Sheepish]

Obviously no idea what the yeast is, but if it gives anyone any clues, it’s bubbling away furiously and the sell from the airlock is pure raspberry jam ;-)

 

[Dutto]

Obviously no idea what the yeast is, but if it gives anyone any clues, it’s bubbling away furiously and the sell from the airlock is pure raspberry jam ;-)

Your problems would have started if it hadn't been "glubbing away" by now!:wave:Raspberry jam smell? That'll probably be the NFI yeast you've used.

 

[Sheepish]

:wave:Raspberry jam smell?

Yes “smell” ...bloody iPad auto cock-up...

I’ll certainly harvest whatever it is to reuse, and assuming it turns out alright, try brewing a lower abv bitter.

 

[Covrich]

2 weeks in the bottle only so far and this is really good.. I am really pleased with how it has turned out, got a low smooth carbonation which helps too. The yeast I think makes a big difference but I have some harvested which I dumped into a porter which I brewed yesterday..

 

[Ben034]

I found that increasing mash temperature from my usual 65c for bitters to 68c on my last bitter made a significant improvement in a style that for me has always had a little bit missing when I've brewed it. It could have been a combination of factors but is certainly something I will try again.

 

[Dutto]

I found that increasing mash temperature from my usual 65c for bitters to 68c on my last bitter made a significant improvement in a style that for me has always had a little bit missing when I've brewed it. It could have been a combination of factors but is certainly something I will try again.

Depending on the type of brew, I use the following guidelines for Mashing:

• Strike Water = 2.6 litres per 1kg of grain.
• Mash at:
  • 55*C to 66*C (High Alcohol - dry) or
  • 68*C to 72*C (Low Alcohol – sweet)
• for one hour.
• DO NOT exceed 75*C.
• Stir after 20 and 40 minutes.
• Heat SPARGE water to 80*C.
• Lauter until wort runs clear and then Sparge at one litre per minute.
• Stop sparge when runnings reach SG1.008 / SG1.012.

Works well for me. :thumb:

 

[Covrich]

I found that increasing mash temperature from my usual 65c for bitters to 68c on my last bitter made a significant improvement in a style that for me has always had a little bit missing when I've brewed it. It could have been a combination of factors but is certainly something I will try again.

Yes I made an effort to try and start the mash at 68c it did dip during the mash to 66 and even 65 closer to the end but the first part was higher.. That and a medium attenuating yeast makes a nice balance..

 

[Sheepish]

Mmm... very interesting reading. My ESB clone finished a few days ago and I’ve just racked it into a secondary FV for a weeks cold conditioning before bottling...FG = 1.011 (the recipe/instructions reckoned 1.014).

I mashed at 65 but always loose a bit and add some heat to bring it back up during the mash. Sample tasted good, so time will tell if it’s a bit on the dry side.

One thing that was very evident was having the best part of 2 litres of yeast slurry.