GU:BU Ratio

[Rodcx500z]

I know this is important in a recipe what i need to know is a rough ballpark figure, i did a recipe last night using brewmate for a pale ale and it shows gu:bu 50 balance value 1.10, i am trying to take my brewing up a level i like mainly bitters, pale ales, ipa, i really want to understand how these figures work in relation to the ingredients not to bothered about styles but i don't want to be brewing dishwater either so i would appreciate advice from some of the top brewers on here
New Recipe
Specialty Beer

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (L): 23.0
Total Grain (kg): 5.417
Total Hops (g): 55.00
Original Gravity (OG): 1.051 (°P): 12.6
Final Gravity (FG): 1.013 (°P): 3.3
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 5.01 %
Colour (SRM): 8.6 (EBC): 16.9
Bitterness (IBU): 26.2 (Average)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 70
Boil Time (Minutes): 60

Grain Bill
----------------
4.381 kg Pale Malt (80.88%)
0.986 kg Maris Otter Malt (18.2%)
0.050 kg Roasted Barley (0.92%)

Hop Bill
----------------
30.0 g Fuggles Pellet (5.7% Alpha) @ 60 Minutes (Boil) (1.3 g/L)
15.0 g East Kent Golding Pellet (4.7% Alpha) @ 15 Minutes (Boil) (0.7 g/L)
10.0 g Fuggles Pellet (5.7% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes (Boil) (0.4 g/L)

Misc Bill
----------------

Single step Infusion at 66°C for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 20°C with Danstar Nottingham


Recipe Generated with BrewMate
e top brewers on here cheers, here is the recipe

 

[chuffer]

Your OG is 1.051 so GU = 51. Your IBU = 26
Your BU:GU ratio is therefore 0.5
Look at the chart below to see where your ratio sits against the "ideal" for the desired style:

 

[PhilBrew]

Hi Rod

The measure you're talking about is more usually calculated (and described) in terms of BU:GU ... so your 1.1, is everybody else's 0.9 ... putting it that way round will help you find more when searching the internet, too

I know you said you're "not to bothered about styles" but, it helps in assessing the sorts of beers you like and how most of those will tend to come out ... this picture from over there (link, it's all in Portuguese but the info on the image is in English) gives a visual interpretation of many styles. And by the looks of that most English IPAs/Bitters will be in the BU/GU=0.8-0.83 region ... but if you taste yours and like it at 0.9, then that's probably how you should formulate your recipes in future

Cheers, PhilB

Later Edit: looks like chuffers beat me to it ... and checked your sums properly

 

[MyQul]

And to throw the version I use in there

http://www.madalchemist.com/chart_bitterness_ratio.html

 

[chuffer]

I tend to like brewing APAs and IPAs so tend to shoot for a ratio of around 0.7 - 0.85.
I tend to brew 5% ish beers so that would roughly equate to a GU of around 50.
So my ideal IBUs would sit around 35 - 45 region but each to their own!

 

[nixhaz]

I've heard (and use) that you should roughly match your BU to your OG - so for my 1.030 low alcohol brews I am for 30BU, my APA at 1.050 I aim for 50.. Works for me anyhoo.

 

[Rodcx500z]

Thanks guys i appreciate it helps me understand it better, i have brewers friend which i paid for 12 months but i prefare brewmate i find it easier to use, i understand the style bit and do pick a style ie bitter, ipa and use that as a reference, think i will use my time during lockdown as a learning thing

 

[MyQul]

Thanks guys i appreciate it helps me understand it better, i have brewers friend which i paid for 12 months but i prefare brewmate i find it easier to use, i understand the style bit and do pick a style ie bitter, ipa and use that as a reference, think i will use my time during lockdown as a learning thing

I like brewmate too. I've never used any other brewing software because it's simple to use and free

 

[nixhaz]

Me too, I keep my old clunker pc with windows vista on it just for that!

 

[PhilBrew]

Hi MyQul

And to throw the version I use in there

Mad Alchemist: Beer Style Bitterness Ratios (BU:GU)

... I have that page favourite/bookmarked too, but ... there's no chart showing on that page anymore, is it just me?

Hi Rod
Style-guides are all well and good, but they can only help so much ... the producers of those charts will have taken averages of the BUs and GUs to put their charts together, but when you look at the ranges in the style-guides, versions within the style will vary wildly ... e.g. I'd say the recipe you posted looks like an ESB to me. So if I go off to the BJCP style guide and look up that style (they renamed the style "Strong Bitter" in 2015) then it suggests a range of bitterness between 30 – 50 IBU, and OGs of 1.048 – 1.060 ... so effectively BU/GU between 0.5 - 1.04 (lowest BU with highest GU (30/50=0.5) to vice-versa (50/48=1.04))
Yes, study the style-guides but I'd also suggest doing your research and picking commercial beers you like within the style and then finding out what "vital statistics" they have ... for English Pale Ales (Bitters) a copy of Graham Wheeler's "Brew Your Own British Pale Ales", isn't just a great recipe book, it's also a wonderful "reference manual" ... all those numbers for EBC and IBU are one thing, being able to hold a pint up to the light and think so that's what 25 EBC
(or whatever) looks like and then to taste it and think to yourself and that's what 35 IBU(or whatever) tastes like ... you're no longer quaffing when you go to the pub anymore (if we're ever allowed to do that again), you're "sampling", "researching"

Cheers, PhilB

 

[chuffer]

I've been using brewgr as it's good and free but recently starting using brewmate as it has a 'no chill' compensation button (not sure how accurate it is - but time will tell!)

 

[chuffer]

If you're aiming for an ESB or an English IPA, I'd say recipe needs to increase the bitterness slightly in the recipe

 

[Rodcx500z]

Hi Chuffer i have upped it to 32

 

[Rodcx500z]

Hi MyQul ... I have that page favourite/bookmarked too, but ... there's no chart showing on that page anymore, is it just me?

Hi Rod
Style-guides are all well and good, but they can only help so much ... the producers of those charts will have taken averages of the BUs and GUs to put their charts together, but when you look at the ranges in the style-guides, versions within the style will vary wildly ... e.g. I'd say the recipe you posted looks like an ESB to me. So if I go off to the BJCP style guide and look up that style (they renamed the style "Strong Bitter" in 2015) then it suggests a range of bitterness between 30 – 50 IBU, and OGs of 1.048 – 1.060 ... so effectively BU/GU between 0.5 - 1.04 (lowest BU with highest GU (30/50=0.5) to vice-versa (50/48=1.04))
Yes, study the style-guides but I'd also suggest doing your research and picking commercial beers you like within the style and then finding out what "vital statistics" they have ... for English Pale Ales (Bitters) a copy of Graham Wheeler's "Brew Your Own British Pale Ales", isn't just a great recipe book, it's also a wonderful "reference manual" ... all those numbers for EBC and IBU are one thing, being able to hold a pint up to the light and think so that's what 25 EBC
(or whatever) looks like and then to taste it and think to yourself and that's what 35 IBU(or whatever) tastes like ... you're no longer quaffing when you go to the pub anymore (if we're ever allowed to do that again), you're "sampling", "researching"

Cheers, PhilB

Cheers Phil all this info is being taken on board

 

[MyQul]

Hi MyQul ... I have that page favourite/bookmarked too, but ... there's no chart showing on that page anymore, is it just me?

Hi Rod
Style-guides are all well and good, but they can only help so much ... the producers of those charts will have taken averages of the BUs and GUs to put their charts together, but when you look at the ranges in the style-guides, versions within the style will vary wildly ... e.g. I'd say the recipe you posted looks like an ESB to me. So if I go off to the BJCP style guide and look up that style (they renamed the style "Strong Bitter" in 2015) then it suggests a range of bitterness between 30 – 50 IBU, and OGs of 1.048 – 1.060 ... so effectively BU/GU between 0.5 - 1.04 (lowest BU with highest GU (30/50=0.5) to vice-versa (50/48=1.04))
Yes, study the style-guides but I'd also suggest doing your research and picking commercial beers you like within the style and then finding out what "vital statistics" they have ... for English Pale Ales (Bitters) a copy of Graham Wheeler's "Brew Your Own British Pale Ales", isn't just a great recipe book, it's also a wonderful "reference manual" ... all those numbers for EBC and IBU are one thing, being able to hold a pint up to the light and think so that's what 25 EBC
(or whatever) looks like and then to taste it and think to yourself and that's what 35 IBU(or whatever) tastes like ... you're no longer quaffing when you go to the pub anymore (if we're ever allowed to do that again), you're "sampling", "researching"

Cheers, PhilB

I thought it was just me but I have to 'activate' adobe flash player for it to work for me first

 

[Rodcx500z]

Works on my pc no prob