Seeking a good bitter recipe

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

OK I've now completed my first two all-grain brews, following the recipe in the CAMRA 'real ales' book for Timmy Taylor Landlord. Basically these were single-stage mash of pale malt (Maris Otter) with fuggles and goldings, fermented with Safale S-04 (OG around 1040).

I'm very happy with the results - very clean and drinkable. But if I'm honest both brews have lacked a bit of body and character.

I recognise that there are things I should probably change, but equally I don't want to jump in and start changing too many things at once.

I've had a few people say I should use a less generic yeast, so I've got in some White Labs WLP-023 and Wyeast 1469 which I'm looking forward to trying. I'm also willing to have a go at a multi-stage mash (I have what's in effect a DIY HEMS setup) although I don't have the ability to control the temperature of the fermentation yet.

I do have an RO+DI setup that lets me produce extremely pure water, and so far I've used that with a bit of epsom salts in it. Therefore I guess I can build pretty much any water profile I want; but I'm not really in a hurry to do so unless it's going to make a big difference...

I've got a probably unreasonable reluctance to add sugar to my wort, but I reckon I could add some flaked wheat or barley if that's going to give me a better ale.

Please could someone share with me a 'traditional' bitter recipe and process that they are really happy with? That would give me a good next step - Thanks in advance!

 

[Horners]

OK I've now completed my first two all-grain brews, following the recipe in the CAMRA 'real ales' book for Timmy Taylor Landlord. Basically these were single-stage mash of pale malt (Maris Otter) with fuggles and goldings, fermented with Safale S-04 (OG around 1040).

I'm very happy with the results - very clean and drinkable. But if I'm honest both brews have lacked a bit of body and character.

I recognise that there are things I should probably change, but equally I don't want to jump in and start changing too many things at once.

I've had a few people say I should use a less generic yeast, so I've got in some White Labs WLP-023 and Wyeast 1469 which I'm looking forward to trying. I'm also willing to have a go at a multi-stage mash (I have what's in effect a DIY HEMS setup) although I don't have the ability to control the temperature of the fermentation yet.

I do have an RO+DI setup that lets me produce extremely pure water, and so far I've used that with a bit of epsom salts in it. Therefore I guess I can build pretty much any water profile I want; but I'm not really in a hurry to do so unless it's going to make a big difference...

I've got a probably unreasonable reluctance to add sugar to my wort, but I reckon I could add some flaked wheat or barley if that's going to give me a better ale.

Please could someone share with me a 'traditional' bitter recipe and process that they are really happy with? That would give me a good next step - Thanks in advance!

Cant vouch for it myself but if you do a search for @foxbat mainline bitter I know that is v popular on the forum.

 

[Galena]

Here is my Best Bitter recipe which I am very happy with apart from one caveat at the bottom

Batch Volume 21L
Boil Time 60 mins
Mash efficiency 74.4%

ABV 4.3%, OG 1.044, FG 1.011, EBC, 18.5, IBU 39, BU/GU 0.90
Pre Boil Gravity 1.038

15L mash water
60 minute mash at 67C
15.39L Sparge Water @ 76C
Total Water 30.39
(Probably rounded up to 30.5L)

Target pH 5.20, I actually only achieved 5.6 on the day at 15 mins in the mash but my beer pH is okay at 4.48

Fermentables
88% 3.7Kg Maris Otter 5.9 EBC
4% 170g Amber Malt 65 EBC
4% 170g Medium Crystal 240 EBC
4% 170g Wheat Malt

Hops
50g Fuggles 4.5% @ 60 mins
25g Fuggles 4.5% @ 15mins
80g Fuggles 4.5% 80C Hopstand for 20 mins

Misc
0.5 Whirfloc @ 5 mins

Yeast WLP013 London Ale

Fermentation
19C 4 days
20C 1 day
21C 9 days

Water Profile
I went for a Burton style profile with a Chloride/Sulphate Ratio of 1:5.6 with the following Profile

Ca188, Mg 41, Na, 47, Cl 85, SO4 483, HCO3 116
The result was a lovely bitter but perhaps a slight bit minerally so next batch I will tone it down slightly trying to hit 150 for calcium and try and bring down the sulphate to around 400 keeping the Chloride to Sulphate ratio somewhere in the same ball park.

I based this recipe on the 5 Points Best Bitter which was featured in this video:
HERE

 

[marshbrewer]

I don't want to be Johnny Boring Pants but why not change one thing at a time to see what difference it makes? Perhaps brew the TT Landlord again but with the fancy yeast? That would be the sensible thing to do.
Which I probably wouldn't, because experimenting is great fun. but it is the sensible approach.
Oh, and don't fear the sugar. It took me ages to get my head around it, mainly because I think the fear of sugar is a hangover from the 'kit and a kilo' where many started, but thousands of British and Belgian brewers can't all be wrong. Homemade #3 invert really can add to a bitter recipe.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Perhaps brew the TT Landlord again but with the fancy yeast?

You read my mind! I was thinking of splitting the wort three ways and fermenting each with a different yeast (S04, Wyeast and WLP023). That way I can really do a like for like comparison.
HOWEVER I might also have to do @Galena 's brew in parallel because it sounds mighty fine...

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Oh, and don't fear the sugar. It took me ages to get my head around it

Good grief, thanks for saying that... I thought it was just me! I can't stop myself associating using sugar with that revolting student juice I used to brew back in the day

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Here is my Best Bitter recipe which I am very happy with apart from one caveat at the bottom

Batch Volume 21L
Boil Time 60 mins
Mash efficiency 74.4%

ABV 4.3%, OG 1.044, FG 1.011, EBC, 18.5, IBU 39, BU/GU 0.90
Pre Boil Gravity 1.038

15L mash water
60 minute mash at 67C
15.39L Sparge Water @ 76C
Total Water 30.39
(Probably rounded up to 30.5L)

Target pH 5.20, I actually only achieved 5.6 on the day at 15 mins in the mash but my beer pH is okay at 4.48

Fermentables
88% 3.7Kg Maris Otter 5.9 EBC
4% 170g Amber Malt 65 EBC
4% 170g Medium Crystal 240 EBC
4% 170g Wheat Malt

Hops
50g Fuggles 4.5% @ 60 mins
25g Fuggles 4.5% @ 15mins
80g Fuggles 4.5% 80C Hopstand for 20 mins

Misc
0.5 Whirfloc @ 5 mins

Yeast WLP005 London Ale

Fermentation
19C 4 days
20C 1 day
21C 9 days

Water Profile
I went for a Burton style profile with a Chloride/Sulphate Ratio of 1:5.6 with the following Profile

Ca188, Mg 41, Na, 47, Cl 85, SO4 483, HCO3 116
The result was a lovely bitter but perhaps a slight bit minerally so next batch I will tone it down slightly trying to hit 150 for calcium and try and bring down the sulphate to around 400 keeping the Chloride to Sulphate ratio somewhere in the same ball park.

I based this recipe on the 5 Points Best Bitter which was featured in this video:
HERE

Cheers mate! that looks perfect. Will you shout at me though, if I say the fermentation is going to have to be as-long-as-it-takes-at-ambient ?? I don't thing SWMBO would tolerate mefilling up the garage with any MORE brewing kit right now...

 

[GerritT]

Cheers mate! that looks perfect. Will you shout at me though, if I say the fermentation is going to have to be as-long-as-it-takes-at-ambient ?? I don't thing SWMBO would tolerate mefilling up the garage with any MORE brewing kit right now...

But... the Speidel 20L plastic fermenter is cute as heck, the missus cannot NOT agree with such a bubbly bucket!

 

[trueblue]

Most traditional British bitter are fairly basic, pale malt and crystal malt with English hops, My favorite combination is challenger for bittering and east Kent goldings for aroma. My personal yeast choice is WLP002 or WLP13.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

But... the Speidel 20L plastic fermenter is cute as heck, the missus cannot NOT agree with such a bubbly bucket!

Oh i've got plenty of fermenters (the 30L lidded "hard wearing buckets")... the bit I can't sneak past her at the moment is a temperature controlled fermenter. I manage the heating side of it no problem but it's the cooling aspect that's exercising my grey matter at the moment. Currently online browsing Peltier cooling pads...

 

[marshbrewer]

I don't know where you live, but outside a few weeks if summer, in most areas of the UK if you are brewing British styles you will only be using the heating function of any system.

 

[An Ankoù]

Good grief, thanks for saying that... I thought it was just me! I can't stop myself associating using sugar with that revolting student juice I used to brew back in the day

Back in the day, though, was when we were skint and said juice went down a treat (after the third) before a dodgy night out at the Tiop Rank. As I recall, kit homebrew meant you could have a pack of No 6 every day instead of having to split your loyalties!
Frankly, I don't know how I've survived so hale and hearty into my prime.
I think we were made of sterner stuff.

 

[Galena]

Cheers mate! that looks perfect. Will you shout at me though, if I say the fermentation is going to have to be as-long-as-it-takes-at-ambient ?? I don't thing SWMBO would tolerate mefilling up the garage with any MORE brewing kit right now...

Thats just the recipe, as always with recipe's you may do with it what you will as long as you don't shout at me if it is not as good as I suggest :hat:

 

[Galena]

Most traditional British bitter are fairly basic, pale malt and crystal malt with English hops, My favorite combination is challenger for bittering and east Kent goldings for aroma. My personal yeast choice is WLP002 or WLP13.

Oops just noticed I posted the wrong yeast in my recipe @The-Engineer-That-Brews it should have been WLP013 that is what I used, recipe edited. A lovely choice for an English Bitter

 

[Galena]

I don't know where you live, but outside a few weeks if summer, in most areas of the UK if you are brewing British styles you will only be using the heating function of any system.

Unless you ferment indoors and have central heating perhaps

 

[PhilBrew]

Hi TETB

... if I'm honest both brews have lacked a bit of body and character.

... a few "musings"/things to consider from me ... personally, I tend to use the grainbill from the recipe for Black Sheep Best Bitter from the Graham Wheeler/CAMRA "Brew Your Own Real Ales" book as the basis for my bitter recipes. I'm pretty sure it's the "body building" provided by all the Torrified Wheat (it makes up around 12-14% of the grainbill IIRC), and the "nutty" taste it adds, that makes me favour it ... and, at the risk of irritating a bunch of 'I only boil for 60 mins and I don't taste any difference" types (and when you are brewing APA or AIPA beers that's probably true, but), I think that Bitter is a style where boiling for longer probably gives you returns, in terms of character ... and while, I agree with trueblue's comment that "Most traditional British bitter are fairly basic", I'd say that this is also a style where combinations of bittering hops really pays dividends

Cheers, PhilB

 

[marshbrewer]

Unless you ferment indoors and have central heating perhaps

Good point. Not being allowed to brew indoors that hadn't occurred to me!
I'm a garage brewer.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Good point. Not being allowed to brew indoors that hadn't occurred to me!
I'm a garage brewer.

I too brew in the garage, I’m glad to say ... and it’s usually fairly cool in there as it’s on the North facing side of the house. However I’ve also read that when fermenting actively the yeast can push the internal temperature of the brew up by 5-10 deg C, which might make cooling a bit more necessary if temperature control of the fermentation really is as significant as some have said

 

[foxy]

I too brew in the garage, I’m glad to say ... and it’s usually fairly cool in there as it’s on the North facing side of the house. However I’ve also read that when fermenting actively the yeast can push the internal temperature of the brew up by 5-10 deg C, which might make cooling a bit more necessary if temperature control of the fermentation really is as significant as some have said

I think I have mentioned to you before about the importance of controlling fermentation temperature. It's no good getting everything right during the mashing and boiling then falling over at fermentation!
Back to your question for a good bitter recipe, what you like is a personal option, if we all liked the same things life would be so much easier, though as boring as hell.
Personally I like a higher IBU, some may like a maltier finish.
My last bitter (ESB) is around 70 IBU @ 6% ABV , my next planned bitter, Henry Bentley & Co Eshaldwell Brewery Woodlesford, Nr Leeds. An 1896 bitter thanks to Edd Mather.
A bitter at around 4.75 ABV and 45 IBU, so what do you like to drink, will give more insight into a suitable recipe.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Message received and understood about the fermentation temperature control - I’ve got a few ideas.
I enjoy a lot of different bitters - Tring Breweries “Side Pocket”, a well kept London Pride or a Black Sheep spring to mind. I‘m not that keen on Marston’s “Pedigree“ though - it has a slight note of ‘drains’ (perhaps sulphur in their water?)