Notes: It's a style that seems quite simple, but tends to get blurred between other styles of ordinary bitter and english strong/pale ale.
11.5 lbs English Pale
0.5 lbs Caramel 10
0.25 lbs Caramel 120
2.0 oz East Kent (60 min)
1.0 oz East Kent (flameout)
WLP002
The above recipe is based on my interpretation of ESB and ingredients that I have in stock.
Run the grain bill through your software with your mash efficiency and adjust as needed to achieve the ABV you're shooting for. I'm thinking 11ish lbs for you guys.
East Kent is the standard hop for English Bitter styles. You will find a ton of recipes with Fuggle. You either love them or hate them. They can come across as "catty" to some people.
WLP002 is a classic ESB yeast strain. I prefer WYeast 1099, but that's only my preference. IF you are not comfortable with a liquid yeast, I have a dry yeast Lallemand ESB. Never have used it before. If you want to be adventurous, a couple of suggestions are WLP013 or WLP023. I've made bitters with them both. 013 is a damn good yeast once you learn how to control it. It does not flocculate quite as well as 002 (which makes it better for higher gravity beers), and it does tend to produce more diacetyl if you're not careful with the fermentation. 023 is a big ester producer of flavors in line with apple and pear.
Let me know what you guys think, and if you have questions by all means just pose them to me.
Cheers,
Kevin |
