Style: 11C - Strong Bitter
One of my house beers I've probably made more than anything else is an "ESB" with Centennial hops. It's a simple recipe I started making early on in my brewing journey: 97% Maris Otter, 3% Crystal 120, and plenty of Centennial hops in the late boil.
Recently I've done a couple of variants of the recipe with hops that have similar bittering characteristics but different flavor profiles: Loral, and Mosaic (this batch).
NOTE: Due to much lower efficiency from this latest bag of MO malt, I ended up at 4.5% which is 0.1 below the cut-off for the Strong Bitter style. Usually this beer is 4.8-5%.
NOTE 2: I have always added Whirlfloc to my beers during the late boil for clarity. However, I had run out and this batch didn't get any, but it was cold crashed and gelatin was added. As you can see from the kegging pics, it didn't seem to miss the Whirlfloc. This is one of the clearest beers I've made!
The full recipe is on brewersfriend.com but here's the TL;DR:
- Brewed: 2018-1-15; kegged: 2018-1-23
- Malts: 97% Maris Otter, 3% Crystal 120
- Hop: Mosaic
- Yeast: SafAle S-04
- IBUs: 42
- OG: 1.045; FG: 1.011; ABV: 4.5%
Milling
Mash temp
Boil
Chilling with the HYDRA
Into the fermenter on top of a yeast cake from a previous batch of IPA
Airlock activity picked up right away
Post cold crash and gelatin addition and headed for the keg. Came out very clear:
Uncarbonated sample just after kegging with label
And fully carbonated
This came out great and really showcases the Mosaic hop even though my efficiency was lower than expected. The malts are present but not overpowering with a slight sweetness. Mosaic shines in the aroma and taste. A little tropical, some berry, and weirdly herbal in a good way.
