| Amount | Fermentable | % |
|---|---|---|
| 6.00 pounds | LME - Light | 67.8% |
| 2.00 pounds | British Dark Crystal Malt | 22.6% |
| 0.50 pounds | British Chocolate Malt | 5.6% |
| 0.25 pounds | British Black Patent Malt | 2.8% |
| 0.10 pounds | British Roasted Barley | 1.1% |
| 8.85 pounds | Total Fermentable Weight | 100% |
| Amount | Hop | Time | Use | Form | AA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.00 ounces | Kent Golding | 60 minutes | Boil | Pellets | 6.2% | |
| 1.00 ounces | Fuggle | 60 minutes | Boil | Pellets | 4.2% | |
| 1.00 ounces | Mount Hood | 3 minutes | Aroma | Pellets | 3.2% | |
| 4.00 ounces | Total Hop Weight | |||||
| Amount | Non-Fermentable | Type | Use | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 tsp. | Gypsum | Water Agent | Boil | 60 minutes |
| Name | Lab/Manufacturer | Product ID | Form |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dry English Ale | White Labs | WLP007 | Liquid |
Since I love Browns so much, I decided that I’d like to have one or two "signature" beers that I brew often - tweaking the recipes until I’ve got them just right. Old Brown Shoe, therefore, has been deemed one of those beers.
This time I changed the Crystal Malt to British Dark Crystal 120L (sounds like a movie title) and increased the amount to 2 pounds. Also, since the last incarnation was a ligher brown than I wanted, I added in 4 oz. of black patent. The hops I kept relatively the same but went with, out of necessity since the brewstore was out of Crystal, Mt. Hood for the finish hops. To impart some extra sweetness I added some brown sugar to the boil.
Unfortunately, I missed the boat with brewing a brown this time around. Actually, upon looking at the ingredient list, calculating the bitterness, and figuring out the alcohol content, this beer actually turned out to be more of a robust porter. Therefore, I’m reclassifiying it. Nonetheless, the beer is very good. It’s going to take me a few tries to get a brown where I want it, but as porters go, this one is pretty damn tasty. No wonder the brew store employee asked me if I was brewing a porter...friggin’ A.
Next time, to brew a true Northern English Brown, I’ll ease up on the bittering hops, reducing them down to 1 ounce or so. The other hop additions should also be cut down, probably in half. Additionally, I think I’ll omit the black patent and roasted barley, change up the crystal from 120 to 40 or 60, and reduce the chocolate malt in half. I may consider adding some biscuit malt to round out the flavor. Harumph!