Pride of Warwick
Whilst I generally like to try new things, if you find something you like it’s good to keep coming back to – even if to see how consistent you can be. This Best Bitter recipe from Gordon Strong’s Modern Homebrew Recipes is one such brew.
I originally brewed this as a gift for a friends 40th, and the did a repeat for my Dad’s 70th later in the year. The first batch went during the party celebrations. The 70th celebrations were a little more subdued so my Dad managed to bottle some which has continued to improve. The third batch was for myself to add alongside the Oatmeal Stout for Christmas / New Year relaxation.
Pride of Warwick Best Bitter
Source: Modern Homebrew Recipes: Gordon Strong
Water
- Burtonised
Grains
Grain bill (minus the black malt)
- Maris Otter
- Flaked Maize
- Victory Malt
- Crystal Malt
- Black Malt
Hops
- East Kent Goldings
- Challenger
- Fuggles
- Styrian Goldings (dry hop)
Yeast
- Wyeast 1028 London Ale
Notes
Brew Day
In his book Gordon often omits the dark grains from the mash, adding them at the Vorlauf stage. I have tried both this and the usual approach of mashing all grains together and can’t really tell much difference.
Gordon also bases his recipes on RO water – specifically adjusted to the recipe. I do treat my water (Burtonise / Munichise / Dublinise) but am not quite at the stage of specific adjustments.
Fermented for 1 week at 20℃, then for a further 2 weeks at 12℃. Dry hopped for 4 days with the Styrian Goldings following primary. Then transferred to Corny keg and carbonated at 6℃ in the kegerator.
Tasting Notes
The first two brews have turned out really well. To be fair the first was drunk a little too early – so was more in a cask style with low levels of carbonation. I will need to come back and update the notes for batch three as it isn’t fully ready yet.
