Alex's Delicious E.S.B.

Classification: pale ale, ESB, bitter, extract

Source: alex@conline.com, 12/22/95

Ingredients:

6 lbs munton's amber dry malt extract
1 lb 60l crystal
4 ounces british chocolate malt (for a smoother, less burned flavor)
1 oz. 5.3 alpha East Kent Goldings 60 minutes
0.5 oz. 4.5 alpha Fuggles 30 minutes
0.5 oz. 5.0 alpha tetnanger 10 minutes
1 oz. 3.5 alpha Saaz 5 minutes
1 oz. 3.5 alpha saaz dryhop in secondary
2 tbsps of gypsum
1/2 t-spoon of irish mos fifteen minutes before end of boil
wyeast London Ale Yeast
1/2 c corn sugar to prime

Procedure:

Put grains in 1.5 gal of water and bring to a boil. Remove grains, take pot off heat, and add gypsum and malt extract. Stir well until extract is thoroughly disolved. Put back on heat and bring to boil. Add Goldings. Wait thirty minutes and add fuggles. Wait fifteen minutes and add irish moss. Wait another five minutes and add tetnanger. Wait five minutes more and add Saaz. Cool when hour is up and sparge into fermenter. Pitch yeast. Rack after four days and dryhop for three weeks in secondary.

This beer should be fermented between sixty five and seventy degrees. You want some esters in an ESB for complexity. The chocolate malt will give the beer a roasted taste in the background. I do not call this an english ESB because of the german and czech hops used for flavoring and aroma but it's every bit as tasty.

Specifics:

OG: 1050-1052
FG: 1010-1012
IBU: 32-33.5