Upcoming Competition 22-05-10: Category 11 — English Brown Ale

[JoKing]

OK Then.

 

So once again - thanks to the kind folks at Hallertau for hosting this event. The Saison competition was a great success. And congrats to Brett (DoubleHoppy) for taking this competition out on his first showing. A truly deserved win considering his absolute display of generosity with sharing some bottles of Westvleterin 12 which was better than I anticipated.

 

Thanks to everybody who entered especially the 'Tron contingent - you guys are helping make this event to be as fun as successful as it is - and massive thanks to Greigs lovely wife Alex for transporting this rowdy crew to and from: you are a legend.

 

Now to the style and date - I've pulled it a week forward from our regular slot due to work and family commitments... I trust that this is OK. It was said that the style should be "English Brown Ale" so there are 3 beers that fall into this category under the BJCP guidelines: 11A Mild, 11B Southern English Brown and 11C Northern English Brown. Many brewers faces lit up when this category was selected - so get your skates on and brew the hell out of this style: A am sure that competition will be fierce.

 

Cheers.

 

11A. Mild

Aroma: Low to moderate malt aroma, and may have some fruitiness. The malt expression can take on a wide range of character, which can include caramelly, grainy, toasted, nutty, chocolate, or lightly roasted. Little to no hop aroma. Very low to no diacetyl.

Appearance: Copper to dark brown or mahogany color. A few paler examples (medium amber to light brown) exist. Generally clear, although is traditionally unfiltered. Low to moderate off-white to tan head. Retention may be poor due to low carbonation, adjunct use and low gravity.

Flavor: Generally a malty beer, although may have a very wide range of malt- and yeast-based flavors (e.g., malty, sweet, caramel, toffee, toast, nutty, chocolate, coffee, roast, vinous, fruit, licorice, molasses, plum, raisin). Can finish sweet or dry. Versions with darker malts may have a dry, roasted finish. Low to moderate bitterness, enough to provide some balance but not enough to overpower the malt. Fruity esters moderate to none. Diacetyl and hop flavor low to none.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body. Generally low to medium-low carbonation. Roast-based versions may have a light astringency. Sweeter versions may seem to have a rather full mouthfeel for the gravity.

Overall Impression: A light-flavored, malt-accented beer that is readily suited to drinking in quantity. Refreshing, yet flavorful. Some versions may seem like lower gravity brown porters.

Comments: Most are low-gravity session beers in the range 3.1-3.8%, although some versions may be made in the stronger (4%+) range for export, festivals, seasonal and/or special occasions. Generally served on cask; session-strength bottled versions don’t often travel well. A wide range of interpretations are possible.

History: May have evolved as one of the elements of early porters. In modern terms, the name “mild” refers to the relative lack of hop bitterness (i.e., less hoppy than a pale ale, and not so strong). Originally, the “mildness” may have referred to the fact that this beer was young and did not yet have the moderate sourness that aged batches had. Somewhat rare in England, good versions may still be found in the Midlands around Birmingham.

Ingredients: Pale English base malts (often fairly dextrinous), crystal and darker malts should comprise the grist. May use sugar adjuncts. English hop varieties would be most suitable, though their character is muted. Characterful English ale yeast.

Vital Statistics:	OG: 1.030 – 1.038
IBUs: 10 – 25	FG: 1.008 – 1.013
SRM: 12 – 25	ABV: 2.8 – 4.5%

Commercial Examples: Moorhouse Black Cat, Gale’s Festival Mild, Theakston Traditional Mild, Highgate Mild, Sainsbury Mild, Brain’s Dark, Banks's Mild, Coach House Gunpowder Strong Mild, Woodforde’s Mardler’s Mild, Greene King XX Mild, Motor City Brewing Ghettoblaster

11B. Southern English Brown

Aroma: Malty-sweet, often with a rich, caramel or toffee-like character. Moderately fruity, often with notes of dark fruits such as plums and/or raisins. Very low to no hop aroma. No diacetyl.

Appearance: Light to dark brown, and can be almost black. Nearly opaque, although should be relatively clear if visible. Low to moderate off-white to tan head.

Flavor: Deep, caramel- or toffee-like malty sweetness on the palate and lasting into the finish. Hints of biscuit and coffee are common. May have a moderate dark fruit complexity. Low hop bitterness. Hop flavor is low to non-existent. Little or no perceivable roasty or bitter black malt flavor. Moderately sweet finish with a smooth, malty aftertaste. Low to no diacetyl.

Mouthfeel: Medium body, but the residual sweetness may give a heavier impression. Low to moderately low carbonation. Quite creamy and smooth in texture, particularly for its gravity.

Overall Impression: A luscious, malt-oriented brown ale, with a caramel, dark fruit complexity of malt flavor. May seem somewhat like a smaller version of a sweet stout or a sweet version of a dark mild.

Comments: Increasingly rare; Mann’s has over 90% market share in Britain. Some consider it a bottled version of dark mild, but this style is sweeter than virtually all modern examples of mild.

History: English brown ales are generally split into sub-styles along geographic lines. Southern English (or “London-style”) brown ales are darker, sweeter, and lower gravity than their Northern cousins. Developed as a bottled product in the early 20th century out of a reaction against vinous vatted porter and often unpalatable mild. Well suited to London’s water supply.

Ingredients: English pale ale malt as a base with a healthy proportion of darker caramel malts and often some roasted (black) malt and wheat malt. Moderate to high carbonate water would appropriately balance the dark malt acidity. English hop varieties are most authentic, though with low flavor and bitterness almost any type could be used.

Vital Statistics:	OG: 1.033 – 1.042
IBUs: 12 – 20	FG: 1.011 – 1.014
SRM: 19 – 35	ABV: 2.8 – 4.1%

Commercial Examples: Mann's Brown Ale (bottled, but not available in the US), Harvey’s Nut Brown Ale, Woodeforde’s Norfolk Nog

11C. Northern English Brown

Aroma: Light, sweet malt aroma with toffee, nutty and/or caramel notes. A light but appealing fresh hop aroma (UK varieties) may also be noticed. A light fruity ester aroma may be evident in these beers, but should not dominate. Very low to no diacetyl.

Appearance: Dark amber to reddish-brown color. Clear. Low to moderate off-white to light tan head.

Flavor: Gentle to moderate malt sweetness, with a nutty, lightly caramelly character and a medium-dry to dry finish. Malt may also have a toasted, biscuity, or toffee-like character. Medium to medium-low bitterness. Malt-hop balance is nearly even, with hop flavor low to none (UK varieties). Some fruity esters can be present; low diacetyl (especially butterscotch) is optional but acceptable.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light to medium body. Medium to medium-high carbonation.

Overall Impression: Drier and more hop-oriented that southern English brown ale, with a nutty character rather than caramel.

Comments: English brown ales are generally split into sub-styles along geographic lines.

Ingredients: English mild ale or pale ale malt base with caramel malts. May also have small amounts darker malts (e.g., chocolate) to provide color and the nutty character. English hop varieties are most authentic. Moderate carbonate water.

Vital Statistics:	OG: 1.040 – 1.052
IBUs: 20 – 30	FG: 1.008 – 1.013
SRM: 12 – 22	ABV: 4.2 – 5.4%

Commercial Examples: Newcastle Brown Ale, Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale, Riggwelter Yorkshire Ale, Wychwood Hobgoblin, Tröegs Rugged Trail Ale, Alesmith Nautical Nut Brown Ale, Avery Ellie’s Brown Ale, Goose Island Nut Brown Ale, Samuel Adams Brown Ale

[Doublehoppy]

My entry's all ready to go. Probably lacks sufficient malt character to do well. I dialled back on the crystal/chocolate/amber on this one as my one previous attempt a couple of years ago was so cloying it was undrinkable. Don't even know if it's more southern or northern lol.

[studio1]

So is it $10 per beer entered :-)

[Martin Bridges]

I would say so, but I'll be guided by Joseph and those who've been involved in this from the start. If multiple entries are allowed (which I think they should be), then $10 per entry seems fair. It's not as if by stacking the deck one person could take home multiple prizes.

[NVIOUS]

Yep $10 per beer entered. How many you got?

[studio1]

just 2

[Greig McGill]

My mild is officially shit. I was this close to not entering, but sod it, you guys can all mock me. At least I'll be at Hallertau! :)

[Martin Bridges]

Ah, the mind games begin!

[Greig McGill]

No mind game, I swear. That said, I had it on handpump last night and it was a lot better. I really enjoyed it actually, soft, quaffable, malty, but overattennuated. Overpitched. :( Last time I brewed this, it was with S04. This might be the first case where using a better yeast has made a great beer crappy! :) I wish we could take a handpump to the WBC. I have 2 bottles which are bottle conditioning. I'll drink one the night before, and if it's good, I'll enter that. Either way, I'm already choosing my style...

[studio1]

Steve has a handpump out there now.....and I will be taking a hand pump out for Joe.

[Barry]

Snap, ditto.
Both my mild and southern brown were overpitched and thus over-attenuated.
The brown less so, but there's just not enough sweetness in either to balance out the roasty.
Maybe I shoulda stuck with S04 instead of the fancy schmancy 1768.

[Barry]

No way it's any worse than mine. But I'll bring you some of my American brown, it's drinking damn nice. Sod that English muck.

[Martin Bridges]

That's fighting talk!

I'm pretty happy with my Northern Brown, and the hydro sample of my Mild is also pretty good.

A real challenge for the judges though. It's an exercise in subtlety, interpreting the finest nuances of malt and yeast.