Pictorial brew tutorial - An attempt at a Kentish Ale.....

Two things have arrived at beer, bands and balls hq recently that have lead to what is going to be a very different home brew post today. Firstly, relatives in Kent sent up some hops that were growing in their neighbours garden for me to utilise in my brewing. The Kentish home of the hops leading to the obvious choice of a Kentish ale as my next home brew - straying away from the usual German style brews. So i adapted a recipe i found online for one to the ingredients i could get from the brew store and the equipment i have (i.e. replacing all grain brew for part grain, part malt extract brew).

The second arrival being our fab new camera which allows for excellent close up pics with great clarity which means i can take you through the brew process in pictures. Enjoy :)

 The Ingredients

100g Brown Sugar

1.5kg Coopers Light Malt Extract

100g Kentish Hops (goldings?)

500g Malted Oats

1kg Crystal Malt

1.5kg Pale Malt

A pinch Of Irish Moss

Irish Moss (inside box)

White Labs WLP005 Liquid British Ale Yeast

Method:

Mated Oats into 2l boiling water

cover and boil for 30 mins

The other grains into 6l boiling water

cover and boil for 30mins

Place Can of liquid malt in hot water

open can

pour contents into fermenting tub

pour some boiling water into can and swirl to loosen the rest of the liquid malt and pour into fermenting tub

add sugar to malt extract

add 1l boiling water to fermenting tub

give the mixture a good stir to desolve all the sugar and remove any syrupy residue on base of fermenting tub

after 30mins, add the hops to larger pan of grains

take a pinch of irish moss

add some to the large pan

Give it a good stir

also add a pinch of irish moss to small pan

Cover both and boil for another 30 mins

to drain grains i find it easiest to place the pan on the floor next to the fermenting tub

Scoop up some grains

and place in sieve over fermenting tub, 

Repeat until sieve is full of grain and pour boiling water over to rinse grains.

repeat for other pan, scoop grains

into sieve over fermenting tub

repeat until all grains out and rinse with boiling water

top up fermenting tub with cold water

until the liquid level is at 23l

Add the yeast (the temperature in the tub should be around 21-23 degrees celcius)

give it a stir in

Cover the fermenting tub and put somewhere free from fluctuating temperatures (our cupboard of doom does the job) and leave for 2 weeks to fement.