ale

Yorkshire Square Recipe

Apr 26, 2017

Yorkshire Square (23 Litres)

When Huey Lewis And The News sang, “It’s Hip to Be Square!” we’re confident they weren’t making reference to this classic, biscuity sweet malt flavoured ale; but it’s definitely on song and in harmony with the taste you could expect from the traditional method of fermentation using a Yorkshire Stone Square Vat. Inspired by a Yorkshire style India Ale (English IPA), this delicious brew offers a floral aroma with a hint of butterscotch that is best served slightly warmer than fridge temperature; to emphasise its maltiness and fruity hop character. Yorkshire Square Ale is as real as it gets; and could only be more authentic if it was fermented in a stone Yorkshire square!

Ingredients

1 x 1.7kg Thomas Coopers Inkeeper's Daughter Sparkling Ale
1 x 1.5kg Light Dry Malt
1 x 300g Crystal Malt Grains
1 x 25g East Kent Goldings (EKG) Hop pellets
1 x 25g Bramling Cross Hop Pellets
1 x 25g Fuggles Hop Pellets
1 x 11.5g S-04 yeast Dry Yeast
1 x 250g Dextrose Corn Sugar or Carbonation Drops

Features:

Colour: Golden Amber
Body: Medium
Bitterness: Medium
Approx. Alcohol Level: 5.0% ABV
Naturally Carbonated: Natural

Instructions:

Step 1 : Mix

The day before: Line a pot (at least 4 litres) with a mesh cleaning cloth (pulled straight from the pack). Place the Crystal Malt Grain in a plastic zip-lock sandwich bag and crack it using a rolling pin. Add the cracked grain and 2 litres of cold water, fit the lid and sit in the fridge overnight. Brew Day: Remove from the fridge then gather up the corners of the mesh cloth and lift, allowing the liquid to drain from the grains back into the pot. Place the strained liquid onto the stovetop, bring to the boil then add both the EKG and Bramling Cross hop pellets and allow to boil for 5 mins. Remove from the heat and cool the liquid by placing the pot in a bath of cold water for about 15mins then strain into a Fermenting Vessel (FV). Add the contents of the Sparkling Ale and Malt Extract cans and stir to dissolve. Fill with cool water to the 20 litre mark, stir vigorously and check the brew temperature. Top up to the 23 litre mark with warm or cold water (refrigerated if necessary) to get as close to 21C as possible. Sprinkle on the dry yeast (sachet of Safale S-04 & yeast sachet from the brew can) and fit the lid.

Step 2 : Brew

Place the FV in a location out of direct sunlight and try to ferment at 21C. Fermentation should take 10 to 14 days. At around Day 7, add the Fuggles hops to the brew by wrapping them in a mesh cleaning cloth (pulled straight from the pack) and place directly on top of the brew then re-fit the lid. On day 10 check the specific gravity (SG). Check the SG again the following day and so on.

Step 3 : Bottle

The brew is ready once the SG has stabilised over a couple of days, expect about 1008 to 1012. Gently fill clean PET bottles to about 3cm from the top. Add 2 carbonation drops per bottle and secure the caps. Store the bottles upright in a location out of direct sunlight at or above 18C.

Step 4 : Enjoy

After at least two weeks, check for sufficient carbonation by squeezing the PET bottles. Bottles kept unrefrigerated should improve with age. When ready to drink, chill the bottles upright. The chilled beer may be poured into clean glassware, leaving the sediment behind. Expect the alcohol content to be approximately 5.0% ABV.