Watchugot Ale

Cleaning out the old inventory. Sometimes you just have to brew with watchugot! Malt was crushed and old. Hops were in unopened packages but still pretty old.

Brewer:	Michael Bock		Email:	michaelnbock@yahoo.com
Beer:	Watchugot Ale		Style:	English Ordinary Bitter
Type:	All grain		Size:	3 gallons
Color:	10 HCU (~7 SRM)		Bitterness:	65 IBU
OG:	1.037		FG:	1.008
Alcohol:	3.7% v/v (2.9% w/w)
Grain:	2 lb. 12 oz. British pale 8 oz. Belgian biscuit 4 oz. American crystal 40L 4 oz. Flaked barley
Mash:	80% efficiency
	Single-Infusion mash for about 1 hour at 150°F. Temp dropped a little too much about a half-hour in. Removed a small amount of mash and brought to a boil to boost the temp back up. Sort of an impromptu decoction.
Boil:	60 minutes	SG 1.028	4 gallons
	1/2 teaspoon Irish Moss for 15 minutes.
Hops:	1 oz. Cascade (6.5% AA, 60 min.) 1 oz. Fuggles (5.4% AA, 15 min.)
Yeast:	Danstar "Nottingham" Dry Ale yeast, rehydrated according to directions on package.
Carbonation:	1.3 volumes	Honey: 0.52 oz. for 2.5 gallons @ 62°F
Tasting:	Tasted at bottling time. Much nicer than expected. Good malt flavor but the beer is definitely dominated by hops. (Though nowhere near the estimated 65 IBU's). The bitterness is not overwhelming at all, definitely in line with the style. The hop flavor however, is very prominent. I'm sure most of this has to do with the age of the hops but some has to do with my normal lower hop utilization percentage that I experience.

Recipe posted 02/25/04.