English beers are low alcohol with only a few exceptions. The tax laws in the UK had an uninteded effect on their beer styles: They were taxed on the amount of alcohol in the beer, so their beers drifted lower and lower in alcohol. Their styles feature drinkability over distinction, with a delicate balance of malts and flavors not unlike a lager's profile. This beer is a classic, simple style.
This beer is the second of three I made of a split batch of farmhouse ale (which is defined by the yeast), but this is fermented with an English yeast instead of a Belgian (5 gallons/1 keg/50 beers each batch). The grain bill is simple: 20 lbs of Belgian Pilzen, 2 lbs victory malt, 2 lbs unmalted wheat, 2 lbs bisquit malt, 2 lbs malted rye.
For the hops, I eyeball a smaller handful than of CTZ because milds require little bitterness and they go down easily.
At 4.5%, this is a smooth beer. After primary fermentation on an English yeast, the beer was too sweet due to the addition of Victory Malt which was needed for the other two batches that I used this unfermented wort in (the Belgian yeast ferments very dry and the English yeast does not). The solution? Do a secondary fermentation with a different kind of yeast that is often considered an infection: Brettanomyces Clausini which is isolated from old English barrels. It ferments slowly in a beer that has already had a primary fermentation, but keeps going and going and going, transforming a beer over many months and it eats more complex sugars than ordinary yeasts. It lends a slightly fruity, funky character reminiscent of barrel aging (but acts completely differently when used in a primary ferment or in a coferment).
Note the difference in color between this beer and the last one which used the same wort, but was fermented with a different yeast: https://steemit.com/beersaturday/@gmikeyg/beersaturday-31-beer-review-2-farmhouse-ale-with-rye-with-massive-nugget-hop-additions This particular type of Brettanomyces does not settle out of the beer quickly, likely because it is still fermenting while I'm drinking it, and it leaves the beer cloudy. The Belgian I reviewed last week has some major hop haze, so it might be tough to see the difference in these images.
The malt complexity mixed with the alternative grains like rye really pop! One thing I want to invest i for future batches of this are some noble hops (I currently have only new world/American hops, which carry less subtle flavors and weren't suitable for a late boil addition in this beer).
The verdict? I would do this beer again if I didn't love farmhouse ales so much. I would rather have 3 different kegs of different farmhouse ales based on what my current brew system can produce. This is something I can drink many glasses of, and the keg stuck around this long only because I had to wait for the Brettanomyces to do its work (even though it would have been improved with another month or two of time in the keg on the Brett). That wheat in the malt bill contributes to the wonderful head retention and lacing on the side of the glass.
I'll leave you with a vision of my dinner, which I paired with this beer. A mushroom pizza made with organic homemade dough. I used only olive oil, salt, and black pepper for the sauce because mushrooms drop so much water. After the oil, I left a significant layer of cheese. Both of those layers help protect the dough from all that water from the mushrooms. I cook the pizza at 500F instead of the 450F, also because of the water issue, then I brown the cheese slightly on broil. I finish the pizza with cream and butter on top, with more salt. The maltyness of the beer pairs well with the earthyness of the mushrooms.
If you like this post, please consider upvoting my comment on the #beersaturday post: https://steemit.com/beersaturday/@detlev/whooot-5-steemians-get-paid-to-drink-beer-and-blog-about-this-isn-t-this-a-cool-challenge