Cami's Special Bitter

I had an aging packet of Wyeast 1028 London Ale in the fridge that I wanted to brew an double IPA with (using CTZ, Amarillo and Simcoe hops), but first, I needed to build up some yeast. I decided to brew a 2.5 gallon batch of special bitters as a starter beer.

Recipe:

3.00 lbs. Marris Otter

0.50 lbs. Crystal 40L

0.25 lbs. White Wheat Malt

0.75 oz Fuggles/Goldings mix @ 60 minutes

0.25 oz Fuggles/Goldings mix @ 20 minutes

0.50 oz Fuggles/Goldings mix dry hop for 12 days

Wyeast 1028 London Ale

Mash @ 152 for 60 minutes

OG: 1.041

Projected final gravity: 1.010

Projected ABV: 4.0%

IBU's: 33.6

Brew day went off without a hitch. I hit my mash temp target on the spot (152) and my post-boil volume was just a shade under 2.5 gallons. I achieved 72% efficiency.

5/27/10 Update ~ I added the dry hops today. I resisted the urge to take a sample of it, but it smells great.

6/5/10 Update ~ Reached a final gravity of 1.008, giving me a 4.3% ABV beer. I bottled to 1.5 volumes of CO2. I am really excited to drink this in 2+ weeks.