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Old Speckled Hen


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When I was in England last year I tried old speckled hen I found a recipe on the net to try make this see what you guys think

 

2kg Ldme

30g Challenger Hops

10g Golding Hops

15g Crushed black malt

300g Crushed Crystal malt

Nottingham Yeast

23ltrs water

 

 

What method is best as site I found it on didn't have method just ingredients make

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A couple of comments:

 

Did the site give the hop schedule?

 

It also seems a little light. 2kg DME in 23 litres should come in around the 4% mark. I thought Old Speckled Hen (bottled variiety anyway) was around 5%.

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not at all Hairy just had all the ingredients and the quantities to use. There was no method at all for the grains or hops to be boiled or steeped . What do you recommend to bump up the % of the beer

 

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I've made plenty of similar recipes. EB kit, 1kg LDM, 250g dex and late hopping with EKG. Although I hop it a little more.

 

I don't know if it tastes like Old Speckled Hen (it's been awhile since I have had one), but it is a damn nice brew.

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I was thinking steep grain for 20mins in 2litres water. Boil 15gms challenger for 15mins then boil the other 15gms for 15mins and at flame out throw in the ekg. See how that goes make it to 18litres using Nottingham yeast

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15mins for first addition

I have just re-read your post.

 

Do you mean:

 

15g for 15 minutes, then add another 15g and leave for another 15 minutes. Therefore, the first 15g addition is actually 30 minutes.

 

If so, I don't think you will get enough bitterness. You will probably need to use 30g Challenger @ 60 minutes. If Challenger has an AA% of 7.5% then this (ie. 60 min addition) will give you an IBU of around 30 in 18 litres.

 

Your plan of 15g @ 30 min and 15g @ 15 min will give you about 20 IBUs which isn't enough for this style of beer.

 

I reckon you would be better with:

 

Challenger - 20g @ 60 minutes (21 IBU)

Challenger - 25g @ 20 minutes (16 IBU)

 

But there are many ways to get there. Play around with some brewing software until you find a schedule you like.

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next question how much water would I need to use for the boil if going for the hr with the challenger

When I did extracts, I used to do six litre boils. You want a decent sized boil when doing full extract. I wouldn't do less than 5 litres.

 

You don't have to do a 60 minute boil. You can change it to 30-45 minutes and increase the amount of hops.

 

The other option is to use a kit for the base, as mentioned by PB2 above.

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AllanN.

 

I have a recipe book produced by CAMRA that gives a recipe for Old Speckled Hen. The final ABV should be around 5.6%, so the recipe you have is definitely for the 19 litre brew. It recommends a boil time of 90 minutes, with the Challenger added at the start of the boil, and the Golding added 10 minutes before the end of the boil. The amounts you have for the hops are the same.

 

The recipe does include adding some sugar as well, to increase the OG.

 

I hope this helps. And that it's not too late! [pinched]

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Here goes nothing I decide make it with ingredients I got.

 

30gms challenger boiled for 90mins

10gms ekg at flame out

300gms crystal malt steeped half hour

15gms black malt steeped half hr

2kgs ldme

Nottingham yeast

 

Made to 18ltrs.I boiled hops in 6ltrs water, if og reading is under 1040 I will add 300gms dextrose if it over I leave it at that.

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I tried this over in London at pub near the thames close to the centunary bridge and I enjoyed while all the locals where drinking fosters. I been on the hunt for ages for the recipe and found this I know the abv isn't going to be around the mark of 5.6% but hey if taste good why not have a session beer.

 

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