Bitter Friday

I've been wanting to redeem myself for the sub-par bitter I brewed a while back. It wound up being, well, really bitter. And I really like bitters. So yesterday I went and bought the ingredients for a new batch. I was planning on brewing tomorrow morning but the impulse was too much to resist when I got home from work today. So, this evening, at seven, I started what I anticipate will be a process that will take me into the early morning hours. I've not brewed by myself in a while, a process I find very relaxing and, in a way, regenerative.

I am diverging enough from the recipe and process that I'm concerned I am risking the brew again but I also think last batches errors came from mistakes I made with hops (both the type I used and that I didn't strain them out before putting the batch into the primary), not the amount of grains, extracts, or water used.

So here's the ingredients list:

3/4# 45 degree crystal malt

2# amber DME

3# light DME (supposed to be 2.5, but more on that shortly)

2 oz Fuggles

1.5 oz Kent Goldings

1098 British Ale yeast

I'll also add some Irish Moss.

Let me explain the ingredient variation. I am really tired of not getting a full brew out of a batch. Between the residual left in the bottom of the boiling pot, what gets left behind in the transfers to the secondary and bottling bucket, I'm getting around 40 bottles out of each batch. So my thought is to start with more in the brew kettle (6 or more gallons) and work down from there.

I also deviated from the instructions on steeping the crystal malt. The recipe called for it to be boiled, something I was leery of doing because of the threat of leaching tannins from the husk, so instead I brought it to 150 degrees (slowly) and let it steep for 30 minutes before sparging with 2 gallons of 160 degree water.

Pitched the yeast at 11:57, not as late as I thought it'd wind up being. Got a solid 5 gallons, maybe 5.5 in the fermenter.