Clifford Brown Ale

5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains; OG = 1.048 FG = 1.014; IBU = 23 SRM = 29+ ABV = 4.4%

Ingredients:

• 4 lb. 6 oz. (2.0 kg) Muntons Light dried malt extract
• 12 oz. (0.34 kg) dark Munich malt (20 °L)
• 3 oz. (85 g) biscuit malt
• 8 oz. (0.23 kg) crystal malt (60 °L)
• 3 oz. (85 g) crystal malt (120-150 °L)
• 5 oz. (142 g) chocolate malt
• 6 AAU Northern Brewer bittering hops (60 mins) (0.66 oz./19 g of 9% alpha acids)
• 1.5 AAU First Gold hops (15 mins) (0.3 oz./8.5 g of 5% alpha acids)
• 1.0 AAU Fuggles hops (15 mins) (0.2 oz./5.6 g of 5% alpha acids)
• 0.75 oz (21 g) First Gold hops (0 mins)
• 1 tsp. Irish moss
• Wyeast 1272 (American ale II), White Labs WLP051 (California V) or US56 dried yeast
• (1.5 qt./~1.5 L yeast starter)
• 7/8 cup corn sugar (for priming)

Step by Step:

Place crushed grains in a nylon steeping bag. In a large kitchen pot, heat 3.0 qts. (2.8 L) of water to 166 °F (74 °C). Submerge grain bag in water and let steep at 155 °F (68 °C) for 30 minutes. (The temperature will drop a bit during the steep, but this won’t hurt.) While grains are steeping, heat 1.5 qts. (~1.5 L) of water to 170 °F (77 °C) in a sauce pan. Also, begin heating 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water to a boil in your brewpot. When steeping is done, place a colander over your brewpot and lift the grain bag into it. Pour the "grain tea" through the bag (which will strain out most of the grain bits), then rinse the bag with the 1.5 qts. (~1.5 L) of 170 °F (77 °C) water.

Heat the (roughly) 3 gallons (11 L) of wort in your brewpot to a boil, then stir in dried malt extract. (It will foam a bit, so don’t pour all the extract in at once.) Bring the wort back to a boil, add the first charge hops and boil for 60 minutes. Add Irish moss and two flavor hops with 15 minutes left in boil. Add aroma hops at the end of the boil.

After the boil, put a lid on your brewpot and cool the wort (either in a cold-water bath in your sink or with a wort chiller). Cool until the side of the brewpot no longer feels warm. Transfer wort to your fermenter and top up to 5 gallons (19 L) with cool water. Aerate the wort and pitch your yeast. Ferment at 68 °F (20 °F). When fermentation slows to halt, rack to secondary. Bottle with corn sugar (or keg) one week later.