Historic Bitter Ale, all-grain

(5 gallons/19 L)
OG = 1.052  FG = 1.013
IBU = 64  SRM = 7  ABV = 5.1%

Ingredients

5.5 lbs. (2.5 kg.) Golden Promise pale ale malt
5.5 lbs. (2.5 kg) Briess Ashburne® Mild malt
18 AAU Golding hops (60 min.) (3 oz./85 g at 6% alpha acids)
SafAle S-04 or Wyeast 1099 (Whitbread Ale) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by step

Mash the grains at 152–153 °F (67 °C) with 3.5 gallons (13 L) water. After 60 minutes, run off and sparge with water at 160–170 °F (71–77 °C) to collect 6 gallons (23 L) of wort. Boil for 60 minutes, adding the Golding hops at the start of the boil. 

Cool to about 70 °F (21 °C) and pitch the yeast. Ferment 7 days at about 65 °F (18 °C), then rack to secondary for a further 5–7 days before racking to keg or bottling. I chose not to dry hop this beer but there’s no reason not to do so if you wish.

Historic Bitter Ale, extract only

(5 gallons/19 L)
OG = 1.052  FG = 1.013
IBU = 64  SRM = 7  ABV = 5.1%

I know Munich malt would not have been used in the late 19th century but I decided to use it for the extract recipe because the pale malt of that time would have been darker than modern pale malts.

Ingredients

6 lbs. (2.7 kg) Maris Otter pale liquid malt extract 
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) Munich liquid malt extract
18 AAU Golding hops (60 min.) (3 oz./85 g at 6% alpha acids)
SafAle S-04 or Wyeast 1099 (Whitbread Ale) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by step

Dissolve the malt extracts in 6 gallons (23 L) of hot water while off heat. Once malt extract is fully dissolved, bring wort to a boil. Boil for 60 minutes, adding the Golding hops at the start of the boil. 

Cool to about 70 °F (21 °C) and pitch the yeast. Ferment 7 days at about 65 °F (18 °C), then rack to secondary for a further 5–7 days before racking to keg or bottling. I chose not to dry hop this beer but there’s no reason not to do so if you wish.