We managed to work in a brew session this past weekend. The planned beer was an English mild with an estimated OG of 1.038 and 18ish IBUs. Our typical efficiency ranges from 65% - 70%.
Prior to dough in, two changes were made. One subtle and one not so subtle. The first was to slightly crank down on the grain mill's gap size in order to get a slightly finer crush. The second was to increase the water to grain ratio from 1.25 qt / lb to 1.75 qt / lb. (A comment was made on a message board that based on research and experimentation, a thin mash like this does wonders. Reference to Kai Troester)
The combined effect of these changes on efficiency was stunning. Instead of 65% - 70% efficency, we achieved 88%. Pre-boil gravity of the (almost) 12 gal of runoff was in the low 1.040s. As a result, I added an ounce of hops at 30 minutes to bump up the IBUs. Gravity of the post-boil wort going into the conical was 1.052.Given the gravity and IBUs, this is certainly no longer a mild and is more like an English brown ale in terms of style. However, it's much more fun (and probably inaccurate) to say that we brewed an Imperial Mild! Can't wait to taste Overachiever in a couple of weeks.
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