Here is my posting of
Orfy's Mild Mannered Ale that took 1st place, category 11 in the 2011 HBT homebrew competition, and was a part of the "Orfy's mild mini-comp".
5 lb 8 oz Maris Otter (Crisp, UK)
1 lb 8 oz Crystal 60L (Crisp, UK)
6 oz Chocolate malt (Crisp, UK)
1 oz UK Fuggle 4.30% at 45 minutes
1 oz UK Fuggle 4.30% at 15 minutes
Brewhouse efficiency for this recipe is set to 75%
Mash at 158 degrees for 60 minutes at 1.25:1 ratio, mashout with 1 gallon of boiling water and Vorlauf till first runnings are clear. Double batch sparge with 170 degree water to get to pre-boil volume.
Pitch yeast at the starting fermentation temp of 65 degrees and ramp up to 68 degrees after 3 days at initial fermentation temp.
After 10 days of primary fermentation rack to a keg or bottling bucket and carb to 1.8 volumes.
A few notes about this beer:
If you have never tried a Northern English Mild, you are missing out on a great full flavored session beer that is both an inexpensive beer to brew and it is a quick beer to go from grain to glass, it can be ready to drink in a couple weeks if you push it.
I always have a great time brewing this beer, if I don't have Maris Otter, I use 4.5 lbs of 2-row and a pound of victory malt to approximate the MO, don't have victory? Just toast a pound of your 2-row at 350 degrees for 16 minutes and let it sit in a bag for a week prior to brewing. It also lends itself well to other English hops, and if Notty is not your thing, use S-04 or WLP002.
As requested be included in the recipe, the yeast that was used for my competition beer was a long forgotten packet of Nottingham yeast that had an expiration date of March 2006, it would appear it made a fine beer after all that time!