I love a great English beer and jumped at the opportunity to make another one with Matchan (Matsumoto-san, their head brewer, and former colleague of ours). English beers are great classical styles that tend to be a bit more malt focused and are perfectly suited for the colder season. I tried to incorporate as much of Ape brewing’s style as possible in this beer when scaling it to our system. The malt bill consists of one of my favorite base malts, Maris Otter. From there we layered on a blend of different crystal and amber malts for a depth of flavor and a touch of black wheat for color without adding the harsh bitterness associated with many dark malts. The hop profile is mild, and was kept traditional, with a blend of East Kent Goldings and Fuggle Hops giving the beer a touch of herbal and spice character with enough bitterness to balance out the malt sweetness. This beer was fermented with a blend of London ale strains and had an extended cold conditioning in the fermenter, allowing time for the yeast to impart its flavor and let the character soften and meld together. This is beer is well suited for an English style pub, and one that balances having enough body to hold up to the cold weather. It's also great for pairing with hearty winter meals, while also maintaining its drinkability to have a few over the cold evening.