If you have brewed a few batches already and want to try Yorkshire Bitter, this is a straightforward, all-grain route to it. The backbone is Pale malt, with Challenger 7% doing most of the work in the boil.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Yorkshire Bitter |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.035-1.045 |
| Final Gravity | 1.008-1.012 |
| ABV | 3.5-4.5% |
| IBU | 25-35 |
| SRM | 6-12 (amber) |
| Difficulty | Beginner to Intermediate |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Pale malt, at a steady temperature to build the fermentable sugars this style needs. Sparge slowly so you do not lose efficiency. |
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2
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Boil · ~60-90 min Bring the wort to a boil and work through the hop schedule, starting with Challenger 7%. This is also where you will add any fining agent for a clearer finished beer. |
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3
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Ferment · 20C (68F) Pitch Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire Ale once the wort has cooled to fermentation temperature and hold it steady. Primary fermentation is the most active week, do not rush it. |
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4
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Condition · 4 weeks at 12C (54F) Rack to secondary (or leave in primary if your recipe calls for it) and let the beer round out at a cool, steady temperature. This step does more for the final flavor than people expect. |
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5
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Package · 1 day, then wait Bottle or keg once gravity has held steady for a few days in a row. Give it time to carbonate and, for bigger styles, additional time to mellow before your first taste. |
That’s the shape of brew day and the weeks after it. For the exact grain bill, hop schedule, and full step-by-step instructions with amounts, use the recipe card below.
What You Will Need
Sourcing your own ingredients locally is always fine, but if you want to skip a homebrew store trip, here is what’s in stock in our shop right now:
- Base and specialty grain: Grains & Adjuncts (e.g. My Brew Supply Flaked Maize Premium Beer Making Grain)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Amarillo Hop Pellets 1 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. Craft A Brew – Safale S-04 Dry Yeast – Fermentis)
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. Carboy Caps 4 Pk Silicone Caps)
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Dextrose 50 Lb)
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. Northern Brewer Homebrewing Starter Kit w/Equipment, Chinook IPA)
- Pour it right when it’s ready: a tulip glass shows off the color and holds the aroma better than a straight pint glass
Serve It Right
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A Yorkshire Bitter is best served in a pint or nonic, it fits the body and carbonation of this style better than a straight pint glass. Here is one from our shop: |
Ingredients & Gear for This Batch
Grain / Adjuncts Box Brew Kits 2-Row Malted Barley 5 LBS CRUSHED Home Brewing Beer Ma |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter 2 Pack 28 inch Carboy Brush Carboy Cleaning Brush Carboy Bottle Brus |
Priming Sugar |
Equipment Monster Brew Home Brewing Supplies Home Brew Ohio Complete Beer Equi |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Yorkshire Bitter
Equipment
- 1 Mash tun
- 1 Large boiling pot
- 1 Wort chiller
- 1 Fermenting bucket or carboy
- 1 Airlock
- 1 Hydrometer
- 1 Thermometer
- 1 Sanitizer
- 1 Bottling bucket
- 1 Bottles and caps
- 1 Bottle capper
- 1 Tubing for siphoning
Ingredients
For the Mash – Liquor 10.5 Litres (18½ Pints) – Mash Time 1 hr – Temperature 65°c/149 °F
- 7.11 lb Pale malt Quantity 3.5kg
- 7 oz Medium crystal malt Quantity 200g
- 12 oz Torrified wheat Quantity 350g
- 1½ oz Chocolate malt Quantity 42g
For the Boil – 27 Litres (47½ Pints) – Boil Time 1 hr – 10 mins
- 1 oz (Hops) Challenger 7% When to add – At start of boil (IBU 24.3)
- ⅔ oz (Hops) First Gold 8% When to add – For last 10 mins of boil (IBU 6.7)
- ½ oz (Hops) First Gold 8% When to add – At turn off (IBU 0.0)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other – When to add – For last 15 mins of boil
To Ferment – 20°C (68°F) – Conditioning 4 weeks at 12°C (54°F)
- 1 Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire Ale
Instructions
- Heat 10.5 liters (18.5 pints) of water to 65°C (149°F) in your mash tun or large pot. Add the grains and stir well to ensure they are fully immersed in the water. Let the mash sit for one hour.
- After one hour, strain the wort (liquid) from the grains using a strainer or mesh bag. You should have about 27 liters (47.5 pints) of wort.
- Bring the wort to a boil in your large pot or kettle. Add the Challenger hops and boil for one hour.
- After one hour, add 2/3 oz of First Gold hops and Protofloc to the pot and boil for an additional 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, turn off the heat and add the remaining 1/2 oz of First Gold hops to the pot. Let the wort cool to 20°C (68°F).
- Transfer the cooled wort to your fermenting vessel and pitch the Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire Ale yeast. Seal the vessel with an airlock.
- Ferment the beer for five weeks at 20°C (68°F). After five weeks, transfer the beer to a cool place (12°C or 54°F) and condition it for four weeks.
- After four weeks, the beer should be ready to drink! Bottle or keg the beer and enjoy.
Get the fermentation temperature right on Yorkshire Bitter and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Yorkshire Bitter the Style It Is
Yorkshire Bitter sits in a well-established style family, and the version most homebrewers land on today reflects decades of small adjustments by brewers chasing balance rather than novelty.
Expect a beer that leans on pale malt and challenger 7% once it is finished conditioning. Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire Ale is the yeast strain behind that profile, so keep an eye on your fermentation temperature.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 3.5-4.5%
- Bitterness: 25-35 IBU
- Color: 6-12 (amber)
- Serving temp: 50-55F (10-13C)
- Glassware: a pint or nonic
- Food pairings: pies, roast dinners, mild cheeses
Common Questions
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes, the grain bill and hop schedule scale linearly with batch size. Just make sure your equipment, mash tun and boil kettle both, can actually handle the volume you are scaling to.
What is the biggest mistake homebrewers make with this style?
Rushing the schedule. Pulling a beer off yeast too early or skipping conditioning time is the most common way to shortchange a recipe like this one.
Can I substitute a different yeast strain?
You can, but expect the flavor profile to shift. Stick close to the same yeast family (English ale, American ale, Belgian, lager, etc.) if you want a result close to what this recipe is aiming for.
Keep Exploring
Once you have this one down, here are a few more homebrew recipes worth trying next:
Browse the full homebrew recipe collection for more styles, or if you are just getting into the hobby, start with one of our homebrewing starter kits for new brewers.
This recipe is for adults of legal drinking age. Please brew and drink responsibly, and always sanitize your equipment thoroughly to avoid infection.
