This recipe was not specifically designed to be consistent with the BJCP style guides, but we believe it is similar to 11C - Strong Bitter.

Some days are harder than others. You might not have bullet holes in your bomber after trying to take out a Nazi dam, since, you know, the war is over. Still, you maybe had the modern equivalent to that for suburban Dads. This beer is for those days. It's Extra Special. We believe it's one of the tastiest ESB's we've come across in a long while.

Maris Otter base with just the right amount of specialty malts, Target & Golding Hops for that English flavour, fermented with a dry English strain.

Brew it, do yourself a favour.

Target ABV: 5.8%

Our kits are fresh! We assemble the ingredients after you place your order. The grain bill will be milled, unless you tell us in your order comments that you prefer it not to be.

This recipe has been designed to use acid malt to reach the target mash pH. If you wish to use the recommended mineral additions to achieve the intended flavour profile, these are to be added to the boil only. This kit does not include the minerals, but these can be purchased separately.

Click here to download the recipe.

Click here to download the BeerXML file (to directly import into your favorite brewing software)

This recipe was not specifically designed to be consistent with the BJCP style guides, but we believe it is similar to 11B - Best Bitter.

This is an English Strong Bitter. Strong is relative by modern standards, it's under 5% ABV! Enjoy the classic flavour of complex malt with fruitiness from the English yeast and floral & earth notes from the hops.  A great session beer! This beer is a tribute to the footballer George Best, look him up and the anecdotes around him - he is a true legend!

Target ABV: 4.9%

This recipe has been designed to be consistent with the 2021 BJCP Style guide 19A - American Amber Ale.

Firefly is an American Amber Ale recipe designed for The League of Brewers by Jamie McQuillan of Cell Division Brewery.

American Amber Ales are a modern style originating from the early 1980’s, and their advent offered a welcome variation from regular American Pale Ales. The style is open to a range of interpretations, with the balance ranging from a focus on the caramel malts with gentle hopping, through to more assertively hopped and bitter versions verging on the Red IPA territory. This recipe sits comfortably somewhere in the middle of this spectrum.

The malty notes of caramel and toasted bread support a firm bitterness along with moderate levels of those classic American piney, resinous and citrusy hops. Pouring with a lovely amber hue, bright clarity and lasting off white head, it’s perfect for when you feel like a refreshingly hoppy beer with a little more to chew on.

This recipe was not specifically designed to be consistent with the BJCP style guides, but we believe it is similar to 19B - California Common.

This beer style was made famous by Anchor Brewing Company in San Francisco. The "Anchor Steam" was one of the first beers to bring some flavour into the bland American lager landscape back in the 70s. It featured complex malt flavours combined with some rustic traditional American hops. Very drinkable, this is a style you'll struggle to find in the commercial market in NZ.

ABV: 5.8%

Our kits are fresh! We assemble the ingredients after you place your order. The grain bill will be milled, unless you tell us in your order comments that you prefer it not to be.

This recipe has been designed to use acid malt to reach the target mash pH. If you wish to use the recommended mineral additions to achieve the intended flavour profile, these are to be added to the boil only. This kit does not include the minerals, but these can be purchased separately.

Click here to download the recipe.

Click here to download the BeerXML file (to directly import into your favorite brewing software)

This recipe has been designed to be consistent with the 2021 BJCP Style guide 6B - Rauchbier.

The Rauchbier is a German style lager exhibiting the classic toasty-rich malt, restrained bitterness and clean fermentation profile of a Märzen. A relatively dry finish is accentuated by beechwood smoked malt, which can range in intensity to subtle to strong. Don’t fear the smoke though. Beers brewed with up to 90% of beechwood smoked malt can have a surprisingly soft smoke character and this recipe is a deliberately restrained and balanced example for brewers wanting to play with smoke, but not jump in the fire.

Up In Smoke pours a deep amber hue with great clarity and creamy head. The smoke and malt are carefully balanced so that neither overwhelms the other. The level of smoke should entice the drinker at the first sniff and not overly dominate, and also add a chewable savoury note. This is helped along greatly by the German beechwood smoked malt League of Brewers stocked especially for this beer, layered on a malty base of German Munich Dark and Vienna malts. All of this is rounded out with gentle bittering and floral and spicy undertones from the German-grown Hallertauer Mittelfrüh hops. Best brewed with German precision, just ask Ed.

Grizzly American Brown is a recipe designed for The League of Brewers by Jamie McQuillan of Cell Division Brewery.

This beer was created to push the upper limits of the American Brown Ale style and verges on a Brown IPA. It pours a deep, dark brown colour without any harsh roasted notes and displays a lasting tan head. Soft and rounded toasty chocolate notes give way to a firm balancing bitterness and lingering resinous grapefruit and pine, thanks to generous additions of Centennial and Simcoe hops. At an easy drinking abv of 6.3%, this beer you will leave you with nothing to grizzle about.

ABV: 6.3%

This recipe has been designed to be consistent with the 2021 BJCP Style guide 13A: Dark Mild.

Britannia is a recipe created for The League of Brewers by Jamie McQuillan of Cell Division Brewery.

Originating in the United Kingdom, Milds have a long history and have changed a great deal with the passing of time. The Dark Milds of today are a style with a wide scope of interpretation, ranging in colour from copper to deep brown in colour.  They are a great low alcohol British-style session ale that pack a flavour punch well above their abv.

Britannia pours a deep copper colour, with soft notes of caramel, chocolate and roasted coffee on the nose and palate. A medium body and smooth mouthfeel are well suited to low to medium levels of carbonation, especially on hand pull as is traditional for this style.  English grown Target hops provide a supporting bitterness and undertones of earthy and floral flavours. Thirst inducing, thirst quenching!

This recipe has been designed to be consistent with the 2021 BJCP Style guide 8A-Munich Dunkel.

Ein-Stein is a Munich Dunkel recipe designed for The League of Brewers by Jamie McQuillan of Cell Division Brewery.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out where this dark European lager originates from. It hails from Munich in Germany way back in the 1830’s, coinciding with the development of Munich malt.  As it turns out, Gladfield malt here in NZ makes some very fine Munich malt of their own. If you haven’t tried it then this a great recipe to give it a whirl as the base malt.

Munich Dunkels are great mid-strength drinking. They present deep coppery brown and malty with toasted bread notes, hints of chocolate and caramel and a notable absence of roasty burnt notes. They are medium in body but with no cloying sweetness and a gentle bittering that makes for a smooth rich and nourishing lager. For the more adventurous brewer, this recipe is an ideal place to try out your skills with decoction mashing. The option of a simple double decoction approach is included in the instructions to get you started, after which you might want to explore the possibility of a more intensive triple decoction to further develop those deep malty flavours. Experiment and have fun, it’s definitely not quantum physics. Prost!

This recipe was not specifically designed to be consistent with the BJCP style guides, but we believe it is similar to 21B - Specialty IPA - NE IPA

This beer was brewed for the NZ Hops release party of the Hort 4337 trial hop, but thanks to Covid19 that didn't happen. Good news for you - instead of going to a group of commercial brewers & hop growers, it's now available for sale - and this is the kit to brew it yoursel! It's loaded with 4337 hops with a little backup of Mosaic hops.

The malt is mainly Pilsner & Vienna by BestMalz from Germany supported by two different types of Oats and some wheat malt.

Target ABV: 6.5%

Our kits are fresh! We assemble the ingredients after you place your order. The grain bill will be milled, unless you tell us in your order comments that you prefer it not to be.

This recipe has been designed to use acid malt to reach the target mash pH. If you wish to use the recommended mineral additions to achieve the intended flavour profile, these are to be added to the boil only. This kit does not include the minerals, but these can be purchased separately.

 Click here to download the recipe.

Click here to download the BeerXML file (to directly import into your favorite brewing software)