British ale

Best Bitter

BJCP 11B

The middle of the bitter family and the everyday English pint: bready malt, earthy or floral English hops, and a dry, moreish finish.

Vital statistics

Each bar is drawn against the full range of all 98 styles

Original gravity

1.040 - 1.048

Final gravity

1.008 - 1.012

Bitterness

25 IBU - 40 IBU

Colour

8 SRM - 16 SRM

Alcohol

3.8% - 4.6%

Colour also 16-32 EBC

What goes wrong

Using American hops. Citrus and pine turn it into a pale ale.

Commercial examples

Adnams Southwold BitterFuller's London PrideHarvey's Sussex Best BitterSurrey Hills Shere DropTimothy Taylor Landlord

Reference examples of the style, as listed in the BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines. Availability varies by market and year.

Vital statistics as published in the BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines. Checked against the published guidelines.

Brew it

A recipe on this site brewed to this style

Every figure below is computed from the ingredients and checked against the ranges above before the page is built.

Straightforward

Best Bitter

OG 1.042 · 4.0% · 30 IBU

The rest of the british ale family

11A

Ordinary Bitter

3.2-3.8% · 25-35 IBU

11C

Strong Bitter

4.6-6.2% · 30-50 IBU

12A

British Golden Ale

3.8-5% · 20-45 IBU

12B

Australian Sparkling Ale

4.5-6% · 20-35 IBU

13A

Dark Mild

3-3.8% · 10-25 IBU

13B

British Brown Ale

4.2-5.9% · 20-30 IBU

Plan a batch to these numbers.

Bitterness Colour Alcohol