River Dart Summer Ale - Brewing with Homegrown Calais Goldings
There's something really special about growing your own hops. I've had a hop plant in my front garden for a couple of years now, and this summer I finally had a decent enough harvest to actually brew with. The variety is Calais Goldings - a close relative of the more widely known East Kent Goldings, but with its own quiet character. I'd been waiting for the right recipe to show them off, and a classic English-style Summer Ale felt like the perfect fit.
I named this one River Dart - a nod to the beautiful Devon river (that I live pretty close to) and the kind of beer I'd happily drink on its banks on a warm afternoon. Light, crisp, and unmistakably British.
The Recipe
Let's get brewing! The recipe below is suited for my Grainfather G30, but it can be scaled to suit your needs depending on your setup.
Batch Size: 23 L
ABV: 4.6%
Boil Time: 60 mins
OG: 1.041
FG: 1.006
IBUs: 22.8
Malt Bill
| Name | Amount |
|---|---|
| Plumage Archer Heritage Malt (Crisp) | 4 kg |
Hops
| Name | Amount | Time | Use | Form |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calais Goldings | 10 g | Mash | Mash Hop | Whole Cone |
| Hallertau Magnum | 5 g | Boil (60 min) | Boil | Pellet |
| Calais Goldings | 20 g | Boil (20 min) | Boil | Whole Cone |
| Calais Goldings | 20 g | Boil (10 min) | Boil | Whole Cone |
| Calais Goldings | 30 g | Boil (5 min) | Boil | Whole Cone |
Yeast
| Name | Lab | Temperature |
|---|---|---|
| Blitz Lager (Fast Lager) | WHC Lab | 16-20°C |
A note on the malt
I went with Crisp's Plumage Archer Heritage Malt as the sole base malt, and I think it's a brilliant choice for a beer like this. Plumage Archer is one of the oldest British barley varieties - it fell out of commercial use for decades before being revived by heritage grain enthusiasts. It has a delicate, biscuity sweetness that feels right at home in a traditional English ale. Using a single malt also lets the hops do the talking, which is exactly what I wanted here.
A note on the hops
Calais Goldings are part of the wider Goldings family, sharing that classic English hop character - earthy, floral, with a gentle spice and a soft, rounded bitterness. They're not as widely written about as East Kent Goldings, but they're a lovely hop to brew with, especially when you've grown them yourself. There's something deeply satisfying about dropping hops you've picked from your own garden into the kettle.
I used a mash hop addition as well as multiple boil additions, building up the hop character in layers rather than relying on a big late addition. With homegrown hops, the alpha acid content can be a bit of a mystery - I estimated around 5% based on the EKG baseline in Brewfather, which seemed sensible. The Magnum is just there to provide clean bittering in the background.
Let's get brewing
The night before brew day I measured out and filtered my water, adding calcium chloride and phosphoric acid to both the mash and sparge water - something I've written about recently if you want the detail on why I do this the night before.
On brew day I fired up the Grainfather and aimed for a strike temperature of 63°C - a deliberately low mash temp to drive high fermentability and keep the body light and crisp, which is exactly what you want in a summer ale. After 60 minutes I stepped up to 75°C for a 10-minute mash out before sparging and collecting the wort.
I added a Whirlfloc tablet at 10 minutes to help with clarity, along with a Servomyces capsule to keep the yeast healthy and well-nourished through fermentation.
Once the boil was done and the wort was chilled down to pitching temperature, I pitched the WHC Blitz Lager yeast. Despite the "lager" label, this strain works beautifully at ale temperatures and ferments out clean and fast - perfect for a light, sessionable beer where you don't want any distracting esters getting in the way.
The waiting game
With the airlock ticking away, I left it to do its thing. The Tilt Hydrometer kept me updated on progress - always reassuring to watch that gravity line drop steadily over the first few days. Once fermentation was complete and the gravity had been stable for a couple of days, I soft crashed and transferred to keg.
Tasting
Appearance - Pale, golden and brilliantly clear. This is about as light in colour as I brew - a beautiful straw gold that genuinely looks like sunshine in a glass.
Aroma - Soft and inviting. There's a gentle earthiness and a whisper of floral character from the Calais Goldings, with the heritage malt providing a faint biscuity backdrop. It's subtle rather than punchy, which feels right for the style.
Taste - Crisp, clean and refreshing. The bitterness is rounded and soft - nothing harsh, just a pleasant, lingering dryness that makes you want another sip. There's a light grassy, herbal note mid-palate that I'm fairly sure is coming from the homegrown hops. It finishes dry and clean, exactly as intended.
You might be wondering why I used a Lager yeast with this brew and there are a couple of reasons - firstly, it provides a clean backbone for the hops to shine on and secondly, it was the only yeast I had to hand at the time 😂
Honestly, I'm really pleased with how this one came out. It's simple, it's honest, and it tastes like summer. Growing your own hops and watching them end up in a finished pint is one of those homebrewing experiences I'd recommend to anyone with a bit of garden space and a bit of patience.
Happy brewing! 🍻