Scottish Heavy failure?

[O'Henry]

I recently attempted a Scottish Heavy. I posted my recipe in the recipe section but the below was what I finally ended up at.

3000g golden promise
350g wheat malt
250g dark munich
250g medium crystal
20g northdown (8.1%) 60mins
10g EKG (4.8%) 15 mins
Wyeast 1084 (recycled from previous spiced ale)
Final brew 24l

OG. 1.034
I mashed at 69C for 90 mins and it fell to around 63C by the end. All up I had around 20l for the boil. I boiled up 1.5l separate with no hops for a bit, as I had read some where that is how you get a more toffee flavour. Not sure about this still…
I boiled for 90mins with the above hop additions. As I don’t have a very large boiler I boiled it up in two pots but only hopped one of them. I topped the hopped one up as it boiled down. I held it at a slow boil, not a crazy boil like for jams and the like.

Now there are a few things I want to ask about. I brewed it a week ago and then had to go away and have returned home today to find it at a SG of 1.008
The taste is quite strange. The initial taste is fine but there is quickly a malty flavour that gets quite strong and is over powering. It also has a light mouthfeel with not a lot of body. Reminds me a little of Tooheys New (for those who’ve had Australian beer).
Will it get better? Is there something I did in my method that has made it this way? I have done a few all grains but none have really been great, so was hopeful for this one…

[mysterio]

Hi,

That looks more like a Scottish Light ale, aka 60/-. Beers under say, 1.038, offer a different challenge to the brewer because there is so little malt in them, and will be very light bodied, so they need a bit extra attention. 1.034 is VERY low, so you'll really need to watch the mash temp and keep it up at 69 - 70C to emphasise the alpha-amalyse in the mash. What did you mash in ? A 6C drop is quite a bit. Even boosting the gravity to 1.038+ will make your life much easier.

Not sure about the maltiness, there's nothing that stands out in the recipe, apart from maybe the dark munich which i've never used. Is this the same as melanoidin malt?

[O'Henry]

I was aiming for a higher OG but I mashed differently to the way I have done it in the past and it didnt go so well. I ended up with around 66-68%, while I have mashed in the past at 75-80%. So that was the main reason for such a low OG. I did try to keep it up at 69C but it fell more than I expected. I mashed in an esky.

As far as I am aware munich is the only name the malt is known as. They had melanoidin where I ordered my malt from but I didnt ask what it is/does.

[mysterio]

It's hard to say without tasting the beer. The recipe is fine, there's nothing out of the ordinary. The low OG is primarily to blame for the thin body, so you know what to correct next time. Adding some DME or boiling a little longer is always a good way to fix the beer. As it's not a late hopped beer, you'll only be adding a few negligible IBUs by boiling for say, an extra 15 minutes.

I'm still puzzled about the malty flavour. It is supposed to be a malty beer but it shouldn't be unpleasant. Is there maybe a buttery/butterscotch component?

Keep the faith, anyway. My early all-grains were pretty variable. Practice will make perfect. For now, focus on brewing tried and tested recipes and focus on getting the correct OG.