Bombardier clone?

[Harlequin]

Hi,

I have been searching the forum for a Bombardier clone hopefully using a kit as a base, but all I can find are all grain recipes. Can anyone help? Are there any kits that already come close?

Thanks.

[seymour]

Wells Bombardier is a nice true-to-style ESB ("English Special Bitter or Extra Special Bitter" depending on who you ask), but contains very typcial ingredients: pale and crystal malts, Challenger bittering hops and Goldings aroma hops. White Labs WLP006 "Bedford British Ale" is believed to be the true Charles Wells strain.

I may get ridiculed for this, but I think the popular and inexpensive Woodforde's Wherry English Bitter kit would get you pretty close. The Original Gravity obviously depends on how much water you add, but many people achieve about 1.044 straight out of the box. Since Bombardier is an ESB as opposed to a plain-ol' "Bitter" like Woodforde's, it's a little bigger all-around: darker, hoppier, and more alcoholic.

In order to emulate Bombardier's higher OG (around 1.047) and darker color, you could add a pound (≈454 g) of dark dry malt extract (or "DME", "spraymalt", "enhancer", etc). You could also buy 1 oz (≈28 g) of Goldings hops (whole or pellets, doesn't matter): boil half for 45 minutes, drop-in the other half with 5 minutes remaining and let it steep until chilled to pitching temperature, then remove the hops. This is most simply done, in my opinion, by pouring through a metal kitchen strainer into your fermenting bucket. The Wherry kit yeast isn't bad, likely the same as Munton's, but White Labs WLP006 should be 100% authentic.

Cheers!

[Harlequin]

Hi 'Seymour'

Thanks very much for the reply and info.

Im going to make up my next Wherry exactly how you said and see how we go.

Cheers

[PaddyX21]

Let us know how it goes please?
Although Bombardier isn't one of my favourites, this sounds like an excellent kit adaptation, even if it doesn't end up being a 'clone'