I've asked this question before elsewhere and never really got a solid answer so I figured I'd give it a shot here. I've got a really good baltic porter recipe that I've done many times. I've got a batch that's just about ready to go and this time I wanted to change it up a little bit by adding vanilla bean and cinnamon. My only question is how much of each do you think would be the right amount? I figured one full vanilla bean for a week in the secondary would be enough to get the flavor but not have it be overpowering, but I'm not really sure about how much cinnamon to use? Would one stick do anything or should I add more? I want there to be a little hint of cinnamon but not have it take over the beer. The beer is in secondary at this point. Thanks in advance.
No comment on the cinnamon, however here's my notes from my vanilla sweet stout: Vanilla Beans: Take 3 beans, cut the ends, and split it down the middle. Scrape out the guts, cut the case into smaller pieces and add to a jar. Pour either bourbon or vodka, enough to cover them roughly in a glass jar and seal the jar. Let the mix soak for a few weeks (2.5 weeks). Add to secondary to taste, generally 2-4 weeks (3 weeks). The result is more than a hint, but by no means overpowering. You may want less, but I think your one bean for a short period is not going to yield enough flavor. The good news with either the cinnamon or vanilla you can continually taste until you reach the desired flavor. Keep in mind the vanilla flavor will fade and if I were to guess so would the cinnamon.
The reason you didn't get a solid answer is it's not attainable! Every beer, bean, spice, and palate is different so to nail it down you'll have to test multiple variables. It's a delicate balance to make all the flavors sing without going overboard. FWIW, I used one cinnamon stick soaked in rum for three days and it was pretty faint in my winter warmer. Also, two beans in the secondary turned my golden strong ale into a vanilla bomb that didn't settle for six months.
1. Take about 4-6oz of a neutral spirit (just enough to cover the beans) and soak a few vanilla beans in it for a week or two. 2. Take about 4-6oz of a neutral spirit (just enough to cover the sticks) and soak a few cinnamon sticks in it for a week or two. 3. Then take a small amount of your beer and dose it with drops of each extract until you get the right level. 4. After that, scale up your dosage to determine how much extract to add to the entire batch. 5. Add the dosage to the bottling bucket or keg.
I used two vanilla beans for my 5 gallon all grain Porter. Added them during fermentation similar to how they described above. Perfect amount I thought.
I'd go with 3 beans, cut and scraped soaked in vodka for 2 weeks as mentioned already. I did this for my latest stout, 2 weeks in secondary on the beans/extract mix and it came out with a solid but not overpowering vanilla flavor.
