increase chocolate flavor after fermentation

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by GeeL, Sep 17, 2014.

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  1. GeeL

    GeeL Initiate (0) Aug 27, 2008 Massachusetts

    Hi. I added about 5 oz by weight of a mix of coco powder and unsweetened cooking chocolate about 2 min before flame out of my 5-gal batch of beer. There's a slight hint of chocolate, but I wanted more.

    Any suggestions? Coco powder doesn't dissolve very easily, so it's not like I can just stir some in. One thought is to remove 8 -10 oz of the beer, heat it up, add the powder, stir to dissolve/mix, then pour it back in.

    My wife suggested adding Hershey's syrup. I dunno about that one.

    Thoughts?
     
  2. dblab33

    dblab33 Initiate (0) Dec 9, 2011 Michigan

    You could get ~4 oz of high quality cocoa nibs and let them sit in the beer for about a week. You can also boil a cup or two of water and mix in cocoa powder (I use dutch process cocoa powder when going this route) and add that. Also let it sit for a week or so.
     
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  3. GeeL

    GeeL Initiate (0) Aug 27, 2008 Massachusetts

    never heard of cocoa nibs, but I do have the powder. This, I believe, is better than chocolate milk mix...
     
  4. dblab33

    dblab33 Initiate (0) Dec 9, 2011 Michigan

    You want to avoid anything heavily processed, high in fat, or with added sugar.
     
  5. GeeL

    GeeL Initiate (0) Aug 27, 2008 Massachusetts

    yup, nibs or powder it is. Thanks!
     
  6. PapaGoose03

    PapaGoose03 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,057) May 30, 2005 Michigan
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

  7. GeeL

    GeeL Initiate (0) Aug 27, 2008 Massachusetts

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  8. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    Vanilla...whole bean or quality extract
     
  9. IPeteA91

    IPeteA91 Initiate (0) Nov 10, 2012 Texas

    I would advise against "heating up" fermented wort, multiple problems would likely result (oxidation and rapid creation of DMS)
     
  10. mbbransc

    mbbransc Initiate (0) Mar 24, 2009 North Carolina

    I used cocoa nibs and vodka to make chocolate extract.
     
  11. DrMindbender

    DrMindbender Initiate (0) Jul 13, 2014 South Carolina

    Cocoa powder gives a bad chocolate flavor to beer in my opinion. Only use cacao nibs to get a real chocolate flavor instead of a more artificial flavor like most cooking chocolate and powder give. NightOwlChocolate.com has a great price on nibs by the pound (like $12.99 vs $7 for 4 oz at most online home brew stores).
     
  12. dblab33

    dblab33 Initiate (0) Dec 9, 2011 Michigan

    That may be true when using something like Hershey unsweetened cocoa powder, but it is definitely not the case with higher quality products like Dutch process cocoa powder. Dutch process cocoa imparts a rich, deep chocolate flavor that I can't even get from cocoa nibs and I sometimes prefer it to nibs depending on the base beer. Just thought it was worth mentioning because not all cocoa powder is bad news.
     
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  13. koopa

    koopa Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2008 New Jersey

    I'd make a neutral spirit tincture with either cocoa nibs or ancho chillies and then add it to your keg / bottling bucket.
     
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