Porter brew

My biggest concern with the recipe is the use of dark malt extracts. Attenuation is usually a problem. A recipe is almost always better using pale malt extract and getting your color and roast flavors from steeped specialty grains.

Ignore the 170 mash out. Not needed.

The instruction to pitch yeast at 75 degrees is not a good idea. More like 63-65 for Burton ale yeast.

Most people would skip transferring to secondary and just keep the beer in primary for 2 to 4 weeks.

 

That process would work but I would suggest that you nix the Honey Malt since it is reportedly not a malt that can be steeped (it would add starch to the wort).

Cheers!

 

In this example, the term 'Mash Out' is being used as code to identify themselves as clueless.
Further verified already as the use of dark malts and dark extracts.

 

If you intend to not use dark(er) malt extracts and solely use Pale LME then you will need to 'bump up' the specialty malt amounts. The existing recipe is predicted upon getting some dark malt contributions from the malt extracts (Porter/Amber).

Cheers!

 

I only use secondary for lagers and high abv beers like barleywines. Everything else is 3 weeks in primary and then to keg or bottle. I don't see any benefits from secondary for moderate abv ales that outweigh potential oxygen exposure from secondary. The alleged concern with extended primary is what is known as " autolysis". Many now believe that this is not a concern for homebrewers, or is only a concern after very extended periods of time.

I'm on my phone now, so no ability to research dark malt extracts and attenuation. Though I'm sure someone else can chime in on the topic.

You do have to add more dark malted grains when steeping to make up for sub with pale malt extract. My last porter, adjusted for a five gallon batch, had 2 lb pale chocolate, .5 lb chocolate wheat, and 1 lb C90 along with brown malt. It was not a particularly dark Porter.

 

From the linked recipe:

Beer Profile

Original Gravity: 1.086
Final Gravity: 1.012
Alcohol by Vol: 9.69%
Recipe Type: partial mash
Yield: 5.00 Gallons

If the homebrewer achieved the listed final gravity of 1.012 that would seem to indicate that the malt extracts are pretty darn fermentable (i.e., high attenuation was achieved). I wonder whether they really achieved this value.

Cheers!

 

With those fermentables and that yeast strain, there is not a snowball's chance in hell of getting anywhere near 86% apparent attenuation.

 

Well, at this point I am not believing the posted value of 1.012 for the final gravity.

I am pretty darn sure that if you brewed the recipe as it you will achieve "full bodied porter".

The debate about using non-Pale Malt Extracts is that what dark malts were used to produce those malt extracts is sometimes an unknown. For the Briess Porter malt extract the ingredients are:

“81% Base Malt

8% Victory® Malt

5% Caramel Malt 80L

4% Chocolate Malt

2% Carapils® Malt”

http://brewingwithbriess.com/Assets/PDFs/Briess_PISB_CBWPorterLME.pdf

The Amber malt extract is also a combination of some sort.

Some homebrewers have a preference to brew with Pale Malt extract and then they select the specialty malts to achieve a specific flavor and body profile.

I would be willing to bet that the recipe as is would make a fine Porter.

If you want to be in ‘more control’ you can go the Pale Malt Extract and specialty malt route if brewing with non-Pale Malt Extract is personally non-ideal to you.

Cheers!

 

My change would be delete the link to that recipe and start over. It would be full bodied without any changes though. It just wouldn't attenuate as much.

 

In my opinion this recipe will 'achieve' here.

A few non-specifically requested suggestions:

• Practice proper sanitation throughout the brewing process
• Make a yeast starter since this is a high gravity beer
• Maintain a proper fermentation temperature. I would suggest 68 degrees F

Good luck with your Porter!!

Cheers!

 

- more attenuative yeast strain
- more fermentable wort (a greater ratio of base malts/extracts to specialty malts/extracts)

But I would not aim for 86% apparent attenuation for any porter. That would be a very dry beer.

 

if you're still open to an alternative recipe, I did this with most of your proposed ingredients. Looks like you're wanting a beefed up English porter. IBUs are estimates since i dont know your aa. Follow the instructions above as modified by BA user comments re mash out, etc.

7.5 lb Light DME
1 lb chocolate malt
1 lb C120
.5 lb roast barley

1 oz Perle 60
1 oz Fuggle 15

Burton ale yeast

OG 1.074, FG 1.021, 7.03% ABV, 32 IBU, 50 SRM

 

Toss in half pound black patent malt. give it some bitter roast