Primary fermentation additions

When I've used nibs, I had good success with soaking 4oz them in 5oz bourbon to sanitize, putting them in a hop sack then adding them to my primary after fermentation subsided. I also added the bourbon. I tasted daily until I had the amount of flavor I wanted, which was after 9 days, then I kegged. The beer won a gold medal when entered as an American Stout, but didn't place as a specialty beer due to the flavor being too subtle for the category (which I was ok with, I wasn't interested in making a cocoa bomb). Let it go longer if you want more flavor, but be aware there is a risk if you go too long. I tried adding adding nibs to a keg as a secondary, but I found I ended up with a more vegetal/nutty flavor as time went on.

 

Sure. Either primary or secondary is fine. I personally don't do a secondary (other than keg storage) so I add to primary after a week or so when the yeast are finishing up. You just want to be able to separate the nibs from the beer when the taste is right, because it's definitely possible to go too long and get vegetal flavors.

 

I've not tried that. If it were me I think I would cold extract the coffee in strike water and then add that, but we've moved beyond my personal experience.

 

I just brewed an FBS clone. I used cocoa nibs, bakers chocolate, and 2oz coffee at flameout and let it stand for half an hour before chilling. Then anotherr 2oz coffee got cold steeped in a qt of water and added at bottling. TONS of coffee flavor in this one.

 

I use unground coffee beans. 4 ounces for 48 hours gives a robust flavor. Easy to measure, add, remove and repeat.

 

Crap I hate posting on this site with my phone. Not strike water, sterile water (previously boiled).