S'mores stout advice

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by ShabamJenkins, Jan 25, 2018.

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  1. ShabamJenkins

    ShabamJenkins Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2015 North Carolina

    So I've decided I want to try my hand at making an s'mores based imperial sweet stout. Something that hopefully finished somewhere at least around the 9% mark, higher being fine too. After looking through some recipes and pulling the ingredients used from Off Color's Dino S'mores I've come up with a rough draft of a recipe but would like some feedback as I'm fairly new at the brewing process. Because everything I've seen was made for 5 gal recipes, it's a bit more than I'll use for my 2.5 gal batch I plan on making. I'm at work right now and can't put it into Brewsmith to get estimated OG and FG but I think it should come out close to what I'm looking for.

    13 lb American - Pale 2-Row 58%
    1 lb German - Vienna 4%
    1 lb American - Wheat 4%
    2 lb Bel Biscuit 9%
    2 lb Breiss Extra Special 9%
    1 lb Flaked Oats 4%
    1 lb Candi Syrup, D-45 4%
    0.5 lb American - Dark Chocolate 2%
    0.5 lb American - Roasted Barley 2%

    1lb lactose -10 min
    12 oz cacao nibs
    6 oz powdered chocolate
    2 vanilla beans
    8 oz Molasses 2%
    1lb graham flour
    .1 oz cinnamon stick

    1 oz Nugget - 30 min
    1 oz Nugget -10 min
    WPL007 yeast

    22.5 Total fermentable

    After a last minute type of decision, I'll be brewing this beer on Sunday with some friends.
     
  2. minderbender

    minderbender Initiate (0) Jan 18, 2009 New York

    So to be clear, these are the ingredients for a 5-gallon batch, which you will scale down to 2.5 gallons by cutting everything in half?
     
  3. ShabamJenkins

    ShabamJenkins Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2015 North Carolina

    Correct, that was the plan. Since everything I've been finding is based on 5 gals I figured it was easier to work on the recipe in that form before scaling it down to 2.5 gals before brewing.

    Also, another thought I had I didn't mention was possibly adding some honey for the graham cracker taste.
     
  4. minderbender

    minderbender Initiate (0) Jan 18, 2009 New York

    Okay well, just eyeballing it, this looks like a huge beer. Even though you're only brewing 2.5 gallons, I think you should make a starter for your yeast. And I wouldn't add honey—it is very unlikely to contribute anything you will notice with so much else going on.
     
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  5. ShabamJenkins

    ShabamJenkins Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2015 North Carolina

    My tastes definitely favor bigger, bolder beers. Love double digit, barrel aged stouts and similar, high flavor beers. Being high alcohol content and huge on flavor is what I'm looking for.

    The idea with the honey would be to try to subtly add to the graham cracker flavor with the biscuit malt. A concern with that would be it would simply ferment out and not leave much, especially with everything else. I'm sure I would be better off keeping it as simple as I can but I want all the individual flavors to come out as best as I can.
     
  6. EvenMoreJesus

    EvenMoreJesus Initiate (0) Jun 8, 2017 Pennsylvania

    Another overly complex recipe? Sure, it'll work, but you could get the same basic thing without the Vienna, wheat, and oats and just upping your base malt by 3 lbs.

    When is all this stuff going in?

    IMO, the graham flour is just silly. I'd skip the molasses, but that might be just me. You can add the cinnamon and cocoa powder to the mash, if you wanted. Cacao nibs are a definite secondary addition. I'd also think about using organic vanilla extract. WAY more simple and exactly the same character.

    Why not just do a 60 minute addition? More efficient that way.
     
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  7. EvenMoreJesus

    EvenMoreJesus Initiate (0) Jun 8, 2017 Pennsylvania

    Honey will not give you that. However Meadowfoam honey tastes like marshmallows.

    https://flyingbeeranch.net/product/meadowfoam-honey-2/
     
  8. Prep8611

    Prep8611 Savant (1,208) Aug 22, 2014 New Jersey

    Ya u can skip the Vienna, wheat, and oats. Definitely gonna lose all that behind the other flavors. May take a longggggg time to be ready to drink. If you add honey and molasses it's gonna be HOT! I hope you have fermentation control or I wouldn't bother with this beer.
     
  9. ShabamJenkins

    ShabamJenkins Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2015 North Carolina

    I've mostly based my recipe off of what Off Color has listed as their ingredients and using this guy's attempt to clone it.
    Dino Smores:
    Malts: Pale, Vienna, Wheat, Cara II, Extra Special, Flaked Oats, Dark Chocolate, Black, Roasted Barley
    Hops: Nugget
    Secret Ingredients: Marshmallow fluff, vanilla beans, molasses, graham flour, cocoa nibs

    With the exception of the lactose going in during the last 10 mins of the boil, the whole bottom section would be added in primary.
    1lb lactose -10 min
    12 oz cacao nibs
    6 oz powdered chocolate
    2 vanilla beans
    8 oz Molasses 2%
    1lb graham flour
    .1 oz cinnamon stick

    The meadowfoam honey sounds interesting. I'll have to jump on it in the next few hours if I plan on using it since my LHBS doesn't carry it but is available on Amazon Prime for $14/lb.

    I also don't have temperature control. The temperature in the house this time of year hovers between 65-68.
     
  10. Prep8611

    Prep8611 Savant (1,208) Aug 22, 2014 New Jersey

    I'd avoid. With that high of an OG that thing is gonna be a rocket and ferment at least 72 but prolly higher. Ymmv but I made a barleywine without temp control. Took over a year for it to mellow.
     
  11. minderbender

    minderbender Initiate (0) Jan 18, 2009 New York

    With a 2.5 gallon batch it's probably feasible to keep it in a water bath to keep the temps under control. You can throw some frozen water bottles in there (in the water bath that is) to keep things under control. Far from precise, but a lot better than nothing.
     
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  12. ShabamJenkins

    ShabamJenkins Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2015 North Carolina

    The problem I have with temp control is that I have conical fermenters from Fast Ferment (3 gal and 7.9 gal versions). I dont know of a good way to control the temperature on them other than buying another fridge, which I don't have the space for. I really want to get into making big stouts though.
     
  13. minderbender

    minderbender Initiate (0) Jan 18, 2009 New York

    Well, if you have room in your budget, the BrewJacket might be the solution for you. It is apparently compatible with a FastFerment (link).

    I own a BrewJacket and have been mostly pleased with it. You shouldn't use StarSan to clean the rod, so I've had to use Iodophor, but that is not a big deal. The bigger issue is that the fan is fairly noisy. You wouldn't want it in your bedroom, and you could definitely hear it from a room over (though you may be able to tolerate it). You also shouldn't put it in a closet (or at least, not with the door closed). So depending on the nature of your space limitations, the BrewJacket might be too noisy. It's too bad, because in all other respects it is great for people with space limitations.

    EDITED TO ADD: I mean the other, vastly cheaper way to go is to shell out for a bucket. Lots of people brew in plastic buckets with great success. It won't have all the bells and whistles of your FastFerment, but it can easily be put in a water bath.
     
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  14. ShabamJenkins

    ShabamJenkins Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2015 North Carolina

    Doing some googling, I found that there's an insulated jacket designed for these fermenters. I don't know how well these work to control temps but might be a better option than the BrewJacket since I usually keep the fermenter in a closet in the guest room next to my bedroom. Any experience with using an insulated jacket and ice to try to keep the temps down?

    Edit: forgot to add link
     
  15. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    This is wise, and irish ale throws a lot of esters
     
  16. minderbender

    minderbender Initiate (0) Jan 18, 2009 New York

    I've got no experience with this product. I used to use a "son of fermentation chiller" (google it), which was basically satisfactory. This product is a bit expensive, but I suppose it will work, certainly a lot better than nothing.
     
  17. Prep8611

    Prep8611 Savant (1,208) Aug 22, 2014 New Jersey

    You could just ferment in a bucket and place in a swamp cooler like above mentioned .i admittedly have never tried this method but I'm sure it would be better than your fast ferment in your closet. Place in water and add a 2 iced water bottles everyday. Temp control is most important the first 5 or so days than you can finish this up at room temp.
     
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