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Author Topic: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains  (Read 3756 times)

Offline wingnut

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So I have an Brown Ale in the fermentor right now.... and I have been enjoying the snow globe of yeast activity the past couple days.

This is the first time I have brewed this recipe...one I make up from scratch... and in taking my samples the first and second day... I did not detect the level of chocolate flavor I was expecting at this point.  Granted it is WAY too early to start worrying if the beer will turn out the way I intended, and in all likely hood, once the sugars get chewed through and the yeast flavor dies down a bit... the roasty flavors will start to shine through.

However, it got me thinking, about adding roasted, chocolaty flavors to beer post ferment and how best to do it.  It would be a useful tool not only to correct flavors in beers, but to come up with two different beers from a single recipe. 

My thought was to steep roasted grain in cold water for a period of time (cold water to keep tannin extraction from the husks to a minimum since the cold tea ph will likely be in a bad range), then boil the extract and add to the keg or bottling bucket. 

Anyone with experience doing such a thing, or know of a resource to read through as a starting point? 

Thanks!


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Offline redbeerman

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #1 on: October 07, 2010, 10:57:19 am »
Wingnut,  I don't know how much flavor you'll get, but you should get some.  This process is how Wyermann makes Sinamar.  Only they extract the water until its almost syrup-like.  It should work, but I think you'll get more color contribution than flavor.  Taste it before you try it, then let your tastebuds be your guide.
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Offline dbeechum

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #2 on: October 07, 2010, 11:03:21 am »
I don't know if I would really call Sinamar syrup-like. It may be a touch concentrated, but it never seemed too goopy to me. Of course, I'm also thinking of it in comparison to the brewer's caramel that ABI uses to create Amber Bock.
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Offline kramerog

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #3 on: October 07, 2010, 11:29:43 am »
Sounds like a recipe for sour beer.  Steep the grain in water at 140F for over half hour to extract flavor and pasteurize the wort.  I don't think you have to worry about extracting tannins because dark malt is very acidic.

Offline redbeerman

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #4 on: October 07, 2010, 11:40:07 am »
I don't know if I would really call Sinamar syrup-like. It may be a touch concentrated, but it never seemed too goopy to me. Of course, I'm also thinking of it in comparison to the brewer's caramel that ABI uses to create Amber Bock.

I guess it's all relative Drew.  I'd say it has the viscosity of good maple syrup as opposed to corn syrup. Nowhere near as goopy as brewer's caramel though.
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Offline tom

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #5 on: October 07, 2010, 03:02:20 pm »
I did it once for a Foreign stout. Steeped a lb of roast barley, boiled it, cooled it and added it to the keg until I got the flavor I wanted.
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Offline dmtaylor

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #6 on: October 07, 2010, 03:13:50 pm »
I did this once to a stout that turned out more like a brown porter.  What I did to fix it?  I made a 1-gallon extract mini-batch with identical original gravity to the original beer, but then I steeped 3 times as much dark malt as I normally would.  I even added hops and boiled for at least 15 minutes, maybe 30?  I don't recall exactly.  But then this super-black mini-batch was cooled and added to the primary, and fermented out, and yes, everything turned out pretty darn good.  I got a lot more roasty flavors, and darkness, and without spending a whole lot of time on it.  I usually do all-grain, but this was the perfect chance to make a little extract batch and not goof around too much with it.  Nothing fancy, and it got the job done.

Oh, and yeah, this beer ended up being the second best of the fest at the 2010 Manitowoc Jaycees Beer Lovers Brewfest.  Thought I'd throw that in there.   8)
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Offline wingnut

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Re: Adding Roasted Grain Flavor post Fermentaion via steeping grains
« Reply #7 on: October 08, 2010, 12:25:39 pm »
So I created a couple teas last night with coffee, and chocolate malts.

I tasted the teas separately, and mixed with the beer... (had an Octoberfest in the fridge)

Tasting on its own... there was plenty of roasted flavor, however, the flavor was sweeter than I expected.  Additionally, when mixed with the beer, I noticed not only increased roasty, but a lot more perception of sweetness on the overall beer than before the steeped additions.  The roasty quality was nice, but the sweetness increase was not expected. 

Based on the this mini-experiment,  I think I would stick with dmtaylor's recommendation of making a mini beer.  After reading his suggestion, I figure I can steep some grains and add some extract to something as small as a 2L starter flask, let it ferment out, and I will have something to blend with...without a lot of effort. 

Thanks everyone!

-- Wingnut - Cheers!