Big Foamy Head

[Portreath]

One of my favorite winter ales down here in Cornwall is Mena Dhu from St Austell Brewery, who are based in,well St Austell. The pint has a fantastic full chocolate and coffee taste, and a rich and creamy head that lasts to the bottom of the pint
I'm going to attempt a clone of this one and I'm looking for some advice on how to replicate the fantastic head that comes with this ale?

 

[Leon103]

Don't know the recipe but could be a number of things
Wheat malt
Oats

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
It uses malted oats in the grain bill.
Pale, Crystal, Chocolate, Smoked, Malted Oats, Roasted Barley

 

[Portreath]

It's a sweet stout style ale with mix of Pale, Crystal, Chocolate, Smoked, Malted Oats, Roasted Barley, and Fuggles. I've done a few stouts which turn out good, but it's the thick foamy head I would like to replicate. I believe there is a specific therm used for this type of head!

 

[Portreath]

Hi @Bigcol49 Just looking at smoked malts online, I've never heard of these never mind used them.

 

[Zephyr259]

Hi @Bigcol49 Just looking at smoked malts online, I've never heard of these never mind used them.

A careful hand is required, I've not used them yet myself but a little can go a long way and not everyone likes the flavour of smoke in a beer. Our local had a smoked ale and I loved it but no one else in my family liked it and it wasn't massively smokey and had a lot of fruitiness as well.

I've heard of the big fluffy head on belgian beer called a meringue? Only other type of head I can think of on a stout is that formed with nitrogen, which generally isn't an option of a homebrewer as it needs kegs and special gas and taps.

Flaked barley can help with head, but the oats should do that nicely.

 

[MyQul]

The outlaws live in cornwall so go their regularly (in fact I've just returned). So I've tried Mena Du a few times. Tbh it's a bit much for me (and I love dark beers - I made a mild yesterday).
To answer your Q's -

Smoked malt; I made the Smoked Porter from the GH book, it has 700g of smked malt in a 23L batch (OG 1.054) and it definately wasn't too much. It turned out to be a delicious beer. Now that I'm looking at the reciepe I might make it again

Creamy head - It'll be the the oats in the reciepe. I tend to put about 9% flaked barley in everything I make and combined with a particular technique*that I use to try to mimic a hand pump I normally get a thick creamy head with lacing that lasts down to the bottom

* I over carb my beer to 5g/L (2.1 Vol of C02). Then once I've opend the bottle, I pour the beer from height into a jug to get a huge head on just a bit of beer (this knocks out most of the carbonation). I then wait for a while till the heads has died down a bit in the jug. Then pour the beer from the jug into my glass

 

[IainM]

You can always try emailing the brewery asking for a recipe. They are often happy to give it out.