Stout Advice Please

[Smileyr8]

I have just bought the following and plan to make a hoppy stout 23ltr, has any one got any thoughts, ideas or methods to aid me in my quest, I have done some brewing in the past but usually just kits (done to instructions) or occasionally extra malt.

Coopers Brewmaster Irish Stout
Dried Dark Malt 500g
Dried Medium Malt 500g
Dark Muscavado Sugar 500g
Cascade hops 70g

 

[EskiBrew]

I've moved your post our of the recipes section - that section is the result of the import of what was previously our recipe database - there is some code behind it to bring in the recipes but it's not finished. If you post there, you will get extra stuff that you did not post.

Regarding your question - I assume you are thinking of adding those bits to the standard kit? - i.e. enhancing a kit.

They give an additional 20 points gravity. You don't say what Alpha% the hops are so there is no way to give you a clue on the additional bitterness you might add.

Strictly speaking, you should boil the additions but you could mix them up separately and boil then add the the normal kit.

 

[Smileyr8]

The alpha of the hops is 7.6%, how should I go about adding those to the brew?

 

[EskiBrew]

The alpha of the hops is 7.6%, how should I go about adding those to the brew?

Depends, are you mainly trying to add bitterness to the kit or hop aroma?

For bitterness or aroma, you're going to need to boil them for a while - how long will decide how much bitterness you want to add. What is your intention?

Alternatively if you just want aroma, you could dry hop with them either in the fermenter for a short while before racking or in the keg assuming you are not bottling.

 

[Smileyr8]

I plan to bottle the stout once complete, was thinking of splitting the hops & boiling half for say 10 minutes and perhaps adding the the rest to fermenter once the brew has started to slow up a little. Hopefully this will add a little extra bitterness & a hop aroma to the final brew which I was hoping would be somewhere around the 6% mark. :p

 

[EskiBrew]

I plan to bottle the stout once complete, was thinking of splitting the hops & boiling half for say 10 minutes and perhaps adding the the rest to fermenter once the brew has started to slow up a little.

Sounds fine. That will give you around 12 IBU of additional bitterness.

Hopefully this will add a little extra bitterness & a hop aroma to the final brew which I was hoping would be somewhere around the 6% mark. :p

Can't really comment on the expected ABV as I don't know what the original kit was supposed to be but the additions will add somewhere between 2% and 3% to that.

Have fun and remember to post your finding here afterwards so others can learn too :

 

[Smileyr8]

This has been in the FV for 5 days, I decided to go with 750 grams of muscavado the SG was 1049 (it went off like bomb from 12 hours in) everything else was done pretty much to plan dry hopped after the second day after it add eased off a little, plan to filter to a secondary Friday evening and take readings, if its sub 1008 will place in the cool and bottle Sunday.

 

[Smileyr8]

Bottled this this afternoon, finished 1012, had a taste by accident as it came through the siphon tube and it tasted good.
I make that 4.8% pre priming, batched primed with 105 grams of dark muscavado.
I hindsight I would brew this short 20 litres.

 

[EskiBrew]

Bottled this this afternoon, finished 1012, had a taste by accident as it came through the siphon tube and it tasted good.
I make that 4.8% pre priming, batched primed with 105 grams of dark muscavado.
I hindsight I would brew this short 20 litres.

Sounds great - well done :thumb:

 

[Smileyr8]

Just cracked a bottle of this, thinking it may still be a little green, but its fantastic, would have taken a picture but theres only a bit left in the glass.

I am not sure the hops made much difference, would need to do it again without to be certain.

Can't see it lasting too long..

:drink:

 

[EskiBrew]

Just cracked a bottle of this, thinking it may still be a little green, but its fantastic, would have taken a picture but theres only a bit left in the glass.

I am not sure the hops made much difference, would need to do it again without to be certain.

Can't see it lasting too long..

:drink:

That sounds great :

 

[Smileyr8]

I am still drinking this all I can say is every bottle gets better and better, not sure what I could do to improve upon this.

 

[Smileyr8]

Initial brew I boiled the hops with the spray malt for last 10 mins, this was pretty much perfect, am thinking some more hops in the initial boil i.e. a little more hops extra 1/3 (split in half) boiled for 20 mins, then the other half for the last 10 would be some where near perfection.

Not sure have been drinking my hard work, and what a beautiful world............

 

[cheshirehomebrew]

I tend to be a little heavier on the hops as I use LME and DME in my brews along with grains BIAB so I need the extra to balance out the flavours as I dont like the taste of overly malted beers.