Chocolate or roast for Amber ale

Is it a bad move to use chocolate malt instead of roast malt for an amber ale?

bennie1986 said:

Is it a bad move to use chocolate malt instead of roast malt for an amber ale?

Click to expand...

No, of course not. It's just that roasted barley (it's not malted) is darker so you can get a dark color using just an ounce, plus it gives it a reddish hue.

I've used pale chocolate in small amounts in my ambers just to get a wee reddish color, and it worked out great.

If you are adding it just for color, you want to stay under the taste threshold.

I'm using 2% chocolate malt 8.5% c40 8.5% c60 and the rest pale. Do you think that's under the taste threshold? I almost would mind a hint of chocolate though.

bennie1986 said:

I'm using 2% chocolate malt 8.5% c40 8.5% c60 and the rest pale. Do you think that's under the taste threshold? I almost would mind a hint of chocolate though.

Click to expand...

17% crystal malt? Really? That's more than I'd even consider using. If it's extremely well bittered and hopped, it might be ok but I'd rethink that. At 2% chocolate, you may get a hint of roastiness with your grainbill, but not much.

I'm bittering with an ounce of simco @ 39 ibu's and doing an ounce of simco at flame out.

Yooper said:

17% crystal malt? Really? That's more than I'd even consider using. If it's extremely well bittered and hopped, it might be ok but I'd rethink that. At 2% chocolate, you may get a hint of roastiness with your grainbill, but not much.

Click to expand...

This!!

I'd reduce the crystal a lot and throw in a bit of dark crystal for color and caramel.

To late I already mixed the grains lol!

Well this turned out brown in taste and color all said and done and it's at 7% abv lol. It tastes ok but I am going to chill the keg and Gel then leave it for two weeks. Kind of excited to see how this botched "amber" turns out lol!