HiGravShawn

Recipes 

I have brewed lots of beers using crystal malts and 90% of the time a recipe uses one. Several times I have made a recipe using say C60 and C120 or something, but two at the most. I had an idea today to try a malt bomb with smooth flavor utilizing more of the "crystal spectrum". Something like this...

8# 2-row Pale
1# Crystal 20
1# Crystal 40
1# Crystal 60
1# Crystal 80


I am wondering 1) if anyone has tried something like this and 2) what the consensus of the outcome would be.

Edit: Also what the style it would be. I first thought of an American Brown Ale, but I can't find any recipes that match it's profile.

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ShawnD
Primary: Sweet Stout
Conditioning: Lemon Pepper Wheat
Conditioning: Agave Kolsch
Drinking: Roasted Blueberry Belgian Ale

GilaMinumBeer

Recipes 

I once pitched into a small all steeped Crystal wort. I think I got s'thing in the ballpark of 40 to 50% AA. It was,

interesting.

Made me think of DFH. Definitely showcased the crystal but also showed me that specialty malts are the supporting actors to the real stars. Sometimes, they need only be extras to fill in the edge of the scene.

scottland

Recipes 

I would cut back on the Crystal. Maybe 1/2# each. It will still be VERY malty, just not 30% of the grain bill.

Brew-boy

Recipes 

Cloying it seems to me.

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humann_brewing

Recipes 

A lot of my recent beers have had 10-15% crystal in them and I have recently decided that I will not go above 10% from now on with crystal. There is a point when you have too much body and even the lacing in crazy

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BigEd

Recipes 

That's a ridiculous amount of crystal, it's 1/3 of the grain bill. As has been noted above all those unfermentables are going to leave you with a cloying flavor & body in the beer. Beyond that all those different crystals are going to blend together to make the equivalent of crystal malt mud, each one fighting the other for supremacy. Consider crystal malts to be like flavor enhancers in cooking. When you make a stew you don't use salt, pepper, spices and herbs in large quantities, just enough to get the influence(s) you want. Approach the use of crystal malts the same way.

HiGravShawn

Recipes 

Gotcha, thanks! I figured there was a reason you don't see more mixing of crystals.

I think instead I will try a SMaSH type series, but SMaS(ingle)C(rystal)aSH instead to learn more about individual crystal flavor.

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ShawnD
Primary: Sweet Stout
Conditioning: Lemon Pepper Wheat
Conditioning: Agave Kolsch
Drinking: Roasted Blueberry Belgian Ale

Yooper

Recipes 

Well, I like "layering" of crystal malts. I like to use a mix of light and dark- for example, 8 ounces of 40L and 8 ounces of 80L in a pale ale. The thing is, too much crystal is too much. Use no more than 10% or so in pale ales, and no more than 20% in amber ales. So, with 8 pounds of 2-row, one pound of crystal of any variety is enough.

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HiGravShawn

Recipes 

I will probably try something similar the original too as a malt bomb experient, but at lower levels. Something like...

10# Pale
8oz 80
6oz 60
8oz 40
60oz 20

Which would be like an american Amber at about 15% crystal with about 38 IBU.

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ShawnD
Primary: Sweet Stout
Conditioning: Lemon Pepper Wheat
Conditioning: Agave Kolsch
Drinking: Roasted Blueberry Belgian Ale

Naked_Eskimo

Recipes 

Other than the respective color contributions...do you think the average joe can tell apart the flavor contribution of say C40 and C80?