dougdecinces

Recipes 

One of the best beers I made was a brown porter with 37% brown malt. It was practically undrinkable after a month, but complex and delicious after four. Today I came up with the idea of making a smoked brown porter and I came up with a recipe that I think looks good.

The original recipe was 37% brown malt, 6% crystal 60, 3% chocolate and the rest just plain old 2 row.

For this new recipe, I was thinking of going 40/40/20 with beechwood smoked malt, brown malt and munich with EKG at 60 and 15 minutes. I would shoot for an OG in the mid-1.05's The SRM checks out at roughly 29, which is right in line with the style. But two questions come to mind:

1) Is 40% smoked malt enough for this beer? This would be my first smoked beer and I want to make sure that I hit a sweet spot where the smoke is assertive, but not like a campfire.

2) Is there any chance of me getting this to convert? This is what I am most worried about. But save for switching the Munich with pale malt and a handful of crystal, there isn't much I can do. Even if I only get efficiency in the 50's, I'll make it work.

kingwood-kid

Recipes 

I just finished a brown porter with home-smoked rye. So far, pretty tasty.

1) Is 40% smoked malt enough for this beer? This would be my first smoked beer and I want to make sure that I hit a sweet spot where the smoke is assertive, but not like a campfire.

Two big problems with smoked malt. First, the strength varies wildly by maltster and by freshness. Second, some people think 10% rauch malt tastes like an ashtray, while other people think bottled liquid smoke is quite refreshing when drunk straight up.

2) Is there any chance of me getting this to convert? This is what I am most worried about. But save for switching the Munich with pale malt and a handful of crystal, there isn't much I can do. Even if I only get efficiency in the 50's, I'll make it work.[/QUOTE]

You can use powdered amylase enzyme. Your LHBS can sell you way more than you'll need for under two bucks. Or you can go chicha-style and use saliva as your mash water.