double chocolate imperial stout

aharri1 · 12-01-2011, 03:19 PM

I have only been brewing for about a year now and this is my first attempt at this brew. I bought a Russian imperial stout kit and added an extra pound of dark brown candied sugar. In the last 15 min of the boil I added 4 oz of cocoa powder mixed with a cup of dark brown sugar and 8 oz bag of cocoa nibs. Any suggestions on how to make sure I get a robust chocolate character in the end? I always transfer to secondary and have heard.you should add chocolate then also

SouthBay · 12-01-2011, 03:24 PM

I have a chocolate milk stout recipe that calls for six oz of chocolate at the end of the boil. It's chocolatey enough. I've seen recipes that call for up to eight.

aharri1 · 12-02-2011, 02:18 AM

Thank you! I'm sure it shall definitely be double chocolate then since I added around 15oz of it at the end.

fletchsj · 12-02-2011, 03:21 AM

I add about 4 oz of crushed nibs to my kettle and secondary for my chocolate stouts. Make sure you give it quite a bit of time to age.

Run3minman · 12-02-2011, 03:39 AM

This sounds fabulous. How long would you keep this in a carboy???

aharri1 · 12-02-2011, 04:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fletchsj

I add about 4 oz of crushed nibs to my kettle and secondary for my chocolate stouts. Make sure you give it quite a bit of time to age.

Thanks for the info! How much aging would you recommend? I have read that some people leave it in the primary for a month then bottle. I have been transferring mine to secondary after seven days and added 8 oz of nibs and 4 iz cocoa powder at the last ten mins of boil. I also read somewhere where a guy soaked his nibs in just enough vodka to cover them and poured it into his secondary. Any advise?

aharri1 · 12-02-2011, 04:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Run3minman

This sounds fabulous. How long would you keep this in a carboy???

Im not sure yet it is my first imperial stout I've done I'm asking if anyone has any advise on the aging and primary verse transferring to secondary

day_trippr · 12-02-2011, 06:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aharri1

[...]I also read somewhere where a guy soaked his nibs in just enough vodka to cover them and poured it into his secondary. Any advise?

Could have been me - I've posted that a few times on HBT, it's part of my Triple Chocolate Imperial Honey Stout (a name to match its mouthfeel

) recipe. Go big or don't bother, I say!

For 5.5g hitting primary, I add 8 ounces of the lowest fat cocoa powder I can find at the end of the boil. I let the primary simmer for a couple of weeks, then rack it on top of 8 ounces of cacao nibs that have been soaked for a few days in just enough (cheap!) unflavored vodka to cover, giving the sealed container a shake any time I pass through the kitchen.

Then I let the secondary stew for another couple of weeks before kegging, and at that point I finally add a good ounce of Nielsen-Massey pure chocolate extract (the good stuff).

The result is a wonderful dessert beer. Imo it's even better than Young's draught Double Chocolate - which I love (and fwiw, what they sell in cans is horrible by comparison, imo).

It's the perfect "last pour of the evening", as the 9+% ABV inevitably kicks my arse right into bed

Cheers!

[edit] As for "how long", 2w in primary, 2w in secondary, 2w resting in the keg, and finally 2w carbing, before it hits my keezer. So eight weeks from boil to glass...

1776 · 12-02-2011, 06:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by day_trippr

Could have been me - I've posted that a few times on HBT, it's part of my Triple Chocolate Imperial Honey Stout (a name to match its mouthfeel

) recipe. Go big or don't bother, I say!

For 5.5g hitting primary, I add 8 ounces of the lowest fat cocoa powder I can find at the end of the boil. I let the primary simmer for a couple of weeks, then rack it on top of 8 ounces of cacao nibs that have been soaked for a few days in just enough (cheap!) unflavored vodka to cover, giving the sealed container a shake any time I pass through the kitchen.

Then I let the secondary stew for another couple of weeks before kegging, and at that point I finally add a good ounce of Nielsen-Massey pure chocolate extract (the good stuff).

The result is a wonderful dessert beer. Imo it's even better than Young's draught Double Chocolate - which I love (and fwiw, what they sell in cans is horrible by comparison, imo).

It's the perfect "last pour of the evening", as the 9+% ABV inevitably kicks my arse right into bed

Cheers!

[edit] As for "how long", 2w in primary, 2w in secondary, 2w resting in the keg, and finally 2w carbing, before it hits my keezer. So eight weeks from boil to glass...

Would you have an exact recipe of that lying around?

aharri1 · 12-02-2011, 06:50 AM

Probably so

Thanks for the advice! I don't have a kegging system so I'm bottles only. I guess once I add it to secondary put another 8 oz of chocolate nibs in vodka. How long do I soak them in vodka? My OG was 1.081. Will the vodka bring it up any and if I want to can I add a lil more vodka will it raise my abv without ruining taste? Its only been 1 day in primary and looks ferocious!