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IIWolfpakII · 03-26-2012, 05:54 PM

I'm brewing a clone of Rogue's hazelnut nectar and am looking to add a little bit of honey flavor. From all I've read so far, brewing with honey and trying to get the honey flavor seems like a pain.

From what I've read, adding to the boil gets almost no honey flavor but bumps up the alcohol content and adding to the fermentor is risky because of off flavors and contamination..

So I've come across honey malt which seems to be a lot easier to use and more convenient. Has anyone used honey malt before? How does it compare to using honey? What are the pros and cons? Also, what percent of the grain bill would you recommend using for just a real subtle flavor?

**Reno_eNVy** · 03-26-2012, 05:57 PM

Definitely use honey malt, it's awesome. And it really does add far more honey flavor than actual honey ever would.

0.5# in 5 gallons for very subtle flavor, 1 - 1.5# for noticeable honey goodness.

EDIT: It should be noted that it has an SRM of roughly 20-30 and imparts body and residual sweetness like crystal malt.

gregL86 · 03-26-2012, 06:22 PM

Real honey doesn't give much to any honey flavor, it's like adding any other sugar. After the yeast eats it it leaves your beer drier, not honey sweet.

Honey malt on the other hand gives beer a nice honey flavor

Calichusetts · 03-26-2012, 06:22 PM

Honey malt is fantastic...but so is bottling with honey. I use both. The only way your going to figure out what you like is by trying it. I've added honey to the mash, during the boil, at flameout, after fermentation, etc. I think I have tried every way you can. And I've settled on 5% honey malt and bottling with honey. Its even a little too much when I consume the beers in the first two months.

IIWolfpakII · 03-26-2012, 06:25 PM

Awesome, thanks for the quick replies!!

Just out of curiosity, but what are the benefits of using honey? Also what would adding honey to the mash do?

**Reno_eNVy** · 03-26-2012, 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IIWolfpakII

Awesome, thanks for the quick replies!!

Just out of curiosity, but what are the benefits of using honey? Also what would adding honey to the mash do?

Benefits of honey are really only noticeable when you use raw or dark honey with tons of flavor and bee bits

Adding honey to the mash is quite unnecessary as there's already a ton of sugars in there that don't need to be converted by enzymes in the mash. That, and you'll probably end up losing some of the honey to dead-space. Just add it at flameout or post-fermentation (which will give you another small fermentation of course.)

Gear101 · 03-26-2012, 07:54 PM

honey malt will add honey favor
honey itself will dry the beer out