hints for a sweeter brew with a hint of vanilla?

BeerLuvnGrl · 04-17-2006, 12:44 AM

Looking to brew something with a bit of sweetness to it with a hint of vanilla.. i tend to like the lighter ales.. id prefer a lager but we are not set up to lager yet so going with the ale variation..

im not one to like a high hops taste.. im far from a hop-head...and i dont really like a strong bitter bite..

currently are brewing a honey pale ale with the other half of my "brew team"

however im excited and ready for it to get into the second fermentor so i can start on my batch...

doing a partial mash brew next that will have a light color and sweet flavor..not too sweet but i like the sweetness..using crystal malt, corn maize, carmel grains...

any suggestions?

thanks!!!

**sause** · 04-17-2006, 01:24 AM

Try the recipe on this thread http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/caramel-cream-ale-2435/

They seem to be have fun with this one.

brackbrew · 04-17-2006, 04:33 AM

I don't know how vanilla would marry with the body and composition of an ale. I know a great many porter and stout recipes that use vanilla to sweeten it and add some complexity, especially against a sometimes malty-sweet profile.

Good luck and let me know how it turns out if you brew a vanilla ale!

AHammer16 · 04-17-2006, 10:06 PM

Yeah I made that carmel vanilla cream ale. I am not too excited about it like the Cheesefood. If i were to do it i would use half of the amount of vanilla. I believe the Cheese man used 8 oz and so did I, too much vanilla flavor for me. The lactose leaves some residual sweetness.
If you are looking for a malty, i.e. sweet, beer with a low hop rate try a recipie for a marzen, which I believe is a lager beer. Just substitute a clean ale yeast and ferment cool and you will have a pretty close match.

homebrewer_99 · 04-20-2006, 01:52 AM

All beer starts out sweet. It's the bittering hops that give it balance.

All you have to do for a sweet beer is lower the hops by 10%.

BootYtRappeR · 04-26-2006, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeerLuvnGrl

Looking to brew something with a bit of sweetness to it with a hint of vanilla.. i tend to like the lighter ales..

i brewed up cheeze's http://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=2435

and used half the vanilla and lactose. this might be what you are looking for. it's only been bottled for two and half weeks and I'm already finished with half of it.

i'm going to do another one this weekend, with a few changes for comparison.

Cheesefood · 04-26-2006, 04:49 PM

Malts
3 pounds extra light DME
3 pounds light wheat DME
1 pound Briess Caramel 60L (steeped for 45 minutes at 150'-165')

Hops
1oz Cascade for bittering (60 minutes)
1oz Saaz for flavor (20 minutes)
1oz Hallertau for aroma (5 minutes)
All hops are whole hops from Freshops

Yeast
Wyeast German Ale

Extras
1 tsp Irish Moss (10 minutes)
4oz Lactose @ 15 minutes
2 oz real vanilla extract (too damned expensive to use more)
~ 1/4 cup Malto Dextrine

Priming
4oz vanilla
2 oz Makers Mark Bourbon
.5 cups light DME
.25 cups honey

If you're not a big fan of bold vanilla flavors, I'd cut the amounts I've used in half. This version has a hoppier flavor and aroma, but it balances out nicely with the sugars.

I left this in a primary for almost three months before bottling. It turned out great after 2 weeks in the bottle, which gave time for the hops to mellow. I think it needs a little more aging still before it'll be perfect.

BootYtRappeR · 04-26-2006, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cheesefood

Malts
3 pounds extra light DME
3 pounds light wheat DME
1 pound Briess Caramel 60L (steeped for 45 minutes at 150'-165')

Hops
1oz Cascade for bittering (60 minutes)
1oz Saaz for flavor (20 minutes)
1oz Hallertau for aroma (5 minutes)
All hops are whole hops from Freshops

Yeast
Wyeast German Ale

Extras
1 tsp Irish Moss (10 minutes)
4oz Lactose @ 15 minutes
2 oz real vanilla extract (too damned expensive to use more)
~ 1/4 cup Malto Dextrine

Priming
4oz vanilla
2 oz Makers Mark Bourbon
.5 cups light DME
.25 cups honey

If you're not a big fan of bold vanilla flavors, I'd cut the amounts I've used in half. This version has a hoppier flavor and aroma, but it balances out nicely with the sugars.

I left this in a primary for almost three months before bottling. It turned out great after 2 weeks in the bottle, which gave time for the hops to mellow. I think it needs a little more aging still before it'll be perfect.

This must be the version 2 i was looking for!

quick question

when i brewed the first recipe i had to use an irish ale yeast instead of the german ale...do you think the results would be much different between these two used on the same recipe?

Cheesefood · 04-26-2006, 06:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fruit_cake

This must be the version 2 i was looking for!

quick question

when i brewed the first recipe i had to use an irish ale yeast instead of the german ale...do you think the results would be much different between these two used on the same recipe?

Probably a dryer, crisper taste than the fruity tastes from German.

1084 Irish Ale Yeast.
Probable Origin: Dublin, Ireland
Beer Styles: Dry Stout, Milk Stout, Oatmeal Stout, and Porter
Commercial examples may include: Guinness, Beamish Stout, and Murphy's Stout
Unique properties: This yeast ferments extremely well in dark roast worts. Beers fermented in the lower temperature range produce dry and crisp beers to fruity beers with nice complexity in the upper range. Ester production is enhanced and rich with fermentation temperatures above 64º F, (18º C). Flocculation is low to moderate with filtration typically required. Alcohol tolerance is approximately 10-11% ABV. Flocculation - medium; apparent attenuation 71-75%. (62-72° F, 16-22° C)

1007 German Ale Yeast.
Probable origin: Dusseldorf, Germany
Beer Style: Alt beer, American style wheat beers
Commercial examples may include: St. Stan Alt, Schlosser Alt, Frankenheim Alt, and Pinkus Alt
Unique properties - True top cropping yeast, low ester formation, broad temperature range affects styles. Will ferment cold; 55° F range, (13° C) producing lager characteristics including sulfur production. Style is noted for dry, crisp characteristics. Fermentation at higher temperatures (70-75° F, 21-24° C) may produce some mild fruitiness. Extremely poor flocculating yeast, generally remains significantly in suspension without treatment or filtration. Pad filtration is often difficult. Brewer's benefit from DE filtration or centrifuging. Maturation: Beers mature fairly rapid, even when cold fermentation is used. Low or no detectable diacetyl, alcohol tolerance approximately 11% ABV. Flocculation - low; apparent attenuation 73-77%. (55-68° F, 13-20° C)

BeerLuvnGrl · 04-26-2006, 06:56 PM

oh i cant wait to try that one!!!