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**Walker** · 10-12-2005, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LupusUmbrus

Did you try a taste of it? I'd guess it will still come out okay, just not what you were shooting for. Probably will be on the hazy side due to residual starches.

I doubt you'l be able to tell if a black stout is hazy or not. I can't see anything through the one I have in the secondary (a very bright workbench light held right next to the carboy only penetrates about 1/4 inch into the darkness.)

And, Jill... you're beer will probably be fine. Maybe not what you were after, but it still sounds drinkable and will probably be a very filling brew.

-walker

JillC25 · 10-12-2005, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walker

Maybe not what you were after, but it still sounds drinkable and will probably be a very filling brew.

-walker

Ah yes, now I can drink my breakfast

Thanks for the help!

Rhoobarb · 10-13-2005, 01:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JillC25

...I did use powdered cocoa instead of chocolate....

That was part of your 'gunk'. I did an extract Chocolate Imperial Stout that used powdered cocoa and when I went to rack, there was about 5" of chocolate trub left behind. However, the beer is great (so far, it needs another two months).

david_42 is right, the flaked oats might not have converted. They really need to be mashed at a lower temperature, usually about 110oF. Scroll down to the Oatmeal Stout heading here.

ScottT · 10-13-2005, 02:00 AM

Jill, the oatmeal has a lot of protien and starch. The starch can be converted when you mash it with a base malt. If you just soaked it with dark specialty grains then you didn't have the enzymes to convert the starch.

The protien will drop out in your cold break but they can be hell to filter out when going to your primary.

If you din't filter the cold break out or leave it in your brew kettle, than that's what's in your primary. That and unconverted starch.

I added rolled oats to my last batch of wee heavy. I boiled them into a pasty gruel. I added that to my grain bags (2) with an equal portion of Marris Otter base malt and my specialty grains. I did the grain soak (mini mash) for 1 hour at 155 degrees in 1 qt of water per pound of grain. The oats literally dissapeared from my grain bags.

I didn't have the starch thickening that you apparently had but I did have the massive amounts of cold break to filter out.

JillC25 · 10-13-2005, 02:37 AM

scott,

That makes sense. will the beer be drinkable? what effects does letting the cold break matter transfer into the primary have on the beer?

THANKs!

ScottT · 10-13-2005, 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JillC25

scott,

That makes sense. will the beer be drinkable? what effects does letting the cold break matter transfer into the primary have on the beer?

THANKs!

Sure, it's going to be drinkable but your ABV won't be as high as it would have been if you'd converted all the starch.

The filtering of the cold break (protiens) is just my preferance so that I don't have as much trub in the bottom of my primary. I don't think it affects the flavor.

david_42 · 10-14-2005, 01:52 AM

Jill, I've made about 40 batches of ale. Of those only three were dumpers. There have certainly been batches that weren't exactly what I was trying for, but still ok. There have been cases where I made a mistake and decided to make it again!

I love chocolate, but it just doesn't seem to work well in ales. Probably because good chocolate has cocoa butter, sugar and vanilla in it. The first kills the head, the second ferments out and I haven't tried the last in an ale.

I just kegged a chocolate brown, where I doubled the chocolate malt and left out the crystal. I'll probably try a little lactose in a pint, just for jollies.