Brown Ale recipe critique

I am getting to do my first brew in a few weeks and I would like to get some opinions on the recipe. The recipe is loosely based on Bender. Thanks in advance for any advice.


Style:American Brown Ale
Estimated OG:1.056
Estimated FG:1.014
IBU:36
SRM:26
Batch Size: 5 Gallons

8lb Marris Otter
.5lb Crystal 60
.5lb Crystal 80
.5lb Chocolate
.25lb Aromatic
2lb Oats

1oz Northern Brewer @60 Min
1oz Willamette @ 15 Min

Whirlfloc @ 15 Min

Wyeast 1275 - Thames Valley Ale

that seems like a lot of oats.

I am not sure about the oats. They add a texture that isn't really to style, but it is your brew. You can make it anyway you want. The main suggestion I would add is rice hulls, otherwise your sparge will go verrrrrrryyyyyyy slooooooooooow due to the oats.

What would you recommend? 1lb?

A typical oatmeal stout will have between .5 and 1 pound of oats, from my recollection..

Definitely want to drop the oats a bit... I like 1lb. The chocolate might be too much, but that's up to your taste. Other than that, looks good.

Thames Valley is a GREAT yeast by the way.

Thanks for all the help guys! I think ill up the Maris Otter to 8lb and drop the oats to 1lb.

Looks pretty tasty to me, but like everyone else, I'm hesitant about the oats. You could end up with quite a bit of haze from that much. Something to think about, anyhow - not a massive problem if you don't mind a cloudy beer. BTW, Randy Mosher suggests toasting your oats lightly before brewing with them. Maybe an idea here? It could provide a bit more toasty flavour than the half-pound of chocolate will. Happy brewing!

For future reference, editing your original post like that is going to throw off noobs in the future who may come across this topic. The first post they see says 1 # of oats, followed by 3 posts saying it's way too much, they'll get the wrong idea.

@Fletch

I went back and changed it to the original recipe.