Northern Nut Brown Ale Help

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

DutchK9

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 23, 2008
Messages
368
Reaction score
2
Location
Springfield, Illinois
I made Northern's Nut Brown Ale Extract Kit for Thanksgiving. I thought the beer had a good taste, but the body was kind of light. Anyone have any suggestions to give this kit a heavier taste? Here is what the kit came with.

Specialty Grains
* 0.25 lbs. Simpson's Chocolate
* 0.25 lbs. Dingemans Special B
* 0.25 lbs. Dingemans Biscuit
* 0.25 lbs. Briess Special Roast
Fermentables
* 6 lbs. Gold Malt Syrup
Boil Additions
* 1 oz. Kent Goldings (60 min)
Dry Hopping
* 2 oz. Homegrown Cascade Hops in secondary
Yeast
* Wyeast #1028 London Ale Yeast. Optimum temperature: 60-72° F.
 
I'm extremely interested as I have this exact kit on the way and it will be my first full boil.

I had a Lienenkugers Fireside Nut Brown last night and thought it was terrible. It was EXTREMELY thin on body. So I'll be very interested in what everyone else things before going at it.
 
Add a half a pound or so of carapils to the specialty grains - it needs to be mashed though and not just steeped. That will add body without really contributing to flavor or abv.
 
I had a Lienenkugers Fireside Nut Brown last night and thought it was terrible. It was EXTREMELY thin on body. So I'll be very interested in what everyone else things before going at it.

Theirs is a lager I believe, I wouldn't expect this kit to be anything like it.

I did this kit AG about two weeks ago and it's coming along good, hydro sample was tasty. The carapils sound like they'd do well, but you would have to mash... whatever you do report back! If it works well I might steal the idea, this kit is probably going to be brewed a lot 'round here.
 
I have only done extract kits with the grains steeped. How exactly would I go about mashing the carapils?
Will they add more body like a porter, or just a creamy taste like adding Malto Dextrine?
 
Don't care about the alcohol level, and I am not really looking for a creamy taste like you would get from Malto Dextrine.

I am looking for something that is heavier, with more bite to it. More like a porter or bock. I like the taste of the kit, but just want to give it a more feeling taste instead of a lighter ale.
 
You can add Malto Dextrin, even at priming. I did that same kit(without malto-dextrin) but due to shortage it came with Argentine Cascades. Everybody liked it. I did use the malto dextrin in my porter and it gave it a full body and a creamy head, not much cream in the taste.

Porter or bock? For bock Melanoidin(I think it must be mashed,) for porter more chocolate and some black patent.
 
With needing to mash grains, you have to keep them at a specific temperature for at least half an hour. You can use maltodextrin instead of carapils for a similar effect. You could also try tweaking some of the specialty grains to accentuate their flavor more if you think that is what is missing. Adding oats would not be out of place with a stout for example, and would definitely create a beer with more body without adding flavor. Oats also need to be mashed though, and I'm not sure of the details well enough personally to say how feasible that is for an extract brew.
 
I have this extract kit fermenting now- seemed dark when I put it into fermentor (corny). I'll try to post how it turns out then.
 
I did a Nut Brown ale about 2 months ago and I added an extra 1lb or 2 that was leftover from a previous brew. I started with 6.5 gallons in my full boil and ended up with around 5 gallons in the fermenter all said an done.
 
I have this extract kit fermenting now- seemed dark when I put it into fermentor (corny). I'll try to post how it turns out then.


Mine came out pretty dark too, which is why I kind of wish it had a heavier body to it. The oats might or carapilis might do the trick. I really don't have much experience making my own recipes. I liked the taste of the original kit, but just thought it was lacking a full taste.
 
That doesn't sound reassuring for my brew; I think with the cost of this kit, next time I might try the oat route as well, maybe some late added yakuma pellets (15-20) and/or add little vanilla extract when bottling/kegging.
 
When would you add to the boil, Will this work in all kits? And what will it do exactally?

Thanks
You can add Malto Dextrin, even at priming. I did that same kit(without malto-dextrin) but due to shortage it came with Argentine Cascades. Everybody liked it. I did use the malto dextrin in my porter and it gave it a full body and a creamy head, not much cream in the taste.

Porter or bock? For bock Melanoidin(I think it must be mashed,) for porter more chocolate and some black patent.
 
You can add Malto Dextrin at the end of the boil. Typically within the last 15 minutes. 4 - 8 oz's won't add much sweetness but will improve the mouthfeel and body. I typically add this to any brown, porter or stout extract recipe that I do. Malto Dextrin is not that sweet to the taste, try it when you get some. Now Lactose, on the other hand, is sweeter to the taste and that will add creaminess to the finished product.
 
You can add Malto Dextrin at the end of the boil. Typically within the last 15 minutes. 4 - 8 oz's won't add much sweetness but will improve the mouthfeel and body. I typically add this to any brown, porter or stout extract recipe that I do. Malto Dextrin is not that sweet to the taste, try it when you get some. Now Lactose, on the other hand, is sweeter to the taste and that will add creaminess to the finished product.

You can also add it at bottling. Just dissolve it along with the priming sugar and transfer the beer on top of it in the bottling bucket so all gets mixed up. It will add a creaminess taste, but not the bite I am looking for.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone, I think I am going to have to try the Carapalis or the Oats.
 
Thanks for the suggestions everyone, I think I am going to have to try the Carapalis or the Oats.

I seem to have the same issue as you. My beer tastes good, looks good, has good carbonation, but not enough mass / body / etc.

Did you end up mashing the Carapalis or Oats in another batch? How did it go?
 
Any suggestions on customizing this recipe a bit? I'm thinking of adding some local maple syrup to the secondary, but I've heard mixed reviews on adding maple to beer (hard to get the maple flavor). How much would it take to impart the flavor? Any other ideas? This will be my first brown ale. Thanks!
 
I'm extremely interested as I have this exact kit on the way and it will be my first full boil.

I had a Lienenkugers Fireside Nut Brown last night and thought it was terrible. It was EXTREMELY thin on body. So I'll be very interested in what everyone else things before going at it.


Yeah, that was a beer on tap here at my local tavern, I cringed when I drank it. Waaaay too nutty and very thin tasting. like it was a nut extract added to a light pilsner. Not going to ask for that again :p
 
Back
Top