School me on Carafa III please?

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Jsmith82

Jsmith82

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Here's what I've thrown together (3 gallon batch):

5lbs 2-row
8oz Crystal 60
4oz Carafa III
3lbs light DME (added at 20min left in boil)

Mash @ 153 for 90min

.25oz Warrior @ 60
1.0oz Nugget @ 60
1.0oz Cascade @ 15
1.0oz Cascade @ 12
1.0oz Cascade @ 9
1.0oz Cascade @ 6
1.0oz Cascade @ 3

1098 British Ale starter

DH 1oz Cascade
DH 1oz Willamette

9.5% ABV
108 IBU
26.2 SRM

1098 lets the malt and hops dominate the beer, sounded absolutely perfect for what I'm going for here.

I was looking for mostly color out of the Carafa III but a slight roast flavor, this being a black IIPA. I have read up on Carafa, I know it's profile and origin, etc... Really I'm looking for some advice on its results? Did you like it, did it bring what you were looking for to the table? I'm a big fan of Self Righteous, I have a good feeling that I'm going to love this beer.

I just can't leave good enough alone. Originally we were doing a 5 gallon 2row Cascade SMaSH but I have 10 gallons of very drinkable mid ranged ABV beer going into bottles this weekend, I'm still sitting on a good 50 bottles of older home brew. It's time for some strength!~
 
I've used carafa II special in my cda's, and like it quite a bit. Gives you the color and mild roastyness you need in a cda. I've found that very small amounts, 4 oz or less is adequate for a 5 gal batch, any more and it's too dark tasting, IMO. Make sure you use the 'special/dehusked' to avoid a bitter roasty flavor.
 
Jsmith82 said:
Here's what I've thrown together (3 gallon batch):

5lbs 2-row
8oz Crystal 60
4oz Carafa III
3lbs light DME (added at 20min left in boil)

Mash @ 153 for 90min

.25oz Warrior @ 60
1.0oz Nugget @ 60
1.0oz Cascade @ 15
1.0oz Cascade @ 12
1.0oz Cascade @ 9
1.0oz Cascade @ 6
1.0oz Cascade @ 3

1098 British Ale starter

DH 1oz Cascade
DH 1oz Willamette

9.5% ABV
108 IBU
26.2 SRM

1098 lets the malt and hops dominate the beer, sounded absolutely perfect for what I'm going for here.

I was looking for mostly color out of the Carafa III but a slight roast flavor, this being a black IIPA. I have read up on Carafa, I know it's profile and origin, etc... Really I'm looking for some advice on its results? Did you like it, did it bring what you were looking for to the table? I'm a big fan of Self Righteous, I have a good feeling that I'm going to love this beer.

I just can't leave good enough alone. Originally we were doing a 5 gallon 2row Cascade SMaSH but I have 10 gallons of very drinkable mid ranged ABV beer going into bottles this weekend, I'm still sitting on a good 50 bottles of older home brew. It's time for some strength!~
Click to expand...

I don't know how you are going to get a black iipa out of only 12oz total of mid-SRM malt, but it should taste great. I'd go for 2oz of black patent and back that Carafa III to 2oz. The bitterness of the BP should be hidden well enough by the hops and Caramel that it should only affect color. Good luck!
 
boomtown25 said:
Jesus that is an assload of hops.
Click to expand...

:mug: Yep, should balance out though nicely, that and I'm an obsessive hop head, I've never tasted a beer that I didn't like due to over hopping. The majority is going in the last 15 minutes of the boil, the 2 ounce dry for only 3 gallons (which realistically will probably be more like <=2.5 gallons after the yeast finish raging) is because of the amount of malt and the scaled up ABV, I plan on letting this sit until my Birthday in October before trying one and I'm wanting some aroma to stick around.

@ Apex, the color is really a front you could say. It's more or less an Imperial IPA I wanted to introduce some color and roast flavors to, but nothing overpowering. I do have a # of black patent around. From experience using the two, what would you say separates them the most and which is more extreme in it's flavor profile?

@ NB, thanks for the advice!
 
Carafa special 2 or 3 is great for color, I would fine grind 1 oz and add during the boil as a steeping grain. Works wonders for color.
 
According to Beersmith, you want to use a max of 5% carafa III in a 5gal batch. I've found if you up that to 6% or so, as in Stone's Sublimely Self-Righteous Black IPA, you get the most incredibly smooth roasted flavor that I've ever encountered. So I really like to overuse it, and in this recipe, I'd probably increase it to 8oz instead of 4oz...

But, you said what you want is a bit of color and roastiness in this beer, and it looks to me like the recipe as it stands will give you that.
 
Jsmith82 said:
@ Apex, the color is really a front you could say. It's more or less an Imperial IPA I wanted to introduce some color and roast flavors to, but nothing overpowering. I do have a # of black patent around. From experience using the two, what would you say separates them the most and which is more extreme in it's flavor profile?

@ NB, thanks for the advice!
Click to expand...

You certainly don't want to overdo BP, but 2oz steeped with the carafa would add nice roast, hue, and complexity. I am a big fan of black malt
 
corwin3083 said:
According to Beersmith, as in Stone's Sublimely Self-Righteous Black IPA, you get the most incredibly smooth roasted flavor that I've ever encountered.
Click to expand...

I know right? I love that beer, I never tell people what it is when I pour it, they prepare the pallet for a stout, then BAM, hop slapped. If I'm lucky, they don't like it and I have to drink theirs and mine :D

I was reading around the interwebs and I found that some say to use just black patent, no carafa, grind it then add it to the mash with about 20 minutes left on the clock to get the color and very mild smooth roast flavor. Anyone care to comment on that?

Not trying to beat this into the ground, just getting a thorough grasp on what I'm doing here. All comments have been great thus far, thank you all for sharing information!
 
Brewed it today! 1.093 OG, I had a little over 3 gal in the end. I used 4oz like planned, it is BLACK but doesn't smell roasty at all. Very successful brew day and I can't wait for October to get here!

Good advice HBT
 
2011-10-26181441.jpg


Drank my first one tonight, delicious. Piney, total hop bomb, the dark malt is very smooth, the head clings all the way down, the scent is slight roast followed by Cascade and more Cascade, no alcohol scent at all. I love the british ale yeast, I'll be using it again soon no doubt.

Happy (early) Birthday to me!

Honestly, this beer reminds me of Double Dog (Imperial) Pale Ale. Mine is obviously darker but the taste is very similar..
 

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