Midwest Supplies Java Stout

I've had my eye on Midwest's Peace Coffee Java Stout for a while and am in need of a brew to start.
It seems to be a popular sell of theirs so I was looking for some reviews from someone whose brewed it or any tips that may have improved this brew.
Most of all I would love to know what the final ABV average was.

Thanks in advance...

Any input on this one??
Was also checking this out.

I have one that's been sitting in primary for about a month. My plan is to give it check this weekend and, if it's ready, move it over to secondary with the beans (hopefully cold brewed). Once I have some results I'll post back here. If you want, I can post my brew day notes here as well.

rudu81 said:

I have one that's been sitting in primary for about a month. My plan is to give it check this weekend and, if it's ready, move it over to secondary with the beans (hopefully cold brewed). Once I have some results I'll post back here. If you want, I can post my brew day notes here as well.

Click to expand...

Thanks!

Well, today is beer day (bottling, transferring 2 to secondaries and brewing), so I thought I'm able to get you some feedback on this one.

I used the kit as it came:

6 lb. Dark liquid malt extract
8 oz. Chocolate Malt
4 oz. Flaked Barley
4 oz. Caramel 60L
4 oz. Roasted Barley specialty grains
1/2 oz. Cascade pellet hops
1 oz. Fuggles pellet hops
1 packet Safale S-04

12/11/10
I started with 3 gal H2O and added the grains to steep at 158 F for 35 min.
Steep finished at 153 F and sat for 5 min

Boil:
60 min Cascade
30 min Fuggles
15 min Irish Moss (I always use it)

Cooled using ice bath and ice blocks in wort (previously made in GladWare containers)

Pitched yeast @ 70 F
O.G. 1.049 @ 61.5 F

1/13/10
F.G. 1.020 @ 58 F (-.007 correction)= 1.0193
(Supposed to be 1.010-1.012, so I hit lucky #1.020)
ABV 3.93%

Tastes a bit too malty sweet, but has a nice smoothness.

For the coffee, I heeded the advice of others here and did a cold brew. The hope was to avoid adding oils to the beer which is bad for head retention.

I ground the beans and put them into a 2 quart measuring cup and added cold water.
Left in refrigerator for 2 hours.
Pouring into secondary using a strainer to get as much of the grounds out as possible (this was not easy and there is probably a better method).

I put it back in my closet (temporary fermentation cabinet) which holds at about 68 F.

Feel free to ask any questions and I will attempt to answer them.



Hope you like this and that it helps!

Just boiled this yesterday...planning on adding 2.5 vanilla beans to it in a week when I move it to secondary...this is my second batch...hoping for the best.

Sounds good. Post back with your results. I have it sitting in secondary and am hoping to bottle this weekend.

Will do, you too...

Bottled today!!! Overall yield was 53 12oz bottles.

Instructions called for 1 cup H2O and the sugar, but I used 2 cups H2O as one cup seemed too little.

I can definitely taste and smell the coffee, and there is not bitter/harsh flavors that can sometimes happen with cold coffee. Also, I did not see a sheen or other traces of the coffee.

Unfortunately, there is still a sweet taste due to it finishing high. It dropped .006 in secondary, but not enough to help much (.05% ABV change).

Had a tasting of the beer this weekend. I was supposed to try one last week, but was sick, so I ended up having one two nights in a row. First was at 3 weeks carb and the second with four. For me, the carb level is good now at four weeks (that is my winter length).

There is a good roasted aroma with definite coffee notes. The flavor has the same notes as well, however something is wrong (to me) in the aftertaste. Having not tasted this before, I will try and describe it, but may be really off. It might be best described as a slightly sweet sour taste. While I don't like it, SWMBO does. I'm also not a big coffee drinker, and she had us register for 2 different coffee makers.

As a side note, when I looked at my secondary after I added the coffee my first thoughts were that it was infected. However after reading other posts here I believed that it was normal activity and the yeast just reawakening and continuing to ferment. It's possible that I'm wrong and got an infection, but I'm not sure.

Here's a link to Midwest's Peace Coffee Java Stout comments from people that have brewed it.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/review/product/list/id/1391/category/63/

NRS

I just bottled this weekend....hydro sample taste was a littile dissapointing, but witholding judgement till it carbs...nothing I would describe as sweet and sour, just thought coffee (and vanilla in my case) flavor would be more pronounced.

Here is a video I watched a few weeks ago about it.

fezzersc said:

Here is a video I watched a few weeks ago about it.

Click to expand...

Watched the video series (6 total), and while I skipped through bits of it, I found it to be very informative. If someone is making this their first brew, this series will take them step-by-step.

The biggest difference that I noticed between what Joe and I did was that he brewed the french press as one normally would and I cold brewed in a large Pyrex measuring cup. Maybe that's why I'm catching some different flavors?

Three weeks after bottling and id say this came out solidly average...not bad, not great, which is a dissapointment after my first batch (honey ale), which turned out to be awesome. I am hoping some additional bottle conditioning will improve this one...it tastes like all the flavors need to come together a little more.

I'd say that a honey ale should be pretty good after 3 weeks but not a stout. Give that stout 2 to 3 months and then give us a review.

They're going to get sued by bells