Adding Fresh Mint to the Secondary

Once again I'm on the quest of knowledge.

I am brewing a Chocolate Mint Stout, which is currently in the Primary absent the mint. I am putting the mint on it after it transfers to the secondary, but am concerned about sterilization.

Currently the mint in in the freezer. Is it ok to place it in the secondary from the freezer, or should I steep it at 155 for a few minutes prior to adding it?

Thanks in advance for the help. Ron Lewis

Be careful when using mint. Fresh mint adds a very strong vegetal/minty flavor that is pretty nasty IMO. As it's frozen, it might not be so strong, but i'd err on the side of caution. I'd probably try making a tea out of it before adding to the secondary. Or find a commerical mint extract.

Don't do it. Make a tincture with the mint using some hat water. Extract the minty oils, but you won't get the vegetal quality. I made that mistake but won't do it again.

I added 2 oz mint to my chocolate stout and did not steralize the mint in any way and it molded....next time i might soak in vodka and make an extract.

dirty_martini said:

Don't do it. Make a tincture with the mint using some hat water. Extract the minty oils, but you won't get the vegetal quality. I made that mistake but won't do it again.

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Sounds pretty nasty.

I soaked some mint in vodka and tried in a stout. Wasn't too bad. I wouldn't worry about bacteria so much as the off flavors that you can get from a prolonged soak.

I think it may get very lost in a dark beer. I steeped about 10 leaves in hot water for a few minutes and dumped it into a watermelon wheat for a week or so. No vegetal flavor (this is the second time I have done this) but the mint is very very subtle, even in a plain mint wheat, to the point that most people who tasted the beer noticed something interesting but couldn't identify what it was, when I told them it was mint they all recognized the flavor and liked that it was subtle, too much is overwhelming, like brushing your teeth.

I have tasted this beer and it is pretty minty though
http://www.aircrafter.org/boggs/homebrew/recipes/2009.10.25-Mint_Chocolate_Stout.xml

not sure how oz's relate to the number of leaves I used, but I would bet he used a lot more

Sorry it's been so long. The recipe I have calls for 5 oz fresh but does not say how to put it in the secondary. Think I may do the tincture and add slowly as I taste in the secondary. What do you think?