Help with the porter

This will be my third batch of brew and my first with a recipe not a kit. here are the ingredients i am using.

5 gallon batch

6.6 lbs plain dark DME
1lb chocolate malt crystal
1 oz Norther brewer hops -bittering
.5 oz cascade hops- flavoring

yeast
Still using dry, not ready to take the liquid plunge yet, baby steps.
Dry Ale yeast Safale US-56


4 oz lactose
1/2 tablespoon irish moss
2 oz mexican vanilla (real extract not imitation)

Priming

2 oz of mexican vanilla
5 oz priming sugar

How does it look? Should i add the other .5 oz of cascade for aroma at the last 5 min of boil? Do you think i need to add more or less vanilla? i just want it to be the slightest of undertones so it does not over power the porter.

Thanks for the help,

The Reverend.

I've never used more than 1/2 oz of vanilla in a batch of ale, 4 oz. seems like too much.

You could use 1/2 lb chocolate and 1/2 pound crystal 40L. My favorite porter uses 1 1/2 lbs of C40L, but you have some lactose in there for sweetness.

Hopping looks fine. A cascade nose probably wouldn't work on a porter.

I just did my first brew from a recipe and not a kit also. Went well I think, but havent tasted it yet. Fermenting just stopped this morning after 3 days of heavy fermentation. Good luck with your first brew on your own!

I also think 4 oz of vanilla is too much. However with a bolder bodied porter you may be fine. Also remember the porter may take a while to age. If you tase it at bottling and you are not impressed then put your bottles in a corner and let them alone for 4-6 weeks. It still shocks the crap out of me when i age a beer for a long time and it is 10 times better than when i last tasted it.

David 42, if the cascade seems like it will not yeild a good nose should i add nothing or wait till tomorrow when my LHBS is open to get a different auroma hop? If so what should i get? Tettnang?


Thanks,

The Reverend

You could just skip the aroma hops, many porters do not use one. Tettnang, Horizons, Fuggles and East Kent Goldings are all good choices if you feel the need.

Thanks for the help. Boy am i glad i decided to check out this website. you guys (and gals) are all great

I wouldn't recommend using more then 5% chocolate or 5% black malt (a total of not more then 10%) in your total grist. Using more then 5% of each, malt may impart a burnt taste which will overshadow the beer.

All the flavors have to come together into one nice well balanced beer.

Get on with using the liquid yeast as soon as you are able, it will make a HUGE difference in the success of your beers.

The last time I did a vanilla porter I used real vanilla extract (as opposed to real vanilla beans). I just added a little at a time (at bottling - you don't need any before) until I was pleased with the taste. I think I only used 2 oz or so. Go slow w/ the additions and stop when YOU think it tastes right.

BTW - here's the vanilla porter recipe I've tried a few times and it's great! It's AG, but all the specialty malts would be the same for you.

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
64.7 11.00 lbs. Pale Malt(2-row) America 1.036 2
8.8 1.50 lbs. Brown Malt Great Britain 1.032 70
14.7 2.50 lbs. Munich Malt(2-row) America 1.035 10
5.9 1.00 lbs. Crystal 120L America 1.034 120
2.9 0.50 lbs. Crystal 40L America 1.034 40
2.9 0.50 lbs. Chocolate Malt America 1.029 350

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.80 oz. Magnum Whole 14.60 32.0 60 min.
1.0 oz. Goldings - E.K. Whole 4.75 2.4 10 min.