Maple Beer

Well.. Its that special time up here in Vermont where everyone has just finished making their maple syurp. So one of the guys I work with just gave me a gallon of Grade B (darker and more flavorful) syurp on the condition that he gets half the batch I make. So... He said he doesn't care what kind but that he prefers darker beers as he spent 3 years in Germany and now has a taste for the Stouts and Doublebocks ect.. So does anyone have any thoughts or ideas on how to add this in?? The idea is to make the maple flavor really come thru such that someone that didn't know it was a maple beer could pick the flavor out.

I am only doing extract type beers these days as there is no room for any all grain equip. while living here so I have to take that into concideration.. also I don't want to do the "pick any recipie and just add some syurp" if you know what I mean
Any recipie ideas or suggestions are welcome!! there may even be a few beers in it for someone that really comes thru and helps out (hey I have to give some incentive.. I am like one of a million people on this board asking for people to make a recipie for me)

My friend and I are currently working out an extract recipe for a nut brown ale. We are going to add maple syrup (and possibly a few walnuts or pecans) to the second batch after we tweak our first one. As soon as we brew it I can let you know how it works out. We are probably going to start it this weekend, or early next week.

Maple porter. that sounds pretty good.

There were several great threads on Maple beer a few weeks back, including using Sap instead of syrup, including some tasty sounding recipes...Use the search function and you'll find them.

Where in Northern VT are you? I'm in ST. J.

You will need to use the whole gallon first of all! It is really hard to make the maple flavor shine through. Grade B is definately a good choice to start with. You will want to use a yeast that is not too attenuative so some sweetness remains. Whatever the style you can also try using maple for the priming sugar. That gets tricky because the sugar content of maple syrup varies widely so you may be over or under carbed if you do not use the right amount. If you do use it as priming sugar it will help to add some maple flavor though. I guess I would suggest taking a hydrometer reading of the syrup you use to prime with to figure out its sugar content.

A bigger beer is probably also a good bet in that there will be residual sweetness from that. If you do a "dark beer" as you say you are thinking be careful with ingredients. I think a large amount of any roasty grains such as roasted barley, chocolate or black patent, etc. will easily mask the maple flavors quickly.

I brewed a Scotch "wee heavy" using about a quart of maple syrup of unkown grade (the maker didn't bother to grade it) and it is distinctive I think but you probably would not pick it out as maple. If you used a whole gallon of grade B you may have a more definative maple flavor though. It is AG recipe but if you are interested I could try to make an extract version. Another option would be a dopplebock if you like lagers. Definately something that is on the malty side and has some sweetness to it.

Another tip is to add the syrup close to the end of boil so you don't lose all the aromatics and flavors. One more thing to try and I will be trying this next season myself. Collect some straight sap, more than you will need and boil it down slightly to concentrate the sugar content a bit and sterilize it. Use it in place of water for brewing.