Tell me about your experiences with dark munich

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Zymurgrafi

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I had never used munich let alone dark until recently. I used it in my scottish 80-/ because I wanted the maltiness munich is supposed to lend. I saw my LHBS had a dark munich so I thought I would try that for color and maybe a distinctive flavor.

Well, I have brewed this one twice now and each time it certainly had a distinctive flavor but it was not quite appealing to me. The first time I thought perhaps it was the yeast as I used wyeast 1728 (scottish ale) and I have heard some folks complain it is a bit "funky" flavor wise.

So, second time brewed it I used a nice HUGE pitch of 1056 (thanks Glibbidy!) as a more nuetral yeast. It still had the same flavor though. So, that leads me to suspect the dark munich. Next time I will try plain old munich and see. The only other culprit is the kettle carmelization step I did. Howver this tastes more smoky or roasty than carmelly which I would expect.

I cannot really pin down what the taste is that I don't like. The first time I thought perhaps it was infection because I had been having issues. However it never really changed (got worse that is) and I have been having good succes with brewing again when I made the second batch. I guess I would say it is maybe smoky? or roasty? (I did use an or so of roasted barley for color which is tradtional) or astringent? or burnt? or bitter? (not like hops)

What does this grain taste like to you folks? Pehaps it is better in darker style beers only?
 
Bump.

Oh, and I used 1 lb. because I figured regular munich can be used as a base malt. Perhaps dark munich is intended as a specialty grain only and should be used in smaller percentages?
 
Okay, last attempt before i let it die.

Has no one ever used dark munich or has any thoughts on it?

Please? :mug:
 
knights of Gambrinus said:
Okay, last attempt before i let it die.

Has no one ever used dark munich or has any thoughts on it?

Please? :mug:
Well I have no experience but I will give you a bump because I will be using Munich in my next brew.

Note: It seems that only newbie or strange topics get any replies these days. Maybe a lot of people are bored with the forums or busy with the holidays.
 
Dude, I'd love to help out, but I've never even heard of dark munich lol. But, you gave me thoughts of toasting some of my own munich.. that could be interesting.
 
Did you taste the grain? My previous LHBS had both light and dark Munich. I much preferred the taste of the dark munich. I never thought it gave an off flavor - nothing like what you described. What other grains were in the recipe?
 
Im guessing dark munich is the same as caramunich which i have used in a brew, it was in a hefe weizen that also had a slight smokey flavour which i thought was coming from the caramunich at first. After talking it over with other brewers i think the smokeyness came from the yeast being fermented at too low a temp and not from the caramunich which is supposed to give a toasted flavour.

I've also used it in a stout but the flavour of it got buried in the roast barley and choc malt to a large degree.
 
I've not used dark munich, but I did munch on a couple grains of it to try. I really like regular munich but that dark stuff didn't appeal to me either. It had a 'different' taste that I didn't like. I can't offer much more than that though as I haven't used it as I mentioned.
 
delboy said:
Im guessing dark munich is the same as caramunich which i have used in a brew, it was in a hefe weizen that also had a slight smokey flavour which i thought was coming from the caramunich at first. After talking it over with other brewers i think the smokeyness came from the yeast being fermented at too low a temp and not from the caramunich which is supposed to give a toasted flavour.

I've also used it in a stout but the flavour of it got buried in the roast barley and choc malt to a large degree.

I don't think it is the same as caramunich, which my LHBS also sells. I tried to look at their sight to at least compare lovibond but they have been offline for a few days.
 
I'm using it now in my Bohemian Pilsner, but I just put 1/2lb in to a 12lb grain bill. I tasted it before it went in to the primary and though it was a good flavor, but I bet the Dark Munich did not lend too much to the flavor of the beer.

I'll keep you posted.
 
I usually substitute belgian aromatic for dark munich unless I am going for a 100% german grain bill. Dark munich and aromatic are both low in enzymatic activity and cannot convert crystal malts well.
 
I personally have been interested in trying it for some time.

http://www.beertools.com/html/ingredients.php?view=grains
German Dark Munich - Enhances body and aroma. Stout, schwarzbier, brown ale, dark and amber ales.

Northern Brewer says it's a base malt:

http://www.northernbrewer.com/grainmalts.html
Durst Dark Munich. 15.5° L. Darker than regular Munich malt, this will add color and a strong malt flavor to beer. Great for dark lagers. Mix this base malt with other base malts for a complex malt flavor and deeper color.

http://***********/referenceguide/grains/grains4.html
Dark Munich Malt 8-10° 1.034 Enhances body and aroma. Stout, schwarzbier, brown ale, dark and amber ales.
 
If you want to taste Munich Malt then try tasting a traditional Bock beer if you can find one. They usually have anywhere from 70 to 100 % Munich for the grain bill. It has a very rich sweet toasty flavor which you may or may not like.
 
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