Experimental Beer Slim's Graham Cracker Ale 2.0

This recipe looks interesting to me. I always make a holiday beer and give it away as gifts to my coworkers.
I think this one might be a good one to try. I have some Ringwood yeast about to come out of the conical so I will use that.

I'm going to give this a try. Will likely increase the chocolate malt and omit the actual chocolate. Maybe mash a bit cooler. Will keep everyone apprised of what happens.

are the rice hulls needed if doing BIAB? LBH has American 2 Row Pale Malt 1.2 L, will this work for Pale Malt Maris Otter listed in your recipie. Also LBH has Caramel (Crystal) Malt 80 Lovidbond 1#, is the same as the Crystal Malt 80 you have listed. Sorry for the newby questions, Im still learing the lingo.


Found this on the LBH website Maris Otter - British 2-Row Brewer's Malt - 2 Row British, should I use this instead of the American 2Row Pale Malt?

Do the graham crackers need to convert in the mash?

I've been wanting to use vanilla and graham crackers in my stout recipe for a Holliday beer but scared Of the Graham crackers..It's an extract batch when would I use the graham crackers?? In boil, secondary?

Are you using specialty grains with your extract? If so i would do a course crush on the graham crackers and include them in your muslin bag.

Woodybass said:

Are you using specialty grains with your extract? If so i would do a course crush on the graham crackers and include them in your muslin bag.

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I think thats a great idea. I will try that. Brilliant.

Woodybass said:

Are you using specialty grains with your extract? If so i would do a course crush on the graham crackers and include them in your muslin bag.

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I'm thinking you should add like half a lb or lb of 6 row in there. I think you'll want the starches to convert in the graham crackers. Could be wrong thi

I will brew this up extract style to my stout recipe next month. I will report my process and results.

Just brewed this last night! OG was 1.070, excited to try it, smells great.

cgrivois said:

are the rice hulls needed if doing BIAB? LBH has American 2 Row Pale Malt 1.2 L, will this work for Pale Malt Maris Otter listed in your recipie. Also LBH has Caramel (Crystal) Malt 80 Lovidbond 1#, is the same as the Crystal Malt 80 you have listed. Sorry for the newby questions, Im still learing the lingo.


Found this on the LBH website Maris Otter - British 2-Row Brewer's Malt - 2 Row British, should I use this instead of the American 2Row Pale Malt?

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Sorry for the delay in replying...rice hulls are cheap, when in doubt, just use them. American 2 row is similar to Marris Otter, but in my opinion nothing is better than Marris Otter. Crystal 80 is Crystal 80, so go with what you found!

Lumpy16 said:

Do the graham crackers need to convert in the mash?

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Yes...they do have some fermentable sugars in them

Lumpy16 said:

Do the graham crackers need to convert in the mash?

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Sorry, let me answer that better...80 percent of this adjunct is flavor, 20 is fermentable sugars, that overall will make up less than 5% of your fermentable sugars.

jonnyp1980 said:

I've been wanting to use vanilla and graham crackers in my stout recipe for a Holliday beer but scared Of the Graham crackers..It's an extract batch when would I use the graham crackers?? In boil, secondary?

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Boil....graham crackers have hints of dark sugars, cinnamon and a few other flavors, so you want it to blend smoothly.

Brewing this tomorrow, along with Pliny the Elder clone. Boy am I excited!

Two questions:
1) I have crystal 60. Should I use a touch extra 60, or a touch extra chocolate malt maybe? If no answer by early tomorrow, I'm just going with orig. amount but 60.

2) I have vanilla beans that have been in vodka for a year. Should I just use a cup of that vodka vanilla?

Cheers,
Kurt

I am brewing this up next week.
My only question is about the vodka and vanilla beans.
How much vodka do you use to soak the vanilla beans, and how long do you soak them for?

Thanks in advance.

I brew this yesterday but tweaked a few things for my liking.

12.5 lb English pale malt
1/2 lb Honey malt
1/2 lb Victory malt
1/2 lb Crystal 40
2 boxes of Honey Graham crackers
1lb Light brown sugar
S-04 yeast
Cluster hops for bittering hops
Willamette hops for finish

Will do the Vanilla beans for a week.
No chocolate malt or bakers chocolate I wanted to keep the color close to the crackers, Golden/light brown.

I will age it for two weeks on 5oz of coca Nibs instead.
My final gravity going into the carboy was 1.071.
The smell was Wicked and delicious.

I also used this recipe as a guide but switched things up to go in more of a porter direction. Bottled yesterday after 3 weeks in primary and 1 week in secondary on the vanilla beans. Was super hazy in the primary but after cold crashing and racking to the secondary it greatly improved. I stole a sample during the bottling process and I think I'm going to be quite happy with it.

Malts:
6lb. Maris
3lb. Smoked
1lb. Crystal
4oz. Black
4oz. Chocolate

Otherwise, followed the chocolate, brown sugar and hop additions as the recipe called for. I'll try to remember to come back and post a photo of the first pour when I open one up!

Hey Slim, have you ever tried a heavier version? I'm thinking about entering an imperial stout competition and originally was thinking of a nutty chocolate something. But I thought the graham cracker concept might work and was wondering if you ever went in that direction.

Brewed this up today. Smells and looks good. O.G. Was 1.062. The only problem I had was my mash tun got plugged up and wouldn't drain. Had to use alternative means but I got it done. Can't wait for this one to be done. Thanks for the recipe.

I read through the posts and didn't see the answeres to a couple of questions: 1) I'm assuming g crackers go in mash?, when do I add brown sugar amid chocolate?

kmac666 said:

I read through the posts and didn't see the answeres to a couple of questions: 1) I'm assuming g crackers go in mash?, when do I add brown sugar amid chocolate?

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The gram crackers do go in the mash and you add the sugar and chocolate to the beginning of the boil.

demons210 said:

The gram crackers do go in the mash and you add the sugar and chocolate to the beginning of the boil.

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Thanks

So I have this in my primary at the moment.
I have never used vanilla bean before and was wondering if it was totally necessary and if so what's the best practice?

Thanks

Jbatten22 said:

So I have this in my primary at the moment.
I have never used vanilla bean before and was wondering if it was totally necessary and if so what's the best practice?

Thanks

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Soak them in vodka for a week and dump in secondary. Yes they are awesome in this brew!!!

Jbatten22 said:

So I have this in my primary at the moment.
I have never used vanilla bean before and was wondering if it was totally necessary and if so what's the best practice?

Thanks

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You can use vanilla extract...or you can make your own by putting a small slit in the bean (which exposes the meat) and submerse under vodka for a minimum of 7 days, but closer to 14.... At this point the bean flavor has extracted in to the vodka and you can dump it in to your fermenter.

SD-SLIM said:

You can use vanilla extract...or you can make your own by putting a small slit in the bean (which exposes the meat) and submerse under vodka for a minimum of 7 days, but closer to 14.... At this point the bean flavor has extracted in to the vodka and you can dump it in to your fermenter.

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Thanks for the response.
How much vanilla extract would you suggest? Should I dump it into the primary or mix into the bottling bucket?

Thanks again

Jbatten22 said:

Thanks for the response.
How much vanilla extract would you suggest? Should I dump it into the primary or mix into the bottling bucket?

Thanks again

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2 ounces in the primary.

so Im brewing this today..but one stupid question. you said rack to secondary on week three and after three weeks bottle or keg.
Does this mean a total of 3 weeks fermentation? or on week three rack to secondary..and then 3 more weeks bottle or keg?
I hope my question makes sense I know it sounds dumb.
Thanks!!

brauchef10 said:

so Im brewing this today..but one stupid question. you said rack to secondary on week three and after three weeks bottle or keg.
Does this mean a total of 3 weeks fermentation? or on week three rack to secondary..and then 3 more weeks bottle or keg?
I hope my question makes sense I know it sounds dumb.
Thanks!!

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Total of 3 weeks fermentation...then 11 days kegged or 3 weeks bottled. So week 1 is beer and yeast, week 2 add vanilla beans...and because those are a fruit transfer off for a final week of. Conditioning....if you use vanilla extract, versus actually vanilla beans, then just do 3 weeks in the primary....now there will be some people that say you can do all of this in the primary ( and trust me I am anti-secondary)...but the beer gets clearer on this recipe (when using beans) if transferred.

Thanks so much for your quick response!.
I am for sure going to use beans...I really hate the flavor of vanilla extract IMO.
Thanks again,
Cheers!

Anyone do this extract with a grain bag with any luck? New to the hobby and this beer sounds awesome and would like to try. Just not into AG yet.

so I attempted to brew a batch of this the other night and I believe I made some rookie mistakes... ( only my 3rd AG batch so still a rookie!).. I was too rushed to get started, read through the recipe and went for it...should have read the entire thread first...

I assumed ( first mistake assuming) that the g.crackers would be added to the primary, but now that I read through all the posts in the thread I believe I was supposed to add these to the boil?

I ended up with a OG of just under 1.060, prior to adding the crackers to the primary, then crushed up the crackers, mixed them in, pitched the yeast and put it away to ferment.

Obv im going to let it ferment out, add the vanilla and see where it goes, mistakes sometimes lead to great discoveries right! But any thoughts as to what I should expect with this mistake? You stated you made this many many times before getting it to what you wanted, did you happen to go this route once?

I was disappointed I did not reach the OG that you posted in the recipe, could not having the crackers in the boil really cause me to miss by that much? or were there most likely other mistakes I made to cause that?

If this batch doesn't meet all expectations I will definitely try again, as it sounds like a great brew!

johnturner9 said:

Anyone do this extract with a grain bag with any luck? New to the hobby and this beer sounds awesome and would like to try. Just not into AG yet.

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I subbed in 3 pounds of Muntons Light dry extract, and did 3 pounds of maris otter instead of 9 based on recommendation from homebrew shop.
Everything else I put in grain bags and followed the rest of the recipe.
Bubbling away today and smelled awesome last night

soccerRef said:

so I attempted to brew a batch of this the other night and I believe I made some rookie mistakes... ( only my 3rd AG batch so still a rookie!).. I was too rushed to get started, read through the recipe and went for it...should have read the entire thread first...

I assumed ( first mistake assuming) that the g.crackers would be added to the primary, but now that I read through all the posts in the thread I believe I was supposed to add these to the boil?

I ended up with a OG of just under 1.060, prior to adding the crackers to the primary, then crushed up the crackers, mixed them in, pitched the yeast and put it away to ferment.

Obv im going to let it ferment out, add the vanilla and see where it goes, mistakes sometimes lead to great discoveries right! But any thoughts as to what I should expect with this mistake? You stated you made this many many times before getting it to what you wanted, did you happen to go this route once?

I was disappointed I did not reach the OG that you posted in the recipe, could not having the crackers in the boil really cause me to miss by that much? or were there most likely other mistakes I made to cause that?

If this batch doesn't meet all expectations I will definitely try again, as it sounds like a great brew!

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Unfortunately you won't get much flavor from adding them to the fermentation process...and you will defiantly need to use a secondary to clear the bear up (even if it looks clear, you don't want crackers particles)..... So here are two ways you can fix your beer: #1) if you are using vanilla beans, the vodka will add an alcohol boost, if your using extract then add a 1/4 cup of vodka #2) use graham cracker extract in the secondary, and use brown sugar as your priming sugar for bottles or keg...both of these options will enhance the flavor!

SD-SLIM said:

Unfortunately you won't get much flavor from adding them to the fermentation process...and you will defiantly need to use a secondary to clear the bear up (even if it looks clear, you don't want crackers particles)..... So here are two ways you can fix your beer: #1) if you are using vanilla beans, the vodka will add an alcohol boost, if your using extract then add a 1/4 cup of vodka #2) use graham cracker extract in the secondary, and use brown sugar as your priming sugar for bottles or keg...both of these options will enhance the flavor!

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thanks for the response and suggestions! I am using vanilla beans, so the vodka will help the alcohol boost. I will definitely rack to a secondary, Im a big fan of this in most cases anyways.. I had no idea there was such a thing as graham cracker extract! I will look for it and add some to the secondary. ( if I can find it). As far as using brown sugar for priming sugar, I plan to keg my brew, so how much brown sugar should I add to the keg? also I have never used sugar to carb my beer in the keg ( I have used forced carb procedures ), about how long will it take to be carbed up via the priming sugar route?

thanks for all the assistance! I love how helpful the home brew community is! Hopefully someday soon I will be knowledgeable enough to be the one helping!

soccerRef said:

thanks for the response and suggestions! I am using vanilla beans, so the vodka will help the alcohol boost. I will definitely rack to a secondary, Im a big fan of this in most cases anyways.. I had no idea there was such a thing as graham cracker extract! I will look for it and add some to the secondary. ( if I can find it). As far as using brown sugar for priming sugar, I plan to keg my brew, so how much brown sugar should I add to the keg? also I have never used sugar to carb my beer in the keg ( I have used forced carb procedures ), about how long will it take to be carbed up via the priming sugar route?

thanks for all the assistance! I love how helpful the home brew community is! Hopefully someday soon I will be knowledgeable enough to be the one helping!

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I would use 1/2 cup...be sure to stir it in really well, then if you have CO2, apply 30psi to set all the rings and gaskets in your tank...set the keg aside in a warm environment for 14 days, then connect co2 and take a sample..it should need another couple of days, but better to check now than when it's over carbonated!

This sounds awesome and will most likely be my next brew, assuming the LHBS has restocked their MO.

One question though Slim, are you really getting that high of an OG? Even if I hit the good side of my eff (usually near 80%), Beersmith calculates this around 1.065-1.070. I know someone else asked earlier in the thread if the crackers make up the difference, but it looks like most people reporting OGs are still in the 1.060's.

As you stated, I'm sure it will still be a great beer regardless, just curious since you've brewed this one a bunch.
Thanks!

Brewphish said:

This sounds awesome and will most likely be my next brew, assuming the LHBS has restocked their MO.

One question though Slim, are you really getting that high of an OG? Even if I hit the good side of my eff (usually near 80%), Beersmith calculates this around 1.065-1.070. I know someone else asked earlier in the thread if the crackers make up the difference, but it looks like most people reporting OGs are still in the 1.060's.

As you stated, I'm sure it will still be a great beer regardless, just curious since you've brewed this one a bunch.
Thanks!

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I have to be honest...I only take gravity readings during the first couple of brews in an experimental beer...after that, my equipment and eyes know what we are doing, so I don't bother until I want to confirm its beer, so beer smith could be wright!

How much priming sugar should i use for bottling 5 gallons?