Belgian Imperial Stout Critique

12C. Barleywine And Imperial Stout, Russian Imperial Stout All-grain

Stats
OG 1.127
FG 1.019
IBU 90
ABV 13.9 %
SRM 50

Specifics
Boil Volume 7 gallons
Batch Size 5.5 gallons
Yeast 85% AA

Style Comparison
Low High
OG 1.075 1.127 1.095+
FG 1.018 1.019 1.030+
IBU 50 90 90+
SRM 20 50 40
ABV 8 13.9 12+

Fermentables
% Weight Weight (lbs) Grain Gravity Points Color
47.5 % 12.00 Belgian Two-row Pale 56.5 6.5
23.8 % 6.00 Belgian Wheat 29.0 2.0
2.0 % 0.50 Belgian Roasted Barley 1.9 52.3
4.0 % 1.00 Belgian Chocolate 3.7 90.5
4.0 % 1.00 British Crystal 135-165L 4.2 27.3
4.0 % 1.00 Belgian Carmel Pils 4.3 1.5
3.0 % 0.75 Belgian Special B 2.8 30.1
11.9 % 3.00 Belgian Candi Sugar Dark 24.5 150.0
25.25 127.0

Hops
% Wt Weight (oz) Hop Form AA% AAU Boil Time Utilization IBU
50.0 % 5.00 Willamette Pellet 5.5 27.5 60
25.0 % 2.50 Styrian Goldings Pellet 5.5 13.8 20
25.0 % 2.50 Styrian Goldings Pellet 5.5 13.8 5
10.00 90 IBU
Single infusion Batch sparge 148F for 70min
Thinking about using either Wyeast 3787 or 1762
Will either make a massive starter or pitch onto a cake

This recipe is loosely base on BP's dark soul of night. I added some Belgian twists and a few of my own. Let me know what you guys think of it.

Cool idea, I've been toying around with adding Belgian twists to other styles, but you beat me to the punch on this one. You might want to also look into White Labs 500 for your yeast also, I'm a big fan of it and use it for almost all my Belgian styles. I also might cut down on the chocolate and British Crystal and add a little more Special B and Caramunich/vienne

Good idea. Thats why I asked for input. How about dropping the chocolate and Crystal to 0.5lbs each and upping the Special B to 1lb. Also could add 1lb of carmunich. One other things what about some Belgian Aromatic in this recipe as well? Im also toying with maybe Bretting part or all of this recipe in the secondary and letting it go for 6mo-1yr.

Also thinking about substituting the bittering hops for something clean and high alpha instead of the Willamette. I know the Willamette will be good but thats about $30-$40 for hops if I do it this way. Was thinking may 1-2oz of Brewer's gold or maybe Northern Brewer.

+1 on the higher AA hops, too dang pricey for 5oz. Personally I would cut the chocolate back as mentioned, but also up the roasted barley to 1lb. Maybe lengthen the mash time due to the enormous grain bill. Looks awesome though, I'm gonna do a 4% Belgian stout this week and am really psyched to see how it turns out. Good luck!

Building a mash tun this weekend. Last thing I needed for AG. And yes this is my first AG. Go big or go home.:rockin:

Ok heres my final recipe Im going with. Will probably be a month or so till I brew this because Im building my MLT/HLT right now. Any more suggestions are helpful. Thanks for your input guys.

12C. Barleywine And Imperial Stout, Russian Imperial Stout All-grain
Stats
OG 1.109
FG 1.016
IBU 74
ABV 12.0 %
SRM 50

Specifics
Boil Volume 7 gallons
Batch Size 5.5 gallons
Yeast 85% AA

Style Comparison
Low High
OG 1.075 1.109 1.095+
FG 1.018 1.016 1.030+
IBU 50 67 90+
SRM 20 50 40
ABV 8 12.0 12+



Fermentables
% Weight Weight (lbs) Grain Gravity Points Color
53.3 % 12.00 Belgian Pils 57.3 3.9
17.8 % 4.00 Belgian Wheat 20.7 1.3
4.4 % 1.00 Belgian Roasted Barley 4.1 104.5
2.2 % 0.50 Belgian Chocolate 2.0 45.3
5.6 % 1.25 Belgian CaraMunich 5.6 17.0
5.6 % 1.25 Belgian Special B 4.9 50.2
2.2 % 0.50 Belgian Aromatic 2.0 2.3
8.9 % 2.00 Belgian Candi Sugar Dark 12.3 100.0
22.50 109.0

Hops
% Wt Weight (oz) Hop Form AA% AAU Boil Time Utilization IBU
50.0 % 2.00 Horizon Pellet 12.5 25.0 60 0.167 57.0
25.0 % 1.00 Brewers Gold Pellet 8.5 6.9 15 0.083 7.8
25.0 % 1.00 Styrian Goldings Pellet 5.5 5.5 5 0.033 2.5
4.00 67.3

90 minute single step Mash @ 148F
Pitch on 1/2 gal or cake of Wyeast 3787 Trappist High Gravity
Primary 3-4wks
Secondary 3-6months
Bottle with Fresh yeast

this sounds great. fine tuning that monster is a little over my head but i think brewing it sounds like fun.

It looks interesting, but you would probably need it to finish quite dry or else it could be too sweet. You seem to recognize that in your mash temp and length - 'twill ferment quite dry once you control fermentation temps. Start at 68 for a week or so, then slowly raise the temps into the 70s, then up to about 80 towards the end.

Someone else may be better able to give you more specifics on the exact temps and time periods for your fermentation.

Yes I realize that it needs to be dry. Hence the mash temp and candi sugar. If it doesnt dry out enough I may even try some Brett. I have a belgian Dark strong Ale that started out @ 1.100 and is now down to 1.016 with Wyeast 1762 Abbey II. I was thinking either using that or the 3787 which was recommended by several people. I believe Avery uses the 3787 in all their belgians and the Mestophiles stout.

I feel like the subtleness of the Aromatic is going to be covered up by some of the stronger tasting grains in there. I still think you should consider White Labs Trappist for your yeast, It has better attenuation, is better at high alcohol contents, and has that wide temp range you are looking for (although for a stout type I wouldn't let it get up above 73-75ish).

Have you read "Brew Like a Monk" by Palmer? Its my new Bible, pick it up if you haven't already.

newkarian said:

Building a mash tun this weekend. Last thing I needed for AG. And yes this is my first AG. Go big or go home.:rockin:

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On the bright side, at least something that big a bold will be forgiving of all the mistakes you may make in the process. From my pov, I think you're better with something a bit more "delicate" to really hone in your new rig but different strokes for different folks! As far as your specialty malt percentages go, you really haven't mentioned what type of flavor profile you are shooting for....

Shooting for something with lots of dark fruit and roasty malt flavors. Want it to come out pretty dry and not overly sweet. I dont want the hops to overdominate as this is a Belgian inspired but at the same time I want them to be there. Will try the WLP500 suggestion? Good suggestion with the dropping the aromatic. Does anyone think Carafa II or III would be good in this as well? I think I might brew something lighter as my first brew and use it to build up a yeast cake to pitch on. Any suggestions on something that would be drinkable realatively quickly and would be good with WLP500?
Thanks again.

Zwarte Dood Belgian Imperial Stout
5.5 gallon batch
OG 1.129
IBU 76.4
EABV 14.59%
EFG 1.017

14lbs Belgian Pale
2lbs Special B
1.5lbs Caramunich
1 lb Flaked Barley
1lb Flaked Oats
1lb Roasted Barley
0.5lb Carafa III
0.5lb Chocolate malt
3lb Dark Candi Sugar
1.5lb D2 Syrup
2.75oz EKG FWH 90min
1.5oz Green Bullet 60min

Triple decoction Mash.
Protein Rest 127F 20mins
Beta Amylase 144F 90mins
Alpha Amylase 156F 20mins
Mash out 168F

Double Batch Sparge
Sparged with 180F water
Pre Boil SG 1.106 7gals

Pitched on cake of Belgian Abbey II 1762 @ 64F

Well I finally went and brewed the monster that I had been planning. The day was long but it went well. I got 78% Boiler efficiency and 73% Brewhouse efficiency and that was with the imperial stout. I also did a partigyle and was able to make 5.5gallons of oatmeal stout. To this I added a partial mash of 2lbs 2row and 1.5lbs oats and came up with an OG of 1.054. Total with the partigyle I ended up with a 93% efficiency. Not bad for my second AG. Used my ice recirc IC again and it worked great. Also the antifoam drops again were amazing. I was able to full boil a little over 7gals in my 7.5gal pot with a little care. Planning on letting this Imperial stout ferment for a few days in the mid to high 60s then ramp it up to around 75 for full attenuation. Will let it sit in primary for one month then 6-12months secondary before I bottle. Pics to follow when I get a minute.
Thanks for everyones help and cheers

Well I racked it to secondary today after about 5wks in primary. SG was at 1.032 which is a little higher than I would have like. I guess with all the roasted and caramel malts thats to be expected. It tasted pretty good and not to sweet considering the high SG. I through in a couple packets of montrachet into the secondary as I suspect the primary yeast is reaching alcohol toxicity at over 13% and pooping out. Will let it sit in the secondary a few months and check again. Also am considering oaking this to get some tannin to help offset a little of the sweetness. What do you guys think?

Also bottled up the partigyle stout and it tasted pretty darn good. FG was 1.012. A little strong on the roastiness but that should settle with a little time in the bottle.

Bump...How did it turn out? Thinking about brewing a Belgian RIS next month.

TorribleBrew said:

Bump...How did it turn out? Thinking about brewing a Belgian RIS next month.

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Me too! Thursday in fact!