Question about flavorings...

If I am using a coconut extract in brewing, when is the best time to add it? I was thinking 2oz of extract in the brewpot in the last 5 minutes, then 2 oz in the secondary fermenter. Any thoughts? Thanks.

If it's a 5 gallon batch, 4 oz of nearly any extract is going to be REALLY strong. Most extracts have fairly delicate flavors, and it's recommended to add them to the secondary. No clue what your recipe is (not sure I even want to know...coconut in beer?), but try adding it to the secondary about 1/2 oz at a time until you get the desired flavor profile.

Coconut? I think that's a first.

I'd vote for bottling time...that's when I always add all my flavorings, and the instructions on most of them agree. I'd start with about half of what the directions say, though, and add more to taste if necessary...in very small increments. My worst experience was with spruce extract. The bottle said to add 2oz (the whole bottle) per 5 gallons of beer. That seemed a little much, so I looked at the recipe---Papazian's Goat Scrotum Porter---and he said 1oz. So to be on the safe side, I just went with 1oz. Now, I don't know if this brand of spruce essence was particularly strong, but to this day, nearly a year later, it tastes like pine tree in a bottle. I shudder to think what it would have tasted like if I'd followed the directions on the bottle...

So, yeah, be VERY careful! You can always add more, but you can't take it out once it's in there...

Ok so I am not really asking you guys if you think coconut is a GOOD idea, I am only asking HOW you would do it. It looks like the secondary or at bottling might be the way to go, but what about adding to the boil? Also, it is a very mild coconut flavoring (all organic and very mild). Thanks.

I've had a commercial beer with coconut from Elkhead. At 12% it was closer to a coconut liquor than a beer. Good in small quantities. Adding extracts to the boil tends to kill the flavors. Coconut Beer (original eh?) uses coconut in the boil and toasted coconut in the fermenter.