Vanilla

Hello everybody,

This is a great forum. Thanks to everyone for answering the same questions over and over again.

I am aiming for a hint of an aroma of Vanilla in my IPA. I am planning to add three split beans during the last five minutes of the boil. It is a five gallon batch.

Will three beans even be detectable in an IPA and how is my timing on adding it to the boil?

Thanks,


Ken

I don't have an answer for you, but definitely keep us posted...that sounds interesting!

you're better off pasteurizing the beans and adding them to secondary.

Im waiting to add a bean or two to my oatmeal stout. I have heard more than one bean can be over powering and beans very from year to year and bean to bean but I have no idea. Im adding 1-2 beans to my secondary after soaking them in vodka over night but thats just my plan.

An IPA is an odd choice for vanilla, since hops should be the dominant flavor. You should aim to add vanilla to a sweeter, maltier beer.

What Cheese said. Of all the beers to add vanilla to, IPA ranks down on the bottom of the list...right around rauchbier and geuze. Save those beans, dude...they're not cheap. At $10/ea or so, that's $30!!! Most of my beers don't cost $30 total to make!

Make a big old stout or a winter ale, and add them to the secondary. You can sanitize them by soaking them in bourbon and adding the whole mix, bourbon and all, to the secondary. Oak chips/cubes will also complement vanilla. See Dominion's Oak Barrel Stout.

but for the love of pete, don't waste those expensive beans in an IPA. If you really wanna try adding vanilla flavor to your IPA, then by all means, do what you want...but start with all-natural extract, so you're not breaking the bank on what could be an awful beer...

Agreed vanilla & IPA is an odd pairing....I would dose a small test batch first before committing it to a full 5 gal.

Put a drop of real vanilla extract in an IPA. Drink 6 IPAs this way. If you can't wait to drink another 6 with vanilla in them, rush out and make your vanilla IPA.

Try my Vanilla Caramel Cream ale. It's the most popular vanilla recipe on the board.

OK....I'm convinced. I'll wait to brew a the carmel ale. It looks like I'll be waiting awhile, that seems just a little more advanced than my experience will allow.

Just how long will these beans keep anyway?

I store mine in a empty yeast tube in the fridge. They will last months that way