Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer Chocolate Coffee Stout (Chocolate Jitterz)

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FermentEd

Owner, Co-Founder Pollyanna Brewing Company
Joined
Nov 4, 2005
Messages
142
Reaction score
5
Location
Lemont, IL
Recipe Type
All Grain
Yeast
WLP029
Yeast Starter
1.5 L
Batch Size (Gallons)
5
Original Gravity
1.072
Final Gravity
1.027
Boiling Time (Minutes)
60
IBU
21.0
Color
36.7
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
7 @ 68 Deg F
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
14 @ 68 Deg F
BTW, the chocolate flavor in this recipe is very evident. If you're looking for a "hint" of chocolate flavor you should scale back the nibs or use another method to attain what you're looking for. However, I've gotten alot of positive responses from this recipe. Cheers!

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Chocolate Coffee Stout (Chocolate Jitterz)
Brewer: FermentEd
Asst Brewer:
Style: Sweet Stout
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Size: 7.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.072 SG
Estimated Color: 36.7 SRM
Estimated IBU: 21.0 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
11.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 71.5 %
1.00 lb Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 6.5 %
1.00 lb Munich Malt (Dark) (20.0 SRM) Grain 6.5 %
0.75 lb Caraaroma (130.0 SRM) Grain 4.9 %
0.44 lb Carafa III (525.0 SRM) Grain 2.9 %
0.44 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 2.9 %
1.02 oz Tettnang [4.30%] (60 min) Hops 14.1 IBU
1.02 oz Tettnang [4.30%] (30 min) Hops 10.9 IBU
0.25 oz Liberty [3.60%] (5 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep)Hops -
1.00 items Immersion Chiller (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1.00 items Servomyces Capsule (Boil 10.0 min) Misc
1.00 items Vanilla Bean (Secondary 2.0 weeks) Misc
1.00 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
8.00 oz Chocolate Nibs (Secondary 2.0 weeks) Misc
20.00 oz Cold Brewed Coffee (Bottling 1.0 hours) Misc
0.75 lb Milk Sugar (Lactose) (0.0 SRM) Sugar 4.9 %
9.00 gal Chicago, IL Water
1 Pkgs German Ale/Kolsch (White Labs #WLP029) [StYeast-Ale


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Full Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 14.63 lb
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temp Step Time
Mash In Add 18.29 qt of water at 167.7 F 152.0 F 60 min


Notes:
------
1. Add 1 vanilla bean to secondary at transfer and age for two weeks.
2. Add 8 oz. Chocolate Nibs to secondary fermenter at transfer and age for two weeks.
3. Add 24 oz. of Cold Brewed Coffee at kegging. Use course ground coffee steeped in 24 oz. of filtered room temperature water overnight. Use twice as much coffee grounds as you would for regular brewed. Strain through paper filter before adding to keg.
 
Can I get a copy of the BeerSmith file on this? I'm feeling lazy and don't want to go thru all the work of puting all the info in there. :mug:
 
Where do you find chocolate nibs/what are they? Can this be replaced by unsweetened coco powder, or do you need the nibs to get the chocolate flavor to come through?
 
z987k said:
Where do you find chocolate nibs/what are they? Can this be replaced by unsweetened coco powder, or do you need the nibs to get the chocolate flavor to come through?
You can order them from here:
http://www.thespicehouse.com/spices/roasted-cacao-nibs

I've only brewed this with nibs in the secondary fermenter (like dry hopping) and I like the result, so I haven't tried any other method.
 
Just picked up the grain bill for this one. Sounds like it will make a great holiday beer. I'm looking forward to it. Thanks for the recipe! I'll let you know how it turns out.
 
Just picked up the grain bill for this one. Sounds like it will make a great holiday beer. I'm looking forward to it. Thanks for the recipe! I'll let you know how it turns out.
Thanks! Hope you enjoy it. Remember to add the lactose no later than 15 minutes prior to flame out.
 
I'll make sure to do that. How does it effect if it were added earlier or later? Just curious.
It doesn't make any difference if you add it earlier. You need to boil it at least 15 minutes to sanitize it. The reason I mention this at all is because of the way the Beersmith printout appears in my original post. If someone hasn't used lactose before they may not realize it needs to be part of the boil.

BTW, I've also brewed this recipe without the coffee. Some of my non-coffee drinking friends prefer it that way.
 
It doesn't make any difference if you add it earlier. You need to boil it at least 15 minutes to sanitize it. The reason I mention this at all is because of the way the Beersmith printout appears in my original post. If someone hasn't used lactose before they may not realize it needs to be part of the boil.

BTW, I've also brewed this recipe without the coffee. Some of my non-coffee drinking friends prefer it that way.



Good to know.
Hey anyone have a pic of this brew? I ask because mine is now in 2ndary and it looks and tates good its just that its a little lighter than I expected. I mean its stout-ish but more very dark brown-black instead of just black. Just curious
 
Good to know.
Hey anyone have a pic of this brew? I ask because mine is now in 2ndary and it looks and tates good its just that its a little lighter than I expected. I mean its stout-ish but more very dark brown-black instead of just black. Just curious
As funny as this sounds, I've never taken a picture of any of my brews. But you are right in that it has always turned out dark brown, not black.
 
As funny as this sounds, I've never taken a picture of any of my brews. But you are right in that it has always turned out dark brown, not black.

Good to know Im on track.
You know I have never taken a pic of any of my beers either. Not even any of my beer related projects. I should take one of this beer cuz it was my first time using my new ferm chiller. Worked great.
FYI, as an experiment I made 3 gallons of a "small beer" from the mash of this one. I just sparged off 4 more gallons, boiled for an hour with an oz of Fugles. Ended up with a really mellow tasting, light bodied, nut-ish brown ale. It nice, :mug:
 
Is the coffee flavor strong in this one? I'm curious on the methodology of the cold brewed coffee, too.
I've made a Highland Gaelic Ale Clone that's in the fermenter and I'm thinking I might add a small amount of coffee flavor to it. It's 4.8% abv and about 30 IBUs. Do you think this would be a wise addition or a poor choice?
 
Is the coffee flavor strong in this one? I'm curious on the methodology of the cold brewed coffee, too.
I've made a Highland Gaelic Ale Clone that's in the fermenter and I'm thinking I might add a small amount of coffee flavor to it. It's 4.8% abv and about 30 IBUs. Do you think this would be a wise addition or a poor choice?
I couldn't say without tasting it. I would take a small sample (say 8 oz.) of the beer and then add coffee to the sample a quarter ounce increments and taste in between in order to "sneak up" on it. Use the final ratio of coffee to beer for bottling/kegging.
 
I couldn't say without tasting it. I would take a small sample (say 8 oz.) of the beer and then add coffee to the sample a quarter ounce increments and taste in between in order to "sneak up" on it. Use the final ratio of coffee to beer for bottling/kegging.

Mine is a little over 3 weeks in the bottle. Upon tasting the chocolate dominates, then the coffee. Its not over done though. The flavors all really meld well together. Its a really beer. Had some family try it yesterday and all thumbs up. Even among the BMC crowd.
 
It's a non-fermentable sugar used in sweet stouts for sweetness and body.
 
Bottled yesterday and the small taste I had was fantastic.

I deviated slightly from the recipe as published, I used all willamette hops and about 6-7 vanilla beans.

This is definitely going to be brewed again:mug:
 
My god does this sound good. What would be the closest commercial beer to this to try? Youngs Dble Choc?
Personally I've not run across any commercial beer close to this. No doubt there are similar brews out there. I just don't know where to tell you to look.
 
Bottled yesterday and the small taste I had was fantastic.

I deviated slightly from the recipe as published, I used all willamette hops and about 6-7 vanilla beans.

This is definitely going to be brewed again:mug:
Glad you like it. I do a similar version of this without the coffee and increase the vanilla as well.
 
Bottled yesterday and the small taste I had was fantastic.

I deviated slightly from the recipe as published, I used all willamette hops and about 6-7 vanilla beans.

This is definitely going to be brewed again:mug:

Holy beans, brewman! That's a lot of vanilla lol.

Requesting a picture of this beer. Sounds good to brew, but I'm still a little weary.
 
Anyone aged this one? If not I recommend it. I have a few bottles laying around and it is so good after about 3 months! It smooths out a lot and the flavors sort of get along better. I'm sad I don't have much left.
 
Good to know.
Hey anyone have a pic of this brew? I ask because mine is now in 2ndary and it looks and tates good its just that its a little lighter than I expected. I mean its stout-ish but more very dark brown-black instead of just black. Just curious

I'm not typically one to nitpick style guidelines, but this recipe really looks more like a chocolate coffee porter than a stout to me. It has some dark malts but no heavily roasted grains (except for the carafa which has had it's "roast" character removed). To me, that makes this a porter, and it may be why it's dark brown instead of black. That said, this looks like a good beer either way. cheers!
 
I think this will be my next brew for February. I'm a little scared of the Kolsch yeast for this style so I've decided to go with Wyeast 1099 of which I will have a few mason jars. According to Wyeast, it's suppose to do well for a sweet stout. Due to the lower attenuation of this particular strand, I will skip the lactose. The predicted final gravity without the lactose is 1.021 to 1.024 which is sweet enough for my taste.

I have a question regarding the vanilla bean and the coffee. Is there anything special you do to the vanilla bean (like opening up to get the seeds out) or any special sanitary steps to reduce chances of infection? Or do you just dump the whole dried bean in the beer as is? And same for the coffee. Do you boil it before adding to the beer or do you add it cold? Thanks in advanced.
 
Hey Mithion,

What I did and what seems like the consensus was cold brew the coffee which in my case was to take some coffee (ground to size for a french press) put it in my french press, add cold water and put it in the fridge overnight. Then I pressed it and added it.

For the vanilla beans I think it is pretty important that you slice them open and scrape (and add) the insides. I also added the bean bits in addition to the guts. For sanitizing the beans I used some vodka (which I made into a white russian.)

Hope this helps.

Cheers!
 
I've brewed this beer many times and there is no reason to be concerned about using the Kolsch yeast. However, using the 1099 that you already have is a wise and frugal move.

I agree with groosh about the coffee. The key is to cold brew it. You can use a French press to filter it and then add it to the secondary. Boiling it will bring out a bitterness that you likely don't want.

I also agree about the vanilla bean, although you should only use enough vodka to aid in the extraction of the vanilla oils - say slightly more than enough to cover the bean pieces at the bottom of a shot glass. Too much vodka tends to add alcohol heat and dry this beer out. After all, it's a sweet stout.
 
I am doing an oatmeal stout tomorrow and I was thinking about tossing about 5 oz of ground coffee (in a bag) into the boil for the last 10 minutes. Is there a reason not to do this vs cold coffee in the secondary?
 
I am doing an oatmeal stout tomorrow and I was thinking about tossing about 5 oz of ground coffee (in a bag) into the boil for the last 10 minutes. Is there a reason not to do this vs cold coffee in the secondary?

Sheeldon - Please see the post just prior to yours.
 
Glad you like it. I do a similar version of this without the coffee and increase the vanilla as well.

Hey mate, this looks tasty!

I have a friend that asked if I could brew him an "extra porter"; hes all about the chocolate but hes not a fan of the coffee flavors. I suppose I was curious how the brew you made was without the coffee? I've been itching to use the chocolate nibs for some time. also, could I get away with tossing in some flaked oats? or would it be too creamy
 
Hey mate, this looks tasty!

I have a friend that asked if I could brew him an "extra porter"; hes all about the chocolate but hes not a fan of the coffee flavors. I suppose I was curious how the brew you made was without the coffee? I've been itching to use the chocolate nibs for some time. also, could I get away with tossing in some flaked oats? or would it be too creamy

I've probably brewed this recipe more often without the coffee because both coffee drinkers and non-coffee drinkers love it that way. It should work well in your porter too, along with the oats. If you want to add another dimension, use toasted oats instead.
 
Fermented, What kind of coffee did you use and adding the coffee to bottling, did it not introduce contaminants because of the alcohol content?
 
Fermented, What kind of coffee did you use and adding the coffee to bottling, did it not introduce contaminants because of the alcohol content?
The first time I made this I used Dunkin Donuts coffee. After that I think I used 8 O'Clock. Both turned out well. I always tell people to use whatever coffee they like to drink, and that usually works.
No worries on adding cold brewed coffee. Sanitize everything you use to make it and you should be fine. You are adding 'contaminants' by using nibs and coffee but hey are low level and manageable, provided your sanitation has been good throughout the process. This beer does well aging for a month or so. It's at it's peak within the next three months and then slowly drops from there.
 
Oook, gotcha. I just finished a Brown ale, a coffee stout is next. I've been wanting to do something with coffee from a local roastery. I'll come back with updates - the recipe looks great.
 
I brewed a close variant of this: less spec grains, less nib, no vanilla, probably more effective coffee. My vanilla beans smelled like plastic, so I didn't use them. Half the bottles got "plain" ie no coffee, half got quite a bit of cold-brewed, pasteurized, coffee. I had some plain that isn't carbonated yet; wow, so balanced. The nibs are coming through great. I am letting these babies condition to even out all the flavors. Poised to be the best beer ive brewed to date! Only wish some of the grist was roasted barley, give the nibs a bit of a roasted edge without the coffee to make it more "stouty."
 
when did you add the coffee? I plan to bottle this beer when would be a good time to add the cofee?
 
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