Biscuit or Biscuit flavor?

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Tommish

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I had sort of a silly question, but I can't find an answer even after looking at the chart from the wiki.

Does the flavor of biscuit malt taste like biscuits from the U.S. or biscuits from the U.K. (what us colonials call cookies...)? :confused:

Either way, I think I want to try it in a near future recipe.
 
Definitely doesn't taste like cookies. :) You could think of it as slightly 'toasty' if that helps, but it's not quite accurate. If you could munch a few grains of biscuit malt or victory malt (they're the same thing) you could tell very easily what that flavour is.
 
I describe it as a nutty, bready flavor. I think you can distinctly taste it in Fat Tire, if you want a commercial example.
 
I have yet to taste Fat Tire. They don't sell it locally because of state laws (no beer above 3.2% may be sold cold). :( Guess I will either have to try making a clone or else take a road trip.
 
My husband always says the biscuit malt tastes "chewy" to him. He doesn't even know what malts I use, but if I use some biscuit malt, he'll say, "Oh, I like this beer. Did you use the chewy stuff?" I think Lil Sparky is closer, with the bready flavor, but that's my husband's perception.
 
Everyone's taste buds are different, but to me it tastes like a lightly "toasty" shortbread cookie...Kind of like if you heated up a lorna doone cookie in a dry cast iron pan of just a couple of minutes, not enough to brown it too much (if cookies had an srm. it would be one srm point more than it was out of the package) but just enough to have a maillard reaction happenning.
 
Tommish said:
I have yet to taste Fat Tire. They don't sell it locally because of state laws (no beer above 3.2% may be sold cold). :( Guess I will either have to try making a clone or else take a road trip.
Click to expand...

Man you need to made a habit of stocking up on good beer when your out of town. I know Tulsa liquor laws and there's no way to get good beer unless you brew your own or drive to Missouri.
 
Tommish said:
I have yet to taste Fat Tire. They don't sell it locally because of state laws (no beer above 3.2% may be sold cold). :( Guess I will either have to try making a clone or else take a road trip.
Click to expand...


what a ridiculous law. Sometimes I worry about the midwest...
 
If you want to taste it get some of the grains and eat a handful, that will give you an idea of the flavor. I personally love bisquite, you can also make a tea out of the grain and taste that, these are reasonable approximations of the flavor you will add. Of course mashing them with some 2 row will change the flavor profile a little, but if you are just using them as steeping grains, make tea and taste it or eat a handufl to get a good idea.

I love eating handfuls of specialty grains to get an idea of the flavor they will impart, my favorite to eat thus far is crystal 60 hands down.
 
Revvy said:
Everyone's taste buds are different, but to me it tastes like a lightly "toasty" shortbread cookie...Kind of like if you heated up a lorna doone cookie in a dry cast iron pan of just a couple of minutes, not enough to brown it too much (if cookies had an srm. it would be one srm point more than it was out of the package) but just enough to have a maillard reaction happenning.
Click to expand...

How much of a grain bill would you use to get this flavor in your opinion? Using Marris Otter as a base. I've got a cookie beer challenge that's been floating in my head.
 
PHBalanced said:
How much of a grain bill would you use to get this flavor in your opinion? Using Marris Otter as a base. I've got a cookie beer challenge that's been floating in my head.
Click to expand...

Holy threadbumping, I had to re-read the thread to figure out what you were talking about. LOL

I still haven't figured it out. But in my last Marris Otter/Biscuit iteration I did this. Unfortunately since I can't drink for another few weeks I can't tell you how this tastes yet.

From my ginger snap brown ale thread.

Revvy said:
And I am done!!!!!

Got a late start, but everything went well.

Here's the final recipe I ended up with.

5 Gallons.

4# 4oz, Marris Otter
2# 4oz Crystal 60
1.25# Biscuit
3 ounces Flaked oats.
Mashed With.
2-14 ounce boxes Ginger Snaps (I used Kroger brand, but wanted to use Meijer's house brand. Find one that you like the flavor of. Or bake your own.)

Mashed 2.88 gallons @ 154 for 60 minutes.
Sparged 5.75 gallons @ 168

Pre-boil volume 6.5 gallons

1.2 ounces Fuggles @ 60
.64 ounces fuggles @ 15

1.55 OG.

There is definitely a bisquity, crackery/cookie smell to the wort with a definite hint of ginger snap (not just ginger, but baked cookie.) I may have over hopped a tad, but I've noticed that with fuggles, it's pretty overpowering in the wort, so I won't really know til I'm actually drinking it if the hops overpower everything.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for the info Revvy, I'll have to check out the other thread to get the full story. But I have to ask if you mashed the cookies just because you could or if they are really giving that much flavor. How did the wort taste?
 
Ive wanted to try some MO or victory malt in my IPA... It seems to missing something... the hops are on spot... but the malt seems a lil thin... It just needs a lil more "roundness" if ya'll know what i mean...
 

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