GF Cocoa-Brown Ale

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MariposaSouth

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Here's my most recent GF Brew, just bottled last night.
But first, a question: I've noticed most posters in this forum post recipes in threads within the forum, instead of the recipes database... Why is that?

3.3# Sorghum Syrup
.64# Buckwheat, Dry-Toasted
.53# Quinoa Malt
.50# Oats (GF, Steel-Cut)
.47# Buckwheat, Roasted (100-ish SRM)
.47# Amaranth, Roasted (100-ish SRM)
.27# Millet
.25# Buckwheat, Wet-Toasted
.25# GF Rolled Oats
2 TBSP Cocoa Nibs, mash
7 grams Gypsum, mash
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.25oz Galena 12.9% AA - 62min
.75oz Strisselspalt 2% AA - 31min
.26oz EK Goldings 5%AA - 14min
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1tsp Cardamom (5min)
2 TBSP Chicory Root, Roasted (5min)
2 TBSP Cocoa Nibs, Light Roasted (5min)
2 TBSP Cocoa Nibs, Dark Roasted (5min)
5.1oz MaltoDex
.33# Blackstrap Molasses
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Lallemand Nottingham Yeast

Procedure: Pre-brew: toast/roast grain a week out, waft in paper bag, then crush. Brew: Grains should be protein-rested... Mashed grains (I did this at 156 which is not enough to gelatinize - BW, millet, and amaranth should be held over 158 (at least 10 minutes?) before adding to other grains and adding enzymes) @ 156. Boiled for 62 minutes, boiling hops and adjuncts for the times specified above.

Notes: Amaranth provided a very nutty and roasty flavor, wish I would have used more. Initial tastes (at bottling): Chocolate in aroma (more) and flavor (less). Sorghum twang distracts a bit from style, hop flavor too present for style, but I expect it to fade w/age. Would have liked to roast some grains darker for a darker beer.

Vitals:
Size: 4.2G
OG: 1.054
FG: 1.010
ABV: 5.7%
IBU: 20.8
SRM: 16.9
 
Looks good! I'm planning on trying lcasanova's brown ale next with a few changes. Are you familiar with his recipe? B/C I'm still figuring this stuff out, why did you use so many grains? and what is gypsum?
 
Thanks! Gypsum is calcium sulfite, used to harden your water and often appears in british-style ales. It also lowers mash pH, so I always use either that or Mash 5.4, but not both.
I haven't seen lcasanova's brown ale, but I'll check it out.
Why so many grains? Well at this point I'm still doing a lot of experimenting, plus I steal my wife partially-used GF grains from the pantry :) (just kidding I ask 1st)
If I wasn't experimenting so much, I probably settle on about 50% base malt, and I'd likely use quinoa. Then I'd use about 20% crystal, probably quinoa again. I'd keep the oats. For this recipe I think the roasted amaranth and buckwheat were very important to darken it up and add depth to the flavor profile. Something toasted and nutty is also always a good idea for browns. But the more gains the better (quantity-wise), so your brown ale doesn't taste "citrussy", courtesy of the Sorghum.
 
I apologize I never followed through with this thread - I was fairly disappointed in this beer...
It doesn't taste much like a brown - the chocolate faded and the sorghum took over. I'd say in the future sorghum will not be welcome in any brown, porter, or stout I do.
Also, though the IBU calcs were low, the perceived bitterness is really high. Not sure why that is.
Oh well, my wife graciously likes it, and I'll be brewing her some other beer soon...
 

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