Basic Extract Stout?

This is the recipe I've been working on but I need some opinions.

Amount Item
5.00 lb Dark Dry Extract (17.5 SRM)
1.00 lb Barley, Flaked (1.7 SRM)
1.00 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)
0.75 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM)
0.50 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (60 min)

I'm not sure if I can drop the flaked barley since I have the Cara-Pils, any opinions?

Also the IBU is below style standard but it appears to be a pretty common amount of hops among the recipes I've seen. Any one have opinions on the hops?
I'm looking for something smooth, creamy, and fairly close to guinness but I'm not really looking for a clone, just somewhat of a jumping off point.

replace the dark extract w/ light extract. dark extract is just light extract w/ the specialty grains already added. i would also add and extra half oz hops at 60

Good to know.

Update:
5.00 lb Light Dry Extract (17.5 SRM)
1.00 lb Barley, Flaked (1.7 SRM)
1.00 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)
0.75 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM)
0.50 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)
1.5 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (60 min)


Do I need both flaked barley and cara-pils? I want the additional body but I don't know if both are really needed.

I think I'll remove the flaked barley and lower the Cara-Pils to .5 lbs.
Everything I've read indicates that the flaked barley would be pretty much useless if not used with a base grain due to enzyme requirements.

Also...Steeping the grains at 150 for 30 minutes should work right?

150-160F for 30 minutes should be fine. I personally would have more chocolate malt than roasted. the roasted barley will give a roasted or "burnt" flavour which IMO is more of a porter style. thats just my preference, tho.

I'm not 100% sure, but I would think the flaked barley would still add starches to your beer, making it smoother (like Guinness)... even without the enzymes.

If you mashed with 2-row, the enzymes would convert the starches into fermentable sugars giving you a higher OG. Since you are using extract, you could probably care less about this.

If I'm right... and please correct me if I'm wrong... I would say you probably don't need the carapils. The flaked barley should give your beer enough body for good head retention and give you the smoothness you are looking for.

Just my two cents.

Death Brewer,

Thanks for the advice on the roasted barley vs chocolate malt ratio.
I have been leaning towards a chocolate stout anyway so what would it hurt to change the ratio a bit.


ryanflc,

Thanks for the comments they are appreciated but I haven't gotten all my equipment to due a mash yet so I've been putting that off until then.
The cara-pils doesn't require a mash but should (I say should because I don't have the experience to back up the statement) give the needed body for the stout. I just don't want a watery stout...it would just ruin it for me regardless of flavor.

New Version:
5.00 lb Light Dry Extract (17.5 SRM)
1.00 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)
0.50 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM)
1.00 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)
1.5 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (60 min)

The EK Golding will lend to the malt character and make it more "chocolatey" so good call on the hops.

I'd say it looks like a good simple recipe. As for the Flaked barley, the whole "needs to be mashed" thing is kind of misunderstood. In my experience, you can still get alot of flavour and character from most of these grains and adjuncts without extracting the sugar.

Have you thought about using flaked oats to make it creamier? i think 0.5 - 1 lb of flaked oats will really help, even if it isn't mashed. it'll add body fo sho

sorry, don't mean to be making you change your recipe every 5 minutes...just throwing ideas out there.

btw...many books and websites will give you detailed information on grains which will help with your decisions on when and why to add them. Here's one i got from a quick google search:

http://www.brewingkb.com/articles/home-brewing-grains.html

you also might want to look into partial mashes. mashing is pretty much the same as steeping, just with extra malts that have the enzymes to extract the sugar...there was a recent thread that was great here: http://homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=41682

give it a read. hope this all helps and i'm not just rambling on...i broke into my irish red early :cross:

Honestly, I'm too new to this for so many options. I'm getting confused.

If you were doing a basic stout what would you use between flaked barley, flaked oat, or cara-pils. Maybe a combination?

flaked oats, straight up

Would that make it an oatmeal stout?
Not that I care but the line between a oatmeal stout and a dry stout isn't very clear to me.

Edit: What is the story with the white wheat in your oatmeal stout recipe?

it's not very clear to me either alot of imperial stouts use oatmeal...it's more for the creamy head and the body than for the taste itself

I'm not a big advocate of following style guidelines, but i do like to take a look at the styles to get a better understanding of what works. Here's the BJCP guidelines for stouts: http://www.bjcp.org/styles04/Category13.html

So you'd do something like this?

5.00 lb Light Dry Extract (17.5 SRM)
1.00 lb Flaked Oat
0.50 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM)
0.75 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)
1.5 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (60 min)

That looks great to me I made a Rye Stout that was similar.

I just brewed this one up yesterday:

I agree with DeathBrewer in that Oats will definitely give you a nice creamy Stout. I brewed an Oatmeal Stout once that was the smoothest beer I've ever made. I believe Flaked Barley will do the same thing, yet it would give a different flavor.

In my previous post I was saying that you need to mash to get extra fermentables. Since you are using extract for your fermentables, you do not need to mash anything. Steeping flaked barley or oats should still give you flavor and texture.

I use Carapils in most of my lighter brews to increase body and head retention, but I don't think it will give you the same texture that Oats or Flaked Barley would. I would recommend choosing either Oats or Flaked Barley and leaving out the carapils.

just brewed up an oatmeal stout last night.

i used...

6.6 lbs of dark malt extract (out of bulk so ended up using 2 cans) otherwise would have used 6lbs
1lb crystal 85
1lb oats
1/2 chocolate malt
1/4 lb black patent
1/4 lb carafa

1oz kent goldings
1oz fuggle (at 1 min)

OG was a little higher then expected but darn close!
put it on the cake from my Irish Red at 10:30 last night.
it was going when i woke up :rockin:

Moved the red to a secondary and it tastes gooood. Drank the whole sample for my gravity test.

nice, what yeast did you use?

I just used WLP004 an irish red and then used the yeast cake for a brown ale and now a stout

:rockin: