MapleGroveAleworks
Well-Known Member
Yep then convert that to tsp. Then once it's kegged and mixed up, you can taste and see where you need to go from there.
Death by Coconut Clone
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Yep then convert that to tsp. Then once it's kegged and mixed up, you can taste and see where you need to go from there.
Just an FYI on this beer, BYO magazine recently had a cover article on Oskar Blue's beers and had a recipe for Death by Coconut. I loaded the recipe into BeerSmith. See the attached file.
Sorry Ed! Weird that it did not come through as it's in my recipe in Beersmith. The coconut is 1.3 lbs, toasted, added to secondary for 4-7 days. The BYO recipe uses no nibs, instead it uses the Cholaca pure liquid cacao in secondary. I will have to double check the magazine to see if they use unsweetened, original or sweetened. Also I have 750 ml as the amount, or 25.36 ounces, let me check that too and I will get back to you.@jdauria . Thanks, but I didn't see any quantities/descriptions for the coconut (toasted, roasted, ?) or cacao (nibs, raw, roasted, ?) Was that missing in the original recipe? Ed
So i stand corrected, looking at the 12/17 BYO, it just says dry coconut, nothing about toasted, AFTER fermentation and after clarifying the beer by dropping to 32F. Bag the coconut and hold beer at 32F for a week.
As for the Cholaca liquid cacao, it is 750 mL, added same time as the coconut.
As for the Cholaca liquid cacao, it is 750 mL, added same time as the coconut.
Hi. Thanks for the clarification. Have you tried brewing that recipe yet? Like I said in my earlier post #28, I changed mine up and didn't use any "real" coconut for batch #2. It came out really good, and for batch #3, I'll go with the Apex Coconut chocolate extract and skip both the coconut and Cacao nibs additions. This beer is truly a dessert type beer, with a definite Mounds Bar "in your face" profile. I really enjoy one of these later in the evening, but I doubt I could drink more than one pint. Ed
I have not, but it's been on my to do list! I have another coconut porter I make that is great, though it's been a few years since I have brewed it. It's NoDa's (Charlotte NC) Coco Loco Porter. I tried their beer at a beer fest in Boston years back and tried to recreate it and emailed the owner a question and he was kind enough to send me his original home brew recipe, though he asked that I did not share on any forums (so check your private messages or conversations as they are called now!).
MapleGroveAleworks
Well-Known Member
Awesome to hear! Great looking pint too.
eustacesk
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So i just ordered the extracts from apex, but i didn't order the chocolate-coconut. I ordered chocolate and coconut separately. Should i use the full amount recommended for each one?? Or maybe start out with less chocolate? Never used extracts so a lil unsure
In my experience, I would start out with less coconut, if anything. The coconut is very pungent while chocolate blends in with the porter flavors a little more. I brew 3 gal batches of this and if:
.10% is the starting amount, so .001*5 gal =
.005 gal = .64 oz = 19 ml.
AND
3/5 = .6; so .6*19 ml = 11.4 ml for a 3 gal batch.
I personally use 10 ml of coconut and 10 ml of chocolate. My grain bill has some noticeable chocolate already in it. My first batch I used 12 ml of coconut on my first batch and it seemed to almost have an astringent finish that was not present in the base porter. I think 10 yields a very nice, quite coconut forward beer. Besides, you can ALWAYS add more, but can’t take it out. [emoji482]
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eustacesk
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For those that have used apex flavorings, which version of coconut did you use? I tried the toasted coconut version and get absolutely no coconut smell or flavor and the beer is just so so over all. I may have used too much, probably the higher side of their recommended volume.
Debating not going with shredded coconut and either using coconut flavored vodka, or trying Apex again. Either much less, or a different flavor, maybe regular coconut.
This is going in an oatmeal stout.
Thanks
Debating not going with shredded coconut and either using coconut flavored vodka, or trying Apex again. Either much less, or a different flavor, maybe regular coconut.
This is going in an oatmeal stout.
Thanks
Back in November 2019 I used the Apex/Silver Cloud Toasted Coconut flavoring in a Left Hand Milk Stout clone found on this site. It was extremely delicious, and one of the better beers I've brewed, (the recipe is excellent). I did a blind tasting with my version, Firestone Walker Coconut Merlin, and Maui Coconut Hiwa Porter. While I was able to correctly identify each one I remember mine holding up quite well against the other two commercial beers. Per my notes I used 2 1/2 TBS of the flavoring, and while it seemed a bit much at first, it rounded out very nicely after a couple weeks, and over the life of the keg.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/left-hand-milk-stout-clone.139820/post-8738355
I tried adding small amounts to water at a time and tasting it and I cannot get a good taste out of this stuff. Maybe a bad batch?
I may end up going with real coconut -- possibly added to my mash, and a ton (2-3 lbs) in the secondary. Going to toast and dab with paper towels to get rid of oils.
Also adding cacao nibs and vanilla beans.
I've seen some people that have added malibu/coconut vodka to their beer, but I really don't want to do this. I can't see it coming out good/non-chemical tasting.
I may end up going with real coconut -- possibly added to my mash, and a ton (2-3 lbs) in the secondary. Going to toast and dab with paper towels to get rid of oils.
Also adding cacao nibs and vanilla beans.
I've seen some people that have added malibu/coconut vodka to their beer, but I really don't want to do this. I can't see it coming out good/non-chemical tasting.
I wouldn't do the Malibu thing either. I never tried mixing the extract in water, maybe that's not a good test? All I can say is mine turned out really good. Definite real coconut flavor. I took some of the beer to a Christmas party and it got rave reviews, the growler didn't last long. It was also a hit at my homebrew club.
Talk of this has got me wanting to make it again. I probably will later this year.
I agree, water isn't probably a relevant test.
I am thinking that I possibly did not fully ferment and maybe the sugars are overpowering the coconut. For this next batch, maybe I'll try the real coconut and when I am kegging, if the coconut flavor isn't there, add some extract. Do you recall how much you used for 5g? Did you add a small portion at a time and taste, rinse and repeat?
I am thinking that I possibly did not fully ferment and maybe the sugars are overpowering the coconut. For this next batch, maybe I'll try the real coconut and when I am kegging, if the coconut flavor isn't there, add some extract. Do you recall how much you used for 5g? Did you add a small portion at a time and taste, rinse and repeat?
With some of the Apex flavorings a little can go a long way. The directions say to start with .1%. So 5 gallons is 640 oz and .1% of that is .64 oz, or 1.28 TBS. That's where I started, but I felt that wasn't enough. So I added that much more, a total of ~2.5 TBS. At that amount it was quite prevalent but not overbearing. Next time I think I'll dial it back to 2TBS or slightly less.
I also use their apricot flavoring in my apricot wheat. Apex recommends .2%, or twice as much as the coconut extract. IMO that's far too much. I used 3/4 of a tsp (teaspoon!!) and I think that's a bit too much.
I used around 2 oz (half the 4oz bottle) based on my calculation for a 5 g batch; I converted 5g to ml then multiplied that by 0.25% or whatever it is. I taste a slight chemically taste sometimes, but nothing that even slightly resembles coconut. I'm just going to dump it once my oatmeal stout needs keg space.
You did that alot easier than I did. I went the convert everything to liters and ml route and bought little 1, 2, 5, and 10 ml syringes used for dosing pet medicines to measure it out.
I have a toasted coconut from Apex I plan to make a coconut stout with at some point. I do 3 gallon batches and I would love to hear others experience here. My wife likes Death by Coconut.
The only Apex flavor I used so far was their maple flavor in a maple wine. One of our relatives gives us a gallon of real maple syrup every year for Christmas and we never use it all. We had a couple so last year being the fermenting fool I am, I fermented one in a 3 gallon batch. I treated it like a mead. After it fermented out I stabilized it with sorbate and added the maple flavor. Its like pancakes or waffles in a glass. One of the guys in my club said its an “acer”. Whatever that is. I never heard that before.
I have several other flavors from Apex on hand. Berry, Margarita, etc. I was planning to try to make seltzer. My original plan was to just dilute vodka with water to about 5% and use their flavor.
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Flavored liquers have sugar in them. What I thought was a brilliant idea turned into a bad batch I did in 2019 when I added Creme de Cocao to the secondary in a RIS. First, I added too much. Second, I didn’t let it sit long enough before I bottled it. Way way overcarbonated. I was really worried about bottle bombs and I ended up opening and pouring them all out.
Did you use any lactose in your recipe? Sweet stouts usually have lactose in them and I would probably add lactose to a sweet stout I was going to put coconut flavor in.
Yeah 1# of lactose
I've used Apex Flavorings for:
Coconut Milk Stout (used the Left Hand Milk Stout clone recipe)
Apricot Wheat
Pecan Porter
Lemon Drop Seltzer (NA)
Cranberry Seltzer (NA)
I've also bought these Apex flavors for future use:
Grapefruit - that I plan to eventually make a grapefruit ipa.
Cacao Nibs flavoring - for a future stout
Chocolate Cherry Custard - for a future dessert stout.
I've used the Apex coconut, peanut butter cup, and the oatmeal cookie (on tap now!). All good. The peanut butter cup beer is the best one of the bunch. I've made it a few times, and my neighbor raves it's better than Sweet Baby Jesus.
So I was messing around with some Apex flavors tonight. I took a milk stout that I brewed and added Apex Chocolate and Toasted Coconut flavors to a 12 oz glass. I went .3% of both which is at the top of what they recommend. I measured it out with my pet medicine syringes, works out to just a little over a ml each added to a 12 oz glass.
I’m going to say I agree I get only slight or mild coconut aroma and flavor at this level. It’s not as much as Death by Coconut. It is like a Mounds candy bar flavor somewhat. It’s always hard to get accurate measures with such small amounts though I do have a 1ml syringe.
I’d have to play some more and think if I’d want to go more on the toasted coconut flavor, maybe up to .4 or .5% before I made this batch.
As an aside I was playing with a couple other flavors in small samples of mead. Mixed Berry at 3% was not very noticible. Black Cherry at 3% had a great aroma but the flavor wasn’t there. I tried some of the spiced rum blend at 3% and that was overpowering, mostly cinnamon. I was thinking of using some of that in the Pirate Strong Ale recipe.
[edited for typos made on my tiny little iphone keyboard.]
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I may buy some regular stouts to experiment with it
For my upcoming batch, I am going to use probably 5 lbs of coconut in the secondary, and leave it in until I'm happy with it. Hoping for the best. I really want to find an extract solution as it would be so much easier. Thought Apex was the answer with my last batch
For my upcoming batch, I am going to use probably 5 lbs of coconut in the secondary, and leave it in until I'm happy with it. Hoping for the best. I really want to find an extract solution as it would be so much easier. Thought Apex was the answer with my last batch
Its not bad, just a matter of finding the right amount to use
Now my wife just tasted my beer with the 2 flavors at 3% each and says its plenty of coconut. She’s the one who drinks Death by Coconut.
My opinion of the three commercial commercial stout/porter beers I've tried: FW Coconut Merlin, Maui Coconut Hiwa Porter, and Oskar Blues Death by Coconut, I think DbC has the most prominent coconut flavor. I also think everybody's taste perception is different. Some flavors I can barely perceive my wife finds overpowering, and vice-versa.
*Hopefully you meant .3% and not 3%. As I mentioned I used ~.2%, and my entire kitchen had an very strong coconut smell for hours.
@BongoYodeler did you use the regular or toasted coconut flavoring?
Toasted. It had just recently been released around the time I brewed a Left Hand Milk Stout clone, late 2019. Perfect timing.
https://www.apexflavors.com/Beverag...vor-beer-spirits-alcoholic-beverages-TTB~3756
Yes. Missing decimal point
