Vanilla extract addition

Williams 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Z

zaprozdower

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 29, 2008
Messages
102
Reaction score
0
My next beer venture is a vanilla cream ale. The kit I'm buying is just a plain cream ale so I'm sprucing it up myself. Anyone have a good idea about the amount and time of addition for vanilla extract to get the best flavor?

And as a side note I have some left over whole magnum hops...what styles would magnum fit best in?
 
i dont know that it is good or bad, but this was a HUUUUGE hit on the forums a while back - look how many pages are in the thread.

It is a known Vanilla Creme Ale success.
Also i could be wrong, but even the recipe i gave is not a true creme but they use lactose to get that mouthfeel... i dont see how the above is very creamy but i am a rookie :)
 
I would suggest using vanilla beans over vanilla extract. The flavor comes out way better that way. You just split and scrape a couple of beans and add them to secondary.
 
Stupid question, but how much of a difference (in taste) is there between artificial vanilla extract and pure vanilla extract?
 
I added two 1 oz bottles of vanilla extract to the bottling bucket for about 2.5 gallons of porter. Everybody who has tasted it really likes it.

So, you can add a bottle to your beer, carefully stir it in a bit (no splashing or sloshing!), and taste a little. If not enough flavor, add another bottle. Rinse, repeat.
 
I make a vanilla coffee stout in which I use 4 oz. in the secondary. It is very subtle in the finished product, but the coffee flavor and dark malts keep it in the background. I'd start with 2 oz. with a lighter beer or it may over-power. You can always add a small amount to your glass when you drink it if you want it to be more noticeable.
 
If I cant find vanilla beans and have to use vanilla extract...does it matter as to if I add it to the end of the boil, the primary, or the secondary?
 
the recipe that i posted adds it to the primary (after boil and everything) and at bottling if i recall correctly. I know there is one at bottling
 
rtfick0 said:
I make a vanilla coffee stout in which I use 4 oz. in the secondary. It is very subtle in the finished product, but the coffee flavor and dark malts keep it in the background. I'd start with 2 oz. with a lighter beer or it may over-power. You can always add a small amount to your glass when you drink it if you want it to be more noticeable.
Click to expand...

Can you PM me that recipe?
 
I used beans once at the end of the boil and they didn't dissolve. I think you need alcohol to dissolve them. I could be wrong, but I had a lot of beans in my strained hops and BK.
 
rtfick0 said:
I used beans once at the end of the boil and they didn't dissolve. I think you need alcohol to dissolve them. I could be wrong, but I had a lot of beans in my strained hops and BK.
Click to expand...

So they general idea with the use of vanilla beans is to totally dissolve them? Is that possible? Seems like cellulose isn't something that likes to just fizzle away in a boil. I might be wrong, but I dont know if I can just find vanilla beans around anyway.
 
Not exactly sure with beer but I image it would be the same as with cooking. You will need to strain the beans out from the secondary. You don't want to use extract or VB's at a full boil as most of the favor will boil off. Only add to the cooled wort. The extract I would add to the primary but with full beans you would add to the secondary. The alcohol will leach out the flavor out of the beans.

Vanilla beans can be found at most specialty food markets. I know that Costco and Sams Club carry them.
 
Beernip said:
Not exactly sure with beer but I image it would be the same as with cooking. You will need to strain the beans out from the secondary. You don't want to use extract or VB's at a full boil as most of the favor will boil off. Only add to the cooled wort. The extract I would add to the primary but with full beans you would add to the secondary. The alcohol will leach out the flavor out of the beans.

Vanilla beans can be found at most specialty food markets. I know that Costco and Sams Club carry them.
Click to expand...

Hopefully Harris Teeter?

Anyways, does anyone know for sure that using vanilla beans tends to net a more quality vanilla beer than just throwing a couple of oz of extract in the primary? If not, probably not going to try to find them.
 
If using extract add it to the bottling bucket and syphon beer over it. If using real vanilla beans, cut, scrape, and add to the secondary, also syphoning over. :rockin:

When my brother-in-law did his vanilla porter her added real vanilla beans to the secondary, and left it there for two weeks. Then when he bottled he added 1/8 teaspoon to each bottle. Turned out super tasty, the racking with fresh had a great aroma, and the extract at bottling gave it a great mouth feel.
 
Holy crap, 2 vanilla beans at Harris Teeter costs 10 bucks! I hope two beans are enough to flavor 5 gallons of beer lol. I think maybe extract might be the way to go...
 
zaprozdower said:
Holy crap, 2 vanilla beans at Harris Teeter costs 10 bucks! I hope two beans are enough to flavor 5 gallons of beer lol. I think maybe extract might be the way to go...
Click to expand...

That is half the price of vanilla beans here. I bought 2 ounces of vanilla extract for $4 instead.
 
So I found some pure bourbon vanilla extract instead which I'm pretty happy with. Maybe vanilla beans for the next vanilla beer.

Would it work to make a vanilla amber ale? I dont see any recipes for something like that.
 
Apparently that isnt a valid question (or just uninteresting).

What hops might best compliment a vanilla flavored ale? I was thinking Williamette and maybe something else...
 
Alright so I came up with a recipe for a Vanilla Blonde Ale...what do you guys think?

Malt
4 Pounds light DME
1 Pound Vienna
1 Pound 2-row Caramel 10
.5 pounds Carapils

Hops
.5 oz Perle (60 min)
.5 oz Williamette (30 min)
.5 oz Williamette (10 min)

Yeast - WLP008 (East Coast)

2-3 oz Real bourbon vanilla extract
 
I asked a friend about the whole extract vs. bean issue (she's a chef who just opened her 2nd restaurant in San Fran) and she suggests that you use the beans via scraping like others have suggested. She also suggested that if you can get a hold of Mexican vanilla (comes in a huge bottle for like $10), try that. She said it is a little stronger than American extracts and is also smoother. I'm sorry I can't be much help
 
How is the Black Beauty Capper compared to the Red Emily capper? I'm just now switching to glass bottles w/caps and am looking at various ones on ebay. Or is it much preferred to get one of those standing ones?
 
zaprozdower said:
How is the Black Beauty Capper compared to the Red Emily capper? I'm just now switching to glass bottles w/caps and am looking at various ones on ebay. Or is it much preferred to get one of those standing ones?
Click to expand...

Personally Black Beauty to Red Emily eh Pick One! I Use a Red Emily and Been Capping For Over 6 Yrs with it! Never a Problem. The Bench Capers do make life Easier! If your using all the same bottle size you mine with the manual adjusting one but if your bottles are all different do with the automatic adjustment one! Just my 2 cents!
 

Similar threads

D
Vanilla Extract vs Flavoring
Replies
16
Views
2K
Davedrinksbeer
Davedrinksbeer
Architect-Dave
Leftover Magnum, Saaz, and Horizon hops
Replies
5
Views
691
pvtpublic
pvtpublic
paull
Cider Recipe Questions - new to Cidermaking
Replies
3
Views
2K
Raptor99
Raptor99
Clint Yeastwood
Can you Make a Really Good Lager with Corn?
Replies
15
Views
1K
DuncB
D
K
Old brew in keg, still safe/worth saving?
Replies
9
Views
459
barry.hastings
barry.hastings
Brewer's Friend 300

Latest posts

Back
Top