got a good one for you:
A few months back I attended a wedding of two beer fans, complete with brewery growler cap decorations, beer themed place-cards, and, pertinent to this thread, decorative pint glasses filled with 3 different colored malts (pale, amber and dark).
Several drinks in and with ancient brewing knowledge at my disposal, I got the great idea to craft up a "special wedding beer" for the couple (both big porter/ stout enthusiasts) using the very malt used in the decor, to be served at a gathering now 3 weeks away. Always up for a challenge, the malt came to me in a single 6 pound bag, all well-mixed together. From the bride I learned she ordered equal amounts of the 3 colors, though didnt know the exact grainbill. game on. by sight and taste I assumed 2# us 2 row, 2# c80/90, and 2# black patent..
So information in hand and against all common sense, I went ahead supplementing with an additional 12# 2 row (get the black malt down to 10% of weight) and brewed a 7.5 gal batch of what I aimed to be porter (1.054 OG/ 1.013 FG), bittered (37IBU) with some leftover chinook and columbus and pitched some harvested 1056.
the ferment went very smooth a week in now and hit terminal gravity at ~75% attenuation as planned, but as one might predict having used 2# of black malt, has an overly roasted, smoky, and light ashy finish.
Now to the point: has anyone tried doctoring up an overly roasty beer to smooth out the harsh? No time between now and the party to brew a milder batch and blend. My initial thought was turn it to a sweet/ milk porter with some lactose in the keg, but the bride is lactose intolerant, so that's a no-go. maltodextrin? double down on sweet smoke and add molasses? Intentionally oxidizing to round out the flavors? Good old fashioned time? Its not a bad beer and the flavors up front are actually quite nice, just a long light charcoal finish detracts from the overall impression.
a fun experiment, brewing blind and severely self-limited to ingredients on hand.
Cheers
A few months back I attended a wedding of two beer fans, complete with brewery growler cap decorations, beer themed place-cards, and, pertinent to this thread, decorative pint glasses filled with 3 different colored malts (pale, amber and dark).
Several drinks in and with ancient brewing knowledge at my disposal, I got the great idea to craft up a "special wedding beer" for the couple (both big porter/ stout enthusiasts) using the very malt used in the decor, to be served at a gathering now 3 weeks away. Always up for a challenge, the malt came to me in a single 6 pound bag, all well-mixed together. From the bride I learned she ordered equal amounts of the 3 colors, though didnt know the exact grainbill. game on. by sight and taste I assumed 2# us 2 row, 2# c80/90, and 2# black patent..
So information in hand and against all common sense, I went ahead supplementing with an additional 12# 2 row (get the black malt down to 10% of weight) and brewed a 7.5 gal batch of what I aimed to be porter (1.054 OG/ 1.013 FG), bittered (37IBU) with some leftover chinook and columbus and pitched some harvested 1056.
the ferment went very smooth a week in now and hit terminal gravity at ~75% attenuation as planned, but as one might predict having used 2# of black malt, has an overly roasted, smoky, and light ashy finish.
Now to the point: has anyone tried doctoring up an overly roasty beer to smooth out the harsh? No time between now and the party to brew a milder batch and blend. My initial thought was turn it to a sweet/ milk porter with some lactose in the keg, but the bride is lactose intolerant, so that's a no-go. maltodextrin? double down on sweet smoke and add molasses? Intentionally oxidizing to round out the flavors? Good old fashioned time? Its not a bad beer and the flavors up front are actually quite nice, just a long light charcoal finish detracts from the overall impression.
a fun experiment, brewing blind and severely self-limited to ingredients on hand.
Cheers
