Briess Sorghum Extract

[LiverDance]

Just starting to work with this extract. Any tips or tricks to reduce extract twang with this?

 

[skleice]

From what I've seen the 2 answers are:

1) age
2) adding clarity ferm

If you scroll down a bit you'll come across some threads regarding this.

 

[glutarded-chris]

It has been a long time since I have used sorghum syrup. So there may be better resources.

Any advice I have is summarized in the second post of this thread:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/...e-buckwheat-water-from-previous-brews.563445/

In general my experience has been sorghum brews favor hop forward with citrus hops like Cascade or Amarillo that pair well with the sorghum twang. I personally did not favor the more noble hops like E.K Golding. I found it it was best to have some maltodextrin for mouthfeel and have a OG of about 1.060 for it not to be too thin tasting. Always steep a pound of something! Use a solid fermenting yeast like Safale US-05. Dry yeasts are often gluten free, but check! I personally have had good luck with Windsor yeast, but have had very bad experience with Nottingham yeast.

The real advice is just brew it and figure out what you like. Chances are anything you brew will be drinkable and better than anything you can buy unless you are in the pacific north west! Beware though, if you like what you brew, you will end up like most of us doing all grain! Might be more challenging from Nova Scotia, but once you start....

 

[skleice]

I personally have had good luck with Windsor yeast, but have had very bad experience with Nottingham yeast.

What kind of attenuation have you been seeing from Windsor? I was thinking about trying it, but wonder how it does with the GF wort. What flavors do you get from it?

 

[brewGF]

I will echo Chris, I have read many of his posts and he knows his craft.

I will suggest that there may be better yeast options than US05. I think the yeasts that leave something behind may cover the twang a bit. My go to is S04, if you like spicy the T56 works exceptionally well imo. I liked, and had no issues with Nottingham. I suspect there are lower attenuation yeasts that might cover the twang and provide a bit more body but I havent experimented with too many of them.

 

[glutarded-chris]

What kind of attenuation have you been seeing from Windsor? I was thinking about trying it, but wonder how it does with the GF wort. What flavors do you get from it?

First time I used Windsor it was with a Brewer's Best GF Ale Kit. I purchased the kit to support my LHBS and it changed my outlook for GF extract brewing. It used belgium candy syrup and maltodextrin as adjuncts and happened to use Windsor yeast. It was the best batch I had brewed up to that time. My LHBS has never carried Windsor yeast directly so I only used it a few times after that. For some reason the Brewer's Best kit finished high, but the few times I have used Windsor with all grain it finished about where US-05 finishes.

I am always tinkering and don't really have a good handle on tasting notes for the yeast. I just know the Windsor batches ended up good, so the Windsor could not have been a negative! Maybe it is one of the ones that pairs well with sorghum or all grain.

For some reason, Nottingham always gives me issues with final clearing. Never noticed anything negative with the taste, but it just seems to linger on during fermentation. Others seem not to have the same issues, so maybe I am doing something it does not like.

I have not experimented a lot with yeast for extract or for all grain. I think people are on to something going after yeast strains that pair well with sorghum! Might have to propagate some of the liquid yeasts away from their barley wart origins and dial in some good ones. I think Legume has done that. She might have some good advice. After a few trips to Portland and Seattle this year, I am going to start experimenting with different yeasts with my AG pale ale.

As always ... give it a go, brew it and post your results.

 

[brewGF]

On deck for me is a batch using Mangrove Jack M21. It may be a while, but I will report back with results.