help with first AG recipe

[brewdude76]

This is my recipe for a nut brown ale. I am toasting the oats at 350 for 20 minutes 10 days before I brew. I know it's supposed to be 14 days but I am brewing on the 1st of August and forgot to do it. I want to use all UK ingredients. My cousin has not figured out the mash temps yet. Any suggestions, thoughts, criticisms?

Type: All Grain
Date: 6/11/2009
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewer: Mike
Boil Time: 60 min

8.00 lb Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 76.19 %
1.50 lb Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 14.29 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 4.76 %
0.30 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM) Grain 2.86 %
0.20 lb Chocolate Malt (450.0 SRM) Grain 1.90 %
1.00 oz Fuggles [4.00 %] (60 min) Hops 14.7 IBU
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [4.50 %] (15 min) Hops 8.2 IBU

 

[WorryWort]

I have never heard of a 14 day rule for toasting oats, nor can I possibly think of a reason why you would need to wait. Perhaps someone can comment on this?

Recipe looks good though!

I would mash around 154-5F. You want it to have some body and sweetness but not over the top.

Enjoy!

 

[niquejim]

IMHO you don't need the Roasted Barley. It puts you a little dark for style. But it's your beer, make what you like

 

[WorryWort]

IMHO you don't need the Roasted Barley. It puts you a little dark for style. But it's your beer, make what you like

That's what I though intially, but for a Southern English Brown it is appropriate and the SRM is within range. I tried it in BeerSmith.

 

[brewdude76]

They say you should toast oats 2 weeks ahead of time to avoid mallard reaction. Randy Mosher talks about the process in his book, Radical Brewing. The roasted barley is in a small enough amount to add nuttiness. I am hoping to get enough toasty flavors from the oats to balance the flavors from the two nutty components. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Yooper]

They say you should toast oats 2 weeks ahead of time to avoid mallard reaction. Randy Mosher talks about the process in his book, Radical Brewing. The roasted barley is in a small enough amount to add nuttiness. I am hoping to get enough toasty flavors from the oats to balance the flavors from the two nutty components. Thanks for the feedback.

I agree that ideally you'd toast and wait- but I've done it the same day when I forgot to do it in advance, with good results. I think it's because it's not a very large quantity.

 

[WorryWort]

They say you should toast oats 2 weeks ahead of time to avoid mallard reaction. Randy Mosher talks about the process in his book, Radical Brewing. The roasted barley is in a small enough amount to add nuttiness. I am hoping to get enough toasty flavors from the oats to balance the flavors from the two nutty components. Thanks for the feedback.

OK, never heard that. I'll try to find the book. But what do you mean by avoiding maillard reactions? (i know what they are, but avoiding them where/when?)

Toasting IS a maillard reaction. If you mean in the boil, I don't understand why waiting would affect it - of course letting them cool would, but that doesn't take 2 weeks!

Like I said, I'll try to find the book or research some more, but if you can enlighten me, or expand on that, it would be great!

 

[Edcculus]

I was kind of confused by that too WorryWort. I have heard of waiting 2 weeks for toasted grain, but I've never seen any documentation to back it up. I know for a fact you aren't AVOIDING Maillard Reactions since thats what toasting is accomplishing.

 

[brewdude76]

I read a post about waiting in a thread and someone posted a link to mailard reaction and I assumed that is what waiting helps avoid. Now that I know what it is, I realize I was wrong in my assumptions. Letting them sit is supposed to let the harsh, bitter flavors settle out.

 

[WorryWort]

I read a post about waiting in a thread and someone posted a link to mailard reaction and I assumed that is what waiting helps avoid. Now that I know what it is, I realize I was wrong in my assumptions. Letting them sit is supposed to let the harsh, bitter flavors settle out.

Oh I'm not saying it's wrong. I just don't understand why.

Maillard reactions happen everywhere in wierd and wild ways, and are contsantly studied by PhD's so I don't presume to know that much about them.

I'm just interested in the theory behind that claim, I didn't mean to sound dismissive - this brewing is complicated biznass!

 

[brewdude76]

The toasting temps for the oatmeal was way off. The only way 350 for 20 mins would work is if you turn every 5 minutes or so. Even than, they would probably get pretty dark. I looked at Radical Brewing and he recommends toasting at 300 until it smells like cookies. He claims that freshly toasted oats are too acrid to use fresh.

 

[brewdude76]

UPDATE: extrapolated the recipe to 10 gallons and reduced the oatmeal by a half lb. Tasted it after 15 days in primary, it's rough but good. Going to post the entire recipe after I bottle it and confirm it's worthy.