Honey malt question.

[rcdirtbuggy]

I am going to be brewing a light ale today and i wanted to add some honey malt to the recipe, but I'm not sure how much too add. i purchased a 1/2 pound of the stuff and i think it would be ok to use all of it but i'm hesitant because the LHBS said that honey malt has a very prominant flavor. Heres the recipe:

6 lbs ultra light malt extract
8 oz Honey malt ?????????
8 oz crystal 15l
.5 oz cascade hops (60 min)
1 oz Cascade hops (1 min)

What do ya'll think??? any input is much appreciated. thank you.

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

I don't have any experience steeping honey malt. However, I've used honey malt in my last 3 or 4 beers and I like it a lot.

Though I can't help you with the issue of steeping, I will say that for a beer in the range of 1.055 SG, 2 pounds will give you a tasty but slightly exaggerated malt taste. I could imagine going up to 3 pounds for an intense brew meant to be way over the top. I love malty beers. But......

Since you're going for a lighter ale, I would hesitate to go over 1.25 pounds in a 5 gallon batch. I think a quarter to a half pound could be a surprisingly nice addition to a pilsner. I've added some to a hefeweizen and been surprised how much the malt shines through. A pound is a subtle addition. 2 pounds is a statement. 3 pounds would be over the top.

Sorry I can't be more precise, but I hope that helps

 

[rcdirtbuggy]

yeah, i also added it to my hefeweizen brew which i get to try tomorrow. i only added 3/4 of a pound to it and i'm hoping to get a nice subtle flavor from it. but i just wasn't sure how it would effect a light ale cause a light ale is very mild in flavor , color, and pretty much everything so i hope it will shine through in a nice way. thank you for your advice it was helpful.

 

[jpsloan]

I just recently steeped 1/2 Lb of honey malt in a wheat extract brew. It's still conditioning in the bottles, but in the bottling sample, I'd say that it wasn't quite enough to appear in the final taste. So, 1/2 Lb might be too subtle. 3/4 Lb is what I'll try next time, unless the flavor comes to the surface as the beer conditions.

 

[magno]

I used 2.2 lbs Honey Malt in a pale ale (see my recipe, its Livin Easy Summertime Pale Ale), and the flavor still wasnt as prominent as I had expected. I would say that you are safe bumping it up a bit.

- magno

 

[Reverend JC]

i use Honey malt frequently and i like it alot. I used it most recently in an APA (2lbs) and it lended a very subtle nice sweetness that worked very well with all of the hops.