Potatoes- your experiences

[nebben]

I made up a couple of experimental batches of potato beer the other day. Each 1G batch is just about settled down now and starting to clear.

I did roughly 1lb potato (one with sweet potato instead) +1.5lb 2row in each. Surprisingly, my mash sucked and I got very little sugars out of it and ended up putting in a cup of dme.

I haven't tasted it yet, but I'm anticipating a poor quality beer without even the hint of potato.

Have you ever tried such wackyness, and if so, what did you think?

 

[Synovia]

My guess is that potatoes don't convert at the same temp as grain.

 

[FromZwolle]

let the potatoes shrivel up a bit, so that they already begin to convert their own starches. then shred them up and boil for 45 min in a pressure cooker. strain the juice and add to fermenter. that's what's done for vodka anyway. i'm predicting some pretty funky tastes coming out, but sounds like a fun experiment.

 

[vtbeerman]

I made this a few months ago and it was great. Very orange and cloudy. It is based on BYO Editor Chris Colby's older Sweet Potato ESB recipe. I will definately make it again.

Recipe: Sweet Potato ESB
Style: Extra Special/Strong Bitter (English Pale Ale)
TYPE: All Grain

Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 7.50 gal
Estimated OG: 1.060 SG
Estimated Color: 11.4 SRM
Estimated IBU: 48.9 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
---
6 lbs Sweet Potato
10 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L
1.00 oz Goldings, B.C. [4.50 %] (Dry Hop 14 days)
1.00 oz Magnum [14.00 %] (60 min)
1.00 oz Goldings, B.C. [4.50 %] (15 min)
1.00 oz Goldings, B.C. [4.50 %] (0 min)
1 Pkgs White Labs #WLP002)

Mash @ 152

Notes:
---
Peel, cube and boil sweet potatoes. After 15 minutes, drain water and mash. Stir into dry, crushed grains and then add strike water.

 

[Beerrific]

I have done something similar to this, but using refined potato starch. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/spudweiser-171306/

Potato starch will actually gelatinize at around 140F, so at most normal conversion temps the starch is available to the enzymes. Now, when using whole, raw potatoes you might need to boil to release the starch.

The beer I made has 0 potato flavor. If I was to do it again, I would add the potato starch to the cold mash water before I heated it up as to have a better way to get rid of the clumps. This time I added straight to the mash and I was fight clumps of starch the entire time.

 

[fredthecat]

cool experiments, beeriffic, you said there is not much of a potato flavour? do you think the potato sugars dry out the beer like dextrose does, or how would you describe it?

 

[Beerrific]

cool experiments, beeriffic, you said there is not much of a potato flavour? do you think the potato sugars dry out the beer like dextrose does, or how would you describe it?

The beer did finish very dry but I mashed low. I think mash temperature has the most to do with it honestly. It will contribute fermentable sugar without much/any flavor. Similar to using rice or corn. In some of the reading it said that potatoes would be a more cost efficient source of sugar for the big breweries but they chose not to as to not have the "potato beer" stigma. If they used potatoes they could not still they "use the finest grain, hops, yeast, and water."

 

[fredthecat]

heh funny, i know what you mean about that "potato stigma" but the best and pretty much only noteworthy vodka ive ever had was potato vodka from poland.