Pumpkin Stout for wedding questions

[zsprowls]

Hi all,

My fiance and I have planned a fall wedding for October 2015. I am excited now, but I imagine at some point in September 2015 I will start freaking out.

Anyway, I want to brew a pumpkin stout for friends. I want to work on a 5 gallon batch and then eventually get the necessary tools to step it up to a bigger batch. I want to brew this a few times and try to nail a good recipe, but I was hoping for some pointers to start.

Here is what I have so far:

Steep:
-1/2 lb Chocolate Malt
-1/2 lb roasted barley
-1/2/ lb crystal malt (120)
-maybe throw some black paten in or roasted black barley? Either in addition to or in place of something here? I love how both tasted in some of my past stouts (or even carafaIII which was great in my black IPA and added less body which could be beneficial since the pumpkin will probably add a lot of body)

Boil (60 min):
-9lbs Plain Light DME (Munttons) (possibly 8 because of the brown sugar?)
-1lb brown sugar (maybe less... thoughts)
-75oz Libbys Pumpkin Pie Mix

Additions:
-60 min 1oz Northern Brewer Hops
-20 min 1.5 tbs Cinnamon
-20 min .5tbs nutmeg
-15 min 1oz Cascade Hops

I was thinking maybe toss in a pound of lactose at the 20 min mark?

Just FYI, I add things that need a good stir at 20 min instead of 15, because I put my wort chiller in at 15, and can never manage to get a good enough stir to fully dissolve everything if I put it in at 15 min.

Thanks in advance for any advice you are able to give!

 

[zsprowls]

I should better clarify that the beer is for the wedding reception hahaha not just giving you all random info about my life.

 

[broadbill]

I think most people would pass on this style of beer at your typical wedding.
First, most peoples idea of beer is the BMC....pumpkin stout? No way. However, you might have a family/circle of friends that just happen to be beer geeks.

Second, even if you do have a family/circle of friends that are beer geeks, this beer is so "niche" that it might not appeal to 2/3 of them on any given day. Yeah, it fits in with the season, but pumpkin in beer seems to be a divider instead of a uniter. People either really love it or really hate it. (Personally, I hate it-I avoid pumpkins beers like the plague). Plus, when I'm at a wedding I'm ready to party and celebrate....give me something light, refreshing, and quaffable. Pale ales, IPAs, cream ales, blond ales....these will appeal to the BMC crowd, too.

I often draw the comparison to music....at your wedding do you play what you like, or what everyone will like? You may like to hip-hop, but you play Van Morrison because that is what will get Aunt Mertle out on the dance floor.

 

[zsprowls]

I appreciate your input. That being said, everybody in my family, and most of the people in hers, are beer geeks (and whiskey geeks, but that's a different story...our families have been close forever because our grandfathers made whiskey together). Everybody (minus a few of the crazy aunts who don't drink) in our families love fall seasonals. So a pumpkin stout is a pretty safe bet haha.

 

[Zamial]

I started to reply to this thread last night but opted out. I brew at least 1 variety of pumpkin beer a year and sometimes 2. I have also sampled most commercial versions I can including stouts. IMHO the roasted barley destroys the delicate pumpkin flavor.

I am planning to revisit a roasted pumpkin seed stout this year and have already brewed up this years batch of pumpkin ale. Last year I did a Belgian Dark Strong with pumpkin and spice that is ready for this year.

I would recommend a pumpkin ale based on the Samhain recipe or the Thunderstruck recipe. They are both great reads and worth the time to search for. I use a Samhain varient.

Your current recipe has a few serious issues IMO.

Hi all,
Here is what I have so far:

Steep:
-1/2 lb Chocolate Malt I would pass on this.
-1/2 lb roasted barley
-1/2/ lb crystal malt (120) This will not help your beer and add prune burnt flavor.
-maybe throw some black paten in or roasted black barley? Yes I would recommend some debittered black patent to help the SRM. Either in addition to or in place of something here? I love how both tasted in some of my past stouts (or even carafaIII which was great in my black IPA and added less body which could be beneficial since the pumpkin will probably add a lot of body) Pumpkin adds very delicate light flavors and not much for body.

Boil (60 min):
-9lbs Plain Light DME (Munttons) (possibly 8 because of the brown sugar?)

-1lb brown sugar (maybe less... thoughts) This is going to dry the crap out of your beer. Use molassas, honey or maple syrup.

-75oz Libbys Pumpkin Pie Mix I would NOT recommend the pie mix as it has milk in it. Use canned Pumpkin.

Additions:
-60 min 1oz Northern Brewer Hops
-20 min 1.5 tbs Cinnamon
-20 min .5tbs nutmeg
-15 min 1oz Cascade Hops I would leave this out.

I was thinking maybe toss in a pound of lactose at the 20 min mark? Interesting idea I was kicking this idea around in my head but would prob try a smaller pilot batch with small amounts added to see what it will add/take.

GL

 

[Schemy]

Hey Zamial. In your experience, would you mash the pumpkin or actually add it to the boil. I made the NB pumpkin ale kit, with a mini mash, and I did the pumpkin in the mash. It came out really good. That being said, I haven't done one with pumpkin in the boil. Interested on your thoughts here.

 

[Zamial]

Hey Zamial. In your experience, would you mash the pumpkin or actually add it to the boil. I made the NB pumpkin ale kit, with a mini mash, and I did the pumpkin in the mash. It came out really good. That being said, I haven't done one with pumpkin in the boil. Interested on your thoughts here.

This year I did an extract variant and did add the pumpkin in with my first hop additions in the same bag. It looks like I got a lot of color out of the pumpkin and was able to easily remove the pulp with the hops. The samples have been promising. The beer still needs filtered and carbed up.

I am of the opinion that toasting canned pumpkin is a PITA and not worth the hassle, real pumpkin different story. The BIGGEST thing I have found is the yeast strain Denny's Fav 50 or bust...unless doing a Belgian.

 

[zsprowls]

I started to reply to this thread last night but opted out. I brew at least 1 variety of pumpkin beer a year and sometimes 2. I have also sampled most commercial versions I can including stouts. IMHO the roasted barley destroys the delicate pumpkin flavor.

I am planning to revisit a roasted pumpkin seed stout this year and have already brewed up this years batch of pumpkin ale. Last year I did a Belgian Dark Strong with pumpkin and spice that is ready for this year.

I would recommend a pumpkin ale based on the Samhain recipe or the Thunderstruck recipe. They are both great reads and worth the time to search for. I use a Samhain varient.

Your current recipe has a few serious issues IMO.



GL

Thanks for the critiques and ideas! I certainly think those are good ideas. I have never done a beer with pumpkin before, so I was more or less a shot in the dark, but I knew I would get some good pointers here.

Questions
-you said you would keep the chocolate and 120 out, and also said you didn't like roasted barley with the pumpkin. So do you have any other recommendations for grains other than the black patent? I just think the beer would be boring with a base malt and one grain, unless the pumpkin and spices will make up for it, but for some reason I still feel like one grain would make it kinda boring.

-how much molasses, honey, or maple syrup would you recommend?

-what are your thoughts on the amount for cinnamon and nutmeg I was planning?

-finally, what about vanilla? I always don't feel right about putting vanilla in a stout, but it seems like it could be a good idea with everything else in this one.

Thanks again!

 

[Zamial]

Thanks for the critiques and ideas!

NP!

Questions...

Answers:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f76/samhain-pumpkin-ale-140674/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f76/thunderstruck-pumpkin-ale-ag-extract-versions-26699/

The short answer is read through those threads. Reinventing a wheel is seldom fun. As I stated before I am from the Samhain camp. These recipes are both going to better than ANY commercial example I have EVER tried.

IMHO there is pumpkin ale and then there is a style that you try to force the pumpkin ale into, the latter seldom turns out well. I also do not want to seem like some sort of expert on the subject matter. The 2 threads I pointed out above have more than a face melting amount of GREAT info.

I hate to suggest things but if this were me I would look at a GREAT pumpkin ale and a GREAT smoked ale. I have not many whiskey drinkers that do not appreciate a great smoked ale. Smoked stout? Sounds awesome to me... I seem to get strange visions of "black and tan" styled drinks with the pumpkin on the bottom.

 

[Cider123]

When you look at these "pumpkin beer" recipes. It seems what flavor people really want is the pumpkin pie spice flavor. Maybe what you really want is the cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar/molasses flavor? I don't think the pumpkin really adds much flavor.

For that reason, I am looking this fall at a brown porter. It's a bit lighter than a stout and more malty than roasty. I am thinking of mashing with ground up gingerbread cookies and maybe a vanilla bean. I also like the idea of a graham cracker brown ale with some light spices added.