Too Much Vanilla in my Porter

[jamursch]

I seem to have over vanilla'd my porter. Any suggestions for how to mellow it out? Here's what I was thinking my options are:

1. Brew another batch and blend the 2.
2. Buy some Oak Cubes and hope the oak flavor helps mellow it out
3. Time, but I've read vanilla is not a flavor that fades

Anyone have another suggestion or opinion on the 3 above?

 

[secondbase]

In my experience, vanilla fades rather quickly. I would let it condition a little longer, but if you're in a hurry you can always brew another batch and blend.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

Let it sit. It does fade and rather quickly. I have a VP in bottles now for 2 months and it is already fading. Try one a week until it's where you like it and drink a sixer a day until it's gone

 

[frettfreak]

How many vanilla sticks did you use? I used 3 in a porter i did and it was way too much. So i bought some light roasted whole bean coffee and threw 2 ounces in a hop bag and left it for 2 days (threw WHOLE BEANS not crushed at all). The roast from the coffee mellowed out the vanilla nicely and overall gave it a better flavor profile. The reason i use light roast VS a dark roast is acid content. I try to get a smooth bold coffee flavor but not a bitter coffee bite.

 

[jamursch]

How many vanilla sticks did you use? I used 3 in a porter i did and it was way too much. So i bought some light roasted whole bean coffee and threw 2 ounces in a hop bag and left it for 2 days (threw WHOLE BEANS not crushed at all). The roast from the coffee mellowed out the vanilla nicely and overall gave it a better flavor profile. The reason i use light roast VS a dark roast is acid content. I try to get a smooth bold coffee flavor but not a bitter coffee bite.

I actually used 1oz of pure vanilla extract instead of whole beans. All the information I found suggested 2 oz of extract for 5 gallons of beer, so I went half to be safe. I also added Chocolate & Maple Extract along with some cold brewed coffee, so adding more coffee is out of the question for sure.
Thanks for your advice.

 

[frettfreak]

Wow yeah 1 oz shouldnt have been THAT much. How much maple? I can never get the flavor i am looking for using extract.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

I used 4 vanilla beans split, chopped into 1 inch sections and soaked in vodka for 3 days. Poured the whole mixture into the fermenter after fermentation was complete and left it there for a week before bottling. Flavor was just right for my taste. And that is really the key - what is your taste. I've read of probably a dozen different methods using beans, extract or a combination by people who all had good results so there is no one correct or best way. Try some small batches until you find what works for you. Meanwhile, for this brew, you really don't have to add anything to mask the flavor. It will fade.

 

[jamursch]

Wow yeah 1 oz shouldnt have been THAT much. How much maple? I can never get the flavor i am looking for using extract.

1/2 oz Vanilla, 1 oz Maple, 1 oz Chocolate, 32 oz cold brewed coffee, and 8 oz Lactose into the secondary. I'd been testing the extracts in my coffee for a couple weeks to determine how strong and what flavors they would bring but the vanilla was last min and never tested that one. I originally was planning a Choc/PB Porter but didn't care for how the PB tasted so I went this route instead.