Homemade pale choclate malt, possible?

I was curious as to whether or not it would be possible to make my own Pale Chocolate Malt by oven roasting my own grain.

Can it be done?

If so, what grain do I use to begin with?

What temperature and how long would I roast the grain?

Would there be any special procedures to make Pale Chocolate Malt?

How long would the grain need to condition before it could be used?

Any information is greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

 

Making really dark malts at home is pretty close to impossible (too hard to get it even). I have long thought a hot air popcorn popper would be an option (works well for roasting coffee). Hope that helps, good luck.

 

Thanks for the info, anyone else have any suggestions?

 

I roast my own quite a lot. It isn't as hard as most folks think if you monitor it. What I do is to increase the temperature GRADUALLY and stir FREQUENTLY. Those 2 are really the keys to getting a good mix. Of course every grain won't be exactly like every other grain but it will be very close. I've made just about every combination you can from toasted to 500 SRM black malt and pretty much every color of crystal, as well.

For pale chocolate, use a shallow pan and spread the malt THINLY across the bottom. You're looking for no more than a grain or 2 high. Start with the oven about 350, stirring at 15 mins and increasing the temp to 400, stirring again at 15 mins, then again at 15 more mins, and then increasing the temp to 425. Keep an eye on it from here on in as it will change pretty quick. The longer it is in there, the more likely it will be to smoke so realize that you'll need ventilation, as well. And, from experience, I've never gotten plain malt to go much above 100 SRM without some smoke and you're looking to do 300ish. Crystal malts can take a little more time to smoke...

It shouldn't take too awfully long to achieve pale chocolate. Remember, though, you're looking at the inside of the malt grain, not the color on the outside. Have some good approximation of what you want the finished grain to look like. When it is CLOSE, go ahead and remove it from the oven. It will finish by itself, just like scrambled eggs, from the heat retained. And DO NOT put them into a container hot. It will increase the likelihood of sweating which will increase the likelihood of mold. And finally, I've never had any complaints about using FRESHLY toasted / darkened malts, contrary to what you find online so it is up to you if you want to put it into a paper bag for 2 weeks to "mellow" or not.

Hope this helps and good luck!