I once experimented adding vanilla extract to a porter at bottling time, and it was awfully darned good. I'd like to kick it up a notch using my pressure fermenter and fresh Madagascar vanilla beans. Would y'all wouldn't mind helping me decide on this new procedure?
I'm use a Fermzila, normally fermenting 1 week and then pushing to a keg. Either I add lengthwise-split beans when starting fermentation or afterwards when kegging.
If before:
1. Beans won't sit in the beer very long.
2. The beans wouldn't xfer to the keg.
3. Not much vanilla would leach into the beer, so maybe I'd need more beans? (I could offset some of this with a prior vodka extraction.)
4. Over time, vanilla flavor might diminish?*
5. Is it possible that the beans could interfere with fermentation?
If at kegging:
1. Simple...just drop beans into the keg with sanitizer, push out sanitizer into a storage keg, sterile beans remain behind awaiting fermenter xfer.
2. The beans would sit in the full keg until I finish drinking the keg.
3. The beans would have plenty of time to leach into the beer, thus never diminishing, getting ever stronger...possibly getting too strong?
4. With long-duration leaching, I'd need fewer beans.
I'm inclined to try the 2nd method, adding split beans to the keg. Because the beans would be sitting in 6.5% alcohol, flavor would steadily leach into the beer over time, and maybe only 3 or 4 beans wouldn't make the vanilla too strong. (One can never have too much vanilla, hehe.)
Thoughts?
* I've read of others having their vanilla flavor diminish over time as their beers age. I didn't experience this earlier with my 1 batch using vanilla extract at bottling time. An anomoly? Am I over-thinking this?
PS My beans are A grade, fresh from The Madagascar Vanilla Bean Company, $99/lb if anyone's shopping for the best beans at a great price.
I'm use a Fermzila, normally fermenting 1 week and then pushing to a keg. Either I add lengthwise-split beans when starting fermentation or afterwards when kegging.
If before:
1. Beans won't sit in the beer very long.
2. The beans wouldn't xfer to the keg.
3. Not much vanilla would leach into the beer, so maybe I'd need more beans? (I could offset some of this with a prior vodka extraction.)
4. Over time, vanilla flavor might diminish?*
5. Is it possible that the beans could interfere with fermentation?
If at kegging:
1. Simple...just drop beans into the keg with sanitizer, push out sanitizer into a storage keg, sterile beans remain behind awaiting fermenter xfer.
2. The beans would sit in the full keg until I finish drinking the keg.
3. The beans would have plenty of time to leach into the beer, thus never diminishing, getting ever stronger...possibly getting too strong?
4. With long-duration leaching, I'd need fewer beans.
I'm inclined to try the 2nd method, adding split beans to the keg. Because the beans would be sitting in 6.5% alcohol, flavor would steadily leach into the beer over time, and maybe only 3 or 4 beans wouldn't make the vanilla too strong. (One can never have too much vanilla, hehe.)
Thoughts?
* I've read of others having their vanilla flavor diminish over time as their beers age. I didn't experience this earlier with my 1 batch using vanilla extract at bottling time. An anomoly? Am I over-thinking this?
PS My beans are A grade, fresh from The Madagascar Vanilla Bean Company, $99/lb if anyone's shopping for the best beans at a great price.
