Bourbon Cherry Chocolate Stout

[Markrogo]

I am making a Cherry Chocolate Irish Stout (in the fermenter for 2 weeks now). MY question is, can I add a few ounces of bourbon to the brew now or is it too late? I am going for a pseudo Goose Island Bourbon County with the addition of a light cherry flavor. Also, for a 5 1/2 gallon batch, what is the right amount to add and how long before kegging should I add it.

Thanks for any help,

Mark

 

[JLeuck64]

It's most likely not to late at all. For sure wait until it is done fermenting, then add in your Bourbon. I've made a LOT of Russian Imperial Stouts and added bourbon to them all. Here's what I experienced. You can start with 4 oz and let it sit for a couple of days then pull a sample with the siphon and taste. I added another 4oz (8oz total) and let it sit for another 3 days. It will really smell like bourbon when you open up the fermentor to pull a sample, but in my experience after you bottle it the bourbon will mellow.

I soak my bourbon in oak chips for several weeks before I add it to a brew. Early on I thought about 10oz was just right but it would mellow so much by the time I finished the last bottle that I just started adding 1/2 bottle bourbon per batch. That's just me... when I try commercial beers that have been bourbon barrell aged that is the intensity I pick up so I try to mimic it in my own brews.

It's really fun to experiment with this over several brews! You can tell your buddy's "Hey I aged this in some old whisky barrels" They will say... Whoa! I can taste it! LOL

 

[Markrogo]

TX JLeuck64! Does it matter the quality of the bourbon or will a cheaper bourbon do the trick?

 

[JLeuck64]

I have only used Buffalo Trace per a recommendation, it's not too bad by itself as far as Bourbons go... Haven't tried anything else yet but don't really feel like throwing cheap stuff in my RIS ( ;

 

[daksin]

You'll taste it, so don't use anything you wouldn't drink, but don't use really expensive stuff either- you're going to be hard pressed to pick out the finer points of a hundred dollar when it's diluted in 5 gallons of chocolate cherries.