Brewing darker beers with corn roasted in a home coffee roaster?

[thedrunkdutchman]

Has anyone heard of brewing darker beers with corn roasted in a home coffee roaster? I've been rereading a book I have on colonial American brewing, and once again read about the use of corn in their brewing process. But this time as I was reading it, I was drinking a porter while reading. And that got me thinking, is it possible to make a darker beer using only corn and a light base malt with the diastatic power to convert the corn. My thought was to roast the corn in a coffee roaster. And after googling the subject, I came across articles saying that in some parts of the world they mix in corn in with the beans before roasting to extend their supply. Do you folks think that I'm crazy or do you think that this might be worth trying? I wouldn't necessarily try for porter or stout levels of dark, but maybe brown ale levels

 

[Abhishek Dewan]

A little amount of roasted grains go a long way, from giving hues of beautiful reds to dark chocolate. Since amount will be less, don’t worry about conversion as it won’t matter much in terms of gravity. So you can do step additions, incrementally, till you reach the desired colour you’re looking for.

 

[mashpaddled]

I haven't heard of it but it's an interesting idea. You would need to test out different types of corn and how to prepare it for roasting. Popcorn varieties will pop before they roast. Field corn may be hard and burn on the outside before developing color or roast internally. They may also be a nightmare on your mill if you further harden them with a dry roast.

 

[AmarikinBrew]

I haven't heard of it but it's an interesting idea. You would need to test out different types of corn and how to prepare it for roasting. Popcorn varieties will pop before they roast. Field corn may be hard and burn on the outside before developing color or roast internally. They may also be a nightmare on your mill if you further harden them with a dry roast.

Korean corn tea. They are whole kernal, a nice brown color and smell to high hella roasty corn. I think they are cooked, dried THEN roasted, so just find a way to bust them up, and throw'em in the mash. Get a 1 lb bag cheap.
Hmart if you've one nearby, hmart.com if not.
I been thinking of a CAP done with this, although I have not attempted this yet, so results UNKNOWN.

 

[cmac62]

I was wondering if roasting cracked corn would get to the in the inside better. I know its a cheep option for distillers, and I don't know why you couldn't use it is beer.

 

[AmarikinBrew]

I was wondering if roasting cracked corn would get to the in the inside better. I know its a cheep option for distillers, and I don't know why you couldn't use it is beer.

The thing about the Korean corn tea, it does not seem to have any oils on it or in it. So would not affect head retention.

 

[cmac62]

From what I could see on the internet they don't crack it, but steep the whole kernels and I doubt that would work with making beer. I wonder if you can toast some flacked corn in the oven and use that for color and flavor. With that you won't have to worry about cooking it prior to mashing. Just thoughts. :