caramel flavor comes from?

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ricksam

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Greetings fellow anti-teetotalers,

I recently very much enjoyed an IIPA that had a really nice, and pronounced, caramel finish to offset the hops and I am curious as to where this flavor comes from...is it a grain? The yeasties? Caramel syrup addition? I suppose I could threaten the brewmaster at the pub that either he tells me or else....
 
Thanks Yooper! I was also curious that if you tasted your brew prior to bottling and decided you wanted a little caramel taste, is it possible to condition with caramel syrup instead of sugar? I am guessing just like you might with maple syrup?
 
Thanks Yooper! I was also curious that if you tasted your brew prior to bottling and decided you wanted a little caramel taste, is it possible to condition with caramel syrup instead of sugar? I am guessing just like you might with maple syrup?

I don't know. I would think some of those syrup flavors have preservatives that might interfere with the yeast and bottle carbonation. Or they might have sugar in them, and cause bottle bombs.
 
Ooooh...hadn't thought of that...the preservatives thing....good point.
 
In addition to caramel malts, you get some caramel flavor from the boil, particularly a long one, although that's more melanoidin/maillard reactions than actual caramelization. Although if you boil under the right conditions you can get some caramelization.
 
Ok, so as an extract brewer, can I, or do I get a large amount of caramel flavor from these grains during the steeping process? Or is the flavor more heavily imparted from the all-grain brewing process?
 
Ok, so as an extract brewer, can I, or do I get a large amount of caramel flavor from these grains during the steeping process? Or is the flavor more heavily imparted from the all-grain brewing process?

You can use crystal/caramel malts in the steep, and some beers (like American amber) will use up to 15% of those types of malts.
 
Say if I altered an extract kit by steeping more grains than what it calls for, like doubling the crystal malt, would I then need to alter the hop amounts to account for this addition?
 
Say if I altered an extract kit by steeping more grains than what it calls for, like doubling the crystal malt, would I then need to alter the hop amounts to account for this addition?

It would depend on your goals for the beer. If you wanted a sweeter beer and not offset it with bitterness, then more crystal would work nicely. But it really depends on the recipe as a whole.
 
As far as priming with caramel, amber candi syrup could be used for that. It's pricy, but it should be sterile and unlike caramelized table sugar it is close to 100% fermentable.
 
As far as choosing caramel malts, the caramel 40 to caramel 60 range will give you the flavor you're looking for. Kettle caramelization may also get you there.
 
Please explain "kettle caramelization"

another way of saying what Qhrumphf said
"In addition to caramel malts, you get some caramel flavor from the boil, particularly a long one, although that's more melanoidin/maillard reactions than actual caramelization. Although if you boil under the right conditions you can get some caramelization."

in the boil KETTLE
 
Apologies for reviving this old thread but this is one of the only posts on the topic of caramel in the finish or caramel aftertaste in a IIPA or IPA.

I don't believe it to be caramel malt mentioned in the first reply because that taste is a general malty sweetness. I don't believe it to be yeast since I've experienced it from beers by 3 different breweries and chance of them all using the same yeast is slim. One said they don't use any caramel malts. Another said they haven't done anything to create a caramel aftertaste on purpose. Another said all the flavour comes from the hops. With attention now on the hops, as an experiment I made a Citra hop tea and bam that was the taste! So I suppose this caramel aftertaste could be considered dankness? Lately I've been only using Citra in 80C whirlpool or in dry hop but I'm going to try using it earlier at flameout and even boil addition to see if I can create the hop tea caramel aftertaste in a beer.

FYI the 3 beers I tasted it in were:
  • Treehouse - Julius
  • Hill Farmstead - Society and Solitude #5
  • Bay State - Sinshine
If the OP returns to the forum I'd be interested in learning what beer they tasted it in.
 
My guess for this 2013 post, considering all the effort to combat oxidation of IPA’s in the last 5-10 years, is that it was a heavily oxidized IPA. The IPA of 2024 is drastically different than the IPA of 2013.
 
I made a Citra hop tea and bam that was the taste!
caramel aftertaste

I guess this goes to show that flavor experiences can be very hard to pin down. What @malhal experiences as caramel is really unexpected (to me, anyway) in hops. True, hops add complicated flavors including, in this case, something one person's palate registers as caramel.

In hops flavor descriptions, caramel or similar flavors aren't usually (ever?) mentioned.

types-of-hops-infographic.png
 
It'd be a significant defect if a "caramel" character was ever "found" in Julius.
I've not enjoyed either of the other two.

I go through a crap ton of Citra hops every year - just bought another two pounds last week - and I'd say it'd be extraordinary if a "caramel" character was ever the result of using Citra in a brew...

Cheers!
 
Yeah, I can pretty much guarantee that hops never give a "caramel" flavor. Especially Citra of all hops. The most common are citrus and tropical flavors, and I could also see floral and fruity, but... caramel?

That Vinepair chart is also bizarre how it has Centennial as MAX "citrus" but zero "piney." It's a lot less "citrusy" than Citra in my opinion, but they have them both as the same amount of citrus. I personally see Centennial as having a relatively strong pine character, followed by a grapefruit-like citrus character.
 
Unlikely to be oxidation in 2024, Julius has one of the lowest DO in the industry
I wasn’t completely clear. I meant the original beer this post referenced as likely oxidized. It’s speculation based on how much the hobby has evolved in 10+ years.

As for the beer you mentioned, I can’t comment. If it traveled from US to Scotland, I’d imagine there might be some aging present.
 
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