Chocolate Banana Weizenbock

[chucke]

Visiting Three Floyds a few years back, I had a Chocolate Banana Weizenbock. It was described as a “chocolate banana popsicle” beer. OK, some may think this sounds nasty, but I totally grooved on it. Different strokes-

The recipe below is an attempt to replicate the beer.

How does it look?
Will the amount of chocolate malt give a decent, but not overwhelming amount of chocolate flavor?
Any way to maximize banana flavor?
Did I pick a bad day to stop doing crack?

Type: All Grain
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Size: 6.34 gal
Boil Time: 60 min

Ingredients
Amount Item Type % or IBU
8.00 lb Wheat Malt, Ger (2.0 SRM) Grain 62.75 %
4.00 lb Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 31.37 %
0.50 lb Caramunich Malt (56.0 SRM) Grain 3.92 %
0.25 lb Chocolate Malt (450.0 SRM) Grain 1.96 %
1.50 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00 %] (60 min) Hops 18.4 IBU
0.25 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00 %] (15 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops -
1 Pkgs WLP300 slurry Yeast starter


Beer Profile
Est Original Gravity: 1.072 SG Measured Original Gravity: 1.010 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.018 SG Measured Final Gravity: 1.005 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 7.11 %
Bitterness: 18.4 IBU
Est Color: 18.3 SRM



Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Step Time Name Description Step Temp
60 min Mash In Add 18.73 qt of water at 164.2 F 154.0 F

Ferment @ 67 degrees

 

[Grizzlybrew]

How does it look?
Will the amount of chocolate malt give a decent, but not overwhelming amount of chocolate flavor?
Any way to maximize banana flavor?
Did I pick a bad day to stop doing crack?

I think it would be hard to get "overwhelming" chocolate from choc malt when you've got people brewing with cocoa, cocoa nibs, etc. In fact, I would even bump the chocolate up .25 lb. and drop the caramunich down .25 lb if not drop it completely.

Minimize the banana by fermenting as low as the yeast allows - in this case, 68 deg (68-72 optimum)

Isn't any day a bad day to quit crack...

 

[chucke]

Thanks.

So to maximize banana- ferment @ 72?

 

[Grizzlybrew]

... or higher... That, and add 5 lbs of banana puree to the secondary.

jk