Chocolate Espresso Stout

[miatawnt2b]

my plan was to go to starbucks or panera or something and grab 4 cups of espresso there and add it to the secondary when I rack.
-J

 

[CBBaron]

When you say 4c espresso, does it mean 32 fl oz or does it mean 4 coffee cups or is it 4 shots of espresso.
4 cups is going to take quite a bit of brewing in most home espresso machines (4-8 pots) or about 16 double shots from Starbucks. The Starbucks route makes for an expensive batch of beer.
Still in 5gal that amount sounds about right.
Craig

 

[TUCK]

When you say 4c espresso, does it mean 32 fl oz or does it mean 4 coffee cups or is it 4 shots of espresso.
4 cups is going to take quite a bit of brewing in most home espresso machines (4-8 pots) or about 16 double shots from Starbucks. The Starbucks route makes for an expensive batch of beer.
Still in 5gal that amount sounds about right.
Craig

Yes 4 cups.

*What I did*

MY espresso maker has a small insert (for the prepackaged pods) , and a large insert for ground espresso beans.

I just filled it up with ground beans, let it go until my ramekin (probably around .5cup ) was full then poured it into a measuring cup, clean the insert, refill, etc.

It does take a while

However I like the go to starbucks deal, oooo maybe tell them to throw in some hazelnut or vanilla. Might be overkill but sounds interesting.

 

[z987k]

I ended up brewing a ChocEspressStout, but I kinda made my own recipe from what I have seen on here:

10.5lb 2-row
.5lb choc malt
1lb carafa III
1lb dark munich
1lb lactose
1oz tettnanger @ 4.3%60mins
1oz tettnanger @ 4.3%40mins
US-05
Racked to secondary on top of 8oz bakers chocolate and 2 cups of cold brewed coffee.
It's still in the secondary so I'll let you guys know

 

[miatawnt2b]

I was too looking into the possibility of using cold brewed coffee instead. From what I read there is no bitterness with cold brew and tends to be creamier. My only conscern was how much to use. Is cold brew more potent than espresso?
-J

 

[z987k]

from what I've read it's less potent and it doesn't extract any oils from the coffee.

 

[TUCK]

from what I've read it's less potent and it doesn't extract any oils from the coffee.

I concur

I would say start with 4 cups of cold brewed and go from there by tasting at every addition, personally 8 would probably be my max.

 

[TUCK]

Anyone sippin on this stout?? Its ok if you don't like it . It won't hurt my feelings-I have thick skin.

 

[miatawnt2b]

Mine is conditioning and carbing as we speak. Probably ready this weekend.
-J

 

[steve123]

Hmm never thought about brewing the coffee 1st then aging it, I've been on this Board for a day and I'm learning lots of stuff, can't wait to play with all of this.

And wow that looks like my kind of beer

 

[james3v1]

I modified this recipe to make a mocha stout, with cocoa and coffee, and a little higher gravity and light on the hops.

We drank the first few and it is wonderful and thick and lovely. I lightened the hops because my wife doesn't like hoppy beer--and she liked it, making the brew a complete success.

3 gallons distilled water with gypsum
Mash:
1 pound Muntons Roasted non-malted Black Barley (spilled a little—maybe 1-2 oz?)
1 # Dingeman’s Belgian Chocolate Malt
1 # Crystal Malt
At boil add:
6.6 # coopers dark Malt Extract
8 oz. cocoa powder (about ½ Hershey’s Dark)
Boil 70 minutes
1 oz Amarillo Hop Alpha 7.0% at 35 minutes
Add two more gallons distilled water after chilling
OG 1.053
2 pkg Safbrew T-58
Priming after fermentation with molasses instead of corn sugar. Final gravity 1.013.

I haven't taken the time to do more than estimate the ABV. We're really enjoying this one--I'll certainly make it again soon. Sorry I don't have all the software to look at the recipe that some of you have.

 

[z987k]

looks good, only 1 suggestion. There's no reason to use 2 packages of dry yeast, save yourself $1.50 or so and use the 2nd on the next brew.
% is 5.2

 

[Joker]

http://www.mtbrewing.com/calculator-abv-abw/

 

[TUCK]

I modified this recipe to make a mocha stout, with cocoa and coffee, and a little higher gravity and light on the hops.

We drank the first few and it is wonderful and thick and lovely. I lightened the hops because my wife doesn't like hoppy beer--and she liked it, making the brew a complete success.

3 gallons distilled water with gypsum
Mash:
1 pound Muntons Roasted non-malted Black Barley (spilled a little—maybe 1-2 oz?)
1 # Dingeman’s Belgian Chocolate Malt
1 # Crystal Malt
At boil add:
6.6 # coopers dark Malt Extract
8 oz. cocoa powder (about ½ Hershey’s Dark)
Boil 70 minutes
1 oz Amarillo Hop Alpha 7.0% at 35 minutes
Add two more gallons distilled water after chilling
OG 1.053
2 pkg Safbrew T-58
Priming after fermentation with molasses instead of corn sugar. Final gravity 1.013.

I haven't taken the time to do more than estimate the ABV. We're really enjoying this one--I'll certainly make it again soon. Sorry I don't have all the software to look at the recipe that some of you have.

NICE

Looks good bro, wish I could get my wife to drink a stout, however she does like Lefthand's Milk stout (5.2 abv) which is very light.

 

[miatawnt2b]

tapped it tonight. WOW! Tasty! Nice and thick/creamy. Beautiful color head. Great flavor, but a bit bitter, even with my 4 cups of coldbrew espresso. My only complaint is the bitterness that I think can be compensated with by using a bit of lactose in the secondary.

Cudos to Tuck! Did you come up with this recipe on your own? Great Job, and thank you for sharing!

-J

 

[TUCK]

tapped it tonight. WOW! Tasty! Nice and thick/creamy. Beautiful color head. Great flavor, but a bit bitter, even with my 4 cups of coldbrew espresso. My only complaint is the bitterness that I think can be compensated with by using a bit of lactose in the secondary.

Cudos to Tuck! Did you come up with this recipe on your own? Great Job, and thank you for sharing!

-J

Thank you very much.

Yes, one cold night last year my brother and I decided on this recipe as our annual brew for the holidays.

I am glad you like it, I think maybe with age the bitterness should mellow out either way I say modify it and make it your own creation.

HappyBrewin

 

[El_Borracho]

Uhm.. I want this in my fridge, now!

 

[Vagrant]

I'm brewing this tomorrow and had a few questions.

1) When would I add the brown sugar/molasses? Sounds like a lot of stuff to add when bottling, if that's the case. 1lb of brown sugar and 1lb of molasses alone sounds like a lot to add, but this is a pretty high SG anyway.

2) What temperature should I rest at?

3) Do I mash all the grains in the MLT, or do I steep some of them? Is there any disadvantage to mashing with all grains in the MLT?

I was inspired by Southern Tier Brewery's Chok-lat ( http://www.ratebeer.com/Ratings/Beer/Beer-Ratings.asp?BeerID=81812 ) which I tried in their taproom while I was on vacation in PA. It is an amazing substance. Not a session beer by any means. I came across this recipe and it seems over the top enough for me to want to try =)

Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[miatawnt2b]

I'm brewing this tomorrow and had a few questions.

1) When would I add the brown sugar/molasses? Sounds like a lot of stuff to add when bottling, if that's the case. 1lb of brown sugar and 1lb of molasses alone sounds like a lot to add, but this is a pretty high SG anyway.

2) What temperature should I rest at?

3) Do I mash all the grains in the MLT, or do I steep some of them? Is there any disadvantage to mashing with all grains in the MLT?

I was inspired by Southern Tier Brewery's Chok-lat ( http://www.ratebeer.com/Ratings/Beer/Beer-Ratings.asp?BeerID=81812 ) which I tried in their taproom while I was on vacation in PA. It is an amazing substance. Not a session beer by any means. I came across this recipe and it seems over the top enough for me to want to try =)

Anyone have any thoughts?

Add the sugars at the very end of the boil along with the cocoa. Here's a tip for the cocoa... at the beginning of the boil pull out about 2 cups of wort and emulsify the cocoa powder in that before adding at the end of the boil. This will keep the cocoa from clumping since the cocoa won't dissolve anyhow. You will mash all the grain together. I think mine was 152* for 1 hour, and has plenty of body.

This is seriously probably one of the best stouts I've ever had.

-J

 

[TUCK]

Add the sugars at the very end of the boil along with the cocoa. Here's a tip for the cocoa... at the beginning of the boil pull out about 2 cups of wort and emulsify the cocoa powder in that before adding at the end of the boil. This will keep the cocoa from clumping since the cocoa won't dissolve anyhow. You will mash all the grain together. I think mine was 152* for 1 hour, and has plenty of body.

This is seriously probably one of the best stouts I've ever had.
-J

I think a tear just dropped, thanks a lot man I am so glad you liked it.


By the way Nobes I would prime with DME, but I say try a few with molasses and see what the difference is

 

[Skunkyhops]

... My only complaint is the bitterness that I think can be compensated with by using a bit of lactose in the secondary.

-J

Im gonna brew this up in about a week or so and i was curious if anybody has tried adding a little bit of lactose to the beer as mentioned above? I was thinking about adding some to it but Im not sure how much to add or when to add it?

 

[miatawnt2b]

Im gonna brew this up in about a week or so and i was curious if anybody has tried adding a little bit of lactose to the beer as mentioned above? I was thinking about adding some to it but Im not sure how much to add or when to add it?

I had no problems adding it after it was kegged and carbonated. boil lactose in a cup or so of water, and dump it right in. This way you can taste it first and see what you like.
-J

 

[Skunkyhops]

Thanks a lot for the quik reply I cant wait to get this one brewin!

 

[Vagrant]

I just moved this over to a secondary after two weeks. I added 4 cups of brewed espresso. I took a sample to check on the hydrometer (and to taste) and this sample was amazing. I cant wait until this thing has been properly aged. I may have to brew another batch of it as my next batch. Even the wort sample I took for my SG tasted great. Tuck and his bro did a great job on this recipe. I was a little skeptical at first with how all the added sugars were going to pan out. I still have to wait until I get my hands on the finished product, but I can already get a feel of what I may need to add or subtract for the next go around.

If you're a fan of stouts, do yourself a favor and brew this epic ale.

I'll post once I bottle and it's been conditioned on how it turned out. I have high hopes.

 

[Aclay]

I have come up with a similar recipe before I saw this. The difference being I'm using 8 oz of semi-sweet bakers and 6 cups of espresso from a brazilian brand. I thought about priming this with molasses, but I like the idea of adding it to the boil. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[TUCK]

I have come up with a similar recipe before I saw this. The difference being I'm using 8 oz of semi-sweet bakers and 6 cups of espresso from a brazilian brand. I thought about priming this with molasses, but I like the idea of adding it to the boil. Thanks for the suggestion.

Hope it turns out great for you. I never thought about priming with molasses, thanks for the input

 

[eschatz]

that sounds really tasty!

 

[miatawnt2b]

I just brewed this for the third time Sunday. 5 gal goes so quickly. This will be my first time using chinook's though. I usually used nugget hops as chinooks are sometimes hard to find here.
-J

 

[oms1981]

this sounds fantastic, it is going to be my next brew for sure. I have a few questions about the recipe if anyone could help me out.

1. What type of molasses did you use? I have seen different grades (light, dark, blackstrap) and I read that lighter varieties are more fermentable while darker ones impart a stronger flavor.

2. How much DME for bottle conditioning? I usually use dextrose but I saw that DME is recommended for this. I think "joy of homebrewing" suggests 1 1/4 cups for 5 gallons. Would this give appropriate carbonation?

3. Any final say on cold brewed coffee vs actual espresso shots? I am a barista and I work on a $20,000 bar everyday so I have unlimited access to the best shots you can get basically. My main concern is the oil messing with head retention since I am not kegging yet. I know cold brew has much less oil.

Thanks for any help everyone

 

[miatawnt2b]

I use the cheapest molasses and brown sugar I can find at the grocery store. As for bottle conditioning, I have no idea. Kegging rules. I chose cold brew espresso beans myself because it was easier for me, and I had read it has the added benefit of less oil which is better for head retention, as well as less bitterness.

All I can say is that mine is AWESOME, and the head is thick and brown.

-J