Cocoa Nibs in the mash?

[TequilaMockingbird]

Hi,

Not sure if anyone has tried this, could not find this is another thread.

Looking to do a Triple chocolate imperial porter. I was thinking of milling cocoa nibs and adding them to the grain bill in the mash,

Will this produce any flavours, or do we think any flavours or aromas will disappear in the boil?

Just trying to think of lternatives to just putting them in for the last five minutes of the boil....

Thanks for any insight,

Paul

 

[Homercidal]

I think anything you do before the long boil is going to be wasted. Most people add chocolate very late in the boil or add it to the secondary, so the aroma and flavor is not stripped out.

I'd crush the nibs and add them to the secondary and let it rest for a week or two.

 

[revco]

I don't think there's any major issues with experimenting like this and it's been done before, even by commercial breweries, without disastrous results. Just remember that mashed/boiled cocoa nibs will impart their own bitterness, so you have to look at your hop bill and adjust accordingly. I don't know the IBU's of cocoa nibs, though.

I've personally only ever used alcohol-infused nibs in secondary and get great chocolate tones that way. I'm personally of the (albeit uneducated) opinion that you'll probably get a more sophisticated chocolate taste/aroma with infusion methods over boiling/mashing with chocolate, where a lot of the aroma could boil off.

 

[lalnx]

I do the nibs in a little vodka through fermentation (7-10 days) also. Then I pop the top of the bucket and throw the whole mess in there in a hop bag for another 7-10 days. Make sure your holding the bag over the bucket when you dump in the nibs...... not that I know any one who didn't.:cross: