Coffee in Beer, What to do? And not do?

[winstonofbeer]

I have decided to make a Porter on Friday.
Recipe is basically 2row, munich, choc malt,c-40 and some wheat.

I thought if i could hi-light the chocolate malt a bit and have a noticeable hint of a mocha or chocolate roast coffee it would work really well together.

I have read a little bit on using coffee in beer.
From what i have gotten from it, You always grind it... And there is 3 ways of using it. Boil, Cold Steep, Secondary.

So what are the pro's and con's on these?
What is your personal favorite way to use the coffee?
How much to use? 1oz or 1lb?
If grinding how fine do you set the grinder?
Any other advise would be awesome too



Another problem i am wondering about is hops.
I orginally thought about amarriilo and Tet. But i dont want the hops to overpower the coffee taste.
Does adding coffee to it change the amount of hops you need?

Thanks again for all your help.
I cant wait to make this beer. Its been over a month since i brewed.

 

[Walker]

I've only ever added coffee to one recipe, and I chose to do it at bottling time. I wanted as much coffee flavor as possible with as little added water as possible, so I brewed up a bunch of dark espresso and used it instead of water for my priming sugar.

I did not make any changes to hops or anything.

 

[DromJohn]

I had very good result brewing 15 shots of espresso and putting them on the bottom of the secondary.

 

[hibbleton]

I've added 4 oz of ground beans in a hop bag to an oatmeal stout in the secondary. It ended up being too powerful and I think next time I would cold steep the beans overnight then add to the primary after fermentation is complete.

 

[carnevoodoo]

I cold steep some coarsely ground coffee after fermentation is complete. Then, I take a sample of the beer and add a small amount at a time until I hit my desired levels of coffee. After that, it is just math. I also find that I reach what I think is a good level and scale back about 15-20%, just in case. You can always add more, but it is impossible to take out.

And since I keg, I just added it to the keg, but I would do this at bottling time. And I use the cold steep process because it is supposed to be less acrid, and I wanted a smooth coffee taste. Coffee does add bitterness, so you want to make sure you balance for that.

 

[Hang Glider]

I tossed in a half pound of French Roast Starbucks, coarsely ground, into the end of the boil, let it sit 20 minutes, then ran the wort through my chiller -
turned out very nice. Some say that method cuts down on head retention because it releases more oils, but it all looked/tasted good to me. I've only done it once, but I'll be doing it again soon!

My brother did the cold brew method - cold brewed coffee overnight, then added it to the wort just before bottling. That one was too mild at first, but turned out remarkably like a Pipeline Porter (Kona) after some nice aging.

 

[JOHN51277]

I have done it two ways. I have added straight beans to secondary, and have cold steeped coffee and added it to secondary. Both turned out very good. I do not like to hot steep the coffee as it seems to add bitterness which is not what I like. I think I used 2 ounces coarsly ground to 2 cups of cold water and it was perfect for a 5 gallon batch ot stout.

 

[Beer_Guy]

I make what I call a Cowboy Espresso for when I am out on the road.

After trying several different Coffee beans, I found the Starbucks Espresso to be the best. I can brew up a half pound to put in 6 half liter water bottles and it keeps for MONTHS without getting that old coffee taste. All the others begin tasting like old coffee after just a week or so.

I probably will never do a coffee beer, but I would recommend the Starbucks Espresso for those of you who do. (I have found it in beans and ground form.)

 

[alcibiades]

I have done it two ways. I have added straight beans to secondary, and have cold steeped coffee and added it to secondary. Both turned out very good. I do not like to hot steep the coffee as it seems to add bitterness which is not what I like. I think I used 2 ounces coarsly ground to 2 cups of cold water and it was perfect for a 5 gallon batch ot stout.

what about sanitation when using the cold steep method? Has anybody had any infections by just putting unsanitized cold steep coffee into secondary?

 

[carnevoodoo]

what about sanitation when using the cold steep method? Has anybody had any infections by just putting unsanitized cold steep coffee into secondary?

Nah. If you boil the water first and sanitize the vessel you're steeping in, you should be ok.

 

[Jewrican]

i was listening to Spike from Terrapin on a brewcast from the brewing network this morning and he was saying that he did lots of research as well before the wake n bake and decided that just adding the coffee to secondary and rack on top of it overnight (48 hours tops) was the best. he used about a third of a pound (i believe of coffee and his has a very pronounced coffee taste. It is not subtle.. it is there. Delicious though!!

 

[MistyMountainHops]

I added coffee to a porter once and I cold brewed it. I used the ratio of 1c of coffee for every 4 cups of water. So, I ground roughly a cup of coffee and poured the grounds directly into a pitcher. I added 4 cups of water and let it sit covered in the fridge for a min of 3 hrs, up to 12 hrs. I think mine actually went like 4 hrs. I then covered the top of a mason jar with cheese cloth and strained the potent coffee water in to the jar. I then added the strained coffee directly to the secondary and let it sit for about a week. The coffee flavor was exactly what I was going for. It wasn't too much, but you could def tell it was a "Coffee Porter." The one thing I will say is be careful when drinking them. One night I drank about 3 or 4 of them and was up until 3am wondering why the hell I was so wired when it finally dawned on me that I had been drinking coffee beer all night. Good luck!

 

[winstonofbeer]

I tossed in a half pound of French Roast Starbucks, coarsely ground, into the end of the boil, let it sit 20 minutes, then ran the wort through my chiller -
turned out very nice. Some say that method cuts down on head retention because it releases more oils, but it all looked/tasted good to me. I've only done it once, but I'll be doing it again soon!

I like this idea, Short simple and easy.

Do you have any idea for a 1/2 lb of coffee beans how many gallons u made?

I am assuming that if you put the coffee grounds in the kettle while its at a full boil, Even for 20 minutes at 200 degrees it might put off some bitterness and release some tannins.
I wonder if you put the coffee grounds in at 150ish and held it there for 20min and then fully chilled, How would it be any different then making coffee normally?

Or am i way off in my thinking? Or just do it, Take notes and call it a experimental beer and post results?

As for the head retention, If the oils are hurting that i could always double the wheat to make sure that its not effected. If i am wrong...Well it will be really a happy beer.


No matter what, It wants to be beer

 

[endless889]

i've done a breakfast stout that my friends rave about and i think it's my best recipe yet....the coffee flavor is definitely significant, but i love coffee. i added about 8 oz to the secondary and came out fine. i think the way to go is cold steeping or straight adding, but not brewing hot coffee and adding later. good luck and if anyone wants my recipe "early bird stout" let me know

 

[Jewrican]

keep in mind that when you boil the coffee or brew it you are extracting tannins and oils. The oils will kill or alter your head retention which is why cold brewing is more widely accepted.

Spike from Terrapin just racks on top for a day and then pulls the beer off the grinds.

 

[winstonofbeer]

Got done brewing the porter today.
Everything went great!!
Will post pics when it hits the glass in a couple weeks.
Thanks again for all your guys help.

 

[agroff383]

Nah. If you boil the water first and sanitize the vessel you're steeping in, you should be ok.

I did this with a pound of coarse ground sumatran starbucks in a sanitized ziploc container. boiled water and cooled it and added it to the coffee. then put it in the fridge for 3 days, and added to a robust porter at flameout. ridiculous coffee flavor. completely took over the brew. i love coffee so i didnt care. now its 6 months old and it has calmed down a bit. cold steeping is the way to go. and dont boil the coffee concentrate, i know i have read on here that it will dissapate the flavor and add harsh bitterness.

 

[agroff383]

I did this with a pound of coarse ground sumatran starbucks in a sanitized ziploc container. boiled water and cooled it and added it to the coffee. then put it in the fridge for 3 days, and added to a robust porter at flameout. ridiculous coffee flavor. completely took over the brew. i love coffee so i didnt care. now its 6 months old and it has calmed down a bit. cold steeping is the way to go. and dont boil the coffee concentrate, i know i have read on here that it will dissapate the flavor and add harsh bitterness.

forgot to add that i strained the grinds and just put the liquid in the boil.

 

[andrewp]

course grind the coffee and cold steep. thats what they do at big sky brewery for their caribou coffee.

 

[NBABUCKS1]

aren't there some concerns with sanitation when you add cold brew coffee or grinds post boil?

 

[winstonofbeer]

*update* Checked on brew this morning.. 1 is bubbling away like there is no tomorrow, The other lost the top of the airlock...grrrrrrr
So switched over to a blow off tube. Least it didnt make a big mess and i know since it is still producing c02 the chance for infected is nill.

What i ended up trying with the coffee is, I put 1/2lb coffee in the hop/strainer bag for 5 min. at temp 195-200. This is the temp according to a couple web sites i looked at what coffee makers heat there water to.
So will give it a shot, All i know is it was tasty enough before fermentation that i wanted to drink more than what i did.

 

[winstonofbeer]

* Last Update*

So it has finally got kegged, Carbonated and is now being consumed.
I know there was mention about the oils in coffee. I have noticed right away that keeping that foamy head on top isnt lasting long.

The coffee taste in the beer is very noticeable. It is not a burnt taste at all. I have had 3 people try it and between the aroma and taste everyone says coffee!!

So, I guess if you are looking for just a hint of coffee and aroma..I would do a lot less.
Using the 1/2lb for 10 gal really gave it a coffee taste and aroma...Not to the bad point where it seems like you are drinking coffee. But there is no mistaking it in a good way
I have to say tho, The coffee taste and the IBU's at 40 work really well together.

Like i said the foamy head is not there, I used 4lbs of wheat...Thinking that would do it....Next time i am thinking of doubling it to counteract the oils.

All in all, I want to say thank you for everyone who helped and put there input on this.
I have to say it was a very good success!!

 

[FDillon00]

I used some of THIS in a recent after dinner Sweet Stout. It adds a slight coffee flavor that helped round out the Stout-ie/chocolate-ie flavors.

 

[winstonofbeer]

hmm that is a cool malt.
Didnt know they made coffee grain.
Learn somethin new every day...Well least once a week

I think i am going to try this beer again, And start using differnt coffee's.
Would be kewl to see if mocha coffee, Vs. Dunken Donuts coffee beer tastes anything close...Or just by changing the coffee, The beer will change. Just an idea.
I have 10 gal. SO it might take me awhile before i brew another porter