Critique my Recipe? Smores Milk Stout

[AGinABQ]

First shot at creating a recipe more complicated than a SMaSH on my own. Would like to get some feedback on how this looks-

Recipe Type: All-grain

Yeast: Wyeast Irish Ale 1084
Yeast Starter:2L
Additional Yeast or Yeast Starter:None
Batch Size (Gallons):6
Original Gravity:1.062
Est. Final Gravity:1.022
Boiling Time (Minutes):60
IBU:27.3
Color:33.8 SRM
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp):21 @ 62
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp):10 @ 65
Additional Fermentation:None
Tasting Notes:
% Weight Grain Type
43.75% 7.00 lb Pale Malt 2-Row
25.00% 4.00 lb Pale Malt, Maris Otter
6.25% 1.00 lb Roasted Barley (300 SRM)
4.69% 0.75 lb Barley, Flaked
4.69% 0.75 lb Chocolate Malt (350 SRM)
3.13% 0.50 lb Crystal 80L
1.56% 0.25 lb Honey Malt
6.25% 1.00 lb Milk Sugar (Lactose)

0.75oz Magnum (12.00%) 60 mins
1.00oz Golding (5.00%) 10 mins

Secondary
2 sleeves graham crackers
1 oz coca powder
2 ea vanilla beans

 

[Steveruch]

When I do a milk stout I use blackprinz malt instead of roast barley.

 

[AGinABQ]

When I do a milk stout I use blackprinz malt instead of roast barley.

Good call. I'm assuming this is to get the color without the bitterness/astringency that can be had with the roasted barley?

 

[Steveruch]

Good call. I'm assuming this is to get the color without the bitterness/astringency that can be had with the roasted barley?

Several years ago I had an article published in BYO about brewing dark versions of light color beers. One of the grains that I experimented with was blackprinz. To my tastes blackprinz comes across as a mellow roast barley. Not too long after that I gave it a go in a milk stout in place of roast barley and was really happy with the results.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

1.062 is high for a milk stout - Mackeson, the beer that defined the style, started off around 4.5% and is currently 2.8% in the UK.

Beware of throwing the kitchen sink at recipes unless you're deliberately trying to use up inventory - too often you end up with a muddy mess rather than complexity. Homebrewers almost always overcomplicate things compared to the professionals. Look at an early recipe for Mackeson - 8% invert #3, 6% of both chocolate and brown and that's pretty much it. No roast barley or anything like that - it's a derivative of the English tradition of stouts, which is rather different to the Dublin version.

 

[chewyheel]

I would probably opt for cocoa nibs in secondary instead of powder. IMO you get more chocolate flavor than powder.