Dessert Beer

[Drbobcat]

I am looking to make a dessert beer that taste kind of like an alcoholic chocolate chip cookie. (It seemed like a good idea when I thought it up late night???) Essentially it's a sweet stout with chocolate malt. I want the chocolate flavor, but very little if any coffee flavor. I would appreciate any comments, suggestions, or criticisms.

10# Maris Otter
2# Caramunich
1# Melanoiden
1# Flaked oats
1# Biscuit Malt
0.75# Carapils/Dextrine
0.5# Chocolate malt
0.5# Wheat malt
0.2# Black Patent malt
1.5# Dark Brown Sugar
0.75# Lactose
1 tsp yeast nutrient
8 oz cocoa nibs
2 vanilla beans

Wyeast American Ale 1056 (I will make a starter)

Mash @154* 60 minutes

I figured 3 wks in primary, 4 wks in secondary (adding nibs and vanilla beans after 2 wks), then bottle condition for 3-4 months.
Beersmith has the ABV about 8% OG about 1.085 (@75% efficiency) FG about 1.020

I would really appreciate suggestions on hops since I usually make IPA's and I haven't tried anything like this before. Also any comments on the amount of lactose. I want the beer to be on the sweet side, but not overly so.
Thanks

 

[Oldsock]

I would reduce the complexity of the malt bill (the wheat, melanodin, biscuit, and carapils are going to get lost in the shuffle).

Something more like
14 lbs MO
1.5 lbs oats
1 lb CaraMunich
.5 chocolate
.5 lbs carafa special II (much mellower than BP)

I would use mild molasses instead of brown sugar. Brown sugar is mostly sucrose (which ferments out completely leaving a thin beer). ~.5 lbs should do (molasses and chocolate are a great combo).

You can hold off on the lactose and just add it at bottling to taste.

I’ve had better luck with cocoa powder than nibs, the nibs killed my head retention. I like to mix the cocoa with hot water to form a paste, then add it to secondary.

For hops I would go very easy, say 30 IBUs of something neutral at the start of the boil.

Hope that helps.

 

[Bowtiebrewery]

I would also say with the first recipe you had quite a few unfermentables in that mix... I'm also in agreement with Oldsock here... the complexity of the bill is just going to muddle the key flavors you are looking to get out of it..

Now when I think of a desert beer i think of a Kriek

 

[Drbobcat]

Thanks for the advice! The recipe was from another brew club; admittedly I was a little lost with all the additions. Thanks for simplifying things. Any particular type of hop you would suggest?

 

[Oldsock]

Thanks for the advice! The recipe was from another brew club; admittedly I was a little lost with all the additions. Thanks for simplifying things. Any particular type of hop you would suggest?

I would go with something neutral and high AA (Magnum, Warrior, Galena etc…), but pretty much anything would work (although I would avoid rough hops like Chinook).