Belgian Dark Strong Ale Double Drunk Monk Belgian Dark

[MmmmBeer]

I am finally going to brew this, ever since I found this recipe it has been on my list. Going to stick with original recipe and make a double batch in hopes it will help it last so that it can properly age!

 

[daksin]

Good call. I had a bomber of this just recently and I could not believe how much it had changed. This was the third beer I ever brewed and now I'm opening a real brewery and this is still the most complex, deliciously aged beer I've made to date. I think I'll be popping the last bottle for the grand opening which will be about 2.5 years after the beer was brewed. I may have to make it again, actually.

 

[MmmmBeer]

That is awesome, what made you decide to make the leap to brewery owner?

I can't wait to finally brew is since I saw it over a year ago it has been in my list!

 

[MmmmBeer]

So I finally brewed this as a 10 gallon batch and after waiting anxiously for about 36 hours they are both fermenting away in the primaries.

OG was ~1.090 so pretty much what was planned and the yeast is Wyeast 1214 Belgian yeast so I will be keeping a close eye on it to make sure the airlocks don't get clogged and blow the tops!

Excited to hurry up and let it age!

 

[daksin]

How's it going?

 

[woknblues]

10 lbs Pilsner Liquid Extract
1.3lbs Belgian Rock Candi Amber
1lb Carafa III
8oz Biscuit Malt
7oz Special B
6oz Aromatic Malt
1oz Chocolate Malt

Hops:
60 minutes: 1oz Northern Brewer @ 8.5AA
30 minutes: 1oz Styrian Aurora @ 8.0AA
30 minutes: 1oz Hallertau @ 3.1AA

Boil: 3.0 gallons
9.7% ABV / 8% ABW

Steep Grains. I didn't pitch a starter and the beer worked perfectly. It's rich and smooth. You can drink this young (3-4 weeks) but really deserves age (4-6+ months).

So, based on the comments of this thread, I intend to tweak this thing a bit to get where I want it to be. Namely, I want to all grain this, I want to use Belgian Candi Syrup in lieu of rock candi (this is what my LHBS carries), and I want this thing to be lighter somehow, to match BJCP style guidelines. Perhaps just switching from pilsner LME to all grain pilsner would give me enough lightning aspects to kill two birds?

So here is my modified recipe so far:

13.33lb Pilsner
2lb of Belgium candi Syrup, one at boil, another for mid ferment (not sure if 180 or 90 or 45 this is what my LHBS carries)
carafa III: considering reducing this to gain light color , can I sub here with pale chocolate malt?
8 oz biscuit malt
7oz special b
6oz aromatic malt
considering omitting the chocolate malt or subbing pale chocolate malt
Belgium Strong 545 yeast (what I have on hand)(I am inclined to make a starter, unless there are strong reasons why I shouldn't)

Thanks to Daksin for steering me here.

 

[mallob9]

I brewed this on 11/13/2011 and started drinking it about a year later. I added 1 lb of Orange Blossom Honey and have gotten rave reviews about it. I'm getting ready to do another batch and have 6 bottles leftover for next year/years to follow. Thanks for the recipe man!

 

[jasonwallin]

I brewed this with an addition of 2oz. Smoked Malt, and for what it's worth (and to me this is why I brew beer) my wife and I are over the moon in love with it! The brew started out at 1.086 and ended at 1.028. It is rich, sweet, and smoked, a combination I am really enjoying.

This is also my first attempt at kegging, and I am also absolutely in love with kegging too! While it would do well to age some, I don't know how long it will last!

 

[syd138]

I think I am going to try this recipe in a couple weeks.

Looks really good, but I would say that this is almost a Belgian Dark Strong and not a Dubbel.

I also am going to try making my own candi.

Did anyone try this by tweaking the IBUs a bit to get it closer to mid 30's?

 

[Fatkatz]

Did you add the rock candi at 0 Boil flame out ? Still a rookie going to be my 2nd brew.

 

[Fatkatz]

Did you add the rock candi at 0 Boil flame out ? Still a rookie going to be my 2nd brew.

 

[daksin]

This was one of my first brews as well. I added it at flameout, but you could add it at any point in the boil, really. Just don't forget it!

I am hoarding the last bomber of this, brewed over 2 years ago. At last tasting, about 9mo ago, it was incredible.

 

[uofmguy]

Any thoughts on adding oak chips to the secondary? I just had an oak aged dubbel last night that was amazing so just wondering?

 

[kinkothecarp]

Wow, I haven't brewed in three years, but I just started brewing again. I can't believe 26,000 people have seen this recipe!

Oak chips are nice on it. I've tried it many times and the oak comes through nicely.

 

[woo_pig]

I am brewing this today. I will keep in touch. Gonna do a couple of things differnt .