Girl Scout Cookie Caramel Delites (Samoas) Beer

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RandallFlag

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Hi all. I apologize if this is the wrong place for this question.

I want to brew a brown ale that will come out tasting like Caramel Delites (Samoas)which are Girl Scout cookies made with chocolate, caramel and coconut. I searched the google and saw a couple of recipes on brew toad. I also searched this site and got nothing.

Anybody have any ideas for this or like to collaborate to come up with a recipe? Is it as simple as taking a nice brown ale recipe and adding coconut flavoring and figuring out some way to get that caramel taste?

Any help would be appreciated. Thx.
 
The caramel may be tough. Those cookies are crack. I buy one box a year now and when they're gone, they're gone. Usually in two days. :eek:


I think you'll need to make caramel, the rest seems easy but I'm unsure. If you get this done then I hope you post results.
 
The caramel may be tough. Those cookies are crack. I buy one box a year now and when they're gone, they're gone. Usually in two days. :eek:


I think you'll need to make caramel, the rest seems easy but I'm unsure. If you get this done then I hope you post results.

TOTALLY AGREE that they're crack. I just posted a recipe I found on Brew Toad. Give it a look and see if you think it's heading in the right direction. I can definitely experiment with it. :mug:
 
But how do you get the caramel taste from that? Think caramel malt does it? I'm unsure. I'd make caramel.
 
But how do you get the caramel taste from that? Think caramel malt does it? I'm unsure. I'd make caramel.

Gonna tweak it a bit and find out. A quick 1 Gal brew this weekend and taste it out of the kettle.

Mad scientist time. bwahahaha
 
Mmmmm. Sounds good. That looks like an awfully sweet recipe though. I'm curious how it tastes. 1.5lbs of crystal is ton, plus the honey malt...
 
Those cookies are crack. I buy one box a year now and when they're gone, they're gone. Usually in two days.

You can stretch it out to two days? Impressive.


I love that the Samoas cookies come in serving size boxes!! Greatest!

Exactly.


Good luck on your endeavor, this might be something I'd try this fall, definitely following along to see how it goes.
 
Just brewed a stout, somewhat sweet, and added two boxes of chopped Samoas to secondary (two boxes minus a couple of bites). I'll keg it in four more days and I'm serving it on nitro.

I'll update and let everyone know if any of the cookie flavors come through.
 
I want to know it works out too. Sounds good. May not taste like the cookie, but I'm guessing Mmmmm good. Like Cambell's soup only dreamed of.
 
Just brewed a stout, somewhat sweet, and added two boxes of chopped Samoas to secondary (two boxes minus a couple of bites). I'll keg it in four more days and I'm serving it on nitro.

I'll update and let everyone know if any of the cookie flavors come through.

This is nuts! - and I love it. . . :ban:

I think the only thing you'll end up with is an infection or giant oil slick, but who knows. Worth a try, right?
 
I have been working on my own Samoa recipe for a brew day coming up next week. I plan to add a few boxes right into the mash then coconut in the secondary. As mentioned, my only concern is the fatty oils. I was wondering if anybody knew any tricks to minimize this.
 
I'm pretty sure I'll end up with an oil slick but hopefully no infection. I was thinking that the cookies are about as sterile as a food product can get, plus I put them into a hop sack and gave a dip into star san.

If I were thinking I probably would have made a tincture with the cookies. Add the chopped cookies to some vodka, strain when the flavor is right. Then pop in the fridge so the oil congeals on tap, pop a hole in the nasty solid oil and drain. Maybe going through a coffee filter would take out the oil as well.
 
Kegged this today and I'll say that there isn't much Samoas flavor in the uncarbed sample I took. There didn't appear to be any oil slick either but we'll see in the finished beer.

The beer has some sweetness to it and maybe a tiny hint of caramel flavor. The coconut is absent at this time. We'll see when this carbs up!
 
Thanks for the update Groo.

I've been working on a recipe for this and trying to get as much caramel and chocolate flavor from my mash, and then all the coconut from the secondary. Below is my work in progress. Please feel free to comment on what you think should change:

Fermentables

Amount Fermentable Maltster Use
14.0 lb Maris Otter Pale (UK) 70 % Mash
2.0 lb CaraMunich I (DE) 10 % Mash
2.0 lb Caramel/Crystal 80L (US) 10 % Mash
1.0 lb Special B (BE) 5 % Mash
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal 40L (US) 2 % Mash
4.0 oz Pale Chocolate (UK) Any 1 % Mash

Hops

Amount Hop Time Form
1.0 oz Styrian Golding (SI) 90 min Boil Pellet
1.0 oz Centennial (US) 60 min Boil Pellet
Yeasts

Name Lab/Product Attenuation
American Ale Wyeast 1056 75.0%

Extras

Amount Name Time Use
8.0 oz Toasted Coconut 5.0 days Secondary
4.0 oz Cocoa Nibs 5.0 days Secondary
Predicted Stats

Batch Size 10.0 gal Boil Time90 minEfficiency75.0%
1.054 OG 1.014 FG 28 IBU 5.3% ABV 20 SRM 0.53 IBU/OG
 
I'm subscribing to this for sure! I was thinking of doing something similar but adding the toasted coconut to the secondary and maybe soaking those little chewy caramel candies in some vodka and maybe extracting the flavor?
 
Been tasting this for a week now on nitro.

It pours beautifully with no oil slick. Excellent head retention.

Aroma: Light roast, low caramel some vanilla. Coconuts peeks its head out as it warms.

Taste: Similar to aroma, some caramel, vanilla with roast.

Mouthfeel: Creamy, smooth, not super thick.

Overall: It's a really good stout but I wouldn't call it a Samoas stout when serving it to someone. The cookies added a complexity to it but they also make it pretty expensive to make. I'd probably brew it again if I had some extra cookies but I'm guessing you could simulate the flavors I achieved through specialty malts.
 
I completely changed/simplified my recipe and brewed this a while back. I did a 10g batch and threw in 4lb coconut and 8oz of nibs into the fermenter for the last week. Just tastes this for the first time yesterday and I think I have a new favorite brew! View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1430323695.652215.jpg I'll be entering this into a friendly competition next week and let you guys know how it does.
 
I'm happy to report that my "Samoa Dat Porter" too the win at our competition judged by the head brewers of Coda Brewing here in Aurora, CO. We'll be collaborating on how to fine tune the recipe and then brewing it on their system! Yay for fun and exciting new brews!
 
I'm happy to report that my "Samoa Dat Porter" too the win at our competition judged by the head brewers of Coda Brewing here in Aurora, CO. We'll be collaborating on how to fine tune the recipe and then brewing it on their system! Yay for fun and exciting new brews!

Care to share the new recipe you made? :)
 
This competition was just last night, so we haven't collaborated on a revised recipe yet, but I'll post up the original shortly.
 
Here is a copy of my recipe. If/when I do this again, I'd try toasting the coconut and bump up my Carapils a bit as the beer lost quite a bit of head retention after I bottled. Out of the keg it's got great head, but it dies down fairly quick.

Fermentables

Amount Fermentable Maltster Use PPG
16.0 lb Maris Otter Pale (UK) Any 76 % Mash 38
2.0 lb Medium Crystal Any 9 % Mash 34
1.0 lb Carapils (DE) Any 4 % Mash 35
1.0 lb CaraMunich I (DE) Any 4 % Mash 34
1.0 lb Pale Chocolate (UK) Any 4 % Mash 33
Hops

Amount Hop Time Use Form AA
1.0 oz Styrian Golding (SI) 60 min Boil Pellet 5.2%
1.0 oz Centennial (US) 45 min Boil Pellet 10.5%
Yeasts

Name Lab/Product Attenuation
Whitbread Ale Wyeast 1099 70.0%
Extras

Amount Name Time Use
1.0 each Whirlfloc Tablet 15.0 min Boil
4.0 lb Toasted Coconut 7.0 days Secondary
8.0 oz Cocoa Nibs 7.0 days Secondary
1.0 lb Lactose 7.0 days Secondary
Predicted Stats

Batch Size 10.0 gal Boil Time 90 min Efficiency 75.0%
1.058 OG 1.018 FG 25 IBU 5.4% ABV 18 SRM 0.44 IBU/OG
 
Yeah im curious as to how you adjusted the recipe because the last one posted looks terribly sweet. With 25% crystal malts and coconut on top of that, I doubt I'd be able to stomach that beer.

Are you still going with 4lbs of coconut? I made a coconut stout for a wedding and used 4 lbs toasted coconut straight into the fermentor. The flavor was right on point. This was only for 5 gal though and the contact time was only 3 days. 4 lbs for like a week in 10gal would probably yield similar results

edit: looks like you posted the revised recipe while I was typing. And, yup, definitely cut back on the crystal/cara malts. Good call!
 
^^ Yea I revised the recipe quite a bit and sought out advice from a few people. This was one of the first recipes that I really built from scratch, so I'm pretty pumped it turned out! I'm still learning that simpler is better haha.

As for the 4lbs of coconut, yea I left it in for a week and it's very noticeable. I'm curious as to why people would rather use large amounts for a shorter period of time. To me that just sounds like a more expensive route to get the same/similar result.
 
Did you vodka soak the secondary additions?

No, I've done the volka thing before and actually got a boozy flavor. I put all 4 lbs of coconut with 8oz of nibs in a sack and drizzled freshly boiled lactose over the sack and said a little prayer.

For the record, I got a LOT of coconut flavor and wouldn't go over my 4lbs in a week.

IMG_4031.jpg
 
Update: I won the friendly competition with my original recipe and brewed at a local brewery on their pilot system. Very minor changes to the grain bill and went with toasted coconut instead. The tapping was a huge hit with so many people showing up to try it out that they had to sell it in 4oz tasters because we didn't brew enough. I just got word that they want to rebrew this on their 10BBL system! Woot Woot!
 
Very cool! We'll all live vicariously through you as your beer becomes famous!
 
Update: I won the friendly competition with my original recipe and brewed at a local brewery on their pilot system. Very minor changes to the grain bill and went with toasted coconut instead. The tapping was a huge hit with so many people showing up to try it out that they had to sell it in 4oz tasters because we didn't brew enough. I just got word that they want to rebrew this on their 10BBL system! Woot Woot!

What were your minor changes if you dont mind me asking?
 
Bumped up the Carapils and CaraMunich a bit (not positive offhand exact amounts) and added rice hulls to keep their system from getting stuck. Also went with a 30 min mash.
 
Here is a copy of my recipe. If/when I do this again, I'd try toasting the coconut and bump up my Carapils a bit as the beer lost quite a bit of head retention after I bottled. Out of the keg it's got great head, but it dies down fairly quick.

Fermentables

Amount Fermentable Maltster Use PPG
16.0 lb Maris Otter Pale (UK) Any 76 % Mash 38
2.0 lb Medium Crystal Any 9 % Mash 34
1.0 lb Carapils (DE) Any 4 % Mash 35
1.0 lb CaraMunich I (DE) Any 4 % Mash 34
1.0 lb Pale Chocolate (UK) Any 4 % Mash 33
Hops

Amount Hop Time Use Form AA
1.0 oz Styrian Golding (SI) 60 min Boil Pellet 5.2%
1.0 oz Centennial (US) 45 min Boil Pellet 10.5%
Yeasts

Name Lab/Product Attenuation
Whitbread Ale Wyeast 1099 70.0%
Extras

Amount Name Time Use
1.0 each Whirlfloc Tablet 15.0 min Boil
4.0 lb Toasted Coconut 7.0 days Secondary
8.0 oz Cocoa Nibs 7.0 days Secondary
1.0 lb Lactose 7.0 days Secondary
Predicted Stats

Batch Size 10.0 gal Boil Time 90 min Efficiency 75.0%
1.058 OG 1.018 FG 25 IBU 5.4% ABV 18 SRM 0.44 IBU/OG

Thread revival- what temp did you mash at? How long in primary? I assume only 7 days in secondary? Looking forward to making this!
 
Thread revival- what temp did you mash at? How long in primary? I assume only 7 days in secondary? Looking forward to making this!

I mashed in at 154F. I'm not positive on my primary/secondary, but I'll usually primary until I hit or get very close to my FG and then add any additions (in this case coconut) for a week or so. Just keep tasting samples until you get the flavor you like. I'd recommend toasting the cocoanut, as I didn't have great head retention. I'm actually going to be brewing this again soon and toasting the cocoanut is all I plan to do different.

Check back and let me know how it turns out for you!

edit: I just read a few posts up and it looks like I did 4lbs for 1 week. Time to update my notes on Beersmith haha
 
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