Grain School - Chocolate Malt

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OK, so next up in my line of grain school ingredients is Chocolate Malt. I've used choco in recipes before, but usually stouts when I'm just basically copying other recipes I find. This time I'm simply adding it to a recipe I've already made before, so I'll know what the chocolate itself adds to the beer.

My question: how much should I use to really get a good idea for the flavor? I want to max out without brewing something borderline undrinkable. Is 12 oz too much? Should I go with 8oz? Less?

The non-chocolate malt ingredients are untouchable. Looks like this'll be an American Brown Ale, although that isn't important to me.

Type: All Grain
Date: 4/11/2009
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewer: Quicksilver Home Brewery
Boil Size: 7.00 gal Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: Brew Pot (7.5 gal) and Cooler (50 qt)
Taste Rating(out of 50): 35.0 Brewhouse Efficiency: 67.30
Taste Notes:

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
8 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 69.57 %
1 lbs 8.0 oz Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 13.04 %
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 8.70 %
12.0 oz Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 6.52 %
4.0 oz Barley, Flaked (1.7 SRM) Grain 2.17 %
0.70 oz Centennial [8.30 %] (60 min) (First Wort Hop) Hops 22.6 IBU
0.80 oz Centennial [8.30 %] (20 min) Hops 14.2 IBU
0.50 oz Centennial [8.30 %] (3 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops -
0.25 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 min) Misc
1.00 tsp Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs Safale (Fermentis #US-56) Yeast-Ale



Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.055 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.012 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.57 %
Bitterness: 36.8 IBU
Est Color: 26.1 SRM
 
12 ounces might be a little heavy. I've made two different browns with similar base malts and used 4 oz in one and 6 oz in the other. I think both of mine certainly could have stood up to a little more, but my suggestion would be no more than 8 ounces in the above recipe.
 
All I can tell you is that just 8oz in a ten gallon batch of bitter makes bitter taste like it's half way to trying to be a stout.:eek:

I'll never do THAT again! :)
 
My best house beer right now is an American Brown that I use chocolate and pale chocolate in. My first time brewing it came out so good, that I just brewed it again, with slight changes to the bill. I'm trying to find out which ingredients are giving me what.
One difference in my second batch is that I used more chocolate malt. I just transferred to my keg for this 2nd version, and so far from tasting its too much chocolate to balance the other flavors, when compared to the first version.
Batch one used .25 lb chocolate, .13 roasted barley.
Batch two used .43 lb pale chocolate, and .05 lb chocolate.
My first batch is perfectly sweet and balanced. I really don't know why I'm messing with it :p

anyway I thought I would share. For me .48 lb chocolate in my brown was more than ideal, but its still very nice! It has a much more pronounced chocolate flavor that is a bit bitter tasting.

Cheers and good luck, I look forward to your results!
 
For what it's worth, the above recipe (with 1/2 lb of Chocolate) is quite tasty. It reminds me a lot of Downtown Brown.

I'll do it again with Cascades in place of Centennial and maybe break the Crystal into some 15 for sweetness and some 75 or so for more toffee/caramel flavor Maybe even a little honey malt instead of the lighter crystal.
 
Chocolate malt can be anywhere from 200ºL (Fawcett's Pale) to 620ºL (Crisp)... gotta know what you're getting!
 
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