Have a question about using flavored vodka. And need eyes on a recipe i'm envisioning

[jturkish]

Hi,

A friend is going to give me some fresh huckleberries

I'm thinking the best route to go is using the grain bill from Brewing Classic Styles Apricot Wheat which is

48% two row

48% wheat malt

4% crystal 15L

I'm thinking of substituting the crystal with honey malt -- bad or good idea?

and i'm thinking of substituting the wheat malt with white or red wheat malt -- bad of good idea?

I also want to add oats and some lactose -- good or bad idea? I'm thinking .25lb each, maybe .5 lb on the oats

in addition to adding huckleberries to the secondary i was thinking about adding vanilla beans -- what are your thoughts of having one bean in 2 ounces of whipped vodka and another bean in 2 ounces of huckleberry vodka - let them sit in the vodka for several weeks then have beer rack on top of it once primary fermentation starts to slow down

 

[sptaylor70]

Honey malt is nice, and almost completely, but not quite entirely, unlike crystal malt. Honey malt gives a honey flavor with some nuttiness and will self-convert, with a diastatic power of around 50 Lintner. Crystal malt gives sweetness and mouthfeel by contributing unfermentable dextrins.

Red and white wheat malts are similar - light flavor (sometimes described as spicy), better head retention. White wheat malt is also thought by many to add a little maltiness to the flavor, but it's subtle.

Oats and/or lactose are going to contribute a smooth, almost oily mouthfeel. If your huckleberries are particularly tart, then this will help ameliorate that. Personally, I would opt for lactose to give more sweetness than oats will contribute.

Whipped cream vodka is an abomination. If you're going to use huckleberry vodka, make your own huckleberry-infused vodka. One vanilla bean should be enough for five gallons.

Post your result.

 

[jturkish]

Thank you

So it sounds like to stick with Crystal and regular wheat. Use maybe quarter lb of lactose and oats and skip the flavored vodka. Is that right?

Thanks again for the reply

 

[sptaylor70]

Sounds good to me, but I'd probably go up to a half pound each of lactose and oatmeal (use quick oats so you can avoid a cereal mash).

For additional inspiration, you might look to Weezy's Dark Blueberry Wheat, X-mn19's Rose City Red Raspberry Oatmeal Wheat, and NCBeernut's Deception Cream Stout.

 

[jturkish]

thank you