Help me figure this one out

[jimmywit]

So I tried to bre a stout here was the recipe.
5# roasted barley
.5# black patent
.5# flaked barley

7# plain dme

1 oz cluster-60
.5 oz east kent goldings-45
.5 oz east kent goldings-15
.5 oz east kent goldings-5

1oz licroice root-15
irish moss-15
My OG was 1.064 My FG is 1.024 and when I bottled looked and tasted more like a Scottish Ale then anything. Still tasted great but what went wrong.

 

[Yooper]

I assume you have a typo there- .5 pounds of roasted barley?

Anyway, aside from too many hops for a stout, it looks ok to me. I don't usually see black patent, and roasted, and flaked barley together, but I don't think that's the issue here.

When you say it's more like a Scottish, do you mean sweet? Lack of roasty-ness? I'm not sure what you're tasting. If it's finished at 1.024, then I'd say it would definitely be too sweet for a dry stout.

 

[jimmywit]

Yes typo .5 roasted...Again yes sweet. Not to mention that only gave me a 60% attenuation. I am not sure if that is ok but seems low to me... It is sweet with some but not alot of rosted flavor. I have a scottish microbrew in the fridge and it just taste more like that then it would a stout. Also the color is no were near a stout. It is reddish brown. I am just trying to figure why it turned out the way it did. It was in the primary for 20 days

 

[whatsleftofyou]

Yooper, I don't see anywhere where he says that this is a dry stout. Also disagree with the generalization that this is "too many hops for a stout" without knowing what substyle the OP was going for. American and Foreign Extra Stouts can be up to 75 IBU. Looking at the recipe I can't say that it nails any substyle specifically but it's closest to an American Stout with English hops.

That said, when I punched this recipe into BeerSmith I get you at 31 SRM, the low end for a stout. That's where your color issue is...get some more roast and other dark malts in there.

 

[Yooper]

Yooper, I don't see anywhere where he says that this is a dry stout. Also disagree with the generalization that this is "too many hops for a stout" without knowing what substyle the OP was going for. American and Foreign Extra Stouts can be up to 75 IBU. Looking at the recipe I can't say that it nails any substyle specifically but it's closest to an American Stout with English hops.

That said, when I punched this recipe into BeerSmith I get you at 31 SRM, the low end for a stout. That's where your color issue is...get some more roast and other dark malts in there.

I mean too many hops for a stout, in the later additions. I like my stouts to have a strong bittering addition, with maybe one flavor addition. I think it's too many flavor/aroma additions, while possibly not enough bittering. I assumed dry stout, because it doesn't have any caramel malt or lactose for a sweet stout, no oatmeal for an oatmeal stout, no American hops for an American stout, etc. It was an assumption on my part, trying to put it in a style, and I could very well be wrong.

The recipe is lacking in dark malts, but I'm not much for black patent so I don't know what it brings. I would use chocolate malt, more roasted, even more flaked, rather than the patent. I also have no idea what licorce root would do.

I'm most concerned about the 60% attenuation, and the gravity stuck at 1.024. I'd repitch, probably with an attenuative dry yeast like Nottingham or on a yeast cake from another batch.

 

[jimmywit]

I used the black patent for the color, I assumed it would do the job. I am also concerned with the 60%. I used safale -04. The recipe itself came from several American recipes that I put togeter on my own, I could not get all the hops I needed at my LHBS so I had to improvise. The licorice root was for a counter balance of the bitterness, It contains a natural acid (glycyrrhizin) that is sweet, I just don't think it added all the sweetness I am tasting.

 

[Yooper]

I used the black patent for the color, I assumed it would do the job. I am also concerned with the 60%. I used safale -04. The recipe itself came from several American recipes that I put togeter on my own, I could not get all the hops I needed at my LHBS so I had to improvise. The licorice root was for a counter balance of the bitterness, It contains a natural acid (glycyrrhizin) that is sweet, I just don't think it added all the sweetness I am tasting.

Did you use some brewing software? I wonder what your IBUs are.

If you don't have enough bittering to balance out the low attenuation (and that's way too low for S04- I'd repitch), the sweet malts, and the licorice, the beer will certainly be sweet.

 

[jimmywit]

Did you use some brewing software? I wonder what your IBUs are.

If you don't have enough bittering to balance out the low attenuation (and that's way too low for S04- I'd repitch), the sweet malts, and the licorice, the beer will certainly be sweet.[/QU

 

[jimmywit]

Did you use some brewing software? I wonder what your IBUs are.

If you don't have enough bittering to balance out the low attenuation (and that's way too low for S04- I'd repitch), the sweet malts, and the licorice, the beer will certainly be sweet.

36 IBUs, I as well thought it was low for S04, I just don't know why it was so low. I posted the recipe on the forum a couple of weeks ago and seemed to have a good response. That is why I stuck with it.

 

[whatsleftofyou]

Yooper - Understood on the late additions, just wanted to be clear. I had this at 46 IBUs so it's a bit high for some styles but in range for others.

Black patent is OK to use in a stout but in general next time I'd recommend going with some medium/dark crystal malts, chocolate, and roast.

 

[jimmywit]

Well Thanks to you both for the input. I just hope I can make it work next time. Thats the fun in it all you screw up but still have a good beer. The 1.024 does still bother me.