Winter is coming, so I'm looking to make a nice big sitting-around-the-wood-stove brew. My plan is to use the famous Bee Cave Brewery Robust Porter recipe and add coffee and vanilla to it.
I see that "cold brewing" is a popular way to add coffee flavor. From what I understand you just add ground coffee to cold water and stick it in the fridge for 24 hours and add it to the keg when you transfer. I have also read that coffee grounds can be added to the mash. For a 5 gallon batch, what ratio of coffee to water should I be aiming for using the cold brewing method (I don't own a french press)? Alternatively, how much coffee should be added to the mash, and how coarse should the grind be if I choose that method?
As for the vanilla... Scraping two vanilla beans and chopping up the outer pod, soaking it all in vodka (for 24 hrs?) and then tossing it in the secondary (vodka and all) appears to be the most common way. I haven't been using a secondary, so can I just throw this in the primary when it's almost done? Another method I read says to put vanilla extract (real not imitation) in the keg when you transfer. If I do this, how much extract is equal to 2 beans?
Any feedback is appreciated (particularly if you've tried all these variations).
I see that "cold brewing" is a popular way to add coffee flavor. From what I understand you just add ground coffee to cold water and stick it in the fridge for 24 hours and add it to the keg when you transfer. I have also read that coffee grounds can be added to the mash. For a 5 gallon batch, what ratio of coffee to water should I be aiming for using the cold brewing method (I don't own a french press)? Alternatively, how much coffee should be added to the mash, and how coarse should the grind be if I choose that method?
As for the vanilla... Scraping two vanilla beans and chopping up the outer pod, soaking it all in vodka (for 24 hrs?) and then tossing it in the secondary (vodka and all) appears to be the most common way. I haven't been using a secondary, so can I just throw this in the primary when it's almost done? Another method I read says to put vanilla extract (real not imitation) in the keg when you transfer. If I do this, how much extract is equal to 2 beans?
Any feedback is appreciated (particularly if you've tried all these variations).