Sweet Stout Left Hand Milk Stout Clone

[Nagorg]

IMHO this beer needs to bottle condition about ~8 weeks. It is good at ~4 weeks but the additional time really makes this beer very delicious. The coffee/chocolate/milk notes certainly are more developed with additional time.

I do agree that this recipe produced a very good Milk Stout! This is probably one of the best beers I have brewed and I am not a huge Stout fan.

 

[brewski09]

IMHO this beer needs to bottle condition about ~8 weeks. It is good at ~4 weeks but the additional time really makes this beer very delicious.

I'll agree with that. The few bottles that last that long are excellent.

 

[D_Nyholm]

This one is next in my rotation. Can't wait to get to it after all the Belgians and saisons are gone!

 

[SobchakSecurity]

Excellent recipe! Kegged this a week ago, after 28 days in the primary, and the early samples are outstanding.
Will definitely brew again, next time with a split secondary, half on cocoa nibs, half on vanilla beans. And will probably bottle the next batch for some longer term conditioning.

 

[weaselbob74]

+1 awesome recipe. Definitely will be brewing this again

 

[JohntheKiwi]

So the second time I brewed this it was for a party, and about half the keg was left over. The party pump probably oxidized the crap out of it, and it sat at room temperature for 3 days before being bottled (using proper beer gun). Turns out, even the oxidation and fluctuating temperatures can't ruin this beer! Still delicious! A local brewer in Sellwood, OR tried it, and he is brewing a half barrel to go on tap in a couple of weeks.

 

[FermentusMaximus]

Noob to all grain here. Can anyone give me a heads up on how to treat RO water for this? Would just the one tsp of calcium chloride be sufficient or should I add anything else?

 

[VOCBrewery]

This article should help you understand the basics of water chemistry.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/brewing-water-chemistry-primer-198460/

I also use the EZ water calculator. Just plug your numbers in and change the values. It takes about a 1/2 hour to figure out

 

[FermentusMaximus]

That EZ water calc is nice. How would I plug in the flaked oats and barley? Would I list that as other? Would those really have much of an influence on pH at all?

 

[tipping]

What was the mash size for 5 gallon batch?

 

[FermentusMaximus]

14.2 qts (3.55 gal). I think I figured it out. I'm just going to add a bit of calcium chloride and Magnesium to some RO water. I need to get a pH meter. Man this hobby is expensive lol. Well, when you are just starting out or upgrading anyway.

 

[keezerj]

I'm going to brew this in a few days, but I was wondering if the one pack of us05 is enough. Should I put in 2?

 

[brewski09]

I'm going to brew this in a few days, but I was wondering if the one pack of us05 is enough. Should I put in 2?

1 pack is good for 5 gallons. If you run a double batch then pitch 2. The US-05 can be pitched directly onto the cooled wort with no rehydration needed.

 

[keezerj]

Did everyone really mash this for 75 minutes? For all the recipes I have done so far it has been a 60 minute mash. Am I reading this correctly with a 75 minute mash?

 

[pstrohs]

Did everyone really mash this for 75 minutes? For all the recipes I have done so far it has been a 60 minute mash. Am I reading this correctly with a 75 minute mash?

I did a 60 min mash with no problems but the extra 15 min will help to ensure conversion.

 

[tipping]

Which munich malt are you guys using for the recipe? 10,20, or 60? Or something else?

 

[brewski09]

Which munich malt are you guys using for the recipe? 10,20, or 60? Or something else?

My LHBS carries 10L. I've started using Caramunich lately. You could easily use the 1 or 2 in this. Haven't tried 3 yet...

 

[beamar]

Made this over the weekend. Checked on it yesterday and it smells great! I'm sure the taste is still coming together, but had a bit of a smokey taste to it.

 

[BeardedIdiot]

I've done two batches with 60 minute mashes and hit my numbers dead on.

Also, this is a beer that can definitely change character over time. My first batch started out very sweet and chocolatey, with just a hint of coffee and roast in the background. Over time, the chocolateliness and sweetness slowly settled down to a lower level, and the roast coffee flavor really came to the forefront, so much so that one of my friends called it "the coffee beer".

It is still by far the favorite beer among my friends that I've made, and most of them are not big into stouts, even sweet ones.

 

[beamar]

How long is everyone leaving it in their primary? 21 days then to secondary? Or moving it sooner?


Brian

 

[insanim8er]

How long is everyone leaving it in their primary? 21 days then to secondary? Or moving it sooner?

I left my last one on primary for like 2 months before I racked it to keg... god it was so good.

I just finished making a pumpkin pie graff. Either tomorrow or the next day I plan on making a variation of this milk stout. It'll be an Orange Cream stout.

 

[Chris7687]

Hey guys, had a concern/question that I was hoping someone could cover for me. I am sorry if this has been answered/covered in a previous post on this thread. I tried looking but didn't find anything.

So this past Tuesday my HBC covered Stouts as a beer style. We passed around commercial samples of each category in #13 and talked about brewing tips for the style in general. Many people mentioned to not add the dark grains until the last 10 minutes or so, as they add an unwanted bitterness to the sweet stout. I made this recipe before (mashing all the grains together) and did notice an unexpected bitterness to the beer, but it may have just been in my head too. These specialty grains also aren't "designed" to have extractable sugars in them, so we are mainly looking at the chocolate and roasted barley for color and slight flavor. How many agree with this practice of adding the "specialty" grains at the end of the mash?

The reason I ask is because I added all my grains (except base malt, flaked barley & oats) in one bag. They're mixed together well, so there is no picking or sorting optional. I was thinking of just compensating the sugars I would have gained from those grains with more base malt and adding the bag of specialties at the last 10 minutes for color and flavor extraction. Thoughts? Or should I just add everything to the mash for the 75 minutes?

 

[brewski09]

Hey guys, had a concern/question that I was hoping someone could cover for me. I am sorry if this has been answered/covered in a previous post on this thread. I tried looking but didn't find anything.

So this past Tuesday my HBC covered Stouts as a beer style. We passed around commercial samples of each category in #13 and talked about brewing tips for the style in general. Many people mentioned to not add the dark grains until the last 10 minutes or so, as they add an unwanted bitterness to the sweet stout. I made this recipe before (mashing all the grains together) and did notice an unexpected bitterness to the beer, but it may have just been in my head too. These specialty grains also aren't "designed" to have extractable sugars in them, so we are mainly looking at the chocolate and roasted barley for color and slight flavor. How many agree with this practice of adding the "specialty" grains at the end of the mash?

The reason I ask is because I added all my grains (except base malt, flaked barley & oats) in one bag. They're mixed together well, so there is no picking or sorting optional. I was thinking of just compensating the sugars I would have gained from those grains with more base malt and adding the bag of specialties at the last 10 minutes for color and flavor extraction. Thoughts? Or should I just add everything to the mash for the 75 minutes?

I only mash for 60 minutes and don't have any efficiency problems. I also add calcium carbonate to my mash when I have a lot of dark grains. Make sure not to sparge too hot or too much, as you will pull the tannins out o the husks more readily in the dark grains. I've made this several times with great success and it tastes pretty damn close to the real thing too (yeast character is a little off with the dried yeast). I think adding the dark grains at the end is a compensatory technique that works well, but isn't needed if you are careful with you processes. This is my own opinion, take it or leave it as you like.

 

[Unibrow]

I brewed this up last week - 5 days in, added a few vanilla beans that have been soaking in Vodka to the fermenter.

Cannot WAIT for this to be done

 

[Chris7687]

brewski09 - I think I will just add them at the end as I am doing BIAB. The grain bed will get disturbed a fair amount when I stir frequently throughout the mash and hoist hte bag out at the end of the mash. Thanks for the advice.

 

[nolabrew85]

I made this Sunday and everything went great, EXCEPT I forgot to add lactose! So I expect it to a little bitter and more like a dark chocolate/coffee, but we will see! Maybe this will give me an opportunity to make one in a week or so and add lactose for the benefit of comparing what the lactose really brings to the table. I will update after all this to tell you anything I notice.

 

[bottlebomber]

I made this Sunday and everything went great, EXCEPT I forgot to add lactose! So I expect it to a little bitter and more like a dark chocolate/coffee, but we will see! Maybe this will give me an opportunity to make one in a week or so and add lactose for the benefit of comparing what the lactose really brings to the table. I will update after all this to tell you anything I notice.

Add it after the fermentation is complete. Just boil the lactose in a pint of water and add it before packaging.

 

[insanim8er]

Add it after the fermentation is complete. Just boil the lactose in a pint of water and add it before packaging.

Not that I've done this, but its good info for any future mistakes.

Would he get the same result doing it that way?

I don't know the truth of this but I searched online about beer smith's glitch on handling lactose. I read yeast ferments some of the lactose but lack the beta-galactosidaseto enzyme to fully break it down.

 

[bottlebomber]

Not that I've done this, but its good info for any future mistakes.

Would he get the same result doing it that way?

I don't know the truth of this but I searched online about beer smith's glitch on handling lactose. I read yeast ferments some of the lactose but lack the beta-galactosidaseto enzyme to fully break it down.

If that were truly a concern, he could boil and cool it, and add it now, early in the fermentation. I know for sure that some things can ferment lactose, but it happens slowly. But I believe it will turn out exactly the same.

 

[nolabrew85]

Hmm. The airlock is still bubbling. Maybe I could boil the pound of lactose tonight, cool it, and tossed it in. I think that is a better option than me making an entirely new batch of basically the same thing this friday (now I can chill or make something else). What do yall think? I was so disappointed in forgetting about the lactose because the mash and sparge was one of the best I have had.