Lightly Peated Malt?

[HeyLewis]

I have a great recipe (which I found somewhere on this site) for a really nice Irish red ale and I was trying to add a theres-something-different-in-this-beer-but-I-cant-quite-put-my-finger-on-it light peat smoke flavour. I was thinking 5oz of lightly peated malt should work, but I cant find too much information about how much to use of lightly peated malt specifically. The recipe is as follows:

7lbs 2 row
1lb CaraAroma
8oz Carafoam
8oz Melanoiden
5oz Lightly Peated Malt
1lb Honey (flameout)

1oz Saaz (60 min)
1oz Cascade (15 min)
.5oz Saaz (5 min)

Thames Valley Ale yeast

Im aiming for something very subtle with the peat smoke... Any suggestions?

 

[dkennedy]

I was just looking at peated malt the other day- off-the-wall idea for an IPA.

This thread suggests a couple ounces gets you a hint.
This one talks about up to a half pound. I've also seen folks on here smoke their own malt, could be a bit tougher with the peated.

I shelved using it for an IPA (may still do a different smoked malt), but was thinking 4 ounces or so, due to the hop content.

Good luck!

 

[HeyLewis]

Thanks! I think im gonna try 1/4lb of it and see how it goes. I picked up this "light peat malt" beside the peat malt at the brew store. I know peat malt or smoke malt you can overuse quite easily, but this stuff isnt crazy peat smelling, maybe about half what the normal stuff is. Guess I'll just experiment a bit and see what happens!

A smoked IPA actually sounds kinda cool, peated or otherwise. Id be interested to hear how that turns out!

 

[rhys333]

Resurrecting an old thread!

I picked up a 2 lb bag of lightly peated malt from the lhbs last week and would like to use some in a porter. Any ideas on how much of this stuff is appropriate to get a moderate smoky character?

 

[dkennedy]

I would err on the light side, peated can bring some medicinal smells/flavors to the party. I'd let your nose be the judge, and go 4 oz (semi conservative) up to a half pound if your porter can stand up to it. If it were me, I'd do 4 oz on the first batch...can always tweak it for version 2.

 

[rhys333]

Thanks dkennedy. Is there a difference in 'smoke power' between peated and lightly peated?

 

[Jonkl]

I sent my brother a bottle of an Amber that I way over-peated, and he didn't even register the smoke/peat/whatever. His palate recognized it as bitterness, like it was an IPA.

I think if you're going to have a lot of hops, you can use a little extra. If you're not, back off and use it rather sparingly (5% or less).

 

[dkennedy]

Thanks dkennedy. Is there a difference in 'smoke power' between peated and lightly peated?

Believe that there is only one type that is readily available, from Simpson's.

 

[rhys333]

I checked and I have Bairds brand. They offer 3 types, this being the lightest. I contacted them earlier today for a percentage recommendation and will post back for anyone who may be interested.

 

[unclebrazzie]

"Lightly peated" can mean anything from "no more than 5ppm" to "somewhere between 15 and 25 ppm".
Without actual ppm values, you're bound to end up disappointed: it'll be either more or less than what you had in mind.
Contact the supplier and ask for actual ppm values before deciding.

I can tell from first hand experience that 5ppm does not show up in the final beer at all, except as "rauchbier smoke" flavour, even in large doses. Mind, I was brewing a 1.090SG, malt-forward beer, and it's possible the peat will surface in lighter brews (no idea what the OP's targets are based on just the malt bill). My own had 11% of 5ppm peated malt and so far, all I get is saussagey smoke. No peat.

Baird's, I see, would be any of these three:
Lightly Peated ppm 2 - 5
Medium Peated ppm 8 - 10
Heavy Peated ppm 25 - 50

If you're using their Lightly Peated product, my guess is 5oz is not going to show at all, of will be so subtle only you will know what went in the brew.

All that being said: thresholds are highly individual, and peat is no exception. Maybe I just have a thick tongue

 

[rhys333]

I rediscovered the lighly peated malt I purchased three years ago and never used. I see from my posts above I found this thread last time I considered using the stuff. I'm clearing out some grains now and decided to finally use this stuff in a non-traditional amber ale. By that I mean I'm leaning more on the toasty/roasty malts than the crystal. I'm worried about overdoing the peated malt though, and I'd rather end up with no smoke than too much, so I'm thinking something along the lines of:

AMBER (OR RED) ALE - 1.050/30 IBU
81% 2 Row
7% Victory
5% C40
5% Flaked Barley
1% ea. Roasted Barley & Lightly-peated malt
Hops @ 60 & 15 to 30 IBU

I'm shooting for red/amber colour, toasty with a low background note of roast and/or smoke. The 1% peat malt is a mere 1.25 oz in this batch. Any thoughts/suggestions welcome and appreciated!