mash temp question

[uncommonsense]

Im brewing a sweet stout tomorrow and I want it to be full bodied. The ingredients include .5 # of flaked oats and barley and a pound of lactose. Should I go ahead and use a full body mash or a medium becuase the adjuncts will add enough body to make it full.

 

[Domes]

Im brewing a sweet stout tomorrow and I want it to be full bodied. The ingredients include .5 # of flaked oats and barley and a pound of lactose. Should I go ahead and use a full body mash or a medium becuase the adjuncts will add enough body to make it full.

It's going to depend on the yeast you use and how it attenuates. The lactose will give it body and sweetness. I'm not sure how much more sweetness you want. If you use a high attenuating yeast and mash at 156 deg. You'll get body and sweetness. Do this temp with a low attenuating yeast, you'll have lots of body and lots of sweetness. How about adding .25 pd. of carapils and mash at 154 deg with an Irish ale yeast.

 

[kylevester]

When I do my milk stout, I aim for a medium body mash. So 152 to 154 F will do you nicely.

If it comes out too dry, you can add some lactose or malto-dextrine in addition to your adjuncts to bring it up. You can water down a too sweet beer, but in my opinion it is far easier to sweeten to taste than dilute to taste.

Good luck and aim for no higher than 154.

 

[Yooper]

I always mash my full bodied stouts at 156-158. I want a full rich stout, "chewy" in texture, when I make it so I mash high.

 

[weirdboy]

I agree with yooper.


Also, regarding malto-dextrine....I have tried it twice, and both times I have not really liked the result. I get more body, but at the expense of a kind of strange, almost grainy, texture in the beer.

 

[kylevester]

I agree with yooper.


Also, regarding malto-dextrine....I have tried it twice, and both times I have not really liked the result. I get more body, but at the expense of a kind of strange, almost grainy, texture in the beer.

Interesting. I've had it in a couple kits but have never used it since going all-grain but wouldn't say I got that character from it, assuming IRC.

Did you add during boil or as a body builder afterwards?

 

[weirdboy]

Interesting. I've had it in a couple kits but have never used it since going all-grain but wouldn't say I got that character from it, assuming IRC.

Did you add during boil or as a body builder afterwards?

Only to "correct" poor body after fermentation. To do so, I boiled it up in solution before adding it to the fermenter.

 

[Domes]

Im brewing a sweet stout tomorrow and I want it to be full bodied. The ingredients include .5 # of flaked oats and barley and a pound of lactose. Should I go ahead and use a full body mash or a medium becuase the adjuncts will add enough body to make it full.

If you want body and sweetness, mash at 156- 158 deg. If you want just body, mash at 154 deg and add unfermentables like carapils or maltose trim as suggested. Again, it also depends on the attenuation of the yeast you are using.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I just made a sweet stout and mashed at 154. Since I used a whole pound of lactose it came out with plenty of body and sweetness. It all comes down to personal preference though.