My first stout (chocolate stout)

[worlddivides]

So I started my first stout today and just put it in the fermenter. After getting a few brews under my belt, everything is going a lot more efficiently now. Already cut about an hour and a half off of how long it took me to do my very first beer.

I used maltodextrin and expected a starting gravity around 1.056, but only got a reading of 1.048. I'm sure it will taste great, but almost being "10" off is a little disappointing, I guess. I used English ale yeast, English hops, and some English grains, so it's really going for more of an "English" stout feel. But who knows? It might end up tasting more like an American stout. Haha.

I was originally planning on moving the stout to a secondary to sit on cacao nibs for a couple weeks, but I've changed my mind, thinking it might be better to leave it in primary the whole time.

Currently I'm planning on adding a cacao nibs/vodka extract that I've been making over the past 2 days to the primary after the fermentation has pretty much completed. Does that timing sound good or does anyone have any different suggestions? Should I add both the dark brown vodka and the cacao nibs that have been seeping in it? Or should I only add the vodka extract? Right now I'm thinking of adding them both, but I'm open to suggestions.

I have high hopes for this beer. On paper it looks great and the gravity sample tasted great, so I'm hoping everything goes well.

 

[day_trippr]

I'm sure it's going to turn out great, and on the up side you may be able to quaff two pints before it knocks you into bed

Stouts and fruit-infused beers are currently the only remaining recipes that I still rack to a "secondary" vessel. The stouts, primarily for aging, but especially for my chocolate stouts I want to start with a fairly clean beer so I lose as little of the post-fermentation additions as possible. So I do recommend racking that beer before you add the cocoa, and purge the vessel head space with CO2 (or drop in a couple tablespoons of corn sugar and give the beer a swirl) before setting it aside.

On that last point, I dump the nibs and spirits into the carboy and rack on top. No light-bulb logic, I've just always done it that way, figuring I'd give the nibs as much time in the mix as possible to let them give their all. I'd also recommend some vanilla bean as it definitely causes a perception of intensity in the chocolate character that isn't there otherwise...

Cheers!

 

[MindenMan]

Any beer with adjuncts I make I will secondary, otherwise I leave it in the primary until am ready to bottle. Are you adding the nibs un-roasted? For me anyway, I prefer the nibs roasted and crushed into vodka, and shaken for a few days before adding it all into the secondary. I agree, without vanilla, chocolate doesn't really taste like chocolate.

 

[worlddivides]

On that last point, I dump the nibs and spirits into the carboy and rack on top. No light-bulb logic, I've just always done it that way, figuring I'd give the nibs as much time in the mix as possible to let them give their all. I'd also recommend some vanilla bean as it definitely causes a perception of intensity in the chocolate character that isn't there otherwise...

Cheers!

I have a bottle of whiskey that I've been soaking three large vanilla beans in for the last week or two. I was originally planning on putting it in my stout too until I learned that my girlfriend HATES the way vanilla tastes.

But I know that vanilla, at least in cooking, is oftentimes used to intensify other flavors, most commonly chocolate. Does adding vanilla to the chocolate impart a vanilla flavor or does it have the same effect that it does in cooking as just intensifying the chocolate flavor? I've had commercial beers that were labeled "vanilla chocolate stouts" where I could taste the vanilla and chocolate.

And, while I love vanilla, my girlfriend doesn't, so I wouldn't want to add it if it imparts a specifically "vanilla" flavor to the beer.

As for the secondary, that's not an option. I currently have cider in my secondary and it's not going to be ready to bottle for at least another month (I might leave it in the secondary even longer), so I have to add the chocolate (and possibly vanilla) to the primary. (And before you say "by another carboy," I'm pretty much at the maximum I want right now).

 

[worlddivides]

Any beer with adjuncts I make I will secondary, otherwise I leave it in the primary until am ready to bottle. Are you adding the nibs un-roasted? For me anyway, I prefer the nibs roasted and crushed into vodka, and shaken for a few days before adding it all into the secondary. I agree, without vanilla, chocolate doesn't really taste like chocolate.

I had heard about how a lot of adjuncts can have their flavors much more intensified by roasting them (nuts such as almonds and hazelnuts as a big example), but I have a feeling that the 4 ounces of cacao nibs in vodka will already make a pretty damn strong chocolate flavor (the smell already is overpowering). And I'm going for more of a "medium" chocolate flavor.

 

[day_trippr]

[...]But I know that vanilla, at least in cooking, is oftentimes used to intensify other flavors, most commonly chocolate. Does adding vanilla to the chocolate impart a vanilla flavor or does it have the same effect that it does in cooking as just intensifying the chocolate flavor? I've had commercial beers that were labeled "vanilla chocolate stouts" where I could taste the vanilla and chocolate.

There's no denying that anyone familiar with vanilla would pick it up, but with the modest dosage (I use one whole scraped bean soaked with the nibs for a few days in dark rum) it truly sits well behind the amplified chocolate character. Still, if you can't replace the girlfriend, it's probably the better part of valor to leave it out.

fwiw, I use 8 ounces of nibs with enough dark rum to cover for a 5.25g batch of 90-something point stout. I'm sipping a short pour right now and honest to Flying Spaghetti Monster it is delicious...

Cheers!

 

[worlddivides]

Thanks for the info/advice! I think I'll just add a small amount of my vanilla-infused whiskey (100ml?) and probably just 1 of the 3 vanilla beans to my carboy along with the 4 ounces of cacao nibs in vodka. With that, it should be about the amount where my girlfriend will enjoy the chocolate and not be bothered by the vanilla. For what it's worth, she enjoys a lot of chocolate confectioneries, baked goods, and so on that do contain vanilla, so I think it's mostly that she doesn't like the flavor of vanilla by itself (vanilla yogurt, vanilla ice cream, etc.).

I'm looking forward to this one. I expect it'll be real delicious.

 

[Teromous]

When I use cocao nibs they float for a while then sink to the bottom. If you are dumping them into the primary, my fear is that they will sink into the yeast cake. It might be a good option to place it in a hop bag or something to keep them suspended (I just dump them in a secondary).

 

[day_trippr]

Similar thoughts keep me using "secondaries" for my chocolate stouts.

Indeed this afternoon I racked my latest batch on top of a healthy dose of nibs, dark rum and a smushed up vanilla bean that has been simmering in the kitchen for five days.

From 97 down to ~21 points in two weeks, pretty much perfect. Blots out the light, too...

Cheers!

 

[worlddivides]

It's been about 24 hours since I pitched the yeast and still no action... My last three times were 12 hours, 5 hours, and 8 hours. I've heard that it can take over 48 hours, but this is the first time I haven't had any activity within the first day.

When I use cocao nibs they float for a while then sink to the bottom. If you are dumping them into the primary, my fear is that they will sink into the yeast cake. It might be a good option to place it in a hop bag or something to keep them suspended (I just dump them in a secondary).

How would I go about something like that? Do I put the nibs in the mesh bag and then put the whole bag in the primary or is there some way to keep the bag's "strings" outside of the fermenter so that the bag doesn't sink?

I'm pretty sure the bag would eventually sink if I put the whole thing in the fermenter.

 

[MrBaloo]

How about an update on how it came out?? Beer good? GF like it? Vanilla work as expected?

My chocolate stout is in primary right now... Researching how to add nibs.... Plan to follow these thoughts.