Newb question Smoked Scotch Porter

[saltlakespeakeasy]

Hey everyone,
I am a new brewer somewhat. I have brewed a few batches in the past with one that turned out good while the other suffered the wrath of bitterness. It's been a while since I have been in the kitchen brewing up a batch so I thought I would try again.
So I bought a malt extract kit for a smoked porter from the store and it came with all the ingredients however I want to add scotch to it. I have had some amazing scotch beers in the past and this seemed like a great mix to me. What is the best way to go about adding scotch into my beer. I have heard of people soaking oak chips but I don't know if I put those in primary or secondary or how that works. Any advice for a beginner like myself would be much appreciated.

 

[bleme]

If you are only adding Scotch, add it to your bottling bucket when you go to bottle.

Get a few 2oz samples, add a different amount of Scotch to each, and scale up for the rest of your batch.

 

[bleme]

Forgot to say choose the sample you like best, and scale that one up. Hope that is more clear.

 

[Epimetheus]

A fellow brought a bourbon beer to the local brew club and it was pleasant. He did not use top-shelf bourbon. Just sayin' you probably do not need 15 yo single malt to provide that scotch flavor. He said he used a tablespoon (1/2 oz) of 80 proof per 12 oz bottle, that might give you a starting point.

In my small experience, smoke is very strong in beer or it seems so to my taste. The smoke may overwhelm the scotch. I have done only a few flavored batches. I split the batch between flavored and not to taste the difference.

 

[VonRunkel]

It may be to late, but have you considered using peated malt? I think it would lend a more scotch taste than smoked. Be careful if you do use it though, a little goes a long way.

I think you might get more of the earthy flavor of a big scotch using the peated malt, which would cover any failings of a plastic jug scotch. If nothing else it will add a more complex flavor profile than just smoke.

Just my 2¢.

 

[unionrdr]

I'm fermenting a black pseudo lager now that used .5lb of Weyerman's smoked malt (rauchmalt) in it. I'm finding,like a few others,that 1/2lb isn't enough for true smoky flavor. but with the grains/extracts I used,more like a grilled roasty pork kind of flavor. Next time,I'll brew it with 1.5lbs of rauchmalt,since I have an extra 1/2lb in the fridge. They sell it by the pound,but whether peat smoked or beechwood smoked,they're both smoked. Just different flavors.
That beachwood smoke smells darn good though.
As for the scotch,you could soak some medium toast French oak,say 3oz with a couple jiggers of scotch in an airtight container in the fridge during primary of the beer. Then pour the chips & liquor through a muslin hop sack into secondary,tie it off & drop it in. Then rack the beer on top of it. Wait a week,then take a 1oz sample to see if it's as strong as you like. Proceed from there.

 

[saltlakespeakeasy]

Thanks for the advice I just bought a smoked and Oaked ale from a local brewery and I loved it. It's about the flavor I am going for which had a nice flavor of scotch at the end notes. I plan on making it with oak chips for sure and when I talked to the brewer he said to soak the oak chips in the scotch for two weeks or so during primary then when I transfer to secondary to add the oak chips in there. My question is now how to I rack the secondary to bottling without getting the wood residue in my bottles? I could bag it but that makes me worry about contamination since I don't know the best way to sanitize the bag, maybe let that sit in the scotch as well? I plan on calling this my S.O.S Porter or the Smoked & Oaked Scotch Porter. Hoping for some great results and I love the idea of trying it out incrementally to see which captures the flavor thanks for any advice!

 

[unionrdr]

Like I said,I used a muslin hop sack to put the chips in after pouring them & the liquid through it into secondary. The hop sock will contain the chips nicely. I didn't want tonsil stickers in my bottles either...

 

[Demus]

Some sites sell oak spirals for wine aging. Should work great for beer and much easier to avoid being sucked into the syphon...

 

[unionrdr]

A few on here have spoken about using them. I always figured that the bigger/thicker the wood,the longer it'd take to flavor the beer.

 

[Demus]

More about surface area. That's why the spirals work well...

 

[unionrdr]

Idk...the chips got pretty strong in 8 days for me. Others on here say the smaller the faster?....

 

[Demus]

Well you really don't know for sure until you try it out, but I can certainly say if your concern was sucking the chips into a syphon the spirals won't have that issue...

 

[bleme]

You are both right.

Chips have more exposed surface than spirals. Spirals have more exposed surface than cubes. Cubes have more exposed surface than a barrel.

Spirals are also harder to suck through a siphon than chips.