Obsidian Stout Clone

[BendBrewer]

Brewing this at this very second. Any thots on use of s-04 here. I'm going to do it anyway, but I don't know how much it actually varies from the recommended strain.

~M~

Yes a good clean English Ale strain is best. Deschutes obviously has their own strain.

 

[ftlstrings]

this is black as death. I'm liking this already!

~M~

 

[bhambrew]

The recipe posted above is not wholly correct. I hope whoever wants to make this reads this post and realize that the recipe called for Black patent and NOT black barley.

I just picked up the grains for this brew today, plan on brewing tomorrow...one of my all-time favorites!

I inputed the recipe into Beer Tools and scaled the recipe to 11 gallons. My brewhouse efficiency is normally 80%. Beer Tools calculates the SG at 1.080- much higher than the original at 1.068...so I guess I'm brewing an Imperial Obsidian Stout now!

After scaling the recipe, the total grain bill is now 32.5 pounds. My MLT is a converted Sanke Keg and this will be the largest mash I have attempted. In fact, I'm not sure I can fit everything in...should I be worried?? Any thoughts from someone who has tried a 30# sanke-mash?? Thanks

 

[TimBrewz]

You should be fine with 30 lbs in a 15 gallon mash tun. I have used 27 lbs in my 10 gallon cooler. Good luck!

 

[bhambrew]

You should be fine with 30 lbs in a 15 gallon mash tun. I have used 27 lbs in my 10 gallon cooler. Good luck!

Thanks for the info Tim. I realize now that I had the efficency settings wrong which is why my OG is so high. I'm still haven't mastered Beer Tools. In any case, I'm sure this will be a great beer as an imperial stout. Should be an interesting brew day, I'll let you know how it turns out. I think I'll call it BIOS: Bellingham Imperial Obsidian Stout!

 

[ftlstrings]

Brewed this up yesterday, with typical "Two Cans Brewing" grain and hop subs, and it was happily bubbling away when I left for werk this morning. Checked it tonight after we took the kid trick or treating and she had blown the airlock completely off and had a tasty krausen billowing out of the carboy!

 

[Prionburger]

I brewed this but subbed the hops for some galaxy I had recently got. I also used safale 04, which actually attenuated less than 002 finishing at 1.020. Malt profile was dead on, despite hops being way off (still delicious).

I'm going to attempt this again but with some more noble hop subs. Thinking EKG, crystal, Apollo, or cluster in the aroma/flavor.

 

[JDFlow]

I'm using this grain bill + oats and using Hallertau for the second hop addition in place of the williamette. Fermenting with wyeast 1318 London Ale III. I really want to brew an oatmeal stout for the fall hence the oats. I wonder though, will the wheat and oats be overkill for mouthfeel? I'm guessing that's why the wheat is in there, to give it that creamy finish that makes Obsidian so velvety. The yeast and hop changes are just because I have some washed 1318 and I bought 1/2 lb of Hallertau awhile back. Suggestions on the oats?

 

[TimBrewz]

JDFlow, I have made a few oatmeal stouts. I have used both instant flaked oats and golden naked oats with good success. Both add that silky/creamy mouthfeel you are looking for.

The golden naked oats are used like a crystal malt, and add a bit of sweetness and nutty flavor on top of the creamy mouthfeel. The grain is very small and you will need to adjust the grain mill to crack this malt. I made an oatmeal stout for a competition with naked oats that turned out really good and won me the trophy. This grain is not in every homebrew shop, though I am sure you could find in Seattle.

The instant flaked oats are very neutral and just give the creamy mouthfeel. With the instant flaked oats, I added to the top of the mash and just stirred them into the top couple of inches of the grain to help avoid a stuck runoff. You also want to use rice hulls with the flaked oats for sure-they get really gummy. I did a Rogue stout clone with flaked oats and it was very good, too. You can just use grocery store instant oats.

Either route, about 1/2 lb oats in a 5 gallon batch seems to have worked for me.

I think the Hallertau and 1318 will be great in an oatmeal stout.

Cheers, Tim

 

[JDFlow]

JDFlow, I have made a few oatmeal stouts. I have used both instant flaked oats and golden naked oats with good success. Both add that silky/creamy mouthfeel you are looking for.

The golden naked oats are used like a crystal malt, and add a bit of sweetness and nutty flavor on top of the creamy mouthfeel. The grain is very small and you will need to adjust the grain mill to crack this malt. I made an oatmeal stout for a competition with naked oats that turned out really good and won me the trophy. This grain is not in every homebrew shop, though I am sure you could find in Seattle.

The instant flaked oats are very neutral and just give the creamy mouthfeel. With the instant flaked oats, I added to the top of the mash and just stirred them into the top couple of inches of the grain to help avoid a stuck runoff. You also want to use rice hulls with the flaked oats for sure-they get really gummy. I did a Rogue stout clone with flaked oats and it was very good, too. You can just use grocery store instant oats.

Either route, about 1/2 lb oats in a 5 gallon batch seems to have worked for me.

I think the Hallertau and 1318 will be great in an oatmeal stout.

Cheers, Tim

Thanks for the reply. I should be more specific, my question is would the addition of oats be overkill considering the wheat malt is already there.

 

[TimBrewz]

Oops, the teacher in me got carried away. I guess I can save that answer for a newbie I think that the wheat adds more softness and head retention than that slippery oaty creaminess, so I think adding oats to the existing recipe would be OK.

 

[JDFlow]

I brewed it today. OG was 1.064 and this is the most delicious wort I've ever tasted. Pitched a blend of London Ale III 1318 and American Ale 1056 from starters of washed yeast. Fermentation chamber is set at 63 which should keep this right around 65-66. Can't wait until this is done and kegged. I'm guessing primary 3 weeks and keg 2 weeks would be good?

 

[JDFlow]

Wow! The outcome of this brew is extremely close if not dead on Obsidian stout and I'm saying that as I taste the wort and a bottle of Obsidian stout side by side. There's a pretty strong alcohol flavor. Mine came out at 6.3% abv. The flavor should go away as everything blends over the next couple weeks. The yeast blend worked great. I washed the cake and will be using this blend again.

 

[TimBrewz]

Glad it turned out so well. Its about time to brew a stout and I will have to put this on my list to re-brew. I have never blended yeasts before, but have considered it. Did you pitch equal volumes of each yeast? Love the freedom of tweaking homebrew!

p.s. What was your oat addition?

 

[JDFlow]

Glad it turned out so well. Its about time to brew a stout and I will have to put this on my list to re-brew. I have never blended yeasts before, but have considered it. Did you pitch equal volumes of each yeast? Love the freedom of tweaking homebrew!

p.s. What was your oat addition?

Yes, I made 1.6 L starters from washed yeast of each type. Cold crashed them and pitched them both into the wort. Great clean English flavor from the 1318. It's almost as if the esters from the 1056 mask the overly "beery" flavor of the 1318.

 

[El Nino]

Here's the recipe from Jamil's show on the brewing network:

Obsidian Stout

SG: 1.065 - 1.068
FG: 1.017 - 1.020
IBU 52 - 57
Boil: 90 min.
Mash: 150 for 60 min.

11.9 lb. Pale 2-Row
1.43 lb. Black Barley
1.1 lb. Crystal 80
.66 lb. Cara-pils
.66 lb. Munich Malt
.66 lb. Wheat Malt
.11 lb. Roasted Barley

1 oz. Galena or Nugget 90 min.
1 oz. Willamette 30 min.
1 oz. Northern Brewer 5 min.

White Labs English Ale Yeast (WLP002)
Ferment at 65 degrees

You're my hero dude, I don't know if you're even still on these forums as this seems to be an old thread I found by searching Obsidian Stout lol. I may try brewing this on the upcoming Saturday. I was originally planning to brew another batch of Fresh Squeezed IPA, but I already have a Chinook IPA fermenting, I'd like to get a little bit of variety and this is one stout I absolutely loved. Also mixed with ice cream it'll make a better float than root beer ever will