Please Critique Oatmeal Stout!

[SchmidtyBeer]

This will be my first Stout so I just wanted to get some opinions from everybody. This is a pretty big stout with a OG of 1.077.

7 lbs Unhopped Dark Liquid Extract
.88 lbs Crystal 150
.75 lbs Chocolate Malt
.38 lbs Debittered Black Malt (belgium)
.38 lbs Victory
.38 lbs Flaked Barley
.38 lbs Flaked Oats

1 oz. Cascade 5.4% 60min
.50 oz. Willamette 4.4% 60min
.75 oz. Cascade 5.4% 30min
.33 oz. Willamette 4.4% 15min

White Labs WLp001 California Ale

 

[Stile]

I like it :rockin:

But i never really follow the rules, so i'd wait for a few more repiles.

Are you going to mash the adjuncts for 60 mins or just steep them?

 

[Brewing Clamper]

With a stout that big, I would use more oats. My Oatmeal stout has an OG of around 1.065 and I use 1lb of oats and I get a pretty good body to it...

 

[SchmidtyBeer]

I am going to do a 40 minute steep at 150 degrees.

 

[Stile]

I am going to do a 40 minute steep at 150 degrees.

Roger on that. You'll get some great color and flavors from that bill.

I do agree though... it being a stout, you might want to up the oats to a pound. Between that and the barley, you'll get some great head retention and body.

 

[mmb]

I'd swap the flaked barley out for more flaked oats. They both contribute the same mouth feel so why use the flaked barley in an oatmeal stout?

I use 1.5 lbs oats in my AG 1.060 oatmeal stout.

 

[Jewrican]

i am an extract brewer as well and unless you plan to do a mash (partial in this case) with the barley the oats will be nearly useless. They will not contribute anything if they are not mashed with the barley.

That is the only thing that has held me off from doing it. I am going to give it a shot soon though...

 

[Shonuff]

i am an extract brewer as well and unless you plan to do a mash (partial in this case) with the barley the oats will be nearly useless. They will not contribute anything if they are not mashed with the barley.

That is the only thing that has held me off from doing it. I am going to give it a shot soon though...

I loved "The Money Pit". That is my answer to your statement.

 

[Brewing Clamper]

i am an extract brewer as well and unless you plan to do a mash (partial in this case) with the barley the oats will be nearly useless. They will not contribute anything if they are not mashed with the barley.

That is the only thing that has held me off from doing it. I am going to give it a shot soon though...

You can steep the oats, especially if you use quick or instant oats. You will not get any fermentables out of it, but you'll still get that silky mouthfeel that you want in an Oatmeal Stout. You'll probably also get some serious haze, but it doesn't matter in a beer this dark.

 

[SchmidtyBeer]

Ok... So I went ahead and brewed tonight. I increased the oats to a pound just in case. But I think I may have messed this batch up big time. The recipe calls for a 1.077 OG I hit 1.061!! WTF!!?? I back tracked through the brew but I can not figure out where I went wrong.

The one thing I could think would be the malt extract. The original recipe called for 6 lbs of dark liquid and 1 lb of dark dry. I went ahead and just bumped the liquid up to about 7 lbs 3 oz. Could this of thrown off the gravity that much??

Also when I tasted it after measuring the OG, it was bitter as hell! Will this mellow out over the fermentation period.

 

[Stile]

1.5oz of bittering hops could be excessive to some and just right for others. I tend to find that my beers will mellow with conditioning. So time will tell. As for the OG.... i was never one for numbers

Post back when it's done, i'd like to hear how it turned out.

 

[SchmidtyBeer]

I am a big hop head but the bitterness now is just intense, but if it mellows out just a little it should be pretty darn good.