Steeping an Imperial Stout.....

[sbkg]

Hey guys!

Just another cold Monday up here in MI, I'm laid off... aint got **** to do... so I'm brewin'!

This is my first time brewing any kind of stout, and was wondering how long i should steep the grains.

 

[bradsul]

The procedure is no different than any other kind of ale.

If you've never steeped before check out the great article on the wiki.

 

[sbkg]

thanks! thats what i figured!

another quick question: I'm adding a half gal., quarter gal., and 1.38lb light dme coopers malt, I know it's gonna be potent, but how do I keep it smooth w/o noticing the alcohol SO much?

 

[bradsul]

It's basically down to formulation of the recipe. If you don't balance all those extra fermentables with hops and other non-fermentable malts you'll end up with a nice roasty rocket fuel.

The other key is aging. A big beer like that needs a lot of aging time (6-9 months most likely) so you need to be patient and let it age. If you post the recipe we can help you out on that front, the patience is up to you though.

 

[sbkg]

I guess I should say I'm adding 1oz. of Perle pellet for bittering, and 1oz. of cascade 2 min before I shut the flame off

 

[bradsul]

I don't have the values for the Coopers extracts so I can't figure out your OG. I very much doubt 1oz of bittering hops will be enough though given the gravity range this beer should hit. Hopefully someone with those numbers will chime in.

 

[sbkg]

should i hold back on the 1/4 gal of liquid then?

 

[bradsul]

I'll be honest I'm not that familiar with gallons as a measurement and I do everything by weight anyway. Best thing to do since this thread title won't generate much interest on the recipe, is post your full recipe to the recipes forum and that will get you help making a nice balanced recipe.