Stout recipe question

[sixstringsgareth]

Hi guys and gals.

I'm making a stout recipe based on what I've read online and with the help of beersmith.

Here's the recipe:

3kg light LME
500g light DME
500g flaked barley
500g carapils
500g roasted barley
80g East Kent goldings
S-04

I've read that flaked barley must be mashed but can be steeped if used in low enough quantities as the roasted barley will overpower the starch look and taste so I'm prepared to give it a try. Please step in if you think I'm making a mistake.

My question: does the roasted barley need to be whole or crushed? I'm assuming it needs to be unmalted.

Thanks in advance!

 

[sixstringsgareth]

No takers?

 

[JoeSpartaNJ]

Flaked Barley should be mashed and Roasted Barley needs to be crushed.

I would get rid of the carapils, for your stout it really wont contribute much.

I would also switch all extract to DME if you can. It can be a pain to use but will taste better in the end.

Just my $.02

 

[sixstringsgareth]

Flaked Barley should be mashed and Roasted Barley needs to be crushed.



I would get rid of the carapils, for your stout it really wont contribute much.



I would also switch all extract to DME if you can. It can be a pain to use but will taste better in the end.



Just my $.02

Thanks for your reply.

On my local forum everyone suggested carapils to help head retention.

 

[JoeSpartaNJ]

Thanks for your reply.

On my local forum everyone suggested carapils to help head retention.

I know alot of people use carapils for that purpose.
Personally, I stopped using it a few years ago and have no issues with head retention.

 

[schokie]

Carapils won't hurt, but it's not needed. But I'd only use about 50-100g at most. You don't need much.

I'd also use about half the roasted barley you listed. I think it works best if the flaked barley and roasted barley are a 2:1 ratio. The key to roasted barley in a stout is to get as fine a crush as possible. Put it in a food processor if you need to.

Steeping is ok, though mashing is preferable. If you have some 2-row or pale base malt, you can throw about 100g in the steep to help convert and act as a mini-mash.

I wouldn't stress LME vs DME. You'll get the same results, so just use whichever you prefer. I happen to like DME more, but it's totally a personal decision.

 

[TycoRossBrewing]

I would add 5 to 8 ozs of black patent as well.

 

[sixstringsgareth]

Sorry I haven't replied sooner but it was Paddys day over here in Ireland and well...

So after reviewing all what you've said I think I might now try this:

3kg Pale LME
500g Pale DME
1kg Flaked Barley
500g Roasted Barley
80g East Kent Goldings
S-04 Yeast

It's a stout after all so it should be dark enough to hide any haze.

 

[sixstringsgareth]

Steeping is ok, though mashing is preferable. If you have some 2-row or pale base malt, you can throw about 100g in the steep to help convert and act as a mini-mash.

Im afraid I don't have any base malts available (in small quantities anyway) but this is very interesting and perhaps the gateway to BIAB.

 

[schokie]

Looks good to me. Let us know how it turns out.

The downside to not mashing the flaked barley is the starch in it won't be converted to fermentable sugar. That means you might have a bit of a starch haze. But as you already mentioned, it's a dark beer, so not a big concern.

 

[Yooper]

Sorry I haven't replied sooner but it was Paddys day over here in Ireland and well...

So after reviewing all what you've said I think I might now try this:

3kg Pale LME
500g Pale DME
1kg Flaked Barley
500g Roasted Barley
80g East Kent Goldings
S-04 Yeast

It's a stout after all so it should be dark enough to hide any haze.

I'm terrible with metric, but I think that's too much flaked barley. A Kg is a LOT!
500 grams is also a LOT of roasted barley.

What is your batch size? I do 19L sized batches, but maybe this is a 23L batch?

 

[sixstringsgareth]

I'm terrible with metric, but I think that's too much flaked barley. A Kg is a LOT!

500 grams is also a LOT of roasted barley.



What is your batch size? I do 19L sized batches, but maybe this is a 23L batch?

Yeah this is a 23L batch. I was thinking 1kg of flaked barley seems a lot but I've also read stout usually follows a 7-2-1 ratio for base-flaked-roasted.

I'm just trying to replicate Guinness as best I can with extract.

 

[schokie]

I'm drinking right now a dry stout I made last weekend with the 7-2-1 ratio of grains. Tastes delicious. 19L batch size in the keg.

To be exact, it was 7lb pale malt, 2lb flaked barley, 1 lb roasted barley, and 5gal in the keg. 1.044 OG. It's the same amount of specialty grain Jamil Z gives in Brewing Classic Styles. I'll admit, I doubted the amount, but I can't argue with the results.

Don't fear the barley!