Ultralight Malt Extract for Stout?

[Acyr90]

There's a kit from my LHBS for a sweet stout that calls for 6 lbs of Ultralight Malt Extract (doesn't specify liquid or dry). Using ultralight extract for a beer that's supposed to be dark seems odd to me.

Could anyone explain why they don't use a medium or dark malt extract in the kit instead? Is it cheaper for them to sell this way? Hopefully you guys can clear this up for me

The full list of ingredients are:
6lb Ultralight Malt Extract
1lb Lactose

1lb Black Patent (Steeped)
12oz Crystal 75L (Steeped)

2oz Cascade (60 minutes)

 

[Ogri]

The ultralight is just the bulk of your fermentables and will do the job fine. You're getting all the colour you need from the black patent plus a bit of caramel sweetness and hint of colour from the crystal. The lactose will contribute a fair amount of sweetness too, I think.

Might be also that it's easier to hit a certain lower FG using the above fermentables than it would using medium or dark liquid extracts as they can sometimes lead to finishing at higher FGs due to varying levels of unfermentable sugars in their composition.

 

[Acyr90]

Oh okay, I wasn't sure how much color the grains gave off because I've only done lighter brews. Thanks for the quick reply

 

[cheezydemon3]

If you were brewing all grain, you would have 9 lbs or so of pale grains and your 1 lb of black patent, etc.......

 

[amandabab]

1lb Black Patent (Steeped)
12oz Crystal 75L (Steeped)

because you can't get blacker than that.

 

[brewkinger]

+1

That 1# of black patent is gonna give you the color

 

[BigFloyd]

+1

That 1# of black patent is gonna give you the color

With a whole pound of black patent, that may be all you end up tasting too.

That stuff is really roasty and using too much gives you an overpowering burnt flavor. A little bit goes quite a long way. I use it, but I'd hesitate to use that much in a 5-gallon recipe.

 

[solbes]

Wow 1 lb of black patent would be pretty acrid and ashy, not to mention really bitter. 1 lb of roasted barley would be better IMO. Or only use 1-2 oz of BP and the balance of a lb of RB.

 

[Acyr90]

I was thinking the exact same thing! I haven't bought the kit yet, but when I got around to it I was going to ask for some advice on what could be changed to to make it a little better. I've read that roasted barley pretty much replaced black patent in many recipes so I was thinking about switching up the grains a bit & also buying some cacao nibs or vanilla beans to give it a little something extra since the recipe alone seems a little bland. It's only 24 bucks at the LHBS so I won't have to pay shipping either. Figured it's a good, cheap way to experiment with a stout.

 

[BigFloyd]

I was thinking the exact same thing! I haven't bought the kit yet, but when I got around to it I was going to ask for some advice on what could be changed to to make it a little better. I've read that roasted barley pretty much replaced black patent in many recipes so I was thinking about switching up the grains a bit & also buying some cacao nibs or vanilla beans to give it a little something extra since the recipe alone seems a little bland. It's only 24 bucks at the LHBS so I won't have to pay shipping either. Figured it's a good, cheap way to experiment with a stout.

I'd question the person who put together that recipe (about why the large amount of BP) and see if they have a bottle of it around that you can taste.

BTW- nothing wrong with using ultralight malt extract in a stout. I'd prefer the color/flavor to come from the crystal and roasted grains anyway.

 

[Revvy]

When I am formulating any extract with grain recipes I ALWAYS base it around Extralight DME, then I get all my flavor and color complexity from my steeping (or partial mashing) grains. That way you get to use more and varied grains.

For example, let's say you are making an amber ale....If you based it around amber extract, you have very little room to get complexity from roasted or crystalized grains.....you run the risk of muddying the flavor and ending up too dark for your recipe.....

Staying with my Amber example...The Srm range for that style is SRM: 10 – 17 so if your base extract already puts you into 14 srms, you son't have much room to move around it....you may be able to sneak in a pound of crystal 30 let's say in it.

But if your Extralight DME has a color of 5 SRMs, you can really get into the recipe and play around with different combinations of grains until you get into the right color and Og range for the style.

And that will also get you a deeper, more complex flavor.

It's kind of like making model airplanes....remember the "snap together" types that you started out with? You had maybe 8 pieces; 2 body halves two front wings, 2 rear wings and maybe 2 pieces for a cockpit, or two pieces for landing gear...

But if you got one of those 500 piece b52 bomber kits....you had a much more complex final product.

 

[dawalkertiger]

because you can't get blacker than that.

None more black.