I bought a LME kit from the LHBS. Its a milk stout. This store builds their own kits and must have forgot to throw in an instruction sheet. This is my 3rd kit so I know the process. I just need to know which hops to throw in at the beggining of the boil and which to throw in at the end of the boil. Also if I wanted to reduce the IBUs, how should I go about doing that?
Which hops to boil first?
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Thunder_Chicken
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Can you provide the recipe? What hops?
Usually the hop addition for a milk stout is a single bittering one for the full boil, at 60 minutes.
Usually the hop addition for a milk stout is a single bittering one for the full boil, at 60 minutes.
Look up the hop names online. If they are called bittering hops, they are generally used at the beginning of the boil, and finishing/flavor/aroma hops at the end. The earlier you add the hops, the more bitterness you will get, and the later you add them, the more flavor and aroma you will get. If you want to reduce the IBUs add less hops at the beginning.
Also +1 on Thunder chicken. In a milk stout you don't want much flavor/aroma hops if any at all.
Also +1 on Thunder chicken. In a milk stout you don't want much flavor/aroma hops if any at all.
Haha. Sorry, I meant to write the names and forgot. UK target and UK fuggle. Idk the type of malt extract. Its unlabeled as well as an unlabeled bag of grain. I have lactose and maltodextrin. And Nottingham yeast.
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
Hmm...the Target hops are a bittering hop, Fuggles may go in a little later. How many ounces of hops do you have?
The grains are likely steeping grains; put them all in a bag and steep them like tea for about 30 minutes or so in 150F water, then remove. How many lbs of grains do you have?
The malt extract can go in at the start of the boil for a stout. Lactose can go in at the end of the boil.
If you can provide the amounts of grains, hops, and extract we can probably run it through a calculator and give you a boil schedule.
The grains are likely steeping grains; put them all in a bag and steep them like tea for about 30 minutes or so in 150F water, then remove. How many lbs of grains do you have?
The malt extract can go in at the start of the boil for a stout. Lactose can go in at the end of the boil.
If you can provide the amounts of grains, hops, and extract we can probably run it through a calculator and give you a boil schedule.
My little digital scale says 2.9 lbs of steeping grains. 8 lbs of LME. 1oz. Of Target Pellets. 1oz of Fuggle pellets. 8oz lactose. 8oz Maltodextrin. He said its makes 5 gal.
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Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
That's going to be a honkin' sweet stout. It's not to BJCP style, but whatever.
I would steep the steeping grains and maltodextrin together in 2.5 gallons of water for about 30 minutes at 150F, then discard.
Add half of the LME, stir it in, and start the boil.
Once the 60 minute boil starts, throw in the Target hops.
At 30 minutes, add the Fuggles.
At flamout, add the remaining LME and lactose.
That should give you an OG of about 1.077, and about 33 IBUs.
Chill to 65F, add makeup water for 5 gallons, aerate like heck, add hydrated yeast, and let 'er rip.
This one will need a nice long primary and some aging, but it should be awesome.
I would steep the steeping grains and maltodextrin together in 2.5 gallons of water for about 30 minutes at 150F, then discard.
Add half of the LME, stir it in, and start the boil.
Once the 60 minute boil starts, throw in the Target hops.
At 30 minutes, add the Fuggles.
At flamout, add the remaining LME and lactose.
That should give you an OG of about 1.077, and about 33 IBUs.
Chill to 65F, add makeup water for 5 gallons, aerate like heck, add hydrated yeast, and let 'er rip.
This one will need a nice long primary and some aging, but it should be awesome.
That is a great deal of help. Wow!! I wasn't expecting to get this much help. Thank you so much.
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
There are calculators (Brewer's Friend is the one I use) where you can enter the ingredients and estimate what the resulting beer will be like. In most cases, you're trying to balance the hop bitterness (in IBUs or bittering units) to the original gravity of the beer (how much sugar is in the wort). This chart gives some guidance on how to balance those numbers:
33 IBUs for an OG of 1.077 should give you a slightly malt balanced beer, fine as it is a milk stout and the lactose won't ferment out.
This is a big beer, so I'd recommend letting it primary for several weeks to a month before bottling, and then let it age for a bit.
33 IBUs for an OG of 1.077 should give you a slightly malt balanced beer, fine as it is a milk stout and the lactose won't ferment out.
This is a big beer, so I'd recommend letting it primary for several weeks to a month before bottling, and then let it age for a bit.
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
It's a milk stout so it shouldn't have a lot of hop flavor, mostly bittering. Besides, 5-10 minutes would be closer to aroma additions.
Just curious... what is BJCP?
I'd do the Target at 60 min, Fuggles at 30 or 60 min (your choice). Last milk stout I did, the hop additions (EKG and Fuggles) were both at 60.
In case you weren't aware about fermenting with Nottingham, you've got to pitch and ferment it on the cool side. It will do the job down as low as 55*F (lower than most ale yeasts), but you should never, ever let it get above 68*F (that's beer temp, not air) when it's actively fermenting. Above 68*F will give you some rather unpleasant flavors. For a milk stout, you'll want to rehydrate that packet of dry yeast in warm tap water and pitch it into 60*F wort. Keep the beer temp below 64*F the first 4-5 days. After that, you can let it come up to around 66-67*F until it's done.
This beer may take 3 months of bottle conditioning before it's at its best. Hope you weren't in a hurry.
In case you weren't aware about fermenting with Nottingham, you've got to pitch and ferment it on the cool side. It will do the job down as low as 55*F (lower than most ale yeasts), but you should never, ever let it get above 68*F (that's beer temp, not air) when it's actively fermenting. Above 68*F will give you some rather unpleasant flavors. For a milk stout, you'll want to rehydrate that packet of dry yeast in warm tap water and pitch it into 60*F wort. Keep the beer temp below 64*F the first 4-5 days. After that, you can let it come up to around 66-67*F until it's done.
This beer may take 3 months of bottle conditioning before it's at its best. Hope you weren't in a hurry.
Beer Judge Certification Program. It's pretty rigorous course of study you have to take before you can serve as a judge in AHA/BJCP competitions.
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
Beer Judge Certification Program - the have a defined set of beer styles. If you enter beers into competition, they judge against these styles.
http://www.bjcp.org/index.php
You can check out the specs that define an IPA, a stout, etc.. It's a good resource to understand the different styles (they provide lists of good commercial representatives of each style). You may have drank a lot of beer, but if you really start looking at the BJCP and sampling these beers, you really start to get what these styles are all about. It will help your brewing to sample different styles.
I have a personal goal to sample each style outlined in the BJCP. There are beers out there that you never thought of that will blow your mind.
But a lot of folks get creative and are making beers that don't quite fall neatly into these categories. It's an art form, subject to interpretation. Have fun with it! We're all still learning, even the old-heads.
http://www.bjcp.org/index.php
You can check out the specs that define an IPA, a stout, etc.. It's a good resource to understand the different styles (they provide lists of good commercial representatives of each style). You may have drank a lot of beer, but if you really start looking at the BJCP and sampling these beers, you really start to get what these styles are all about. It will help your brewing to sample different styles.
I have a personal goal to sample each style outlined in the BJCP. There are beers out there that you never thought of that will blow your mind.
But a lot of folks get creative and are making beers that don't quite fall neatly into these categories. It's an art form, subject to interpretation. Have fun with it! We're all still learning, even the old-heads.
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
+1 what BigFloyd said. Nottingham is a great yeast but you have to keep it cool. It will still ferment out in the mid 50s.
Any suggestion on how to keep it cool? Our house stays at about 70 degrees. I can try to endure the fight with SWMBO for maybe a week and go to 68.
That will probably be the cheapest way for me. Definitely not the easiest.
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
If you put the fermenter in the fridge and just unplug the fridge and keep it out of the sun, the fridge should act as good insulation and minimize the temperature swings. The average of your day and night temps is not too bad for brewing. It takes a lot to heat and cool 5 gallons of beer. If you chill it properly when you pitch I'd say you're good with the above plan. You just need good temps for the first 3-4 days or so. If it gets warmer afterwards that's fine.
Hamaki
Well-Known Member
Have an unheated basement or garage? Fermenting somewhere with an average temp lower than the house might work. I'd wrap plenty of insulation around the bucket or carboy to help minimize temperature fluctuations and keep out light.
If you care about flavor, 70-75*F room temp is way too warm to ferment anything but a saison . That's simply a fact of brew life. You're going to have to take steps to cool it down so that your beer temp stays in the mid 60's even if you switch yeast to S-04.
During active fermentation, it will generate its own heat. The temps inside the fermenter can be anywhere from 3*F to 10*F warmer than the air.
OK so that's out of the question. I guess I will need to do as Thunder Chicken suggested and put it in the fridge and unplug it. I've already brewed it tonight and will be pitching yeast in the morning. I guess ill go ahead and put it in the fridge tonight. Thanks for the help everybody. I just put a beer into secondary today that had a bit of a sour smell. I'm now thinking this could be the problem.
Idk. Its all I've ever done. Why not?
Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
The new thinking is that secondaries are not necessary, and it may actually be better to leave your beer on the yeast as the yeast will continue to clean up off flavors from the ferment. Racking to secondary is an exposure to potential infection that may not be necessary.
I secondary only when I absolutely must free up my primary, or if I am adding stuff or planning to lager it for a long time. Otherwise a nice long primary is all you need.
I secondary only when I absolutely must free up my primary, or if I am adding stuff or planning to lager it for a long time. Otherwise a nice long primary is all you need.
Duly Noted, but in the case of the possibly sour beer and the beer I just brewed, I will be flavoring in secondary. One with vanilla beans, and one with cocoa nibs.
You can either add those in the primary after fermentation has completed or you can soak them in a small amount of vodka a few days, remove the solid bits and then add the vodka to the bottling bucket.
IMO, the biggest negatives of racking over to a secondary when it's not called for (which would be most beers) are the increased risk of oxidation and the possibility of a stuck ferment if it's taken off the yeast too soon. It's kind of hard to rouse a yeast cake that's no longer there. Even if you don't create issues, it's unjustified effort. I like clear beer, so I cold crash the primary instead.
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