Working on a Belgian Quad Recipe

[gio]

I'm working on a recipe for a Belgian quad. I have an idea of what grains I want to use but I'm not sure of the ratios yet. Here is what I have so far:

10lb belgian pilnser
3lb amber malt
1.5lb aromatic malt
0.25lb carafa III
3.0lb D2 belgian candi syrup

Brewer's Gold hops (90 min)
Styrian Goldings (15 min)
aiming for IBU of about 30-35

Yeast will be cultured from a bottle of Ommegang Abbey Ale.

Decoction mash 133/150/159.

Makes 5.25 gallons
OG: 1.095 at 75% efficiency

I'm mostly unsure of the amounts of the amber and aromatic malt.

 

[Nateo]

With 3 pounds of D2, you won't need any grain but pilsener. If it ferments to the proper dryness, your beer will be about 12% ABV. You want to aim for 1.010-16-ish for the FG.

 

[gio]

With 3 pounds of D2, you won't need any grain but pilsener. If it ferments to the proper dryness, your beer will be about 12% ABV. You want to aim for 1.010-16-ish for the FG.

pilsner + 3 lb D2 is essentially the same as the last quad I made (well, it's still in progress right now).

I want to try something different but I don't want to cut down the D2 as it is amazing and seems to be somewhat necessary to get the desired dryness. I was figuring the FG for this recipe would be somewhere about 1.012-1.014 or so.

What do you suggest I do if I want to use some grains other than pilsner/pale in the recipe?

 

[electric_beer]

Maybe sub some of the D2 for Table Sugar or Corn sugar if you prefer? Belgians have been known to use standard sugars to contribute to dryness without all the flavor of D2. This would leave room for you to add other fermentables.

 

[gio]

Maybe sub some of the D2 for Table Sugar or Corn sugar if you prefer? Belgians have been known to use standard sugars to contribute to dryness without all the flavor of D2. This would leave room for you to add other fermentables.

I might sub some sugar in. What would happen if I left both the specialty grains and the D2 in? Would the D2 overwhelm the flavor of the specialty grains? I looking to make an intense quad like Rochefort 10, although I'm not trying to clone Rochefort 10 (I have a clone recipe for that that I am working on).