This beer was GOOD.
RECIPE
Grains (14.1 lbs)
10.0 lbs Maris Otter
1.0 lbs Chocolate
1.0 lbs Roasted Barley
.75 lbs Caramunich II
.50 lbs Crystal 60
.75 lbs Flaked Oats
Hops (21.0 AAUs)
13.0 AAUs Nugget (0.9 oz | 14.0%)
04.0 AAUs Goldings (1.0 oz | 4.0%)
Yeast
Wyeast 1469 (West Yorkshire Ale)
(High | 61-71% | 64-72°F)
Misc
Cold brewed coffee
BREW NOTES
Brew day was crazily hectic. I had a few schedule constraints and only had 6hrs to mash, boil, cool, & pitch. We made it just in time, but boy was it a tight squeeze. Despite the time crunch everything went quite well. Our mash temps were spot on (although a bit hot up front), our boil was quick (a bit of boil over at the beginning), and the cooling of the wort was very fast (used $10 of ice just to make sure). All in all it was a good brew day.
I should note that since the recipe calls for flaked oats, special precautions should be made. Oats have a tendency to really gum up a mash and can cause lautering problems. To combat this, I added the oats last (in an effort to keep them away from my drainage manifold), sparged with freshly boiled water, and recirculated several times (to establish a stable grain bed). Honestly, I feel as though these precautions were unnecessary, but figured they were worth a mention.
OG = 1.060
I should note that since the recipe calls for flaked oats, special precautions should be made. Oats have a tendency to really gum up a mash and can cause lautering problems. To combat this, I added the oats last (in an effort to keep them away from my drainage manifold), sparged with freshly boiled water, and recirculated several times (to establish a stable grain bed). Honestly, I feel as though these precautions were unnecessary, but figured they were worth a mention.
OG = 1.060
FERMENTATION NOTES
24hrs before you plan to bottle, you need to make some cold brew. The process is super easy and takes no more than a few minutes, but depending on your level of mysophobia, extra sanitation requirements might draw that time out. Shout out to Zingerman's for cold brewing tips!
- Grind 100g of you favorite bean (coarse)
- Grinding whole beans is much preferred to using pre-ground beans
- Grinds need to be coarse. Similar, to what you would use in a press pot
- Experiment a little beforehand if you are unfamiliar with coffee
- Add grounds to press pot (or any steeping vessel)
- Add enough water to wet (but not flood) all of the beans. Let sit for ~30sec
- This is called the bloom, in the coffee world
- In theory, the coffee releases stored gases, which allows the water to permeate more effectively
- Add water until you have added 700g total
- Give the coffee a good stir and store in the refrigerator
- After 24hrs strain out the grounds
- Add coffee to bottling bucket (until it tastes the way you'd like)
Generally speaking, I prefer to use a secondary for all of my beers, if only for the sake of beer clarity. However, given my current situation, I might start making more exceptions. I live 30 mins from where I brew and ferment (aka my mother's basement), and my fiance is in graduate school (which means weekends are busy).
Primed with .75oz (21g) per gallon of priming sugar.
FG = 1.018
UPDATE (3 months): The beer bottles of mocha chocalatta are overcarbed. I was very surprised at first, considering that I was only targeting roughly 2.1 vol CO2. But after some thought the truth became clear; it was the coffee. Coffee has natural sugars in it, so by adding it to the bottling bucket (rather than a secondary), it skewed my carbonation levels. I still recommend adding the coffee on bottling day, but will have to figure out how much sugar it contains, in order to dial in the carbonation.
- Grind 100g of you favorite bean (coarse)
- Grinding whole beans is much preferred to using pre-ground beans
- Grinds need to be coarse. Similar, to what you would use in a press pot
- Experiment a little beforehand if you are unfamiliar with coffee
- Add grounds to press pot (or any steeping vessel)
- Add enough water to wet (but not flood) all of the beans. Let sit for ~30sec
- This is called the bloom, in the coffee world
- In theory, the coffee releases stored gases, which allows the water to permeate more effectively
- Add water until you have added 700g total
- Give the coffee a good stir and store in the refrigerator
- After 24hrs strain out the grounds
- Add coffee to bottling bucket (until it tastes the way you'd like)
Generally speaking, I prefer to use a secondary for all of my beers, if only for the sake of beer clarity. However, given my current situation, I might start making more exceptions. I live 30 mins from where I brew and ferment (aka my mother's basement), and my fiance is in graduate school (which means weekends are busy).
Primed with .75oz (21g) per gallon of priming sugar.
FG = 1.018
UPDATE (3 months): The beer bottles of mocha chocalatta are overcarbed. I was very surprised at first, considering that I was only targeting roughly 2.1 vol CO2. But after some thought the truth became clear; it was the coffee. Coffee has natural sugars in it, so by adding it to the bottling bucket (rather than a secondary), it skewed my carbonation levels. I still recommend adding the coffee on bottling day, but will have to figure out how much sugar it contains, in order to dial in the carbonation.
TASTING NOTES
Wort Taste (-X weeks)
- Full bodied. Roasty. Chocolate flavor is a nice compliment
- Smooth. Not sure how much the oats play into that though
- Very hoppy. Hopefully this relaxes a lot with age
Coffee Addition / Bottling (0 weeks)
- Smooth. Not sure how much the oats play into that though
- Very hoppy. Hopefully this relaxes a lot with age
Coffee Addition / Bottling (0 weeks)
- Initial (No Coffee):
- Nice roast flavor
- Mildly fruity nose
- Thick mouthfeel
- Nice roast flavor
- Mildly fruity nose
- Thick mouthfeel
- First Addition (+1 cup):
- Coffee addition is noticeable, but definitely needs more
- Second Addition (+1 cup | 2.0 total):
- Pleasant coffee bitterness, which surprisingly, is distinct from hop bitterness
- Not quite forward enough though
- Third Addition (+1/2 cup | 2.5 total):
- Coffees flavors are beginning to come through. Black tea and chocolate emerging
- Fourth Addition (+1/4 cup | 2.75 total):
- Not much noticeable change.
- Final Addition (+1/4 cup | 3.0 total):
- Coffee and beer flavors have merged cohesively
- Chocolate has moved closer top the forefront
- Fruitiness from initial tastes has fallen off
- Mouthfeel has been brought into balance
- Wonderful. I actually drank a full bottle uncarbed
Initial Taste (4 weeks)
- Tan medium head
- Coffee on the nose, but less than I was expecting
- Slight roasty aromas in the background
- Smooth mouthfeel and finish
- Bitterness is a complex interplay of coffee and hops
- Mild stone fruit esters in the finish, but I might just be projecting
- Coffee on the nose, but less than I was expecting
- Slight roasty aromas in the background
- Smooth mouthfeel and finish
- Bitterness is a complex interplay of coffee and hops
- Mild stone fruit esters in the finish, but I might just be projecting
Second Taste (10 weeks)
- Similar to above, but carbonation increased
- Too carbonated for style, but remains enjoyable
- Too carbonated for style, but remains enjoyable
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