Here is the recipe:
MASH INGREDIENTS
4.25 lbs English Maris Otter
4.25 lbs Rahr 2-row Pale
0.875 lbs English Medium Crystal
0.75 lbs Flaked Barley
0.5 lbs English Chocolate Malt
0.5 lbs Belgian Aromatic Malt
0.5 lbs Belgian Special B
0.25 lbs English Black Malt
2.75 oz.
Willamette (30 min)
Last brew went horrible to be quite honest. I only mashed for 60 min and boiled for 60. I used a bad calculator for the water bill and came up about a gallon short. Didnt even come close to hitting the correct gravity's. And now it tastes pretty bad. This was my 3rd beer to ever brew and I was definitely disappointed.
Now to this brew! The brew itself went well. I had my LHBS mill the grain a second time for me to up my efficiency a bit. I also extended the mash time to 90 minutes and the boil time to 75 minutes while using the Biabacus.
We finished with the following results:
_______________Gravity___Volume____Expected
Post Mash - 1.045 8.10 gal 8.05 gal
Post Boil - 1.061 6.25 gal 6.33 gal
Into Fermentor - 1.057 5.30 gal 5.25 gal
The beer smells great and tastes awesome just after primary fermentation. It has been fermenting now for almost 3 weeks. 1 week in the primary and coming up on two weeks in the secondary.
We mixed a cup of vodka with the chocolate nibs and the 5 vanilla beans (split, scraped and cut) and let this blend for a few days. I added this at the bottom of the secondary and racked on top.
I am really excited to try this one now. It's coal black and I have high expectations!
Have a great day guys and thanks for reading!Happy Brewing!
