I have plans to brew a porter next weekend with roasted barley, crystal 40&80L, and chocolate malts.
Would it be better to cold steep the dark grains, or is this not really necessary? Anything else I should do? I think my bicarbonate is pretty high.
My water profile:
Sodium, Na 33
Calcium, Ca 63
Magnesium, Mg 7.1
Sulfate, SO4 52
Chloride, Cl 46
Bicarbonate, HCO3 181
pH 8
If your doing a porter I don’t think there is a need for cold steeping. Personally, I would use that method for something with a subdued roasted character.
Well, porter, it’s actually an Everett “porter” clone with about 6.5% roasted barley. Still no cold steeping then? How about adding at the end of the boil?
+1. It all starts with what your intentions are. I prefer adding them at the end of the mash during the vaurlof. I’ve also cold steeped. BUT, I like my stouts/porters a little smoother and with less roasted bitterness. If you are looking for that full roast flavor/character, then yeah…you’ll probably want to add them in the beginning.
That’s what Gordon says: if you don’t want to mess with the alkalinity, cold steep. Or at least that’s what I seem to recall from the book. But now that I have a good quality pH meter…
There was a Basic Brewing podcast that dealt with hot steeping vs mashing vs cold steeping the grains. Cold steeping was the least favorite in the taste test, too subdued I think. Hot steeping and mashing were close but I think hot steeping actually won the taste test. That said I think it was a whopping total of 3 or so testers.
I just throw everything in the mash and adjust pH as needed. My last porter I was able to use my high bicarbonate tapwater. Brunwater gets me very close, if not dead on.