Gambrinus Honey Malt

Ingredients
1

I want to try maybe 4% Gambrinus Honey malt as an addition to an IPA. I’ve never used this malt but I have a pound of it and the description sounds like it would be a nice contrast to a heavily dry hopped and heavy late addition IPA using C hops.

Please share your thoughts and opinions if you’ve used this malt.

Thanks!

2

A little bit goes a long ways as far a sweetness contributed.  I’ve use 1/2 pound (5.6%) in a summer wheat but normally only use about 1/2 that in other brews in which I’ve used it.  You’ll probably be fine trying your 4%.

3

I love honey malt, and I am pretty sure you will love it, too.
It gives an intense malt sweetness with hint of honey-like flavor, yet lacks caramel’s sharp bite (no roast or astringency). 
It also gives a smoother, honey-like texture to the body of the beer.

And, yes, it is OK to use a little in an IPA recipe–my recommendation is to keep it around 1%.
4% should be fine, but probably not more than that. 
IPA’s are typically dry, so some purists might argue that it doesn’t belong in an IPA.
Are you brewing for BJCP comps, or for your enjoyment?

http://www.thebrewingnetwork.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=&t=18751

Honey Malt (Gambrinus, BC, Canada) = Bruhmalz (Weissheimer, Germany) = Melanoiden Malt (Weyermann, Germany)

4

Excellent info - thank you!
Love this forum.

Brewing purely for my enjoyment and will follow your suggestion at 1%.
Didn’t know Melanoiden was essentially the same thing. I just brewed a Helles and added some to that, but misread the quantity and put in nearly 5%! It’s pretty drinkable anyway, but not what I was going for obviously.

Last night as an experiment, I tried making a small batch of wort with Honey malt in a pyrex so I could taste it. I can’t say I particularly enjoyed it but it gave me the taste test I was after.

I’ll cut my crystal addition in this IPA recipe a bit to compensate too.

Thanks again!

5

So would aromatic malt fall into the same category? I’ve always thought melanoiden and aromatic were basically interchangeable. It’s been a while since I’ve used Honey Malt, but I’m surprised by the list of equivalent malts.

6

Yeah, I’ve heard Honey Malt and Brumalt are pretty much the same but never had I heard that they’re also the same as Melanoiden.  Somehow, that doesn’t seem right to me.

7

Me either…im intrigued now. Looks like making some teas is in order. I have all 3 malts on hand. I will do this next week when i get back from my vacation this weekend.

8

My standard DIPA recipe is:

2-row
1lb honey malt
1lb sugar
target OG: 1.075-1.080

Not sweet in the slightest, but certainly accentuates the juicy citrus hops.

9

I’ve never made malt teas - I just spend a lot of time crunching away in the malt/mill room of my LHBS.

I’ll have to try that!