Looking for suggestions on a Dopplebock recipe. I have made it maybe three times over the last 15 years and the best was probably the first one many moons ago. I don’t even have the recipe for that one. The one I made a couple of years ago had
65% Munich
30% Pilsner
4% Caramunich
1% Carafa
26 IBU Hallertauer Mittelfruh
WLP 820
I didn’t care too much for this beer and looking for some suggestions. I also never liked that yeast strain, so maybe that was the problem. Maybe scrap the Caramunich? Maybe add some Vienna?
I’ve made several doppelbocks across years. I’ve used CaraMunich and I’ve gone without and used just pils and Munich malts. I’ve generally enjoyed 8 to 12 ozs of Caramunich II in a five gallon batch.
The batch I made without any crystal malts was really good too. I just prefer the character that caramunich II added.
For me, the use of a bock lager strain has made a world of difference. I’ve tried using the 34/70 strain in a doppel, but if tastes a bit thin and drier than when I use wlp833 as an example.
If your open to dry yeast, 189 would be a good choice
Thank you for the suggestions. I might just add 8 Oz of Caramunich for the flavor and color contribution.
I am open to it and I have used S-189 before and liked it, however I have a Dunkel going right now with Diamond Lager and I was thinking I should use the yeast cake from that. Thanks for the suggestion.
My Christmas beer this year is going to be a Dopplebock. I based mine off G Strong’s recipe in Brewing Better Beer. He calls for a decoction but I’m going to do a step mash (144°F 20 min, 154°F 45 min, 175°F Mash Out). I’ve never brewed it but my adaptation looks like this:
1.092
18 SRM
24 IBU(s)
28% Pils
27% Light Munich
27% Dark Munich
5% CaraPils
5% CaraVienne
5% CaraMunich
2.5% Crystal 75
1 oz Crystal
1.5 oz Tettnang
I’m going to use a huge pitch of harvested 34/70 slurry
Thanks for the idea, but I am trying to avoid that much Caramel malt because I want this beer to attenuate well. Let us know how your beer turns out because I could be completely wrong.
I agree that’s a lot of C malt. Way more than I’m used to. …but he said he asked for the recipe after he scored this a 48 at a state fair so what the heck. It may be a train wreck but it may turn out great. We’ll see.
Your thoughts are exactly what I would do.
Stopped using cara-anything a while ago, and don’t miss it.
Discovered good tasting malts needs no help, and can stand on its own.
I think I’ve changed direction on my Christmas Dopplebock. After giving it some thought, the recipe above is just too much C malt for me.
I believe am going with 45% each Mecca Grade Vienna and Munich, 6.5% MG Opal 44, 2.5% Honey Malt and 1% BlackPrinze (debittered roast).
My thought is to get a bit of honey/toffee-like vibe which reminds me of Christmas. 1:1 base to Munich to emphasize strong, rich, and very malty character.
Instead of decoction, I am planning a Hochkurz mash (145°F 30 min, 152°F 45 min, 170°F 30 min). No Sparge.
I’ve lowered my anticipated efficiency from my routine 4-5% beer grist so it should clock in ~7+% ABV. I may overshoot that and have to adjust hops on the fly. We’ll see. I don’t routinely brew this big.
I brewed this today and the brew day went smooth. I ended up with
70% Barke Munich
29% Pilsner
1% Black Prinz
25 IBU Hersbrucker
Diamond Lager yeast cake
which is pretty much a bigger gravity version of my Dunkel. 1.075 OG and I think I’m going to bottle this not just to torture myself, but to see how well it ages and not tie up a keg.
I see you already brewed one, but I entered this in the AHA competition back in 2019 and scored a 44:
9 lbs Munich
6 lbs Pilsner
12 oz CaraVienna
12 oz Melanoidan
12 oz Crystal 120
8 oz Special B
4 oz Chocolate 350L
1.5 oz Tettnanger 60 min
.5 oz Tettnanger 30 min
2 packets Imperial L17 Harvest, 1.5L starter
OG 1.082, FG 1.018
Hope yours comes out good!
Thanks for sharing those recipes, guys. I’ve got a nice 3rd gen lager yeast slurry waiting and some cold temperatures coming up.
Spurviance, can I assume your IBU range is 20-25 range, or is it higher?
BrewBama, do you consider the Opal-44 to be fully equivalent to a crystal malt, or do you count that as comprised of (e.g.) 80% crystal, 20% melanoidinish, biscuitish… ? I’m still trying to get a handle on usage rates of Opal22 and Opal44. They seem to be “neither wolf nor dog” but I am just counting it as fully crystal so I don’t overuse it. I was wondering how you and others treat it.
I hope your Xmas DB turns out great.
Like you say, Opal 44 is not really a crystal malt though I use it like one. It does lend a different character than crystal but that’s good because the honey malt I am using. I am looking for a toffee or roka kinda thing from it. We’ll see.
Disclaimer: Any comment I add is simply the way I brew beer. I am not paid or sponsored by anyone. There are certainly other ways that can be equally effective which other brewers may contribute. This is what I’ve found that works for me using my equipment and processes so I offer this for your consideration. YMMV
This turned out to be the best Doppelbock i have brewed.
My notes say 16IBU, low end of the style guide as I like my dopplebock on the sweet and malty side.
That looks on point