Here is the recipe that I plan on brewing this weekend.
Batch size: 5.5 Gallons Grain Bill
Maris Otter 16 lb (63.5%)
Munich 2 lb (8%)
Carapils 1 lb (4%)
Crystal 40 1 lb (4%)
Flaked Oats 1 lb (4%)
Carafa II 1 lb (4%)
Roasted Barley 11 oz (2.5%)
Special Roast 8 oz (2%)
Black Patent 8 oz (2%)
Brown Sugar 1.5 lb (6%)
Hop Bill
Magnum 2 oz @ 90 min
Cascade 1 oz @ 90 min
OG: 1.114
IBUS: 76
Yeast:
WLP 099 High Gravity Yeast - I will be pitch a 1L yeast starter.
Secondary Additions
Oak Cubes 8 oz
Cocoa Nibs 8 oz
Vanilla Beans 3
I plan to add the oak cubes first and let it sit until I have the oak flavor I want , then add the cocoa nibs, until I have the chocolate flavor I would like and add the vanilla beans last. I am not really sure about how long each of these will sit in the secondary for.
Mash Temp: 153 degrees F
Estimated Effeciency: 65%
I usually hit 73% on almost all of my brews (most range from 1.052-1.075), but since this one is higher gravity I expect the effeciency to drop.
I am also planning on throwing in a Servomeyeces yeast nutrient tablet with 10 min left in the boil to help the yeast out.
For a beer that hits 1.114, you probably ought to mash at a lower temp, say 146F or so. Idea being that, with that large a grain bill, there’s going to be lots of unfermentables so you’d like your attenuation to be as high as possible so as to not be left with a too sweet beer (FG too high).
Also, even though it’s “high gravity” yeast, 1L seems awful small for a starter size.
Final thing, is you’re gonna want to ferment this baby cool to avoid off flavor and fusels - like no warmer than 60F (liquid, not air temp).
I recommend increasing your starter size to at least 6 liters. One liter will not be adequate to produce a good quality beer and will only stress the yeast. Approximately 420 billion cells are needed for a 1.114 beer.
Sounds good. I will lower my mash temp to 146. I am somewhat limited on my starter size, but I can probably bump it up to 3 or 4 liters. Thanks for the help.
You can also make a 3 L starter, ferment out then cold crash, decant and add another 3L to get your 400 B cells. I highly recommend using the full 400 B cells in an effort to achieve the best possible beer.
I do have a couple of extra vials of yeast that I could pitch along with the 3L starter. Would that help or should I just plan on making two starters. I will look into using teh extra yeast and maybe making another starter with that to get my yeast count up.
Thanks,
Tom
Even if you have a second vial that’s only 100 B cells/vial. I still recommend making a starter to proof the yeast as well as wake them up to grow the appropriate quantity of healthy viable yeast in preparation for the battle that lies ahead, especially for the high gravity beer that you are planning to ferment.
It’s the best thing you can do for the RIS you are planning to make.
I made an additional 4L starter which combined with my original 1L starter will get me up to a 5L starter. I plan on pitching an extra vial of yeast also when I finish brewing. This should get me up to my 400 B cell count that I need.
I also have an IPA that just finished out fermenting. I do not plan on using this yeast for the RIS because there are a lot of hops and trub in with it and it is a different type of yeast than I want to use, but any idea on how much slurry it would take to get 400 B cells. Any info or links would be appreciated.
Thanks.
Thanks for all the help guys. My 5L starter is frementing away and looking good. I had to use a couple of growlers and then some to get the volume I needed. I pitched the original 1L starter into the extra 4L batch and swirled it around really good to get all the yeast evenly distributed before I split it up into different containers. Each container has a pretty decent amount of yeast in the bottom and I swirl the containers every 5 hours or so to keep the yeast in suspension. I will be brewing this tomorrow and I usually pitch the yeast around 5pm or so. I made the starter last night and finished up at around 10. I know it is ideal to let the starter go for about 48 hours. I will be about 5 hours shy of that. Is that really going to matter that much if I pitch at 5 or should I wait until 10? Also, I only plan on pitching the yeast from the starter. What do you guys do with the extra liquid. I generally just dump mine, but since it is hopless beer, does anyone carbonate it and drink it? If so, how is it?
Dump it. You’ve been doing everything you can to grow yeast, not really make beer. All that swirling that you do to help the starter - it’s about getting more oxygen to the yeast to grow. Adding oxygen to beer where you want the yeast to ferment it is a bad thing. Any beer you made with the starter is going to be pretty nasty.
Good to know. I have never tried drinking it I was just wondering if it woulds be any good. Looks like the consensus is no. I will just dump it.
Also, I would like to use crystal 120 or extra dark crystal, but I do not have any and I am planning on brewing this tomorrow. Unfortunately crystal 40 is the darkest I have so that is what I plan on using. My options are crystal 40, crystal 20, or order some crystal 120 (since my closest brew store is a 2+ hour drive each way) and brew next weekend, which I am not fond of.
The only thing I would add is to dump the brown sugar. the first few times I brewed Imperial stouts I used brown sugar and there was always a lingering taste of molasses that bothered me. Use demerara IF you really feel the need to add sugar.
