What style is this recipe most like?

Beer Recipes
1

I’m trying to figure out exactly what style this recipe is most like. As far as I can figure, it’s very close to a Winter Warmer that is influenced by a Russian Imperial Stout, with both styles being widely variable.

Estimates according to Brewer’s Friend calculator:
OG: 1.104
FG: 1.029
ABV%: 9.88
IBU: 90-110
SRM: 32-34

Recipe for 5 Gallon Batch

Extracts:
13 lb Maris Otter Extract
1 lb D180 Candi Syrup

Steeping Grains:
1.5 lb Crystal 60L
.75 lb Breiss Aromatic
.75 lb Breiss Chocolate

Hops:
2 oz Magnum (AA 10-14%) for 90 mins - for bittering
2 oz Kent Goldings (AA 4-6%) for 60 mins - for bittering
2 oz Kent Goldings (AA 4-6%) for 20 mins - for aroma

Yeast:
Edinburgh Ale Yeast (Whitelabs WLP028)

Additives:
2 packs vanilla beans (6 beans) - Added in primary for 2 weeks
2 oz bourbon chunks, heavy char - Added in primary for 1 week

Additional notes: Rack to secondary at 2 weeks after fermentation start.

Let me know what you think! Thanks everyone!

2

It doesn’t look roasty enough to be a stout.  Too many BU’s to be an Old Ale.  Perhaps an American Barleywine?  The oak and vanilla throw it into a whole other genre anyway.
Can I have some?  Without the vanilla?

3

I agree, not roasty enough for stout. Bourbon Barrel Vanilla Imperial American Brown Ale ? Now say that 3 times. Sounds good to me !

4

Yeah I didn’t think there was enough roast to bring out characteristics like a stout, the guesstimation was based more on SRM, IBU, and ABV.

I like the thought of an Imperial American Brown Ale! What specifically qualifies a beer as Imperial?

I’ll let you know how it turns out so that if you are interested, you can brew a batch and get more feedback about the particular style!

Thanks for the feedback guys!

5

Generally, bigger or scaled up.  Whereas American Brown Ale is listed as ~ 1.045 - 1.060ish OG, an ‘Imperial’ version would be well above 1.060 OG.

EDIT -  I have an American Brown on tap now with an OG of 1.069, so it could technically be called an Imperial American Brown Ale.

6

Ah, well then this would certainly qualify since the OG came in a 1.102.

7

Update:

So I racked the beer to a secondary after 2 weeks of fermentation (2 weeks with vanilla beans and 1 week with bourbon chunks). I racked it to get the beer off of the bourbon chunks since I read that after a week the wood has given off most of its flavors and can start to give off flavors.

When I racked I did a quick gravity test and the beer came in at 1.033. I just did another gravity test today (4 days after racking) and the gravity is still at 1.033.

The estimate that I had from Brewer’s Friend for FG was 1.029. It looks like the attenuation that I got up to this point is about 66%. So my question is if I hit the mark and fermentation is done or if there is something I can/should do to bring the gravity down a hair more?

Thanks for the help everyone!

8

Gently rouse the yeast and warm up the beer to 70-75F - even by carrying it to a warmer room for a few days. The rousing and warmer temp may spur the yeast into chewing a couple more gravity points. If not, keep in mind that software estimates are just that - estimates. Lots of factors go into detemining FG. Give the warming and rousing close to a week and check. If you’re still @ 1.033, bottle or keg it. Good luck !

9

Sounds like a solid plan! Also, for future brews that have high ABV, should I double pitch on brew day and would that make much of a difference for the final gravity?

10

Don’t know how much you pitched , but using Mr Malty won’t steer you wrong in terms of how much yeast to pitch :

http://www.mrmalty.com/

11

I did one vial of the Edinburgh Ale Yeast, looks like the calculator recommended 3! I’m surprised that I got as high of a level of attenuation that I did.

Thanks again!