# Damn Good Stout recipes



## malt and barley blues

Anyone with a good stout recipe they can put up, Dry, Sweet, Oatmeal or other.


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## Brewman_

malt and barley blues said:


> Anyone with a good stout recipe they can put up, Dry, Sweet, Oatmeal or other.


Here is a recipe that in 2015 Won AABC Dry Stout Category. It also won the NSW comp for that category.

The Brewer Pete Ptolemy has given me permission to share his recipe.

Cheers Steve


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## malt and barley blues

Here is a milk stout I like the look of taken from BYO 250 Classic Clones. Will be my next brew so untried by me.O.G 1,068 F.G 1,028 IBU 27
2.00 kg 2 row pale malt
0.91 kg wheat malt
0.45 kg flaked oats
0.95 kg Carapils malt
0.95 kg crystal malt (60 L)
0.37 kg roasted barley
0.18 kg black patent malt
0.45 kg Lactose
7.25 AAU Magnum hops (60 mins) 15 gram
2.5 AAU Williamette hops (15 mins) 14 gram
Wyeast 1187 (Ringwood Ale) yeast
Mash at 69 C for 1 hour, Boil for 90 minutes adding hops as shown and Lactose added last 15 minutes of the boil.
Ferment at 21 C.


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## malt and barley blues

And a Dry Stout from the past.
https://aussiehomebrewer.com/threads/recipedb-four-shades-of-sout.20681/


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## wide eyed and legless

Best stout I have made to date was Hook Norton Double Stout clone, will find the recipe and post it up.


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## wide eyed and legless

Hook Norton Double Stout.
https://byo.com/recipe/hook-norton-brewerys-double-stout-clone/


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## phildo

wide eyed and legless said:


> Hook Norton Double Stout.
> https://byo.com/recipe/hook-norton-brewerys-double-stout-clone/


I love a good hookie


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## Schikitar

Just on that Double Stout grain bill..
3.0 lb. (1.4 kg) mild malt
3.0 lb. (1.4 kg) English pale malt
2.0 lb. (0.91 kg) brown malt
1.0 lb. (0.45 kg) No. 1 invert sugar
13 oz. (0.37 kg) black malt

Would vienna be a good substitute for mild malt? Also, golden syrup for inverted sugar?


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## wide eyed and legless

Mark is the best to answer about the invert sugar and golden syrup, plenty of people do. And you can sub Vienna for mild malt. What I did was cold steep for 24 hours the and black & brown malt to make for a smoother finish and it was a nice smooth drinking stout.
Actually I did use Lyle Golden Syrup come to think of it.


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## awfulknauful

Being as I am about to venture into the word of stout, and I don't mind a Coopers, I will try the Brewman recipe first up much appreciate putting up the recipe


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## Coalminer

I have done that Brewman recipe and it was really nice. This thread reminded me to do some stouts very soon


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## MHB

wide eyed and legless said:


> Mark is the best to answer about the invert sugar and golden syrup, plenty of people do. And you can sub Vienna for mild malt. What I did was cold steep for 24 hours the and black & brown malt to make for a smoother finish and it was a nice smooth drinking stout.
> Actually I did use Lyle Golden Syrup come to think of it.


No need to use invert (its very 1970's) yeast can cope with a fair amount of sugar (think how many kit and kg of white get made every day) Golden Syrup and Treacle are both invert and apart from the fermentable content, should only be thought of in terms of the colour and flavour they bring to the finished beer - you really do need to use more than I would want in my beer to get all that much of either.

I think Mild Malt is gone from the list of available malts, some Vienna or Munich can add a lot of body. if you want to build up the aroma, try some Aromatic Malt or Abby from Weyermann, both are designed to add malty aroma to dark beers. Being "Stewed Malts" they also bring a lot of the body and pallet fullness that Vienna and Munich bring.

Coopers use what they call "Roasted or Dark Malt" My local calls it Roasted Malt the only difference between Coopers Pale and their Dark Ale is a substation of about about 5% Roast Malt, I suspect the Coopers Stout is somewhere in the 10-15% Roast range.
If you want to get close to the Coopers flavour, Roast Malt is the key.


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## wide eyed and legless

Mark I ended up about 4 points lower than expected (got more wort in the fermenter) I have been thinking about using some honey in a brew, what do you reckon about putting some honey in my oatmeal stout at high krausen. I have been put off putting it in the boil I have read it will ferment out and barely any honey flavour left.


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## MHB

Depends on the honey, use something like Leatherwood and you will know its there, a light honey like clover can disappear in a big beer, no matter when you add it.
Honey is about ~80% solids, ~20% water, of the solids about ~78% are fermentable, leaving a pretty small (<2%) fraction to add anything other than alcohol.
Its a good idea to know what your start of boil Volume and Gravity should be, no law says you have to use too much water and it causes all sorts of issues down stream.
Do your calculations properly, if necessary extend your boil time to get you to the planed starting point, then add your hops and start the clock. 
Mark


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## wide eyed and legless

Thanks for that, the honey wasn't a specific type just a couple of tubs of honey I got for $7.00 a kilo, got my calculations right but forgot take into account the liquor I had steeped the grains which I added towards the end of the mash.


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## awfulknauful

But is it real honey or fake Chinese honey, China is about the only country whose honey production is going up, thanks to corn sugar and other methods. Farmers are even having to hand pollinate their fruit trees in high pollution areas because of a lack of bees.


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## peterlonz

You have some very worthwhile & detailed responses.
all are basically all grain recipes.
You don't actually say but I'm guessing that suits you.
Now for the last 20 years or so I have made a dead simple Coopers double stout that is a pretty close clone of Gunness. It's bitter & strong tasting., like Guinness.
Use 2 x 1.7 Kg cans of Cooper plain stout. That's it.
Ferment with coopers dry yeast at about 20 to 24 Deg C.
I keg my beer, but if bottling I recommend the full teaspoon of sugar for bottle fermentation.
Don't offer it to the ladies, not their thing!


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## wide eyed and legless

awfulknauful said:


> But is it real honey or fake Chinese honey, China is about the only country whose honey production is going up, thanks to corn sugar and other methods. Farmers are even having to hand pollinate their fruit trees in high pollution areas because of a lack of bees.


Just checked the country of origin on the label India! They are as bad as the Chinese for faking stuff.
Will probably end up on my porridge.


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## malt and barley blues

Not a Stout but what looks like a good Porter clone.
Sinebrychoff Porter from Finland
19 litres all grain OG = 1,070 FG = 1,020 IBU = 45 SRM = 51 ABV = 6.1%

4.7 kg Weyermann Munich malt
1.4 kg Weyermann Vienna malt
0.68 kg Weyermann Carafa 111 malt (470 L) 
0.45 kg Dingemans Cara Munich malt (45 L )
10.5 AAU Hallertau Hersbrucker hops 63 gram at 4.75% alpha acids 60 mins
3 AAU Czech Saaz hops 28 gram at 3.0% alpha acids 30 mins 
Wyeyeast 2124 (Bohemian Lager) yeast or White Labs WLP830 (German Lager yeast )

Mash at 67 C for 60 mins
Boil 60 mins
Ferment at 12 C


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## wide eyed and legless

Above looks like one I will do in the middle of winter, here is a pic of my Lakeside Oatmeal stout courtesy of Gordon Strong, still a bit green but a smooth as.


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## awfulknauful

Will be having a go at the stout next weekend this thread has fired me up. Thaks for the incentive everyone.


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## MHB

WTF makes that a Porter, all continental malt and hops, lager yeast and conditions, surely its a Dark Lager!

I don't think anyone is importing Dingemans Cara Malt, you would find Weyermann CaraMunich 1 pretty close.
Lets leave the AAU crap for those brewing in Pounds, Shillings and Pence.
Same applies to colour, here all the malt is specified in EBC.

Just glancing at the recipe, I cant see it adding up, the OG isn't too far out if you allow 19L to fermenter and 2L for kettle loss and a 70% efficiency.
The alcohol calculates to 6.66% ABV
Just a quick finger count gives me a colour around 330EBC (165 SRM for the luddites) nearly double what the recipe gives (Black As)
I'm not convinced by the bitterness calculations either, I get about 10 IBU less.
Mark


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## awfulknauful

From what I have been studying, it could be a Baltic Stout recipe, bottom fermented and continental malts.


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## awfulknauful

One question I will be cold steeping my dark grains and adding the liquor at the start of the boil, will this have any effect on my pH? Obviously my mash willnot be a concern, I can add the salts accordingly it is the boil pH I am thinking about.


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## wide eyed and legless

awfulknauful said:


> One question I will be cold steeping my dark grains and adding the liquor at the start of the boil, will this have any effect on my pH? Obviously my mash willnot be a concern, I can add the salts accordingly it is the boil pH I am thinking about.


When I cold steep the dark grains I add some baking soda to the mix to get the required ph.


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## malt and barley blues

The Porter recipe I posted is a Baltic style, hoping it would come somewhere close to the Zywiec Baltic Porter without so much alcohol. Got the recipe from BYO 250 clones


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## awfulknauful

Made my fist stout yesterday, thanks brewman, looking and smelling good.
Going to follow it up with another one, different style leaning towards an oatmeal, cant say I like the sound of milk stout.


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## malt and barley blues

Don't be put off by the title, it is a good drink, sweeter though than the one you have just made.


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## Coalminer

Homeland Stout
Mashing this again at the moment. Good drink


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## awfulknauful

[Qcouldn't oalminer, post: 1505558, member: 7016"]Homeland Stout
Mashing this again at the moment. Good drink[/QUOTE]
I couldnt get any Target hops, seem a bit scarce, subbed with Williamette.


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## Danscraftbeer

I've found long long boils get a beautiful result for stout. If your aiming for high gravity. Large pre boil, boiled down over 2 hours, actually I think I went over three hours for the best Stout I've ever made. Its the Melanoidens I must like. Also to Oak the keg by Oak blocks in a weighted hop sock pressure cooked in a mason jar of whiskey. Add all the contents of the jar in the keg. No need to remove the Oak. Its good to let the keg sit around at ambient for some time (weeks, months etc) before chilling/carbonating to serve etc. Yum Yum!


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## wide eyed and legless

Never have tried that, will have to give it a go, just trimming some fresh buds at the moment and having a stout at the same time and was wondering what would happen if I dropped a bud in there.


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## captain crumpet

wide eyed and legless said:


> Never have tried that, will have to give it a go, just trimming some fresh buds at the moment and having a stout at the same time and was wondering what would happen if I dropped a bud in there.


Lol you would have a wet bud.


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## wide eyed and legless

captain crumpet said:


> Lol you would have a wet bud.


I think so to, not enough alcohol to extract any oil methinks.


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## awfulknauful

Now I understand not a mix up between cone and bud


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## captain crumpet

wide eyed and legless said:


> I think so to, not enough alcohol to extract any oil methinks.


You'd be right in saying that. There is method to the madness though, and it can work.


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## Moog

Dan,
Can you elaborate a bit more the oak, in pressure cooker etc, ie: neat whiskey? how much, oak chips? from LHBS?
Would love to try this in my next RIS, had lots of Barrel aged in the US, my absolute favourite..
Any links to more info?


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## awfulknauful

Moog said:


> Dan,
> Can you elaborate a bit more the oak, in pressure cooker etc, ie: neat whiskey? how much, oak chips? from LHBS?
> Would love to try this in my next RIS, had lots of Barrel aged in the US, my absolute favourite..
> Any links to more info?


Me also, liked the sound of this one.


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## Edd Mather 6

Hi All ,
I've got a few good stout recipies, from Tetley Stout 1848 , Magee Marshall Stout, Oatmeal Stout and an Invalid Stout (1906-10) and a few oddballs such as Milk Stout ( Allsopp's) , to the truly weird and wonderful Mercer's Meat Stout!!as brewed by Dutton's of Blackburn ( originally from John Mercers brewery in Adlington , Lancashire ) ,
If anyone would like any of these , pop me a message,
Cheers
Edd


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## malt and barley blues

They look interesting, wouldn't mind seeing the Invalid stout recipe.


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## awfulknauful

Second that, I have never heard of an Invalid Stout


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## MHB

Comes from the days when people thought stout was good for you (borderline medicinal), have a look at a couple of generations of Guinness advertising posters .
Lost of interesting spinoffs, Dr Wander invented LME to supply nutritious food to poor children, his son moved the business to England and found other uses for the "goop"
Mark


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## wide eyed and legless

I had heard somewhere that some stout, either Guinness or Mackeson could be got on prescription in bygone days, don't know if it is just an urban myth.


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## lost at sea

stout time for me coming up, anyone care to share a top notch oatmeal stout, ive brewed an oatmeal, so any specific pointers?


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## wide eyed and legless

Scroll down in this link there is the recipe for Gordon Strong's Lakeside Stout which I am drinking now and enjoying, I have made another one similar but increased the bitterness with Nugget hops.
http://www.beerinfinity.com/brewing-an-oatmeal-stout/


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## clibit

On some of the ingredients mentioned in the thread.

Mild malt is still available in the UK. If you can't get it, just sub English pale malt. Not the same but not a huge difference. Maybe add a little of a more killed malt like Munich or Vienna. We have UK produced versions of those here.

Caramunich is different from caramalt. If you can't get caramalt I'd use a pale crystal.

Target hops are cheap and plentiful in the UK. The recipe only bitters with them though, so any good bittering hop will do the job. If you stay English, then Challenger, Northdown, Admiral, Pilgrim for example.

Edit. The Hook Norton Double Stout is a really nice stout, I must brew it.


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## wide eyed and legless

Coconut Stout recipe I came across.
*INGREDIENTS*

For 10 gallons (37.85 L)

9 lb. (4.08 kg) Golden Promise malt
3 lb. (1.36 kg) flaked barley
1.75 lb. (0.79 kg) pale chocolate malt
1.75 lb. (0.79 kg) roast barley
1 lb. (0.45 kg) crystal 60°L malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) crystal 120°L malt
12 oz. (0.34 kg) Victory malt
rice hulls to prevent stuck mash
1 oz. (28 g) Magnum pellet hops, 14.7% a.a. (60 min)
3 lb. (1.36 kg) lactose (10 min)
WLP028 Edinburgh Ale or Wyeast 1728 Scottish Ale yeast
12 oz. (0.34 kg) toasted organic (not sweetened) raw coconut
2 oz. (57 g) toasted raw almonds
*SPECIFICATIONS*

Original Gravity: 1.058
Final Gravity: 1.036
IBU: 28
*DIRECTIONS*
Mash at 156° F (69° C) for 60 minutes.

Ferment at 68° F (20° C).

In secondary fermenter or keg (in muslin bag) add 12 oz. (0.34 kg) toasted organic (not sweetened) raw coconut and 2 oz. (57 g) toasted raw almonds. Soak for 3 days.

Force carbonate with 2 volumes (4 g/L) CO2.


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## awfulknauful

Enjoying my first stout will have to let it mature a bit more though, the Coconut Stout looks interesting, anyone made this?


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## Garagebrew

The homeland stout recipe Brewman put up is a winner.
Very easy drinking on tap and I’m keen to see how it ages in the stubbies.
I substituted the Target UK hops with Challanger due to availability.
Great drink, cheers for the upload Brewman.


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## Brewman_

Garagebrew said:


> The homeland stout recipe Brewman put up is a winner.
> Very easy drinking on tap and I’m keen to see how it ages in the stubbies.
> I substituted the Target UK hops with Challanger due to availability.
> Great drink, cheers for the upload Brewman.



Yeah that stout is a cracker. It won the Nats that year and it's what I make when I make a dry stout.

Brewbuilder has a heap of recipe's that anyone can look at. I just post the odd one up when it seems appropriate.

On the medicinal qualities..
I recall my grandfather, while basically wasting away with bowel cancer, being given a bottle of stout each afternoon in the hospital. That was in 1988. It didn't save him, but it did put a smile on his face every afternoon.


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## millsii

I am hoping to get some time this weekend to brew a milk stout to have on tap come winter. This one sounds like a winner: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/left-hand-milk-stout-clone.139820/

Going by that thread, seems like it has turned out pretty good for the past 9 years. Only changes I will make will be to adjust the quantities to get ~22L batch size.


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## wide eyed and legless

awfulknauful said:


> Enjoying my first stout will have to let it mature a bit more though, the Coconut Stout looks interesting, anyone made this?


I haven't made it yet, but if it doesn't turn out right I will call it Coconut Rough.


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## wide eyed and legless

awfulknauful said:


> [Qcouldn't oalminer, post: 1505558, member: 7016"]Homeland Stout
> Mashing this again at the moment. Good drink


I couldnt get any Target hops, seem a bit scarce, subbed with Williamette.[/QUOTE]
I got some Target hops on the way $18.50 for 450 gram.


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## millsii

millsii said:


> I am hoping to get some time this weekend to brew a milk stout to have on tap come winter. This one sounds like a winner: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/left-hand-milk-stout-clone.139820/
> 
> Going by that thread, seems like it has turned out pretty good for the past 9 years. Only changes I will make will be to adjust the quantities to get ~22L batch size.



Brewed this yesterday. Original gravity reading of 1.060 at 20 degrees, so pretty close to the 1.062 estimated in the recipe, which in part might be due to using 500g (500g packet) of lactose instead of 530g for my scaled up volume. Time will tell in where it ferments out at.

I pitched Wyeast 1056, but with the gravity and volume being borderline for that yeast I also added in Safale S-04. I will report back how it turns out.


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## Brewman_

wide eyed and legless said:


> I couldnt get any Target hops, seem a bit scarce, subbed with Williamette.




Just FYI,
Plenty of Target Hops here, no shortage and never has been.


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## millsii

millsii said:


> Brewed this yesterday. Original gravity reading of 1.060 at 20 degrees, so pretty close to the 1.062 estimated in the recipe, which in part might be due to using 500g (500g packet) of lactose instead of 530g for my scaled up volume. Time will tell in where it ferments out at.
> 
> I pitched Wyeast 1056, but with the gravity and volume being borderline for that yeast I also added in Safale S-04. I will report back how it turns out.



So 2 weeks on from pitching it is done at 1.026. Checked it after 1 week and was already at 1.026. Seemed a bit high so gave a gentle swirl and increased temp to 21oC. Have checked it a couple of times over the past week and hasn't budged, confirmed with 2 hydrometers. Maybe the original gravity was wrong, but can't be by much as beersmith predicted ~1.057 then adding lactose should give ~1.065.

More importantly though the hydrometer samples taste great! Doesn't taste sweet, a smidge dry tasting to be honest, but is very smooth with a lot of body. Looking forward to getting this one on tap in a few weeks time.


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## Phoney

Maybe this deserves its own thread...but.

Has anyone here brewed an oyster stout?

I've looked at a dozen recipes and read a few threads on HBT. There doesn't seem to be a consensus on the best method. 

I'm thinking of chucking in a dozen oysters (Sydney rock or Pacific?) into the last 15 minutes of the boil. Undecided on the shells. They'll add calcium, but maybe too much?


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## petesbrew

Phoney said:


> Maybe this deserves its own thread...but.
> 
> Has anyone here brewed an oyster stout?
> 
> I've looked at a dozen recipes and read a few threads on HBT. There doesn't seem to be a consensus on the best method.
> 
> I'm thinking of chucking in a dozen oysters (Sydney rock or Pacific?) into the last 15 minutes of the boil. Undecided on the shells. They'll add calcium, but maybe too much?


Sorry Phoney, A 4 months late reply here.
I've got my 3rd oyster stout planned - a double batch. I base it on a dry stout recipe.
I add a dozen shells to the boil at 60min. First time I did it I added the meat as well for the 60min, and ate them afterwards. They weren't great. The beer is bloody lovely. Kinda smoked. I've had nothing but praise from mates over it.
Oh yeah. Sydney Rock Oysters.


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## petesbrew

Here's my notes for my current Oyster Stout - it's a double batch based on my previous recipe.
One thing that's important, buy fresh oysters - I'd bought some last week while up at Pt Stephens, ate the oysters, brought the shells home and stupidly left them on the garage bench. When I went to use them they stunk, so had to throw them.
Luckily I'd bought 6 extra on saturday.

Oyster Stout mk3 double batch

A ProMash Recipe Report

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (L): 45.00 Wort Size (L): 45.00
Total Grain (kg): 10.91
Anticipated OG: 1.050 Plato: 12.318
Anticipated EBC: 69.2
Anticipated IBU: 39.0
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70 %
Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential EBC
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
79.3 8.65 kg. JWM Traditional Ale Malt Australia 1.038 7
9.2 1.00 kg. Toffee Malt AUS 1.030 15
2.4 0.26 kg. CarAmber France 1.034 59
4.6 0.50 kg. JWM Chocolate Malt Australia 1.032 750
4.6 0.50 kg. JWM Roasted Malt Australia 1.032 1200

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
51.92 g. Fuggle Pellet 4.20 16.7 60 min.
51.92 g. Goldings - E.K. Pellet 5.00 19.8 60 min.
34.62 g. Goldings - E.K. Pellet 4.80 2.5 10 min.
20.77 g. Wye Target Pellet 11.00 0.0 Dry Hop


Extras

Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.87 Oz Irish Moss Fining 10 Min.(boil) 


Yeast
-----

White Labs WLP013 London Ale




Notes
-----

USE FRESH OYSTERS - I bought some a week ago, but they stunk really bad and
chucked them.

6 oyster shells in the mash, then transferred into the kettle.

Split between 2 kegs - London Ale yeast & Nogne O AIPA yeast

Post Brewing notes: OG= 1060. Should've been around 1055. About 40L post boil.


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## wide eyed and legless

Had this recently from a nitro bottle, on the strong side but was tasty.
*Left Hand Milk Stout Clone | Sweet Stout*
*INGREDIENTS*

*For 5 Gallons (19 L)*

7.0 lb (3.18 kg) pale malt
1.0 lb (0.45 kg) roasted barley
1.0 lb (0.45 kg) lactose (15 minutes before end of boil)
0.75 lb (340 g) 60° L crystal malt
0.75 lb (340 g) Munich malt
0.75 lb (340 g) chocolate malt
0.5 lb (227 g) flaked barley
0.5 lb (227 g) flaked oats
0.3 oz (8.5 g) Magnum pellet hops, 13% a.a. (60 min)
1.0 oz (28 g) E.K. Goldings pellet hops, 5% a.a. (10 min)
California ale yeast
*SPECIFICATIONS*

*Original Gravity:* 1.068
*Final Gravity:* 1.016
*ABV:* 7%
*IBU:* 19
*SRM:* 41
*DIRECTIONS*
To brew the Left Hand Milk Stout clone, mash at 151°F (66°C) for 90 minutes. Boil for 90 minutes, following hop schedule. Add lactose 15 minutes before end of boil.

Ferment at 70°F (21°C), then condition in secondary at 60°F (16°C) for at least one week.


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## Murrayatuptown

Hello:

I joined because I was reading about Zywiec Porter again, and found a post inquiring about a recipe.

Well, it WAS a 2010 post, but there is more activity here about that brew than in the US, where I am.

My first 19 L homebrew in Dec. 2020 was a Zywiec Porter clone extract kit, with steeping grains (1.8 kg). I don't know if the kit instructions are sufficient to pull together one's own ingredients, but here are the links for an extract kit and an all-grain kit.

Zywiec Porter Extract


https://www.homebrewing.org/assets/images/Recipe_Instructions_2019/k99-1852.pdf



ZP All-Grain 


https://www.homebrewing.org/assets/images/Recipe_Instructions_2019/ag99-1852.pdf



I added a 1% alcohol boost corn sugar pack because I was certain I'd never hit the target ABV, based on my 4 L kits.

I chose SafLager S-189 from the options.

Then the mistakes began...but it ended really well.

It took me 18 months to get my equipment and portable brewing/fermenting setup, and I found (Saturday midnight) the LME was very moldy. Only nearby brew supply open Sunday morning of brewing day did not have bulk LME for both types, so I had to buy 3 kg of one type instead of 6#. The other type needed 5#, they had bulk, so I got the right amount. I put it all the packaged type in, forgetting to reserve the excess (10% extra, est. 5.4% extra ovetall fermentables). I have to find my notes, but O.G. was higher than the kit said due to the 1% boost and the extra 0.6# LME. Used RO water, no concern for matching any pH or mineral profile.

The 60 minute boil was extended to 75 because I forgot to sterilize a wort chiller earlier.

I bought an aeration stone kit as additional insurance against stalled fermentation (cellar floor was colder than air temp.)

I stopped aeration prematurely because it was foaming over.

I used a can of Northern Brewer Fast Pitch yeast starter/supporter (more 'insurance') not realizing they recommended two cans. I also missed the instruction to let it settle for 15 minutes before pouring it in with the yeast.

Got it pumped into a 6.5 gallon carboy in a plastic storage tote (to catch any overflow, insulate, & keep dark). The tote and cover made the thumping fermentation sounds much louder...didn't know it was a 'thing'.

I was planning a transfer to a 2nd fermenter, cacao nibs, maybe espresso...

2 weeks later caught COVID, and thought maybe I shouldn't breathe on it until I tested negative (optimist?). So it was abandoned for 4.5 weeks. No transfer, no secondary, no additions. Bottled In Jan. 2021.

The thumping had stopped. I checked S.G. and it was stable for three days...12.34% ABV! Over-the-top of the Baltic Porter style guide ABV range, but I didn't really care. Kit maker said 'call it an experimental beer'.

Bottled & waited (bottle conditioning). Barely carbonated. I ended up storing the bottles and a thermometer over a radiator with a thermostat for a few more weeks.

This is the best beer I have ever brewed. I don't know how much my errors were improvements. I'm sorry I shared as much as I did. Almost completely opaque, but if you get a bright LED flashlight under a thin layer of beer, it has a ruby color.

8 months old now. A couple people who procrastinated trying it until late August declared it fantastic.

I found a local retailer who carries Zywiec Porter, but they have not been able to get it for unknown reasons for over a year...so I will have to brew it again. Next time, will probably try a Kveik variety of yeast to alleviate my lack of temperature control. Might omit the 1% ABV boost hoping to have bottle carbonation be more robust. Won't bother with secondary next time either. I have a 5 gallon carboy so I'm pondering whether a double batch is doable...but for 100 bottles and the work that implies.


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## Murrayatuptown

Oyster Stout reminds me of a 25.6 ounce bottle of a regional stout in Florida, with some kind of shellfish and Ghost Peppers. That was too big to open by myself, and it just sounded too scary.


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## Mooroolbark_Mick

Sensational narrative. If it tasted great, I wouldn’t change a thing. Maybe don’t catch COVID again though!


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## NattyJ

My o


Murrayatuptown said:


> Hello:
> 
> I joined because I was reading about Zywiec Porter again, and found a post inquiring about a recipe.
> 
> Well, it WAS a 2010 post, but there is more activity here about that brew than in the US, where I am.
> 
> My first 19 L homebrew in Dec. 2020 was a Zywiec Porter clone extract kit, with steeping grains (1.8 kg). I don't know if the kit instructions are sufficient to pull together one's own ingredients, but here are the links for an extract kit and an all-grain kit.
> 
> Zywiec Porter Extract
> 
> 
> https://www.homebrewing.org/assets/images/Recipe_Instructions_2019/k99-1852.pdf
> 
> 
> 
> ZP All-Grain
> 
> 
> https://www.homebrewing.org/assets/images/Recipe_Instructions_2019/ag99-1852.pdf
> 
> 
> 
> I added a 1% alcohol boost corn sugar pack because I was certain I'd never hit the target ABV, based on my 4 L kits.
> 
> I chose SafLager S-189 from the options.
> 
> Then the mistakes began...but it ended really well.
> 
> It took me 18 months to get my equipment and portable brewing/fermenting setup, and I found (Saturday midnight) the LME was very moldy. Only nearby brew supply open Sunday morning of brewing day did not have bulk LME for both types, so I had to buy 3 kg of one type instead of 6#. The other type needed 5#, they had bulk, so I got the right amount. I put it all the packaged type in, forgetting to reserve the excess (10% extra, est. 5.4% extra ovetall fermentables). I have to find my notes, but O.G. was higher than the kit said due to the 1% boost and the extra 0.6# LME. Used RO water, no concern for matching any pH or mineral profile.
> 
> The 60 minute boil was extended to 75 because I forgot to sterilize a wort chiller earlier.
> 
> I bought an aeration stone kit as additional insurance against stalled fermentation (cellar floor was colder than air temp.)
> 
> I stopped aeration prematurely because it was foaming over.
> 
> I used a can of Northern Brewer Fast Pitch yeast starter/supporter (more 'insurance') not realizing they recommended two cans. I also missed the instruction to let it settle for 15 minutes before pouring it in with the yeast.
> 
> Got it pumped into a 6.5 gallon carboy in a plastic storage tote (to catch any overflow, insulate, & keep dark). The tote and cover made the thumping fermentation sounds much louder...didn't know it was a 'thing'.
> 
> I was planning a transfer to a 2nd fermenter, cacao nibs, maybe espresso...
> 
> 2 weeks later caught COVID, and thought maybe I shouldn't breathe on it until I tested negative (optimist?). So it was abandoned for 4.5 weeks. No transfer, no secondary, no additions. Bottled In Jan. 2021.
> 
> The thumping had stopped. I checked S.G. and it was stable for three days...12.34% ABV! Over-the-top of the Baltic Porter style guide ABV range, but I didn't really care. Kit maker said 'call it an experimental beer'.
> 
> Bottled & waited (bottle conditioning). Barely carbonated. I ended up storing the bottles and a thermometer over a radiator with a thermostat for a few more weeks.
> 
> This is the best beer I have ever brewed. I don't know how much my errors were improvements. I'm sorry I shared as much as I did. Almost completely opaque, but if you get a bright LED flashlight under a thin layer of beer, it has a ruby color.
> 
> 8 months old now. A couple people who procrastinated trying it until late August declared it fantastic.
> 
> I found a local retailer who carries Zywiec Porter, but they have not been able to get it for unknown reasons for over a year...so I will have to brew it again. Next time, will probably try a Kveik variety of yeast to alleviate my lack of temperature control. Might omit the 1% ABV boost hoping to have bottle carbonation be more robust. Won't bother with secondary next time either. I have a 5 gallon carboy so I'm pondering whether a double batch is doable...but for 100 bottles and the work that implies.


My only food for thought is in regards to the bottling. For a beer with such a high ABV it may be worth looking into/researching adding yeast at bottling time. The yeast would no doubt have been worked hard chewing through so many fermentables and may have not been restarted at bottling initially. Although clearly the colder weather was probably more likely the culprit seeing as things improved when you moved them. I have not done this myself so can't add personal comment but I have read about it being done for big beers.

Interesting to use a lager yeast. The extended fermentation time you used no doubt helped ensure it cleaned up after itself.

I love a good stout/porter etc


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## Murrayatuptown

I think the kit producer only recommended lager-type yeasts because of the history of the Baltic Porter taking it down a different road than the British type.

I did read the yeast datasheets and thought S-189 had a lot of good traits that looked good to me. My previous brewing efforts with cellar floor temperatures close to 17-18 C year-round were frustrating. S-189 was good for that. I don't want to take chances upstairs in the 'finished' part of the house. 

Success has to outweigh the bad experiences for me...like breaking bottles with a capper. No bottle bombs or fermentation fountains yet.

I don't see myself kegging and I am getting tired enough of cleaning recycled bottles the cost of buying new ones is looking less offensive. 

I read a lot of opinions on re-pitching yeast for high ABV and it seems like there might be a learning curve. Skipping the 1% ABV boost might give a little more breathing room, and maybe 5.5-6 oz. priming sugar vs. the 5 oz. pack. 

I was so careful not disturbing the yeast cake while siphoning and apparently no sediment (hard to see thru opaque beer), someone suggested I didn't get as much random stirred up yeast into each bottle. I filled the last few bottles by emptying the carboy into a sanitized measuring cup when the siphon was sucking air more than siphoning). I got 50 bottles out of the batch (about 6 were 0.33 L and the rest our conventional 12 oz/355 ml).

When I look at craft beer in a store there price thresholds I say no to. Sure, breweries may have had cost increases, but that makes paying for bottles less of a deterrent. Having to replace my LME raised the cost per bottle. If I avoid that, I'll rationalize buying a pump and retire the siphon. 

The one bad part of keeping everything but the boil (outdoors with 19 L) downstairs was the number of trips up & down the stairs.

Tonight I found the carboy sling I bought last year and immediately lost. More savings!

I had photos from Krakow and had a historical clone story for the label...family said nah, gotta be a pandemic beer


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## Murrayatuptown

Images out of order. The short head was after the recommended conditioning time at 18 C and an aggressive pour.

Middle picture was after two add'l weeks above a folding table with an electric oil-filled radiator (21-25 C in the tote).

I never really saw vigorous fermentation and 'more' krausen as went by. The aeration foam before pitching yeast was huge and just gradually dissipated. over some weeks.


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## MashBasher

Great story.

Zywiec make great beers all round. The closer you get to Poland, the better they are, too. Pretty good in Croatia, all the same, where I drank truck loads of it on holiday.

Food for thought on yeast - stout was traditionally an ale. It’s not uncommon for modern breweries to use a lager yeast. These ferment clean and that’s the key characteristic, but maybe this is an alternative/variation you could look at.

Invalid stout is a widely known historic Aussie stout. It feeds into the folklore that stout is good for you and will heal all ills. It will cure invalids (hence the name) and put lead in your pencil (might need to look that one up). Hence the oysters (yes, they used to add real oysters to oyster stout). One of the largest consumers of stout these days are the people of south-east Asia who have bough the health spiel hook, line and sinker. Guinness now have a huge brewery in Malaysia and you can buy stout in 250 ml cans in every corner shop. Hilarious.

Hope you are well and fully recovered from COVID. If not, drink more stout.


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## duncbrewer

Zywiec is my on keg lager, it came out really well with Opshaug kveik pressure fermented. Last brewday I did a double batch half with kveik yeast and the rest with Czech budejovice yeast. Drinking the kveik already and the other keg lagering in the keg fridge to be ready for the day.
I've just done a clone of a smoked and oaked baltic porter using Lager yeast, it's now in the cellar in the keg maturing. You've wet my appetite with those photos, nice labels, which program do you use?


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## Murrayatuptown

MashB: I was in Zagreb 9/19 2 nights. We were delayed & it rained the whole time. We just drank things like Karlovacko...Cerno? was the darkest I found there. Had Karlo lager in the US once this year...skunkiest I have ever had...but fine in Croatia when fresh...for what it is. BTW, we ate in the same restaurant both nights because we liked it so much...Lira Pizzeria but did not order pizza.

DuncB:
Labels made with GIMP and trial/error. Red text on black looked good on monitor but unreadable printed...went to white. More work than I enjoyed, but with a beer and not looking at the clock it was tolerable. Dog is one of ours. My wife buys a lot of costumes.

Printed on Xerox color copier which gave a rich glossy black.

Stuck on bottle with glue stick then clear packing tape over them. Someone gave me two rolls of 3" wide they ordered mistakenly...3" core was automatic. He was happy to get rid of it because it looked pretty stupid on a tape gun. Getting the packing tape off is another reason to stop recycling bottles.

Going to do the same Zywiec clone kit again with kviek...if I didn't share the plan, might call it Norse Pole.

But before that will be a Belgian Trippel IPA with a story blaming drunken elves for mixing up two recipes. Kit maker changed their description to gnomes, but I had already found two vintage public domain elf artworks that suit my demented label ideas. Going to add one rogue ingredient so I can change the name. I already have some photos of the prisoner dog and a Shih Tzu wearing gnome outfits so I'm cramming all 3 images together.

Labels are the one place one can be over-the-top-pretentious and be encouraged...

Thanks for the tolerance of my keyboard dysentery. On non-English sites I apologize for my excessive English...but no one seems to get the joke (or fell asleep paragraphs earlier).


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## duncbrewer

@Murrayatuptown 

Thanks for the info re the labels, I've been using beerlabelizer.com the paid variant did seem worth it. Not the most efficient use of the paper though.

There top tip is to secure the label with milk. I just brush it on the bottle and put the plain paper printed label on. It works brilliantly and easy to get off after with no sticky residue. I think I need better paper and then I can get a glossier finish from my dell laser.


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## Ballaratguy

Murrayatuptown said:


> MashB: I was in Zagreb 9/19 2 nights. We were delayed & it rained the whole time. We just drank things like Karlovacko...Cerno? was the darkest I found there. Had Karlo lager in the US once this year...skunkiest I have ever had...but fine in Croatia when fresh...for what it is. BTW, we ate in the same restaurant both nights because we liked it so much...Lira Pizzeria but did not order pizza.
> 
> DuncB:
> Labels made with GIMP and trial/error. Red text on black looked good on monitor but unreadable printed...went to white. More work than I enjoyed, but with a beer and not looking at the clock it was tolerable. Dog is one of ours. My wife buys a lot of costumes.
> 
> Printed on Xerox color copier which gave a rich glossy black.
> 
> Stuck on bottle with glue stick then clear packing tape over them. Someone gave me two rolls of 3" wide they ordered mistakenly...3" core was automatic. He was happy to get rid of it because it looked pretty stupid on a tape gun. Getting the packing tape off is another reason to stop recycling bottles.
> 
> Going to do the same Zywiec clone kit again with kviek...if I didn't share the plan, might call it Norse Pole.
> 
> But before that will be a Belgian Trippel IPA with a story blaming drunken elves for mixing up two recipes. Kit maker changed their description to gnomes, but I had already found two vintage public domain elf artworks that suit my demented label ideas. Going to add one rogue ingredient so I can change the name. I already have some photos of the prisoner dog and a Shih Tzu wearing gnome outfits so I'm cramming all 3 images together.
> 
> Labels are the one place one can be over-the-top-pretentious and be encouraged...
> 
> Thanks for the tolerance of my keyboard dysentery. On non-English sites I apologize for my excessive English...but no one seems to get the joke (or fell asleep paragraphs earlier).


Instead of bottles you could can your brew, label them and then you don’t have to try to remove the tape
I use a brother colour label printer which is a thermal printer. The labels are self adhesive and waterproof
I also have a red and black thermal label printer which costs about $0.10 per label. The colour one is dearer for the labels but they really look the goods (and waterproof)


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## duncbrewer

@Ballaratguy

I can see the logic!

695 dollars for the canning machine ( minimum) , 180 dollars for 300 x 330ml cans, 180 dollars for 207 x 500ml cans.

So say 700 cans, one canning machine and the labels for each one.

That works out at 1.85 dollars on packaging the first 700 cans ( 300 litres of beer ), that's more than some of the beers cost to brew per unit.

Given that I counter pressure fill the hundred or so recycled bottles I fill per year and the labels are nigh on free it would take me a long time to bring the costs down to a realistic level. Plus the recyclers don't like tins with labels on them.

That being said I do use the odd can but I prefer to call it a keg!

Forgot the ancillaries like a splash guard and spacer and wastage.


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## Ballaratguy

duncbrewer said:


> @Ballaratguy
> 
> I can see the logic!
> 
> 695 dollars for the canning machine ( minimum) , 180 dollars for 300 x 330ml cans, 180 dollars for 207 x 500ml cans.
> 
> So say 700 cans, one canning machine and the labels for each one.
> 
> That works out at 1.85 dollars on packaging the first 700 cans ( 300 litres of beer ), that's more than some of the beers cost to brew per unit.
> 
> Given that I counter pressure fill the hundred or so recycled bottles I fill per year and the labels are nigh on free it would take me a long time to bring the costs down to a realistic level. Plus the recyclers don't like tins with labels on them.
> 
> That being said I do use the odd can but I prefer to call it a keg!
> 
> Forgot the ancillaries like a splash guard and spacer and wastage.


I scored a semi auto canner from a guy here for $250
Cans I get @ $0.35 ea for 330ml or $0.30 for 375 ml
I don’t can often (keg and fill 2Lt growlers for home, only can for give always or for travelling. Mostly I only label if I’m storing them or if I’ve got a mixture of brews)


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## duncbrewer

Cans aren't that cheap in NZ, hence my expensive counter pressure bottle filler! 
Who said it was cheap beer anyway, need a cooperative I think for the canner or rent it out if I got one. 
Labelling is worthwhile, I was convinced I'd remember the beer when I started but visiting the archive of beer bottles a while later I realised I was in the dark.


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## Willlovesbeer89

Hello, I'm new to home brewing, what kind of malt is better to use as a base for making a Baltic Porter? Or maybe it is better to mix two malts in equal proportions, such as Pilsner and Munich malts?Should I use roasted barley grains?


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## duncbrewer

Welcome

Worth a look at this for some solid baltic porter advice. Temperature control will be important on your ferment ( as it's traditionally a bottom fermented lager yeast) and a good starter if high gravity planned.


A lot of good info on that youtube channel for many aspects of brewing.


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## Murrayatuptown

I found a good deal on 500 ml 'premium ale bottles' which reduces work of repurposing old bottles and the number per 19L batch.

Definitely need to try CBC-1 at bottling time. Frustrated with low level of carbonation.


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## yankinoz

Murrayatuptown said:


> I found a good deal on 500 ml 'premium ale bottles' which reduces work of repurposing old bottles and the number per 19L batch.
> 
> Definitely need to try CBC-1 at bottling time. Frustrated with low level of carbonation.


 Many beers come in 500 ml bottles. I use the empties (drink the beer first).


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## duncbrewer

Or go for those Coopers bottles which are 750ml.


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## Murrayatuptown

I saved some 750's & decided to not fill any because at 12+ % I would be waiting for someone to share one. That would be a sleeping pill for me...end of day!


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## duncbrewer

Tonic water bottles at 200 ml are great for very high gravity beers. Thomas Hardys ale used to be in a very small bottle as well as a pint bottle.


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## Murrayatuptown

I used little bottles for vodka infusion. I found them to be a nuisance to procure, so I recycled the clear ones from the Aldi Wine Advent Calendar my wife got.

I found some cool clear very tall 375 ml bottles also...but I had to store the filled ones in the carton because they fall over if you look at them.


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## duncbrewer

I'm collecting some orangina bottles, they are like weebles so shouldn't fall over.


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## Murrayatuptown

;O)

Except for the inebriated Weebles...


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