Adding Spices To Beer

[ryanator]

Hi,

I've been planning some brews making use of cinnamon and vanilla (maybe not in the same brew though). Is there anyone out there who has used cinnamon or vanilla in their brews and had any success?

I was thinking that cinnamon may be a good addition to an ale and vanilla may be a good addition to a stout or a porter.

What I don't know is whether to use:
- Cinnamon sticks or powder?
- Vanilla beans or essence?

Another question is how much should be added?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!

 

[deadly]

Boil a bean,split as its more mellow - essence gives a sharper flavour
dont know bout the cinnamon but at a guess i'd say stick

 

[johnno]

Hi Ryanator,
From memory Doc made a Vanilla? Porter a while ago.
Try a search. It will probably be here somewhere.

johnno

 

[ryanator]

Thanks deadly,

I'm now thinking of putting a vanilla bean in the Choc-Honey Porter I'm gonna make. I'll split it and boil it.

Will one bean be enough?

Should I leave the bean/s in for primary fermentation?

Cheers.

 

[GMK]

i have used ground Cinamon, Nutmeg and cloves in ginger beer, mead, cider and stout...

Hope this helps.

 

[AndrewQLD]

GMK said

i have used ground Cinamon, Nutmeg and cloves in ginger beer, mead, cider and stout...

Hope this helps.

And i can vouch for the apple cider it was very nice.
Good to see you got home in one piece GMK.

Andrew

 

[rodderz]

I'm thinking a vanilla in a stout could be ok...sounds nice anyway!

 

[kungy]

Just a thought. Don't know about a full 60 minute boil of cinnamon stick. From a cooking background remember that it is bark, and tannins can be drawn from it through an extented boil. Suck on it and you'll see what i mean

Will

 

[Lufah]

I made a Vanilla Bourbon Porter that is very good. I added 3 split and chopped Vanilla beans to secondary. I got a lot of vanilla flavor this way. If you wanted something with less vanilla I would back of to one or two beans. I let it sit on the beans for two weeks in secondary.

I used Denny Conn's recipe and adjusted it a bit. It's here... http://home.columbus.rr.com/lufah/vanillaporter.txt

Travis

 

[Doc]

I too have brewed Denny's Imperial Vanilla Bourbon Porter, updated slightly for Australian ingredients.
Was definitely a great beer.

A Saison is also a good beer to brew if you want to add spices such as orange peel, corriander and grains of paradise.

Here is the recipe I used for the IVBP.

Imperial Vanilla Bourbon Porter

A ProMash Recipe Report

BJCP Style and Style Guidelines
-------------------------------

15-A Porter, Robust Porter

Min OG: 1.050 Max OG: 1.065
Min IBU: 25 Max IBU: 45
Min Clr: 59 Max Clr: 177 Color in EBC

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

Batch Size (L): 23.60 Wort Size (L): 23.60
Total Grain (kg): 8.85
Anticipated OG: 1.087 Plato: 20.97
Anticipated EBC: 60.3
Anticipated IBU: 40.4
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75 %
Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Pre-Boil Amounts
----------------

Evaporation Rate: 10.00 Percent Per Hour
Pre-Boil Wort Size: 27.76 L
Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.074 SG 18.02 Plato

Formulas Used
-------------

Brewhouse Efficiency and Predicted Gravity based on Method #1, Potential Used.
Final Gravity Calculation Based on Points.
Hard Value of Sucrose applied. Value for recipe: 46.2100 ppppg
Yield Type used in Gravity Prediction: Fine Grind Dry Basis.

Color Formula Used: Morey
Hop IBU Formula Used: Rager

Additional Utilization Used For Plug Hops: 2 %
Additional Utilization Used For Pellet Hops: 10 %


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential EBC
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
64.9 5.75 kg. JWM Traditional Ale Malt Australia 1.038 7
9.1 0.80 kg. TF Brown Malt UK 1.033 200
14.1 1.25 kg. JWM Light Munich Australia 1.038 20
9.1 0.80 kg. JWM Caramalt Australia 1.036 56
2.8 0.25 kg. JWM Chocolate Malt Australia 1.032 750

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
27.00 g. Chinook Pellet 12.20 38.7 60 min.
16.00 g. Goldings - E.K. Pellet 4.50 1.7 10 min.


Extras
Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.15 Tsp Irish Moss Fining 15 Min.(boil)

Yeast
-----
White Labs WLP002 English Ale


Mash Schedule
-------------
Mash Type: Single Step

Grain kg: 8.85
Water Qts: 24.50 - Before Additional Infusions
Water L: 23.18 - Before Additional Infusions

L Water Per kg Grain: 2.62 - Before Additional Infusions

Saccharification Rest Temp : 66 Time: 90
Mash-out Rest Temp : 72 Time: 10
Sparge Temp : 78 Time: 60

Total Mash Volume L: 29.10 - Dough-In Infusion Only
All temperature measurements are degrees Celsius.

Notes
-----

After primary, slit open 2 vanilla beans. Scrape the insides, chop the
pods into quarters, add to secondary fermenter, rack beer onto vanilla.
Taste periodically for the correct balance. I left the beer in secondary for 11 days. Rack to bottling bucket and add 10 ml. per pint of Jim Beam
Black Bourbon (or to your taste).

Awards
-----
1st Specialty & Fruit Beers category. NSW State Championships Oct. 2004

Beers,
Doc

 

[RobW]

I made a spiced ale last year with an amber ale base plus cinnamon, vanilla, cloves etc added for the last 15 min of the boil & also in secondary. I found the cloves went over the top of everything else. After a couple of months it settled down but still too much clove for my taste. I ended up drinking it mixed 50/50 with a Coopers style sparkling ale. The vanilla was from split beans as already described & the cinnamon was a stick.

 

[ryanator]

Thanks heaps everyone. The help is much appreciated.

I have the shocking habit of adding to much of an ingredient to a brew. I've tried my hand at adding aniseed essence to stout to give it more of a Guiness taste but completely overdid it.

Also tried a Mocha Stout once and overdid that. Tasted like mocha but you could only drink one. Was just way too rich.

Thanks again and cheers!

:beer:

 

[Ziggy-san]

A good tactic is to make a spice infusion in vodka and then add measured amounts of that to the beer before kegging or bottling.

Take your spices, put them in a bottle of vodka for two weeks (day before pitching).

At racking, take a sample and add measured amounts (1ml) until you get the flavor you want, scale up the amounts and add the infusion to your fermenter.