Advice On Brown Porter Recipe

[Crunched]

After doing a bit of research and sussing out other people's recipes, I have attempted to put together my own brown porter recipe. Was hoping to hear any comments/tips before I brew tomorrow arvo. What do you guys think?

Amount Item Type % or IBU
4.50 kg Ale - Golden Promise (Thomas Fawcett) (6.0 EBC) Grain 85.71 %
0.40 kg Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (145.0 EBC) Grain 7.62 %
0.30 kg Chocolate Malt (500.0 EBC) Grain 5.71 %
0.05 kg Wheat Malt, Bel (3.5 EBC) Grain 0.95 %
25.00 gm Goldings, East Kent (CB) [5.10 %] (60 min) Hops 15.1 IBU
25.00 gm Goldings, East Kent (CB) [5.10 %] (45 min) Hops 13.8 IBU
25.00 gm Williamette (CB) [4.60 %] (20 min) Hops 8.2 IBU

Est Original Gravity: 1.053 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.014 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.15 %
Bitterness: 37.1 IBU
Est Color: 41.5 EBC

I was thinking of adding a touch of roast barley just to roast it up a bit and up the EBC a tad. What do you think?

 

[Stuster]

Looks fine to me. I think for a brown porter there's no need to add any roast barley. I think you could drop the IBUs back a touch, and maybe tone down the late hop addition just a bit, so the malts have a chance to shine.

The one really puzzling thing is the addition of 50g of Belgian wheat. :huh:

 

[Crunched]

Good point about the IBUs, will drop them back a bit. Yep, the wheat addition was really a "I have to get rid of this left over wheat". I figured it wouldn't do much harm in the porter!

 

[jayse]

what choc malt are you using? its listed as 500ebc in the recipe which is more like pale choc, just check you have the specs right for the actuall choc malt your using. As is anyway its looking good.

 

[BoilerBoy]

what choc malt are you using? its listed as 500ebc in the recipe which is more like pale choc, just check you have the specs right for the actuall choc malt your using. As is anyway its looking good.

Agreed, alot of brewers have found recent Bairds pale choc coming out much darker than the usual 500 EBC rating. I noticed Craftbrewer has it currently rated between 500-800EBC.

Got caught out with that in a Brown ale last year.

Cheers,
BB

 

[Trent]

KISS
I find a brown porter should have low to no hop flavour, no roast, and be easy to drink. Shoot for something like 90% pale malt and 10% pale chocolate. You can probably add 5% crystal or carapils if you really want.
One hop addition, bittering only, about 25IBU.
I have had good success with this recipe. As I said before, KISS and you can't go wrong.
T.

 

[Crunched]

Thanks guys, much appreciated.

The choc malt is pale, hence the 500EBC. I probably would have used something darker, however I had this in the fridge and wanted to use it up. I'll let you all know how it goes - should brew it up as soon as I finish work.

 

[drsmurto]

Thanks guys, much appreciated.

The choc malt is pale, hence the 500EBC. I probably would have used something darker, however I had this in the fridge and wanted to use it up. I'll let you all know how it goes - should brew it up as soon as I finish work.

As BoilerBoy said, if its Bairds Pale Choc it NOT 500 EBC. I think Ross has mentioned that the current batch is something like 800EBC and like BoilerBoy the first time i used it i got caught out with the colour being darker than i thought.

That said, i love the malt and think its perfect for a brown porter. i would stick with your original grist but wind back the IBUs to 30 max and use a good english yeast

 

[warra48]

Dug up this old thread, didn't want to start a new one.

I haven't brewed a Porter for over 5 years, not since my early days with kits and extract brews.

Would welcome any comments suggestions for this Brown Porter recipe. The amounts are a bit silly, but that's because of scaling the recipe from my initial design.
I use rainwater, so will try to make it up to something like a London profile.

25 Litre Batch
27 IBU

3935.0 g Pale Malt, Ale (IMC) (3.9 EBC) Grain 7 79.2 %
411.0 g Brown Malt (Simpsons) (295.5 EBC) Grain 8 8.3 %
230.0 g Crystal Malt - Light (120.0 EBC) Grain 9 4.6 %
210.0 g Chocolate Wheat (Weyermann) (817.5 EBC) Grain 10 4.2 %
182.0 g Crystal Medium (150.0 EBC) Grain 11 3.7 %
41.5 g Willamette [5.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 12 23.3 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 13 -
18.0 g Willamette [5.50 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 14 3.7 IBUs
5.00 g Yeast Nutrient (Boil 10.0 mins) Other 15 -
1.0 pkg Denny's Favorite 50 (Wyeast Labs #1450)

 

[Ross]

Looks nice Warra :super:

 

[stakka82]

Brewing a brown porter on Saturday, only ever done one before and some time ago - thought I'd run this past everyone:

Porter (Brown Porter)

Original Gravity (OG): 1.047 (P): 11.7
Final Gravity (FG): 1.009 (P): 2.3
Alcohol (ABV): 4.93 %
Colour (SRM): 24.2 (EBC): 47.7
Bitterness (IBU): 33.3 (Average)

83.33% Maris Otter Malt
5.56% Caraaroma
5.56% Chocolate
5.56% Crystal 120

2.9 g/L Willamette (4% Alpha) @ 60 Minutes (Boil)


Single step Infusion at 67C for 60 Minutes. Boil for 60 Minutes

Fermented at 18C with Wyeast - British Ale 1098

How does the fermentation temperature sound with 1098? Never used it before.

Warra if you are reading this, how did your porter go with all Willamette?

 

[warra48]

Mine turned out to be a delicious Porter.
The Brown Malt gives it a smoothness like nothing else. The Chocolate gives it a soft roast edge, but without harshness or astringency. It has a deep espresso coffee and chocolate flavour, but without grainy bitterness.
The Willamette hops are perfect, giving it a nice underlying woody herbal note, balancing the malt without intruding.
I like it so much, I'm planning to brew it again within the month.