Anyone For Sensational Head?

[SJW]

Just completed brew #7 on the Braumeister, and I have been wondering why all my beers have had sensational head. I have narrowed it down to the multi step temp mash I can now do so easy. 54, 62, 71 & 75. Brew number six I just did single infusion at 66 deg C and you guessed it the head was crap. So brew #7 was a choc Porter with the 54 deg C rest for 15 min, and against good advise I added 100g of pure Cacao nibs into the fermenter. Now if anything was going to screw up head retention it would be cacao with 50% fat. Anyway, I just poured my first after it being in the keg for 24 hours. Even after this short time, it was a little under carbed but had a dense thick mousy head about 1/4" thick that lasted right to the bottom of the glass.
So I will be including a 54 degC step in all brews in future.

Steve

 

[manticle]

I don't think cacao has anywhere near 50% fat but both your 54 and your 71 rest will help with head retention. I do 72 for all my beers (and 55 for most) but 70-72 will encourage glycoproteins to solubilise which help with head retention (from reading and from experience) as well as dextrins.

Little bit of reading I've done suggests the low temp (mid 50s) and high temp (low 70s) might actually work together but I'm not 100% of this last part.

 

[matho]

I have done a 55 deg rest a couple of times on my big system and it has seemed to increase head retention and thickness a fair bit

 

[glenwal]

I've had terrible head retention on pretty much all my beers to date. Tried a 15min 55deg rest on my last batch (inspired by this thread). Its still in the fermenter, so don't know if it made much of a difference yet, but its good to hear other people are having good results.

 

[cam89brewer]

I have done a 55 deg rest a couple of times on my big system and it has seemed to increase head retention and thickness a fair bit

I don't know whether it is just a coincidence or not but for some reason a couple of time when I have left it a little too long at the 55 deg rest it seems to lead to bad head retention...

 

[matho]

yeah I should qualify it was a 10 min rest, just enough time to heat up the water for the next step

 

[Bribie G]

A bit of wheat does it for me - goes well in just about everything (I don't do lagers any more)

In fact with some styles I now go 50% Wheat and they turn out really fresh - for example Aussie Pale Ales;

My regular house beer, Moby Wheat (Whale Ale tribute) is 50% and it never lets me down

I just about stuffed my urn element doing a protein rest, not to say I won't do it again, but next time by resting a thick mash at 53 then dilute with hot liquor to bring to next rest.

 

[Logman]

So what's your verdict on Cacao Nibs SJW? Thinking of trying them in my next Stout, did they come through?

 

[SJW]

So what's your verdict on Cacao Nibs SJW? Thinking of trying them in my next Stout, did they come through?

Great question. Years ago I entered 7 beers into a local comp and got back 5 awards, and if I cared what other people thought of my beers I would be entering this one in for sure. 100g of Cacao nibs in the fermenter after high krausen just gives the final beer that touch of choc. Maybe next time I would try 150g but no more. Great stuff though. I have used coco powder & lindt chocolate and it sux, cacao nib work the best. Below is the recipe. The best porter I have done I think.
Save the black malt and roast barley for stouts.


8 - Choc Porter
Robust Porter
Type: All Grain Date: 4/20/2012
Batch Size (fermenter): 25.00 l Brewer:
Boil Size: 28.00 l Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 90 min Equipment: Braumeister
End of Boil Volume 25.00 l Brewhouse Efficiency: 80.00 %
Final Bottling Volume: 25.00 l Est Mash Efficiency 80.0 %
Fermentation: Ale, Two Stage Taste Rating(out of 50): 30.0
Taste Notes:
Ingredients


Ingredients
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
2000 g Pale Malt (Weyermann) (6.5 EBC) Grain 1 38.1 %
1500 g Smoked Malt (Weyermann) (3.9 EBC) Grain 2 28.6 %
750 g Vienna Malt (Weyermann) (5.9 EBC) Grain 3 14.3 %
600 g Caramunich II (Weyermann) (124.1 EBC) Grain 4 11.4 %
150 g Carafa Special II (Weyermann) (817.5 EBC) Grain 5 2.9 %
150 g Chocolate Malt (Joe White) (750.6 EBC) Grain 6 2.9 %
100 g Caraaroma (Weyermann) (350.7 EBC) Grain 7 1.9 %
20.00 g Magnum [14.40 %] - Boil 90.0 min Hop 8 32.2 IBUs
20.00 g Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 9 3.4 IBUs
1.0 pkg American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056) [124.21 ml] Yeast 10 -

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.052 SG Measured Original Gravity: 1.052 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.012 SG Measured Final Gravity: 1.012 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.2 % Actual Alcohol by Vol: 5.2 %
Bitterness: 35.6 IBUs Calories: 487.4 kcal/l
Est Color: 50.1 EBC
Mash Profile

 

[manticle]

I have not entered 76 beers in competitions but having tried cocoa, chocolate and cacao nibs in various beers, I would say 100 - 150g toasted nibs, in a single batch size and added to secondary phase gives a recognisable choc character that blows the others out of the water. I wouldn't add choc any other way (besides choc malt grain)

Still unsure about this 50% fat thing though. I'm fairly sure it's 10% or less. Where did you get that figure SJW?

 

[manticle]

Still unsure about this 50% fat thing though. I'm fairly sure it's 10% or less. Where did you get that figure SJW?

^I retract this entirely. Questioning my figures, not yours - I don't know where I got 10% from. Must have been consuming fermented cacao nibs. 40-55% seems to be the accepted range according to most, quick sources I could sum up.

I would delete it but it's always good to remind yourself of your own idiocy from time to time.

 

[Logman]

So many stout lovers here - we dead set should have a stout lovers community/recipe thread and keep brewing/contributing until the damn thing throws a chocolate flavor!

 

[Logman]

Men have finally moved on after 2000 years - 'how to make a women orgasm' is behind us - it's now 'how to make stout/porter taste like chocolate'!!!!

 

[iralosavic]

Cocoa powder has about 13% fat. I'd take a guess that's where your confusion arose, Manticle. It's actually very good for you too.

 

[SJW]

Cocoa powder has about 13% fat. I'd take a guess that's where your confusion arose, Manticle. It's actually very good for you too.

Cacao nibs might be good or even great for you but they taste like *****. Only a distant hint of choc in there behind all this dirt and bitterness. I got no idea how they make chocolate out of this *****. But it does the job in a beer.

 

[Tony]

I have been doing step mashes with infusions of boiling water for years, and i will agree they do help to make a better beer. I also found the extra effort helped obtain better head retention.

I find i can get better control over mouthfeel and FG, better clarity and better efficiency, usually hovering around 82% into the fermenter.

I usually infuse to between 1.8 and 2L/kg for a 10 min rest @ 52 deg
I add boiling water which brings me to about 3L/kg for 45 min at between 63 and 66 deg.... depending on the beer I'm making
I then infuse again to between 71 and 74, depending on the beer and mash out.

I adjust the initial infusion ratio to give me a final mash volume of about 48L in my 50L mash tun..... and using between 10 and 11Kg of grain for my regular batches, its a tight fit.

 

[iralosavic]

Ever tasted the 85% cocoa chocolate? You'll spit it out if you were expecting milk chocolate sweetness. Cocoa has lots of antioxidants and health benefits. I'm not sure what process is used to form nibs, but it sounds like not a great deal is added apart from 40% fat. Haha

Anyway. Glad to have picked up a few handy tips on choc stouts. Cheers

 

[felon]

I have been doing step mashes with infusions of boiling water for years, and i will agree they do help to make a better beer. I also found the extra effort helped obtain better head retention.

I find i can get better control over mouthfeel and FG, better clarity and better efficiency, usually hovering around 82% into the fermenter.

I usually infuse to between 1.8 and 2L/kg for a 10 min rest @ 52 deg
I add boiling water which brings me to about 3L/kg for 45 min at between 63 and 66 deg.... depending on the beer I'm making
I then infuse again to between 71 and 74, depending on the beer and mash out.

I adjust the initial infusion ratio to give me a final mash volume of about 48L in my 50L mash tun..... and using between 10 and 11Kg of grain for my regular batches, its a tight fit.

My method as well when I multistep. I wish my mash tun was bigger than 50L.

 

[troopa]

Ive just started doing step mashes recently and have been loving the results of better flavor and head
But my 2nd last brew i did was Smurtos golden ale ... and god damn i have to throw the whole batch out because it managed to burn the crap out of my element to the point i had to sand the black off the element and without knowing that it would impart such a strong flavor i fermented it. Well its a taste of burnt biscuit and puke and about to go down the drain
Im going to avoid doing another step mash with wheat in it again until I figure out how to not burn the crap out of it

 

[SJW]

Ever tasted the 85% cocoa chocolate? You'll spit it out if you were expecting milk chocolate sweetness. Cocoa has lots of antioxidants and health benefits. I'm not sure what process is used to form nibs, but it sounds like not a great deal is added apart from 40% fat. Haha

Anyway. Glad to have picked up a few handy tips on choc stouts. Cheers

Not even fat is added to cacao nibs, its just Cacao beans that are the seeds of an Amazonian fruiting tree and source of all chocolate and cocoa products. Nibs are from the criollo variety and are simply the shelled and crushed chocolate beans.