Smoked Malt

[Fatgodzilla]

Just a quickie for those who have brewed with smoked malt. Got a kilo off Ross now looking at experimenting in a couple of dark brews for winter. Seen recipes but they do not have tasting notes ! Seen some recipes saying 50% SM but read a good article advocating 10% SM in the grain bill. My first effort will be a brownish porter - if I put 5% SM with 95% ale malt, will I get the hint of smoky flavour.

Can you use smoked malt in English ale style beers - I've only seen it in dark dark brews. Anyone done anything along these lines ?



Any hints guys ?

 

[FNQ Bunyip]

Hi FG, I love a bit of a smoky flavor in any beer, Ales no probs but a bit less than in a porter..
dont really know % but around 100g in an lighter ale and 250g in a bigger porter.. IMHO, of coarse.
cheers

 

[kook]

Depends entirely on the type of smoked malt, and the brand of smoked malt. Is it peat malt (intended for malt whisky) or rauch malt (intended for beer) ?

If you're using peat malt, be very sparing. 1-2% can be enough to give quite a strong peaty smoke flavour. If using rauch malt, it depends a lot on the brand. Hoepfner has a reputation as having quite a strong flavour, as little as 2-5% adding a decent bacony smoke flavour. I've used Weyermann at percentages as high as 50%, which obviously had quite a strong smoke flavour, but (IMO) it was not overpowering or over the top. I intend to use around 95% in a Rauchbier Marzen this winter.

edit: Oh, and theres nothing to stop you putting it in English style beers. Some scottish beers display a very subtle smoke character, but the majority do not (in my experience). I've tried a few english beers with smoke malt and it is all about balance. I personally think the rauch malt flavour works better in beers with little to no hop flavour. It can clash with citrusy, grassy hops, but blends ok with noble and currant/earthy flavours. Personally I'd stick to just using a bittering addition. Although not in any way traditional, I think smoke malt could work well in a malt-focused ESB or mild.

 

[Fatgodzilla]

Depends entirely on the type of smoked malt, and the brand of smoked malt. Is it peat malt (intended for malt whisky) or rauch malt (intended for beer) ?

Weyermann Smoked (rauch)malt

Personally I'd stick to just using a bittering addition. Although not in any way traditional, I think smoke malt could work well in a malt-focused ESB or mild.

Also have some melandoidan malt. I was thinking the extra maltiness effect this brings could balance a touch of rauch malt in a scottish / english ale. EKG should be okay with this ?? (have no noble hops in my stock at moment).

All feeback good.

 

[kook]

Weyermann Smoked (rauch)malt



Also have some melandoidan malt. I was thinking the extra maltiness effect this brings could balance a touch of rauch malt in a scottish / english ale. EKG should be okay with this ?? (have no noble hops in my stock at moment).

All feeback good.

I'd start with 3% if you're looking for a really subtle bacony flavour.

Melanoidin would be fine, but I'd personally use some crystal malts to add some caramel/toffee like flavours. EKG would be fine. What kind of ABV / flavour are you aiming for? I think that something like this would work well as a more malt focused ESB (ala Fullers) with a subtle smoke character. This is not intended to be a clone btw.

OG: 1.056

82% Pale
5% Light Crystal (~ 40 EBC)
5% Sugar of your choice
3% Medium Crystal (~ 100 EBC)
3% Rauchmalz
3% Melanoidin

35 IBU EKG @ 60 min


May be worth using a hop like Target at the moment rather than EKG, if you prefer to use higher AA hops for bittering. I'd personally mash at a medium temp (65-67C) and use some form of sugar in a brew like this to dry it out a little, as you don't want the beer to be cloying. It should be quaffable as a (strong) session beer.

 

[Tony M]

Just to create some indecision on your part, I shall relate this. I made a Scottish ale some months ago using aroung 10% Rauch. At the end of fermentation, the smoke flavour dominated everything. At two weeks the beer was pretty well balanced but now six months down the track, nobody, not even the non smokers can detect a trace of smoke. So how long is a piece of string.

 

[Jerry]

Fatgodzilla,

I made a beer using 40% Weyermann Smoked malt last year.

It came out with a prominent smoked bacon flavour and like kook found it certainly wasn't over the top for my tastes.

I think next time I would probably look at increasing the 'smoke' flavour a little; perhaps using peat malt.

I guess its all personal taste and we all know there's only one way to find out. :chug:

Cheers

Scott

 

[Fatgodzilla]

I guess its all personal taste and we all know there's only one way to find out. :chug:
Scott

Too right. I've got two brews in my mind - the first an english ale using a Muntons kit and a partial mash that I want the smoky flavour to kill off the kit twang, the second a full AG porter style. The rauchbiers I've had have been enjoyable but more as one off bottles rather than a full seesion beer. So I want subtle smoky rather than full on bacon. Thanks for ideas men, now down to business.

 

[newguy]

Another possibility is that you smoke your own malt. I've made a couple of rauchbiers, one about 50% smoked malt, the other 100%. I smoked the malt for both myself. The first was smoked over hickory chips and the second was smoked over birch bark and apple cores (no really, apple cores). I did both in my propane BBQ. Not sure about the availability of wood chips there, but here most hardware & specialty BBQ stores here carry bags of wood chips for home electric smokers. Just soak the chips in water for a while, then spread them over the bottom of the BBQ & light it. I spread the malt on aluminum disposable cookie sheets. I also presoaked the malt beforehand.

I also want to 'ditto' what was said about peat smoked malt - it's really powerful stuff. At 1% it will be noticeable.

 

[BoilerBoy]

Just a quickie for those who have brewed with smoked malt. Got a kilo off Ross now looking at experimenting in a couple of dark brews for winter. Seen recipes but they do not have tasting notes ! Seen some recipes saying 50% SM but read a good article advocating 10% SM in the grain bill. My first effort will be a brownish porter - if I put 5% SM with 95% ale malt, will I get the hint of smoky flavour.

Can you use smoked malt in English ale style beers - I've only seen it in dark dark brews. Anyone done anything along these lines ?



Any hints guys ?

Weyerman smoked malt is very mild, 1kg for a standard 23L batch may give you a hint, but only just.
It's more than likely to disappear against the other darker grains in a porter.

In a 30L batch of Porter I have used 2kg and got somewhere near what I like, but will increase it to 2.5 in my next attempt and also keep in mind the smoke does back off a bit after a while.

BB

 

[n00ch]

Only ever made 2 myself. 1 was 90% racuhmalt and was way over the top smoke wise. It has now been in the bottle close to 18 months and although the smoke has backed off alot I am liking it finally. Don't think I'd do that high a % again.

I recently made a smoked porter with 2.5kg (~35%) of Weyermann rauch malt and it seems to be more on the money. Maybe a bit more then what I wanted but this should back of to what I want over the coming months.

Next time I think I will be doing as newguy said and smoke my own. Not that there is anything wrong with the Weyermann but I want to give it a go. I would love to brew a smoked porter anywhere in the ball park of the Alaskan Smoked Porter, that beer is an experience I would love to enjoy a lot more of. I wonder if we can get alder wood for smoking over here?

Cheers

 

[Jazman]

Im with kook on the wey stuff not as strong as the hopfner stuff my last brews around 25 % smoked

 

[Batz]

I bought smoked malt from Grumpys many years ago and it was fantastic stuff,since that I have yet to find a decent smoke malt.
I've tried Grumpys again as well as most of the retailers who sell the fresher grain,all has been disappointing.
Peat malt has an entirely different flavor IMO,sorry but I don't like it

Batz

 

[kook]

I bought smoked malt from Grumpys many years ago and it was fantastic stuff,since that I have yet to find a decent smoke malt.

That would have been Hoepfner. I don't think its bought in anymore.

 

[THE DRUNK ARAB]

Having tried the 3 Ravens Dark last week I would say that it is a nice smoked flavour for my pallette without being OTT.
The brewer told me he uses 30% Weyemann Smoked malt in that.
If you can find it try it and decide if it's too much for you.

C&B
TDA

 

[devo]

i was hitting the 3 ravens real ale @ the lambs go bar on satdee night and picked up on the smokiness....nice drop.

 

[THE DRUNK ARAB]

i was hitting the 3 ravens real ale @ the lambs go bar on satdee night and picked up on the smokiness....nice drop.

Totally agreed. It was my favourite tasted at the Vic Micro Showcase the other night. Now I need to get some sent here to the backwater state.

C&B
TDA