Tincture/Steep - Coffee Beans in Bundy Rum

[Gigantorus]

[SIZE=12pt]I want to test-drive a thought. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]My test batch will be a simple Black Ale using 3.0kg of dry dark malt extract and some steeped grains and small amount of hops for slight bittering. And if it all goes well, then I'll use it in the next version of my Russian Imperial Stour (Putin On The Ritz), which is more expensive to make. The intention is to create a RIS that has a rum/bourbon & coffee back palate (as if it has been held in run casks etc.). You get the drift right?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]The plan is to create a tincture of say 100grams of whole dark roast coffee beans with about 150ml of Bundy Rum or Bourbon and leave it steep for 1 or 2 weeks, then pour the liquid only into the fermenter 3 or 4 days out from bottling.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Any thoughts/comments on this approach from those that have actually done something like this before? I seek your wisdom and what worked and what didn't thanks?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Cheers,[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Pete[/SIZE]

 

[Meddo]

No advice on the process sorry, but I'd recommend perhaps trying Matusalem rum if you're not particularly wedded to Bundy? Matusalem is a fantastic drinking dark rum in its own right (you'll still have 550 mL remaining... ), but in my experience it also has quite a pronounced vanilla flavour that may work well in your brew if your concept is a go-er.

https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_906624/matusalem-15-year-solera-gran-reserva-700ml

 

[wobbly]

get the same or better result in minutes rather than weeks using this process (or so they say) http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/93443-nitrogen-cavitation/

Cheers

w3

 

[Gigantorus]

Thanks chaps for your comments.

Just doing a little internet research and found this article from the USA, which is interesting. Will keep researching though.




Although some breweries interviewed for this article were not willing to discuss their specific methods for adding coffee to beer, citing proprietary technology or a specific recipe, there really aren’t any huge secrets in the brewing world.

Stephen Hale, the former head brewer of Schlafly Beer in St. Louis, MO, (he currently serves as Schlafly’s ambassador brewer) says the process known as “cold toddy” has been proved to work best when it comes to adding coffee flavor to beers.

“Essentially, instead of extracting all great things coffee from the grounds by using hot water, we use cold water,” Hale says.

Brewers will typically steep the grounds in the cold liquor (brewing water) for between 24 and 48 hours, letting the water take on the rich coffee aroma and flavor, and it is then blended with the beer.

Haug, of Surly, says he uses a similar method, but adds the coffee to his bright tanks, for a 24-hour period. “We’re making cold-pressed coffee, but instead of water, we’re using beer,” he says.

The cold toddy method is the reason why when you smell a beer made with coffee, it’s almost like opening a fresh bag of beans just before the grind. Some brewers will use ground coffee in bags, others the beans themselves. Some will have a roaster prepare for them, and others will do it in-house, but what most agree upon is that the cold toddy method works best.

This is because over the years, as American brewing ingenuity has increased, the brewers have worked out the kinks, trying all manner of coffee-infusing methods, constructing specific seeping equipment and usually sharing their knowledge with others. That’s left brewers with a consensus on how coffee should be used in brewing.

Schlafly produces a coffee stout—among the most popular styles when it comes to coffee additions—and Hale says it took a while to dial in the recipe to get it where they wanted it. “The roast used has changed moderately over the years. Our early favorite was a dark Italian roast, and we now use a slightly lighter roast.” Now, instead of adding the coffee grounds or the toddy to the mash or the kettle, the brewers add it directly to the finished Schlafly Coffee Stout.

Brewers from around the country that were interviewed for this article agree that the taste and aroma that comes from some variation of the cold toddy method produces the best coffee flavors in a beer. This may be in part thanks to the fact that a cold-brew method on coffee releases less acid from the beans than the hot method. Less acid means a minimal impact on the overall flavor of the beer itself. Hot-brewed coffee added to a beer quickly becomes too astringent a drink, brewers say.

 

[Gigantorus]

Another good article from the USA.

http://allaboutbeer.com/article/perk-homebrew-brewing-coffee/

 

[Gigantorus]

Also saw this in a recent beer mag by esteemed NZ pro brewer Andrew Childs of Behemoth Brewing. Just messes with my head.

View attachment Behemoth-Breakfast-Stout-Recipe.pdf