I’ve had some really good stouts and what not that have nice cocoa/chocolate flavor. Just wondering if anyone has a good method for getting this. Cocoa nibs? Hershey’s cocoa? Bakers chocolate? Also when it should be added.
Thanks!
I had good results just by throwing cocoa nibs in the secondary. Someone else will probably have a better suggestion though
Be sure that you use the roasted/toasted nibs.
My only experience with cocoa flavoring was adding a can of Hershey’s Cocoa Powder with about 5 minutes left in the boil on an NB porter.
I was quite satisfied with the taste.
[quote=“pointyskull”]My only experience with cocoa flavoring was adding a can of Hershey’s Cocoa Powder with about 5 minutes left in the boil on an NB porter.
I was quite satisfied with the taste.[/quote]
Seriously? What size can? This sounds interesting to me.
Sounds like Jamil’s recommended practice, at the 8 oz can size of cocoa for 5 gallons of beer. I recently made a chocolate cherry oatmeal robust porter, and pasteurized 8 oz Hershey’s unsweetened 100% cocoa along with ten pounds cherries on stovetop at ~160 for 20 minutes, before cooling and racking 5 gallons straight porter on top along with another packet of US-05. I got a ton of cherry but in retrospect I probably should have stirred the fruit/chocolate mixture into the beer to help expose the chocolate more into the beer. After 10 days, the secondary had fermented dry, and I got some very nice chocolate notes, but it’s the cherry that stands out the most. I had added some natural tart cherry juice concentrate along with the cherries, and next time would stick to just the 10 lbs of cherries so it isn’t quite so prominent. Still, the beer is strangely addictive, and NOT cough syrup!
[quote=“Steve Breitenbach”][quote=“pointyskull”]My only experience with cocoa flavoring was adding a can of Hershey’s Cocoa Powder with about 5 minutes left in the boil on an NB porter.
I was quite satisfied with the taste.[/quote]
Seriously? What size can? This sounds interesting to me.[/quote]
I believe it was 8 oz. (don’t have my notes with me), but it was the regular off-the-shelf can (unsweetened) from the grocery store.
Created sort of a sludgy mess - in part due to my inadequate boil process at the time - and I was concerned that I overstepped my then novice boundaries. Once this was bottled, however, and had a chance to mellow the chocolate flavors were prominent without being excessive.
