I’m looking to do a black ale on Black friday (see what I did there?) but I’m not sure the best way to go about getting dark beer with out a roast-y flavor. I’ve heard Black Patent can accomplish this, any thoughts?
I really don’t want a stout, so I’m not sure how much I need to get dark (black) beer w/o the flavor associated with darker grains.
I don’t have the recipe in front of me but it’s along the lines of
12 lbs marris otter
1 lb crystal 60
1 lb flaked oats (not fully committed to the oats)
and an amount of Black Patent… but how much? Or is there a better option?
the hops are…
Falconers flight @ 6o
and cascade the rest of the way @30, 15, 5
and safale us-05
Any and all thoughts are appreciated!
You want a debittered black malt, like Carafa Special. Black malt will definitely give you roasty flavors.
Or you can just buy Sinamar and dye it black.
Be carefull with BP, a little goes a long way. Too much and you can have an ashy/charcoal taste to it. I wouldn’t use more than 4 oz. in the mash but that’s me. You could steep some BP on the side to tame the flavors and add to the boil for color. If you can get your hands on some carafa even better.
You can also “cap” your mash just prior to run-off with dark malt (black patent or roast) to minimize flavor but still get the color. I’ve done it with roasted barley on a Schwartzbier and it works fine. I’ve also used this method to add a touch of color to other styles like altbier and it does the job. Just be careful about how long it sits before you run off. For batch sparging you can add prior to the 2nd runnings. I suppose you could also steep in the wort if its not dark enough.
Have fun!
I’ve never tried, but cold steeping will extract color without alot of flavor. Or so I’ve heard.
