Maple stout all grain

It’s been a while since my last visit and need a ? answered. Finally moving to all grain after years of extract and partial batches. After wanting to try some stout for the holidays I wanted to try one with Maple syrup added. Has any one had luck and what was the outcome? How much was added and when in the process?

Although I have never used maple syrup in a beer (it’s just too expensive here), I’ve read a bunch of threads about doing so. Assuming that you’re talking about real maple syrup, not artificially-flavored corn snot, concensus seems to be that the flavor is very fragile and you have to use quite a lot of it to get any character at all in the finished beer, like clover honey, only more so. If you do use it, add it to the fermenter after primary is over so that you won’t lose as much aroma.

OK but how much. Amount is not a problem as I have access to a sugar house and what is the outcome of adding it late like that. Do you think rapid fermentation will begin again or will the beer just mellow out as usuall? I would hate to try and drink beer with syrup consistancy.

so I got this relitive thats out in the backwoods. he makes maple syrup every year. we enjoy about a pint or so as a gift around zmas time. well, this year he gave me an extra quart. he said he new I had used honey in my beer and thought I should try this. he said the flavor was a little off as he had scorched the pan but it was still plenty good. I tasted it and it was a little stronger than we were used to but i think it may add some chactor.

do you add it like honey at the end of the boil. this is what i’m thinkin. maybe in my oatmeal stout. i realy dont want to kill the body of my stout though. what do ya all think?

I agree with Shadetree’s thoughts.

wouldnt that give me a sweet beer? i generally dont secondary a stout. maybe i should just use it in a dry ale like a honey weis ecept make it a maple weis?

No. The yeast are not dead after they finish making the alcohol. They will eat the sugar in the maple just fine.

By putting it in the primary (or secondary) after fermentation is complete, you reduce CO2 produced in the main part of fermentation from driving off the flavors.

If you put it in the boil kettle, you have the boil driving off the flavors, then the main fermentation driving off more.

The maple syrup being so dense in sugar, like honey, I would not worry about heating it to pasteurizing temperatures.

Because you are adding it to the fermenter, you can add it in different amounts until you find the flavor you are liking.

so add it after primary is done> then wait what ?about two more weeks in secondary until the gravity levels off again then keg or bottle?

How much are you thinking of adding? 1 qt/3-4lbs (3lb=1.018/5g)? I would think the sugars would be consumed in 2-3 days.

I wouldn’t be necessary to add it after fermentation is completely done. Just try to avoid the main “violent” portion of fermentation.

yea. i would limit it to a pound. thanks for the input.

My Grandpa owned a Maple Syrup farm when I was a kid and my uncle put a quart in one of his brews once. I didn’t get to try it. He couldn’t remember what it tasted like, which means it wasn’t horrid.

I read some stuff on honey, and adding a pound, but I know that honey is much higher concentrate than Maple Syrup. I would put more than a pound.

The brewpub in town makes a maple ale, I asked a bit ago how much maple they put in, but he wouldn’t tell me. He did mention putting it in at the start of primary though.

I want to try using sap from the tree for my boil water at some time… That would be cool.