So we made this Oak Aged Old Ale recently and it came out great. The flavor reminded me a little of whiskey, which got me thinking of how I could tweek it a little to really bring out that flavor. Here is the original recipe.
12 lbs Maris Otter
3 lbs Munich
8 oz Caramel 80 L
4 oz Chocolate
3 oz Fuggle (60 min)
1 oz Willamette (5 min)
1335 Brittish Ale II
4 oz Oak Chips (for 7 days in secondary)
I am working on some adjustments to try and enhance the whiskey flavor. What do you think/suggest. Here is what I have so far.
9 lbs Maris Otter
2 lb Munich
1 lb Rye Malt
1 lb flaked rye
1 lb cara-pils
1 lb flaked barley
1 lb Molasses
4 oz chocolate
4 oz caramel 80 L
1.5 oz Magnum (FWH)
1 oz Willamette (5 mins)
1335 Brittish Ale II
4 oz Oak Chips (7 days in secondary)
and possibly 1 vanilla bean split and scraped in secondary for 7 days
I want to highlight the whiskey flavor a little more, so that is why I added the molasses and possibly the vanilla bean. I also added the rye to try and bring a little of that spiciness. The original beer was lacking in head so I added the cara-pils and flaked barely to help with that. What do you think and what suggestions would you make?
Whiskey.
I make Vanilla Bourbon Barrel Porter that I add the vanilla bean in the secondary when I add my bourbon soaked oak chips to the secondary and add a 1/5 of bourbon at bottling. Hope this helps
Don’t get me wrong I am a fan of a good bourbon barrel porter but I was more trying to bring out similar flavors without actually adding any bourbon or whiskey. A friend wrote the recipe that we used originally and it had subtle hints that remind me of whiskey so I was trying to make some adjustments to the recipe to try and highlight that a little more and bring in some of the other flavors associated with bourbon or whiskey if that makes sense.
On a side note, when you make your bourbon barrel porter how long do you soak the oak chips in bourbon before you add them to the secondary?
I usually soak the oak for a few days before adding them & the bourbon to the secondary (this batch has been soaking for about 2 weeks on the oak). It really depends how dry the oak is. I add 3 vanilla beans to the rest of the bottle & soak the beans until I’m ready to bottle.
Try adding a few vanilla beans to the secondary (buy them online the are much fresher than in most stores) & using about 1/2# of molasses at flame out. Rye flaked barley & dare I say it a little flaked corn might make the whiskey notes a little more pronounced. I used a # of molasses in a brown ale but got more cherry than carmel butterscotch which to me is whiskey. (But I’m a Bourbon Guy).
Thanks for the advice, I may have to try the flaked corn. I can get fresh vanilla beans cheap at work (I work at the Culinary Institute). So you think a pound of molasses is too much?
I thought about priming with the molasses but I thought it might be a little too pronounced that way. I have primed with fresh fruit juice in some fruit beers to bring that flavor and aroma to the front and it has worked well.
