Vanilla Porter Question

Northern Brewer General
1

I am excited to brew the Dry Dock Vanilla Porter. Can someone that has done this kit offer any insight into the vanilla bean used? I may scale this recipe up so I wanted to know how the beans come. are they just whole vanilla beans? how many for 5 gallons? It says cut into 1/2 in sections. do you throw the whole bean and casing in the fermenter?

Thanks!

2

My SOP for Vanilla additions is to buy 2 vanilla beans per 5 gallon batch. I slice them in half and scrape the gunk out into a small mason jar. Then I quarter the bean hulls and put them in the mason jar. I then add vodka to the jar and cap it. I typically try to let it sit for 5 days or so giving it a swirl every so often. Then I pour the infused vodka into the keg. If you want to amp up the vanilla flavor more, you can also toss a whole bean into the keg in addition to the vodka. I buy my beans from Beanilla

:beers:
Rad

3

Whole beans in the kit.

I think it came with 3-4 beans, but it’s been a long time since I’ve brewed it.

4

Thanks for the info! may be a dumb question but how much vodka to you use? do you worry about the vodka imparting any taste or “burn”? It may be such a small amount that it’s a non issue.

Thanks again

5

Use just enough vodka to cover the beans. Pour some off into a shot glass if you think it is too much when getting ready to add to the fermentor.

6

Here is a shot of my last one I used in my latest batch of Denny’s BVIP for reference.

IMG_5184.JPG480×640 96.2 KB

:beers:
Rad

7

Thanks, that is a great shot! Can’t wait to try it.