How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

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Wodster

How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

Post by Wodster » Thu Sep 14, 2017 9:17 am

Hi,

I'm thinking about making a beer with the flavour combinations you'd normally expect to find in a Islay/coastal whiskey. I'm thinking spirits, peat smoke, TCP, vanilla, pepper maybe slight saltyness. I'm thinking 11% barley wine to get the spirit with some peat smoked malt and a phenolic (probably Belgian) yeast for pepperiness.

I know most of us tend to try and avoid those antiseptic flavours in brews but I'm interested if anyone has any suggestions about how to actively encourage them?

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Jocky
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Re: How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

Post by Jocky » Thu Sep 14, 2017 10:40 am

TCP can be created in a beer by leaving chlorine in some form (sanitiser, untreated chlorinated water) in the fermenter, but getting the right level is going to be hard, and possibly hazardous to drink.

I would come at it from the whisky angle - use peat smoked malt. I had a strongish porter once that was 40% peat smoked malt, and it was very phenolic. Some people really liked it, I thought it was unbalanced. For a big barley wine I'd start with a lower %, maybe 10-15%, as you're going to be using a lot of malt to start with.

You could add to that by just adding some whisky to the final beer.

For fermentation you will want to find one of the English yeasts that produce some of those phenols - I think the new Danstar ESB yeast might be one. You're putting it in a strong wort, so it should accentuate those characteristics.
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Wodster

Re: How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

Post by Wodster » Thu Sep 14, 2017 12:46 pm

Thanks @Jocky

I think you're right, adding chlorine compounds through chemicals sounds risky! I guess I could just not try to remove any Chlorine from my liquor, I usually add campden and leave over night but maybe missing that step might help.

I just found this article which suggests, as you do, that using peat smoked malt will add a phenolic character as well as smokeyness.

Ahhh, yes, either whiskey or whiskey infused oak chips to adjust the whiskey character after fermentation.

Think I need to do some more work on the yeast, I'll look into the Danstar ESB and weizen yeast that Mr. Wizard suggested in the article linked above.

Cheers.

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Sadfield
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Re: How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

Post by Sadfield » Thu Sep 14, 2017 1:00 pm



Ferulic Acid rest to boost phenolic?

How about splitting off a portion of wort and ferment using a Saison yeast pitched warm to really push the phenolic character and then blend back to taste.

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MTW
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Re: How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

Post by MTW » Thu Sep 14, 2017 11:47 pm

A homebrew club colleague's brews used to suffer from a TCP taste, without exception, until two of us suggested he stop using Milton to sanitize. Since then, not a trace of TCP. Unless you think you could get away with some neat TCP in it, maybe take some off into a poorly rinsed, Miltonised container, and blend back. I'm not sure how long the off taste takes to emerge though.
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jaroporter
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Re: How to get encourage a TCP flavour?

Post by jaroporter » Fri Sep 15, 2017 8:03 am

i've drunk one beer, st peter's brewery, that was a whiskey beer. i'm sure they must have added peated malt, but also added whiskey too. i still keep my grains in separate glasses beside each other, but then i don't drink large measures of strongflavoured whiskey anyways..

i reckon it could be hard to hit the balance just right in this beer. getting one part slightly wrong and too intense could overpower the whole thing, making it hard to know what you got right as well. i'd be very tempted to do some mini mashes and separate ferments and then have a blending session to see what sort of ratios work best. maybe one 100% peated malt. one pale malt aiming to emphasise tcp, one with a belgian yeast one with a ale or whiskey yeast. may be that you don't need to try all the tricks in the book and one or two will give the effect you're after
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