Having bought some of the 14l food-safe buckets with taps at bargain price of £7 from Oxfam (http://www.oxfam.org.uk/shop/ethical-co ... n/HN252913 - often out of stock) to use as split-batch fermenters I figured why not do 4 splits and a double-length brew rather than just 2 - the more the merrier and all:

I was keen to use them and do a 1-2-3-4 brew with one mash and one mini-mash, two different hops, three boils (two full size and one parallel mini band then four ferments - each slightly different. Having Mr C and The Mumbler around made it all a lot more fun and practical!
I'd tried Chris Reboot's four shades of stout and was impressed by the flavours and depth it has compared with a lot of stout recipes - using amber and balancing the roastiness of roast barley with the debittered carafa special and a thick creaminess from the flaked barley. However lacking cascade hops which are its real 'twist' on usual stout flavours and wanting to try out variations I went for that as the mash base and then further variations on the recipe.
FOUR VERSIONS OF FOUR SHADES OF STOUT
Brew length: 50l
MASH (25l liquor, 67c):
- 6.7kg pale malt (3.5kg Golden Promise + 3.2kg Pale Marris Otter)
1kg Flaked barley
500g Amber Malt
500g Pale Chocolate
400g Carafa Special III
400h Roasted Barley
- Boil 1: 65g Challenger (6.2%) = 40IBU
Boil 2: 70g Fuggles (4%) = 30IBU
1 tsp protafloc per boiler
Whisky Shade of Stout - 13l, OG1050 (FG 1.012, ABV 5.1%, 76% attn)
Using peat smoked malt to try and add a smoky, peaty, whisky tone to the stout
- MINI MASH (1.5 l liquor, 66c ):
200g Peat Smoked Malt
120g Golden Promise
Parallel boil in a pan with a couple of challenger for luck.
BOIL: Challenger Boil (should have use fuggles with smoother and lower IBU I now recon)
YEAST: WLP005 British Ale Yeast - split from 2l starter
Using Molasses which is supposed to leave a rummy flavour, with spices to give it that captain morgan spiced rum hint - inspired by Randy Moshers Black Ship Pirate Stout in Radical Brewing.
- END OF BOIL ADDITIONS
350g Blackstrap molasses - melted in pan with a little of the run off.
1tsp mixed spice
1tsp ground black pepper
BOIL: Fuggles Boil (should have used challenger one I recon with higher IBUS)
YEAST: WLP005 British Ale Yeast - split from 2l starter
Just the fuggles boil and ferment but will be adding 170g of cold-extracted coffee in a sterilised cafetiere overnight in the fridge and then poured into secondary.
- BOIL: Challenger
YEAST: WLP005 British Ale Yeast - split from 2l starter
Just the fuggles boil but using a belgian yeast to give it a very different character.
- BOIL: Fuggles
YEAST: WLP575 Belgian Yeast Blend
Pics forthcoming - in posts below