Biscuit malt

Discussion on brewing beer from malt extract, hops, and yeast.
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twentyfootwilf

Biscuit malt

Post by twentyfootwilf » Thu Aug 30, 2012 8:24 pm

I'm intending to use a Coopers English Bitter kit as a base for brewing a porter style ale. I've seen craigtube on youtube doing this but I have some slightly different grains to those he uses and I thought I could use them to similar effect. I have aromatic malt, chocolate malt and biscuit malt. What I need to know is concerning the biscuit malt, can it be steeped along with the aromatic malt and chocolate malt for 30 to 40 minutes at 170c or does it need some other sort of treatment? Sorry to appear somewhat lacking in knowledge but my experience of using grains is limited, most of my brewing to date has been sticking close to kit instructions.

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Jocky
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Re: Biscuit malt

Post by Jocky » Thu Aug 30, 2012 9:42 pm

Aromatic and Biscuit malts are usually mashed... But I think you can get quite a bit of flavour and colour from just steeping (you just won't get any starch conversion to sugar from them).

Or you could add some pale malt and do a mini mash - its not that much more complicated than steeping.
Ingredients: Water, Barley, Hops, Yeast, Seaweed, Blood, Sweat, The swim bladder of a sturgeon, My enemies tears, Scenes of mild peril, An otter's handbag and Riboflavin.

twentyfootwilf

Re: Biscuit malt

Post by twentyfootwilf » Fri Aug 31, 2012 10:32 am

I hadn't thought of that, I'll get 500g crushed pale malt and do a mini mash with it and the biscuit malt and aromatic malt. Just a couple more question though. Should I steep the chocolate malt separately and for less time than the mini mash and how much of the three malts in the mini mash would be advisable to use. I will be using the bitter kit 1.7kg and 1.5kg light lme as the base and late hopping with willamette.

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Jocky
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Re: Biscuit malt

Post by Jocky » Fri Aug 31, 2012 12:06 pm

If you're already mashing you may as well mash the choccy malt too.

Not sure what you're asking about quantities - I think you'll need as much weight of pale malt as the rest of the malts combined (e.g. if you have 250g of biscuit and 250g of aromatic in your mash you'll need 500g of pale malt to convert the sugars), but the quantities of your special grains depend upon the recipe.
Ingredients: Water, Barley, Hops, Yeast, Seaweed, Blood, Sweat, The swim bladder of a sturgeon, My enemies tears, Scenes of mild peril, An otter's handbag and Riboflavin.

twentyfootwilf

Re: Biscuit malt

Post by twentyfootwilf » Fri Aug 31, 2012 12:42 pm

That's just what I mean, many thanks, I understand now.

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