Bourbon Barrel Robust Porter guidance

[ncweasel]

I am planning to do a Bourbon Barrel Robust Porter (Extract) in the next few weeks. I have never done a Porter much less a bourbon barrel one.

On a recent trip to Kentucky I picked up a bag of bourbon barrel chunks (see attached pic) that I will soak in Maker's Mark to add to secondary. I know the chunks are large but planning on chopping them into smaller pieces to fit in my carboy.

how much oak chunks should I use? I have read to use 2 oz but can I use more or will that infuse to much flavor into the beer too quickly? I plan to take samples each week from secondary to check the flavor so I know when to bottle it.

Next question is my LHBS has a robust porter kit that I may use as the porter for this beer. it appears to be a English porter based on the yeast in the kit. For you folks that are experienced with porter's and aging with oak, do you think this recipe (see pic) is a good match for a bourbon barrel beer?

thanks for the guidance.

 

[bethebrew]

I think you could soak the chips in the Makers Mark, then add that right to your carboy. The whiskey should soak up the wood flavor, and adding it to the beer will provide an alternative to a freshly dumped barrel. Maybe let some sit on the chips a week. Then taste. Sure you can add the wood to the carboy, but I think that's a hassle and no advantage.

Your recipe sounds like someone likes black patent malt. Not sure why other than their cute name. I'd trade their patent in for some roasted barley at 4 oz. and chocolate malt at 8 oz. patent pending uh huh ditch that bitter malt.

Good yeast, keep it around 62-64 F ferment temp.

Oh and Nugget hops no no. Go Goldings or Fuggles, or Willamette.

Who comes up with these garbage recipes?

 

[BuckSwope]

I wouldn't pour just the Maker's Mark in your carboy after soaking the cubes because you'll be a lot of harsh oak tannins in that solution as the liquor strips the oak. That will show up in your final beer which will need additional aging for the tannins to mellow (think months), I'd recommend soaking those cubes for a minimum of 3-4 weeks, discard the Marker's Mark, and just add the oak to secondary. Since you're not dealing with chips, flavor extracting times take a little bit longer. I'd recommend using 1-1.5 oz of oak to start. After aging for 4 weeks, take a sample and see how it tastes. From there, you can either add more oak if you want or let the cubes sit longer.

 

[butterpants]

I wouldn't make that recipe. Try this:

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/bourbon-barrel-porter-extract-kit.html

I recently made this and it's yummy. Even if you don't buy it from them you can pull the recipie from that site in pdf. format and recreate it using locally obtained ingredients.

For the addition of Makers Mark and oaking I used 16oz in a mason jar then soaked 2oz of medium toast American cubes. 2 weeks and pitched it all into secondary. Sat another week and bottled. (for a 5gal batch)

The warning that soaking the barrel chips you have will extract tannins and be bad is ridiculous. This is what you want to do! Oak tannins are the whole reason you're using the chips/blocks/sawdust/air bottled from Kentucky. Throwing out perfectly good bourbon is also a retarded notion. Pour that **** in!

 

[BuckSwope]

I wouldn't make that recipe. Try this:

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/bourbon-barrel-porter-extract-kit.html

I recently made this and it's yummy. Even if you don't buy it from them you can pull the recipie from that site in pdf. format and recreate it using locally obtained ingredients.

For the addition of Makers Mark and oaking I used 16oz in a mason jar then soaked 2oz of medium toast American cubes. 2 weeks and pitched it all into secondary. Sat another week and bottled. (for a 5gal batch)

The warning that soaking the barrel chips you have will extract tannins and be bad is ridiculous. This is what you want to do! Oak tannins are the whole reason you're using the chips/blocks/sawdust/air bottled from Kentucky. Throwing out perfectly good bourbon is also a retarded notion. Pour that **** in!

I see you don't oak much, but to each their own. Have you ever tried that "perfectly good bourbon" or any other spirit after oak has been soaking it in? It's like sucking on freshly used tea bag. But if you want that astringency vibe to make it to your final beer, by all means do it. If you dump everything in including the bourbon, you will most certainly overpower the beer especially one that is pretty moderate in ABV which will definitely require aging it for months, not weeks, until it's drinkable. Why do you think most commercial breweries don't use fresh oak barrels? Same concept here. Oak/bourbon should be complement flavors, not forward in a beer like this.

 

[butterpants]

Don't get me wrong, I certainly wouldn't take a pull off that mason jar! But diluted in 5 gallons and a month in bottle I get none of the unacceptable astringency you speak of.

 

[jbears1970]

I also made the northern brewer bourbon barrel porter for Xmas last year. Oak cubes soaked in a pint of makers mark for a month, then dumped all in the secondary, including the bourbon. Got no astringency whatsoever. Best beer I've made, according to 90% who tried it. Brewing the all grain version as we speak.

 

[tennesseean_87]

The OP doesn't have stuff from a fresh oak barrel, but a used one. If you soak all the tanins/flavor out of the oak and into the spirit, then ditch the spirit, you're just watering down the oak flavor so that you need more wood. All the fresh, harsh tanins have already been extracted by the corn whiskey. Pour it all in there.

 

[VegasJ]

HA! Doing a whiskey porter now myself.

I've had 1oz of french toasted oak chunks in Maker's for 2 weeks now. The LHB guys said to soak for at least 3-4 weeks & take a sip to see if the whiskey has enough oaky flavor for my tastes.

I'm tossing the idea... does the whiskey & chips all go in the secondary or just the whiskey?

 

[ncweasel]

thanks for all the suggestions and discussion. I am going with the NB Bourbon Barrel Porter recipe.

Butterpants, I actually had printed it out that recipe several weeks ago to price ingredients out for purchase at my LHBS.

Just yesterday I took some time to cut up my oak cubes (about 5 ounces. Hope it is not too much to use?) into smaller pieces so they would fit into the carboy. Then put cubes into a tupperware container with my Maker's Mark to soak for about 3 weeks (hope to brew this weekend). This pint of MM was one I hand-dipped on my first tour of their distillery back in 2002.

I can't wait to see how this beer turns out..!!

 

[ncweasel]

HA! Doing a whiskey porter now myself.

I've had 1oz of french toasted oak chunks in Maker's for 2 weeks now. The LHB guys said to soak for at least 3-4 weeks & take a sip to see if the whiskey has enough oaky flavor for my tastes.

I'm tossing the idea... does the whiskey & chips all go in the secondary or just the whiskey?

yep..that's what I'm going to do.

 

[butterpants]

Good luck! Mine is super tasty yet a bit overcarbed... 4oz of priming sugar was too much