New photos. Too many graham crackers in mash

[Dannyv]

Ok, so I tried something that a new brewer should probably never try and I know some of you veterans will (1) laugh and/or (2) lay it on me thick. Go ahead, let me have it.

With that said, I recently brewed my third batch of what was an attempt at a campfire stout.. trusting the employee at the local home brew shop, I let him tweak the recipe. The wort didn’t come out anywhere near midnight black as I was hoping. It looks like thick/syrupy chocolate milk. That’s the least of my worries however. The bigger issue is that I misread the recipe and added 2 boxes of graham crackers to the mash of my 2 gallon batch when 2 boxes were meant for a *5* gallon batch. My fermenters are caked with graham cracker mush and sediment!!! The beer is really thick, syrupy, and looks like chocolate milk. Today is the 3rd day of being in the fermenters. The fermentation has settled and the beer hasn’t lost its cloudiness nor has the graham cracker began to settle. Also, the recipe called for 2 bakers chocolate bars.

After fermentation, I think I’ll cold crash it to help settle the graham crackers. Any other suggestions, tips, or thoughts would be great.

I’ll post pictures and the recipe as soon as I get home.

Thanks!

 

[Kent88]

A lot of that mush should settle out. Right now I bet there is still a lot of yeast activity, so the carbon dioxide coming off is keeping some of that in suspension.

It should turn out drinkable, even if it isn't the most enjoyable thing to drink. You'll be the judge of that.

I remember making an extract pumpkin beer where the recipe called for (baked/microwaved) canned pumpkin to be added straight into the fermenter. I ended up having to chew that a bit, but it wasn't bad.

 

[kh54s10]

Seems like a lot of Graham crackers... The activity of fermentation is going to keep all that stirred up for a while. When it drops your beer will get darker. How dark? Hard to say.

Too much Graham cracker? The finished product and your taste buds will determine that.

For reference. I did a pumpkin ale and it called for one or 2 cans of pumpkin. I wanted to go natural so I bought a big pumpkin, baked it and scraped out 10 pounds of pulp. If I was to do the same recipe I would use 15 to 20 pounds of pulp. YMMV. I did not use pumpkin spice in the recipe and got a mild pumpkin flavor.

 

[Dannyv]

A lot of that mush should settle out. Right now I bet there is still a lot of yeast activity, so the carbon dioxide coming off is keeping some of that in suspension.

It should turn out drinkable, even if it isn't the most enjoyable thing to drink. You'll be the judge of that.

I remember making an extract pumpkin beer where the recipe called for (baked/microwaved) canned pumpkin to be added straight into the fermenter. I ended up having to chew that a bit, but it wasn't bad.

Thanks for the thoughts. I’m hoping it won’t be too sweet from the graham crackers and 6oz of dextrose the recipe called for as well. I can relate with the pumpkin. First home brew I made was a pumpkin ale. Used a real pumpkin and ended up with some purée in the bottles. Wasn’t bad though and tasted alright being my first home brew

 

[Dannyv]

Seems like a lot of Graham crackers... The activity of fermentation is going to keep all that stirred up for a while. When it drops your beer will get darker. How dark? Hard to say.

Too much Graham cracker? The finished product and your taste buds will determine that.

For reference. I did a pumpkin ale and it called for one or 2 cans of pumpkin. I wanted to go natural so I bought a big pumpkin, baked it and scraped out 10 pounds of pulp. If I was to do the same recipe I would use 15 to 20 pounds of pulp. YMMV. I did not use pumpkin spice in the recipe and got a mild pumpkin flavor.

“Seems like” is an understatement. Fermenters are beyond caked with graham cracker mush! I blended the crackers into a powder before putting them into the mash. That allowed them to really incorporate into it.

That is interesting about the pumpkin. Will fermentation “dilute” the graham cracker flavor?

 

[kh54s10]

I don't know if fermentation will dilute the flavor. I also don't know how much flavor would transfer out of the crackers during the mash.

I think the only think you can do is wait it out. Taste it, then you can decide "this is good as is", "this is powerful, I can mix it in another milder beer" or "this is nasty - dumper....."

I find that some things that have strong flavor on their own don't really transfer into a beer and other ingredients you need only a little.

I did one beer where I added 1 tablespoon of red pepper flakes to the end of the boil. I got a little burn and good flavor from that little amount going into 5 gallons.

 

[Dannyv]

Here are the photos I said I would post along with the recipe. Also I used 1 bag of toasted marshmallows, 2 bakers chocolate bars, and ** 2 boxes of graham crackers ** (way too much). As you can see the beer looks like chocolate milk and there is a lot of sludge from the graham crackers

 

[kh54s10]

With all that c&@p going in the beer I am not at all surprised that it looks like chocolate milk. All of the marshmallows, chocolate and Graham crackers are adding to the lighter color.

 

[Jag75]

I imagine the smell over that airlock is quite pleasant.

 

[Dannyv]

I imagine the smell over that airlock is quite pleasant.

Yes! It smells sweet and hoppy

 

[applescrap]

Extra gc, awesome! Nothing to worry bout far as I can tell. Yeah, if the question is what does s...t ton of gc in mash look like, you answered it. I love stuff like this. Should be great albeit perhaps a little more Graham cracker taste then desired.

 

[roots4thought]

So, how did this turn out?

 

[Dannyv]

So, how did this turn out?

It was a dumper. I didn’t consider the salt on the graham crackers so the excessive amount used made for a very salty and undrinkable beer... I won’t ever be doing anything like this again. Not worth experimenting and loosing a beer.

 

[Murphys_Law]

It was a dumper. I didn’t consider the salt on the graham crackers so the excessive amount used made for a very salty and undrinkable beer... I won’t ever be doing anything like this again. Not worth experimenting and loosing a beer.

...but sometimes experiments can be fun and you’ll get surprised with a unique beer!