Please critique my Belgian Dubbel

[syd138]

I've brewed a dubbel before using a kit from NB. I'm trying to do something kind of similar in that it is simple. I've pieced this together from the guidelines for Dubbel that I read in Brew Like a Monk.

Am I using too little candi? Do I need to up the Special B? I don't really care too much for hop flavor, but are the IBUs at the right level? Any other thoughts?

5.50 gallon
OG = 1.068
ABV = 6.64%
IBU = 20.8
Yeast = 1214

7.25lb = Light DME
0.50lb = Caramunich
0.35lb = Special B
0.75lb = homemade dark candi

1.75oz = Saaz (60 min)
0.25oz = Saaz (5 min)

 

[MachineShopBrewing]

Are you able to do a mini-mash?

Here is my Belgian Dubbel recipe that won the blue ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair this year vs 34 other beers. You should be able to replicate pretty easily with extract, but you would have to mini-mash the Munich and biscuit malt. Otherwise you could just drop them and go with just the caramunich and special B.

You can use it to reference your recipe for percentages also. I went with 4-5% caramunich and special B, along with around 9% candi sugar. You may want to go with 10-15% sugar, subbing in some simple table sugar. The beer needs to be as dry as possible and some table sugar will help you get there when using extracts which are not as fermentable as mashing.

Batch Size: 10.50 gal
Boil Size: 12.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.069 SG
Estimated Color: 20.6 SRM
Estimated IBU: 17.8 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 86.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
1.00 lb Extra Light Dry Extract (1.8 SRM) Dry Extract 4.35 %
15.00 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 65.22 %
2.00 lb Belgian Munich Malt (5.5 SRM) Grain 8.70 %
1.00 lb Belgian Biscuit (23.0 SRM) Grain 4.35 %
1.00 lb Caramunich Malt (56.0 SRM) Grain 4.35 %
1.00 lb Special B Malt (180.0 SRM) Grain 4.35 %
18.00 gm Magnum [11.60 %] (75 min) Hops 11.8 IBU
28.00 gm Goldings, East Kent [4.70 %] (15 min) Hops 3.5 IBU
28.00 gm Saaz [3.20 %] (15 min) Hops 2.4 IBU
2.00 lb Candi Sugar, Amber (90.0 SRM) Sugar 8.70 %
1 Pkgs Belgian Abbey II (Wyeast Labs #1762) Yeast-Ale

 

[syd138]

Thanks for the response. So it looks like these recipes are fairly similar except that you are using a decent amount of Munich.

However, it looks like my IBUs are around 22 and yours are at 18 with a similar OG.

Do you think I need to drop these down a bit?

I take it that yours was pretty malty too, and a little less of an alcohol bite?

 

[MachineShopBrewing]

However, it looks like my IBUs are around 22 and yours are at 18 with a similar OG.

Do you think I need to drop these down a bit?

I think you are fine with your IBU. Your setup and process will be different than mine anyway so it really can't be compared, as hop utilization will differ based on lots of factors. Your best bet is to brew it and then adjust next time if you want it more/less bitter.

I take it that yours was pretty malty too, and a little less of an alcohol bite?

Mine has a nice malty flavor coming from using all Belgian malts. The key is using the munich and biscuit malt. You NEVER want an alcohol bite in a beer. Beers with alcohol bite are that way due to improper fermentation technique.

 

[motorneuron]

Just two cents on this--there are sort of two different ways of making a dubbel. The more traditional method involves a lot of base malt, a little character malt (including Special B), and a fair amount of dark sugar. A lot of American brewers, including homebrewers, change the balance a bit by going for more character malts (e.g. biscuit, aromatic, Munich, more Special B, etc). That will shift the balance to a somewhat more malty flavor, and less of the caramel/toasted marshmallow/dark fruit flavors that you get from cooked sugar.

So you are welcome to use a fair amount of character malt in your dubbel, but you don't have to. Either way works; you just get a slightly different taste profile.

100% agree on the alcohol burn part--the beer should be smooth, without burn. A lot of that comes from good process, though. Pitch enough yeast, and don't start fermentation really hot.

 

[syd138]

You NEVER want an alcohol bite in a beer. Beers with alcohol bite are that way due to improper fermentation technique.

Well, I guess I didn't explain it right. I was trying to describe it as more along the lines of the more dry-stonger bite you would get when drinking a Chimay Red as opposed to the more malty-smooth taste of something like Grimbergen

 

[MachineShopBrewing]

I am sure Chimay just uses pilsner malt and sugar, while the abbey style beers might have more character malts. Age can have a lot to do with it also. Chimay is widely available and popular so the stock may turn over quicker.