Additional ingredients:
5 Madagascar vanilla beans, split, scraped, and diced
3 large dried ancho chilies, split open, seeds removed, torn apart, included 1 tsp of reserved seeds
6 oz - Organic Raw Cacao Nibs, baked at 250 for 20 minutes (or until fragrant), allow to cool
All ingredients were added to tincture with vodka and stored at room temp for roughly 6 weeks, shaken occasionally.
Brewday water:
Total water: 13.66 G
Mash water: 7.25 G @ 166 strike
Sparge: 6.41 G @ 170 mash out
Pre Boil Volume: 9.4 G
Brewday 10-16-22
Packaged on 12-1-22
5.5 gallons into SS Brew bucket FV
OG: 1.110
FG: 1.022
ABV: 11%
Packaging:
A Keg, fitted with filter around dip tube, was dosed with tincture, solid ingredients were placed in fine mesh bag and thrown in keg. Finished stout was racked via fermentor spigot to keg through liquid out post; keg was then purged and allowed to age at room temp roughly 7 days. Beer was then racked to a serving keg via jumper between liquid posts; keg was purged and hooked up to gas in the kegerator ~10 psi for 7 further days.
Tasting 12/28/22
Appearance: Deep reddish brown, black from face on, the stout is pale on the edges. A thin ring of tight khaki foam hangs around for the whole experience; clinging to the glass as go
Aroma: Initial smoked pepper flavor, vanilla root beer float, earthy bittersweet chocolate, malt ball, I don't get vanilla face on but suspect it's supporting the other characters
Flavor: wow, an attack! Gentle smoke combines with roast on the front, gentle sweetness carries through with cocoa and vanilla on the swallow. Wow, finish is griping with gentle heat and vanilla cola. Very tasty.
Mouthfeel: medium minus; a memorable and quick experience on the palate
Overall: I'm really proud of this one! This is by far my most successful use of adjuncts, and most of them are in line with where I wanted them. I think this recipe would really shine with cinnamon, and I want to rebrew this just to include it. I think we could almost use more vanilla and I could stand more heat from the chilies actually.