Mild using Barley Wine

[Dutto]

I have a batch of Barley Wine (ABV 10.6%) that just isn't mellowing enough to be drinkable never mind palatable!

I overdid the Black and Chocolate Malt and as a result it tastes and looks like liquid black chocolate!

However, I hate throwing it away so I thought I would use it in a recipe in place of the Black and Chocolate Malts that are used in most Mild Recipes.

I was looking for a low ABV Mild Ale with a slight chocolate flavour and not too much bitterness. Here's the result:

iNGREDIENTS
5.5kg Maris Otter
1 litre Barley Wine
30g EKG
30g Styrian
Protafloc Tablet
Wilco Ale Yeast
Yeast Nutrients

METHOD
Produce Yeast Starter.
Mash in grains with 15 litres of water at 78 degrees then mash for 1 hour at +/- 65 degrees.
Sparge with 18 litres of water at 80 degrees.
Add Barley Wine to wort, bring to boil and add EKG when boiling.
Boil for one hour.
Add Protafloc and boil for 10 minutes.
Add Styrian Hops and boil for 5 minutes.
Cool to 20 degrees, move to FV, add Yeast Nutrient and pitch Yeast starter.

I reckon that putting the litre of Barley Wine in at the boil stage will drive off most of the existing alcohol but retain some of the dark chocolate taste.

Also, I'm hoping that a litre of Barley Wine (currently jet black) will introduce enough colour to satisfy the Mild Ale look that I want.

Comments please. I intend brewing it on Monday. :thumb: :thumb:

 

[dad_of_jon]

that sounds like a good plan, but keep a bottle? of the original aside for a year or so?

 

[terrym]

Personally I would just drink the Barley Wine and save your ingredients for something that you know will work rather than hoping it will. Boiling beer is definitely a first for me.
Alternatively why not use it to bake a cake or something. You would not be the first !
http://chilternbrewery.co.uk/shop/barley-wine-fruit-cake/

 

[peebee]

Boiling beer sounds a bit drastic to me too. It was once common place (and is still done by some breweries) to blend an anaemic fresh beer with smaller quantities of an aged head-banging one. That way the "fresh" beer takes on some of the qualities of the aged beer and is ready to drink much more quickly. I'd be trying this with an even weaker beer than you put forward (which doesn't look weak to me). At least you get to play with quantities without committing the whole lot until you're happy with the likely outcome.

 

[Dutto]

Thanks for the comments.

Believe me, I have tried a 330ml bottle every two months or so since I brewed the stuff back in March last year and any improvement has escaped my notice!

I love dark chocolate but after over eight months in the bottle the chocolate taste is still overpowering. I was using up a load of stuff before leaving for France for three months and just the contents will explain why it's so "chocolate tasting and black"

Recipe
1.0kg Black Malt
0.8kg Chocolate Malt
0.8kg Crystal Malt
0.7kg Candi Syrup
0.8kg Dextrose
0.8kg DME Light
60g Hallertau Hops
Boil size 12 litres

I just ran the planned Mild recipe past Brewers Friend and I think I will drop the Maris Otter down to 4.0kg to give an ABV of just over 2% for a 23 litre brew.

Thanks again. :thumb:

 

[Dutto]

Personally I would just drink the Barley Wine and save your ingredients for something that you know will work rather than hoping it will. Boiling beer is definitely a first for me.
Alternatively why not use it to bake a cake or something. You would not be the first !
http://chilternbrewery.co.uk/shop/barley-wine-fruit-cake/

Believe me when I say it will never be drunk as it is!

But the fruit cake idea really gets me thinking as an alternative use ...

... especially if I add some of the spent grain from the Maris Otter and make it along with a batch of bread!!

Yeah!! Monday and Tuesday look like being busy, busy days ... :thumb:

... and if it all goes wrong the bin-men arrive on Thursday! :whistle:

 

[terrym]

... and if it all goes wrong the bin-men arrive on Thursday!

What, a late Christmas box for each of the crew.....:drunk:

 

[Dutto]

What, a late Christmas box for each of the crew.....:drunk:

I truly wouldn't wish that Barley Wine on my worst enemy! :lol: :lol:

 

[Dutto]

I've decided to delay the Brew for a day while I make a Hop Dropper. :thumb:

(TBH, after staying up for SuperBowl today has been "Cancelled Due To Lack Of Interest"!)

 

[Dutto]

I bottled out of using the Barley Wine in the Mild but summer has seen some changes in my garage and in the weather.

I now have easy access to the Barley Wine (which I buried under a few other boxes of junk) so I decided to try one.

It's still too "chocolaty" to drink on its own but a 330ml bottle mixed with 330ml of ice-cold lemonade out of the fridge provides a really nice chocolate flavoured shandy. :thumb:

It's not something I will ever brew again but at least I won't have to throw it down the drain ... :thumb:

... if the weather stays warm enough to need cold drinks! :whistle: