CS3 - Soren's Coco - Wheat Porter

[Soren]

This beer started out inspired by a recipe from Radical Brewing, the aim was a chocolatey roasty porter with smooth as milkshake texture from the wheat and oat. Initially I was going to zest a bunch of oranges and add it at the end of boil, sort of a jafa flavor profile, but I decided against it on the day. After it was brewed I got my hands on some cocoa nibs from work and decided to take the chocolate milkshake concept a step further, 150 g in the secondary for 7 days. There may be a few nibs in some bottles, they were a pain to keep in the fermenter, next time I'll bag'em.

choc wheat porter

A ProMash Recipe Report

Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.7 2.00 kg. Wheat Malt Germany 82.90 2
23.7 2.00 kg. Pale Malt(2-row) Great Britain 80.73 3
5.9 0.50 kg. Oats 64.92 0
5.9 0.50 kg. Carafa special 1 64.92 350
3.0 0.25 kg. CaraAroma 64.92 150
23.7 2.00 kg. Munich Malt(light) Canada 72.08 15
5.9 0.50 kg. CaraMunich 80 France 72.08 80
5.9 0.50 kg. Crystal 75L Great Britian 72.08 75
2.4 0.20 kg. wheat bix 64.92 0


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
30.00 g. Cascade Pellet 7.25 5.8 15 min.
25.00 g. Cascade Pellet 7.25 17.9 First WH
30.00 g. Cascade Pellet 7.25 0.0 0 min.


Extras

Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
150.00 gm Cocoa nibs Other 7 Days(fermenter)


Yeast
-----

WYeast 1968 London Extra Special Bitter


Protein Rest Temp : 52 Time: 30

Saccharification Rest Temp : 67 Time: 90

[Soren]

100% honesty requested please, do not be affraid to hurt my feelings!:)

[Stu McKinlay]

hope I get a nib!

[JoKing]

I hope that when I die, I get reincarnated as a yeast cell that ferments one of Sorens "Coco Porter" brews.

It just seems that 1968 works so well to keep the Malt at the fore in beers like this. On the nose there is a little bit of yeast fruityness, behind a brick wall of Samoan Cocoa beans. It smells quite dry - with hints of chocolate and vanilla.

I had to bust up the carbonation a bit, but once I did, the entire gravity of the situation dawned on me and weighed down on my mind. The upfront hit of unadulterated raw cocoa slaps you in the face. Its dry, chalky and mean. Then the attenuative characteristics of 1968 play to a rich sweetness that allows you to forget about the tongue rape you just suffered and lean off towards some mellow coffee notes and subtle stone fruit - like prunes. Some bitterness finishes the Ale off nicely and adds to the complexity.

Nice drop Soren - perfect for the completely fucked up weather I'm experiencing in New Plymouth at the moment. I had my 1st glass infront of the fire, mate.

Cheers.

[Dale Cooper]

I really liked this beer. I am definately going to source myself some cocoa nibs and brew something along these lines. Damn fine beer, good work.

[Dale Cooper]

Man I thought Soren's beer was chocolately but tonight I tried Rogue Chocolate Stout from the beer store and I've had chocolate that tasted less chocolately than that! Great taste comparison between the two, I love chocolate and beer and they are just so great together, mmmm.

[MrC]

Man there's a lot going on in this beer.

Pours black with a large, persistent, full tan head. Aroma of coffee, chocolate, S04 style yeast characteristics (are you sure that's not S04?) and a little roasty with some alcohol on the nose as it warms.

First mouthfull gives me black coffee followed by Whittakers dark chocolate, with a dry burnt finish, finally winding up with a burnt, acridness right in the middle of the back of my tongue. There's a perceived bitterness for me from the dry acrid finish that is confusing the hell out of me.

Carbonation is quite high, a little too high maybe? Nice full, smooth mouthfeel with a slight slickness on the tongue and leaving me with salty, sweet sticky lips.

There's a green, woody taste and aroma from the yeast in there which I don't think fits in with the rest of the beer. Personally I go for a different yeast.

This is a very interesting beer, glad to have tasted it. This is what homebrewing is all about, brewing beers you can't buy.

Speights Old Dark meets Emerson's London Porter outside the Whittakers factory.

What would I change? Less carbonation and a different yeast, not sure what yeast I'd go for though, probably just something a little cleaner or maybe ferment at a lower temp.

As it warmed and vented, it seemed to get smoother, the acohol became more noticable, the cocoa came through and the yeast character seemed to subside. The more I drank it, the more I liked it. A great beer for Outrageous Fortune.

A well brewed beer, Cheers Soren.

[denimglen]

Those late additions of cascade come through well in the aroma, with the chocolate as well definitely gives a Jafa like impression.

Milky chocolate flavour, the cocoa comes through well, and so do the cascade, which is slightly unfortunate in a way. It looks like you got pretty close to your Jafa clone but I think this beer would be great without the late hops too, and really let those nibs do their thing. Either way very tasty.

There's a little thinness on the palate which I think lets it down a touch, maybe a slight drop in carbonation would help.

I'm getting a touch of something weird, almost plasticy, in the aftertaste and burps but I think that may just be the nature of the nibs.

Great beer, besides all the above criticism. You know it's a good beer when I take time to pick out the tiny flaws haha.

Brew strong!

[Stu McKinlay]

Had this on Friday after brewing. Shared with Jed.

Yeehaa!!!
Beer o' the swap, I'm predicting.

Jed said: drop the alcohol a little.
I just kept sipping, love it as it is. I'd never ever hav guessed this was 1968. Just goes to show we've got an unlimited palette if we keep experimenting.

Crazy beer...

[Mike Neilson]

Crazy beer...

Crazy facials............

????????????????

[James P]

The bottle opened very active!

Now I have had two of Soren's other beers tonight also, a porter and a pale... both magic. This one smacks me in the face with smokiness and oats. Tan head and very little considering the activity on opening. The mouth is a little dry, medium with very slick feeling. Black coffee, maybe a little burnt. Carbonation is medium (in my little world, population one....) The cocoa....My wife wants to know if you make hot chocolate...

The after taste is smoky but I LIKE IT.... If this was a wheatbix commercial alas, I'm not sure how many I could do, but too many and I would be off my face licking the lino.... not necessarily a bad thing given the journey I would have to take!

Cheers Soren, let's do it again!

We are the Home Brewers. Lower your defences and surrender your recipes. We will add your biochemistry and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is Futile.

[Martin Bridges]

Enjoying this now. Not read any other comments.

Pours black as the pits of hell, topped with a lovely pillowy tan head which persists well.

Dark chocolate on the aroma, as you'd expect.

Extremely balanced. the roastiness and chocolate fight a running battle on the tongue, with the roasty bitterness probably just winning out in the end. Maybe not as much body and silkiness as I would have expected.

Very mellow, but with a subtle power. Nice, nice drop.

[Ally Mcg]

Pours black like squid ink with a foamy tan head that wisps away to nothing as the pint settles

Roasty, smokey, chocolate nose. Working really hard i had hints of orange from the cascade or my imagination.
Flavour is a little thin for the nose, it promises epic but doesn't quite deliver. There's a burnt sort of finish to this, which I can't quite put my finger on - maybe weet-bix over a barbeque.

Big dark beer - maybe not quite me - I love the idea but don't get as much choc as I was hoping for and its a little too smokey/burnt for my tastes. Drinkable tho and love the experimentation - cheers