Caramel Stout

[Adam Corsaut]

Hi everyone,

I'm going to be trying for first Caramel Stout in a week or two and am looking to infuse it with that sweet/salty caramel taste you get in a lot of Christmas Chocolates. Any tips, tricks or ideas?

 

[GFHomebrew]

Have you brewed a regular stout yet? I'm guessing plenty of crystal malt should give you some caramel flavour but the right amount is a bit of a guessing game.

 

[Head First]

Have you brewed a regular stout yet? I'm guessing plenty of crystal malt should give you some caramel flavour but the right amount is a bit of a guessing game.

+1
Same with salt. I have heard a little goes a long way.
Let us know what you come up with it sounds like a great holiday brew.

 

[J A]

My wife generally doesn't like dark beers, but she's got a thing for salted caramel...this thread makes me want to put something together to see if she goes for it. It got me thinking about how I might go about it, anyway...here are my thoughts:

When you're putting together a recipe, start with something that combines the qualities of an Oatmeal Stout and a British Strong Ale or maybe in the direction of a Wee Heavy. Read up on the BJCP style guidelines for those styles - it's a good way of getting an image of what you're trying to get to.
Keep it on the lighter side for a stout, avoiding too much dark roasted malt - Pale Chocolate with maybe a touch of Black Malt. Use a few different Crystal malts from C-20 to C-120 to give a range of caramel flavors and add to dark color, but try to keep the total percentage from going over about 20 percent. Toasted malt like Victory can do a lot enhance the nutty part of the malt profile. Hops should be simple and 60 minutes only - Fuggles is probably the way to go.
A little straight chocolate flavor from some Cacao nibs might be nice and I'd use some caramel flavoring extract in secondary to juice up that part of the flavor. As for salt, it seems that something like 1/4 oz or less in 5 gallons is enough to enhance flavor and add a touch of salt in the flavor.

 

[jmcnamara]

I know I've had a similar commercial beer before, maybe from Southern Tier? Maybe see if there's any information out there about commercial ones.

I've also had good luck with boiling about a half gallon of the first running down to a thick syrup before adding the rest of the wort and going on like normal. This was for a porter, but a stout is close enough

 

[3 Car Garage Brewing]

Southern tier makes a Creme brulee that is like this. Not salty though... and packs a punch at 11% or so.
I have attempted a lower gravity clone a few times. Best results were with marris otter, fuggles, and some caramel extract.

Added the extract after fermentation, prior to bottling. It's a taste and see deal on how much

Good luck!