If you love beer, or are just interested in the science behind making a perfect brew (called “zymurgy”), have a look at this recipe for an Imperial Liquorice Stout, courtesy of our violist, and veteran beer-brewer, Carl Boychuk. He started this brew in December 2009 – if you give it a whirl, let us know!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

 IMPERIAL LIQUORICE STOUT

Ingredients:

MALTS              KG            LB/OZ

Vienna              7                 15/8

2 row                 3.5               7/8

Crystal              1.25             0/12

Brown                0.5               1/4

Chocolate         0.4               0/15

Roast                 0.9               2/0

Black                  0.3               0/11

Wheat                0.5                1/1

Oats, unmalted 0.5               1/1

YEASTS: WYeast 9093 Imperial Ale or other high attenuating ale yeast

Champagne or Eau de Vie

HOPS:

Boiling, 1 i/2 hr:

3 oz. home grown Nuggett, about 76 IBU

2 oz. Fuggles                                     25 IBU

Flavour, 30-40 min.:

Fuggles or other British noble hops, such as Goldings. 20-30 IBU Here is the formula to figure how much hops to give that many IBU’;s

grams of hops=

[Vol.L’s x IBU]

—————–

% utilization x Alpha Acid(%) x 1000

MASHING:

(A) INFUSION METHOD

Add 40 L water at 75C to bring mash to 65C-67C

Drain wort from mash, sparge with 75-80C until 40L is collected.

Run-off may be of sufficient gravity to use for a smaller beer.

(B) DECOCTION METHOD

22.5L water at 80C should bring mash to about 50C Add boiling water gradually to bring mash to 65-66C. Boil pots of grain (avoid liquid) to raise temperature.

Mash until Iodine test does not react.

Boil for 11/2 hours with 100 IBU hops. Add flavour hops for 30-40 min.

Add 1/4″ x 5″ piece ground liquorice root, boiled in 1/2 L water

Cool the wort, add a high attenuating yeast.

When gravity reaches about 1.020, or when activity slows, add Champagne or Eau de Vie yeast

TARGETS

Start Boil Vol.————41L

Start boil gravity———17Plato, or 1.070

Primary Vol.————–24L

Primary OSG———— 23-24 Plato, or 1.100

Final Gravity————–1.010

Al/Vol ———————-11%