Best way to add roast without adding too much color

[terrencetheblack]

I brewed an all-grain Mint White Chocolate Milk Stout for the holiday season. Since it's a "white chocolate" stout, I was trying to get as much roast as possible without adding too much color. Here's my grain bill:

10 lbs american 2-row
1 lb. crystal 40
1/2 pound flaked barley

After talking to JP, i added 8 oz of french roast coffee to the top of my grain bed while sparging. The roast smell was amazing. I added 8 oz of unsweetened cocoa powder and 4 oz of lactose with 15 left in the boil. Fermented with WL004 for 10 days, re-racked, and added 2 tsp of pure mint extract. Kegged and forced carbonated. The mint aroma is really good and the chocolate taste is not bad. The only thing I'm missing is the roast that would normally come from the grain. Should I next time added 12 oz of coffee during sparging, should I "dry hop" a few ounces of coffee beans in a grain bag after I re-rack, or should I add a few ounces of beans in a grain bag to my keg?

[anday6]

Look into cocoa nibs, I think I remember that is how Roger Davis ( I think) did a white chocolate stout you guys talked about on the show. You could even add those to the keg in a sack and either remove them or transfer to another keg when the flavor is right.

[Mills]

I wonder if some heavy toast french oak cubes might add another layer of a darker element to the beer. Some times that dark char can contribute a touch to that end of the flavor spectrum. Maybe not a true roast, but something that may back up the roast flavors you are trying to emphasize.

Mills


PS: I would love to say hi in person when I am out in SF in December. Might you stop by the session on the 16th? I should have 8 of our beers there to try.

[captain carrot]

I don't know about the color contribution but you might try chicory. It's a roasted root that was used in extending coffee. It's still popular in some New Orleans style coffees and others. You might check your local specialty grocery stores. Steep it and see what kind of color comes out.

It seems to me that anything that has a roast flavor would have a change in color due to the process. Definately a think outside the box challange.
Good luck!

[terrencetheblack]

All terrific ideas. I'm probably going to go with the nibs. That's what Roger did with his beer. They'll be trying the beer this Sunday on the session so I'm sure that they'll have some suggestions as well.