Mack Spirits: Bourbon Vanilla Porter

This is by far the darkest beer we've brewed. And it had better be delicious. I'm excited.

Grains
11lb 2-Row
2.5lb Munich Malt
1.5lb Brown Malt
1.0lb Crystal-120L
0.5lb Crystal-40L
0.5lb Chocolate Malt

Hops
0.8oz Magnum (14.6% AA) at 60 min
0.5oz Syrian Golding (4.75% AA) at 10 min

Yeast
Wyeast 1056 American Ale - Started 5 days before in 1Q water with 1 cup DME.

Brewing
Mashed at 154° for 60 minutes.
Fly Spage at 185° to collect 6.5 gallons
60 Minute Boil.

Post-Boil Additions
When racked to secondary on July 23, 4 chopped Madagascar Vanilla Beans, soaking in about 1/4 cup vanilla vodka were added.
When bottle, 400ml Maker's Mark Bourbon was added.

The Numbers
Expected Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.092 (1.069 @ 75%)
Actual Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.064
Efficiency: 69.5%

Expected Post-Boil Gravity: 1.100 (1.075 @ 75%)
Actual Post-Boil Gravity:1.072

Expected Final Gravity:1.027 @ 75% Attenuation
Actual Final Gravity: 1.018
% ABV: 7.2
Attenuation: 96%

This time we tried to be a little more precise with the mash temperature. We were shooting for 154°. We started with 4.5 gallons at 168° which brought us to 149°. Then we added a gallon at 100° then a gallon at 168° and were still only at 147°. We added one more gallon at boiling to bring us to 155°. That didn't last long and it was at 154° within 10 minutes of mashing. After an hour mash, it was at 152°. The big problem with this batch was that it was much thinner than we planned because we had to add so much boiling water. Next time, I'll find a calculator that does temperature change so we'll be better prepared.

Otherwise, this was a pretty standard brew. All-Grain really isn't all that hard. It just takes a long time. The upside to that, though is that it doesn't require a whole lot of babysitting so you can get other stuff done while you're waiting for the next step.

The Verdict

Excellent Porter. I don't remember what it was like in the keg, but bottled its excellent. I think the balance of vanilla and bourbon is perfect but L thinks there is way too much vanilla. Maybe next time we shouldn't use 4 whole beans. That was twice what Denny's recipe called for. Oops :)