Bent Brewstillery Fi Dem Jamaican-style Stout

Kristen England, Bent Brewstillery

From Kristen England, grand master BJCP judge and head brewer at Bent Brewstillery in Roseville, Minnesota, comes this recipe inspired by Jamaica’s Dragon and other tropical stouts. “Dark, not too roasty, with a definite sweet edge, but not sugary,” England says. “Also, a big point of fact is that these are tropical stouts because they are made in the tropics, not because of tropical flavors.”

ALL-GRAIN

Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters)

Brewhouse efficiency: 72% OG: 1.075

FG: 1.018

IBUS: 28

ABV: 7.5%

MALT/GRAIN BILL

5.5 lb (2.5 kg) six-row pale 2.8 lb (1.3 kg) pilsner 1.5 lb (680 g) white wheat malt 1.35 lb (612 g) cane sugar 13 oz (368 g) dark crystal (120L–155L) 11 oz (312 g) Porterine or blackstrap molasses 6.5 oz (184 g) chocolate malt

6.5 oz (184 g) roasted barley

HOPS SCHEDULE

1 ml isomerized hop extract [60% AA] at 75 minutes (or any bittering hops to get 25–30 IBUS)

YEAST

Fermentis Saflager W-34/70 or equivalent strain

DIRECTIONS

Mill the grains and mash at 153°F (67°C) for about 45 minutes (or, alternatively, only until it passes an iodine test for starch conversion). Sparge and top up as necessary to get about 6.7 gallons of wort—or more, depending on your evaporation rate. Boil for 75 minutes, adding the hop extract (or bittering hops) at the start. After the boil, chill the wort to about 68°F (20°C), aerate, and pitch the yeast. (Do not overpitch.) Ferment at 70°F (21°C) for about 5 days, or until fermentation is complete. Cold crash and condition for 2 weeks. Package and carbonate to about 2.6 volumes.

BREWER’S NOTES

These beers are best enjoyed “hot” (i.e., at room temperature). Package and drink right from the bottle; they just taste better that way.