Eagle Face Oatmeal Stout 2021

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I have made this recipe a million times (okay, more like seven or eight times), and it’s still just so enjoyable. Here’s the latest!

Eagle Face Oatmeal Stout 2021

  • 8.5 lb. Finest Maris Otter Ale Malt (Crisp)
  • 1.5 lb. flaked oats
  • 1 lb. 80° caramel malt (Briess)
  • 1 lb. Victory malt (Briess)
  • 0.5 lb. roasted barley (Briess)
  • 6 oz. chocolate malt (Briess)
  • 6 oz. chocolate malt (Dingemans)
  • 0.5 lb. rice hulls
  • 1 oz. Magnum hop pellets (10.1% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 2 pkg. Nottingham ale yeast (Lallemand)

Parameters

  • 1.059 o.g., 1.017 f.g., 5.6% abv, 34 IBU, 35 SRM
  • Full volume mash, no sparge, 156° mash for 60 minutes, 10 minute mash-out at 168°
  • Claremont tap water, treated with Campden tablet

Procedure

  • I heated ~7.5 gallons to 164°, and then mashed in to hit a target mash rest of 156°. I added 5 mL of 88% lactic acid, to adjust pH.
  • I held the mash at 156° for 60 minutes, and then raised it to 168°. I held it at this temperature for 10 minutes, and then pulled the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.4 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.048. This was a bit below my target (1.052).
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, and boiled for 15 minutes before adding the hops. I then proceeded with an additional 60 minutes on the boil, before turning off the heat and

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • A black, clear beer, with a somewhat persistent tan head. The beer is a very dark brown when viewed on edge.
  • Aroma
    • Earthy aroma, with coffee and chocolate and roasted malt. There is a faint dried dark stonefruit aroma.
  • Flavor
    • Medium-high bitterness, and a coffee/chocolate, exceptionally malty flavor. This is a wonderfully rich beer! The yeast character is pretty clean, with a very faint fruitiness. There is an earthy background, perhaps from the hops.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Very full bodied, with a somewhat slick mouthfeel as would be expected from an oatmeal stout. It is very smooth, with a slightly dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • It’s interesting that I pick up earthy characteristics in the aroma, given that there is only a single hop addition as a 60 minute bittering charge of Magnum. That must be produced by the malt combination, but I can’t figure out whre.
  • Overall
    • 10/10