In the Fermentor: Sweet Oatmeal Stout

This space was originally reserved for an all-grain remake of my Super Easy Cream Ale. That was before I started receiving requests for Porters and Stouts.

I prefer Sweet Stouts (a.k.a. Milk Stouts) to their more coffee-like Dry Stout brethren, so that's what I'm making here.

As with many Sweet Stouts, I'm using Lactose to provide a sweet balance to the beer's roasted grains. Although not typical for the style, a small amount of Flaked Oats will add a slightly silky quality to the beer's mouthfeel, in addition to a mildly nutty flavor component. The argument could therefore be made that this beer is more a Sweet Stout/Oatmeal Stout hybrid, than a traditional Sweet Stout. However, being able to cross style boundaries is one of the joys of Homebrewing.

Here's the five-gallon brew:

Grains:
6 lbs Crisp Maris Otter
12 oz Briess Caramel 80L
8 oz Flaked Oats
8 oz Bairds Chocolate Malt
6 oz Crisp Black Patent

Hops:
1 oz Newport (9.8% a.a.): 60 min

Extras:
1 lb Lactose: 15 min

Total Boil Time:
90 Min

Yeast:
White Labs WLP002 - English Ale

Mash Schedule:
Saccharification Rest: 154F for 60 min (No Chocolate Malt or Black Patent)
Mashout: 168F for 15 min (All Grains)

Efficiency: 80%

Original Gravity:
1.055
Estimated Final Gravity:
1.014

IBU: 32
SRM Color: 29

Fermentation Schedule:
1 Week Primary
2 Weeks Secondary
2 Weeks Bottle Conditioning

Cost: $16 per case
Commercial Equivalent: Left Hand Milk Stout: $32
Savings: $16

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