Recipe: Ozark BDCS (Barrel-Aged Double Cream Stout)

For more on Ozark Beer’s approach to aging this big stout on oak, see The Patience & Terror of Barrel-Aging.

ALL-GRAIN

Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters)
Brewhouse efficiency: 72%
OG: 1.120
FG: 1.046
IBUs: 71
ABV: 10%
[PAYWALL]
MALT/GRAIN BILL
11.9 lb (5.4 kg) two-row
4.8 lb (2.2 kg) Munich 20
1.2 lb (544 g) caramel 120
9.5 oz (269 g) dark chocolate malt
9.5 oz (269 g) Briess Midnight Wheat
9.5 oz (269 g) flaked oats
9.5 oz (269 g) roasted barley

HOPS & ADDITIONS SCHEDULE
2 oz (57 g) Nugget at 90 minutes [71 IBUs]
2.4 lb (1.1 kg) lactose at 10 minutes

YEAST
White Labs WLP028 Edinburgh/Scottish Ale

DIRECTIONS
Mill grains and mash at 154°F (68°C) for 60 minutes. Vorlauf until the runnings are clear of particles, then switch on the burner and run off into the kettle. Sparge at 170°F (77°C), topping up as necessary to get about 7 gallons (26.5 liters) of wort—or more, depending on your evaporation rate. (If dividing the grist to conduct two mashes, begin boiling the first batch while mashing the second.) Boil for about 2 hours—or longer if necessary to get near the target starting gravity—adding hops and lactose according to the schedule. After the boil, chill to 66°F (19°C), aerate well, and add plenty of healthy yeast. Ferment at 68°F (20°C) until fermentation is complete and gravity has stabilized. Rack the beer into a bourbon barrel—or a sanitized fermentor with about 3 oz (85 g) of bourbon-soaked oak cubes—and age patiently.