Big Ron's Cabin Stout

This recipe was constructed for a very special trip this summer to my wife's family cabin  outside of Jackson Hole, WY.  My father-in-law, Big Ron, has always been a fan of flavorful dark beers, so we set out to make a great stout that could be shared with the whole family. After years of experimenting with a wide variety of Stout styles, this is by far the best "standard" strength stout I've constructed.

High quality English malts and hops provide a wonderfully complex yet approachable beer. To avoid any "dark grain astringency," I opted to mash the dark grains during the recirculation step. Behind the scenes, this method helps avoid lowering (acidic) the mash pH too much, which is likely with a large portion darker grains. A simple recirculation for 15 minutes was enough to extract the flavors and color from these grains without any harsh edges.

"Big Ron's Cabin" Oatmeal Stout (12 gl Final, 75-Minute boil):
Grain (Mash @ 155F for 1 Hour+ 15min Recirculation for dark grain, 1Tblsp CaCl2 and CaSO4)

• 20# (72%) British Maris Otter (Crisp)
• 2# (7%) Flaked Oats
• 1.5# (5%) Munton's Medium Crystal (50-60L)
• 1.33# (5%) Belgian Biscuit
• ----------
• 1# (3.5%) British Roasted Barley (Munton's)
• 1# (3.5%) British Pale Chocolate (Fawcett)
• 0.5# (2%) American Black Barley (Briess)
• 0.5# (2%) Chocolate Rye (Weyermann)

Hops (36IBU, All Pellet, quantites for 12 gl)

• 1oz, Target, 11% AA, 75 min BKO
• 2oz, East Kent Golding, 6.5, 20 min BKO
• 2oz, East Kent Golding, 6.5, 10 min BKO

Extra: Irish Moss, Wyeast Nutrient
Yeast: WLP060 American Ale Blend (Primary for 9 days)
O.G. 1.062, F.G. 1.015, ~6.2%abv
***This is a great American Stout base to play around with other variations: Chocolate, Coffee, or even Bourbon Soaked Oak Chips...***