Ideas for Single Malt

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NeckStiller
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Ideas for Single Malt

Post by NeckStiller »

Hello all

I'm just looking for ideas to try on a single malt. I've made Jimbos with Red Wheat Malt and it's great, but I wonder what others have tried with success.

I'm fortunate enough to live near a Malt company and I'm considering a couple of their malts. One is a barley and other other a wheat. The flavor descriptions are so vague and similar which makes it difficult. Down side is I have to take 50lb at a time. I have no problem with turning 2 rounds of a single malt as long as its good...

Any help is appreciated
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by StuNY »

Yeah,just follow Jimbos recipe and use the malted barley- one of my favorites! I have done it with various types of barley, and prefer a blend of 1/3 heavily peated and 2/3 maris otter (or golden promise etc). If you don't like the smokey flavors then just stick with 100% of whatever barley you can get- it will be great!
I have also done it with 50/50 Rye/Red Wheat - all my rye drinking friends like this one. I wasn't crazy about the 100% red wheat I made- lacking flavor? I most recently did it with 75% rye/25% wheat but that is another story due to the stickieness of the rye. Scorched an element! The barley just works everytime, no PH issues, no stuck ferments (I ferment on grain) very consistent sg etc.
Good luck!
NeckStiller
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by NeckStiller »

Hey StuNY

Thanks for the response. I've been using wheat for so long I was afraid to stray. After hearing your experience I'm gonna go for it. 100% malted barley!

I, too, was a victim of scorch from rye and honestly I haven't tried since. Perhaps another time.
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hypnopooper
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by hypnopooper »

Simpsons Golden Promise Malt and WLP045 Scotch Whisky Yeast
Last edited by hypnopooper on Mon Mar 02, 2020 5:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Single Malt Yinzer
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Single Malt Yinzer »

Just to clarify - Single Malt is 100% Barley. If you add all other grains it won't be Single Malt. You can make an All Malt Whiskey with other malted grains.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_malt_whisky
StuNY
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by StuNY »

NeckStiller wrote: Mon Mar 02, 2020 5:19 pm Hey StuNY

Thanks for the response. I've been using wheat for so long I was afraid to stray. After hearing your experience I'm gonna go for it. 100% malted barley!

I, too, was a victim of scorch from rye and honestly I haven't tried since. Perhaps another time.
Great! I am in the process of now experimenting with other specialty malts added to the base barley. Lots of possibilities! FWIW I can heat up my single malt barley stripping runs at full power with 5500w electric element in keg still without scorching element. Then dial back to 4500-5000w when stripping to keep from puking. Makes quick work of it!

I haven't given up on the rye, just working out a better process with some rests. The 50/50 rye works great for me, but going more than 50 is where things seem to get more challenging.
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Halfbaked
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Halfbaked »

Single Malt Yinzer wrote: Mon Mar 02, 2020 5:31 pm Just to clarify - Single Malt is 100% Barley. If you add all other grains it won't be Single Malt. You can make an All Malt Whiskey with other malted grains.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_malt_whisky
Single malt scotch whiskey is 100% malted barley. It reads a single malt whiskey is made from a Single distillery. I am not an expert but I think it can be made from what ever malted grain/grains you want.
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Corsaire
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Corsaire »

Scotch single malt is made with 100% barley malt, twice distilled in a pot still in one distillery. The distillery can blend different grain bills and still call it a single malt, so they can change the peat ratio for example.
I don't think the US have decided on a definition for US single malt yet.

And we don't have to follow any of this ;-)
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thecroweater
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by thecroweater »

Single Malt Yinzer wrote: Mon Mar 02, 2020 5:31 pm Just to clarify - Single Malt is 100% Barley. If you add all other grains it won't be Single Malt. You can make an All Malt Whiskey with other malted grains.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_malt_whisky
Some of this is the semantics of commercial interests ei single malt as opposed to blended malt. All malt is all malt regardless of the grain and single malt is single grain malt whisky. It is normally but not necessarily barley. If you did an all malt wheat all the same grain all the same repeated recipe the aged spirit would be a single malt wheat whisky, semantics aside
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Single Malt Yinzer
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Single Malt Yinzer »

You can make anything you want. I'm only stating if you call something Single Malt the expectation is that it's made with just malted barley per tradition. Think of it like this - if I juiced apples and called it ketchup would you agree? No. If I froze orange juice and called it ice cream would you agree? No. The OP asked about making single malt and it moved to whiskeys that aren't single malt. There is zero wrong with this, it just isn't single malt.
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Single Malt Yinzer
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Single Malt Yinzer »

thecroweater wrote: Tue Mar 03, 2020 6:05 amSome of this is the semantics of commercial interests ei single malt as opposed to blended malt.
100% that. It's product differentiation to charge more for something.
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by LWTCS »

20200303_123950.jpg
Scott over at Appalachian Mountain Spirits does an all corn single malt and markets it accordingly. Evidently the TTB is ok with the description.

" Unveil the spirit of Revelations and it's smoky scotch-like flavor. Revelations is the only single malt corn whisky being made in the country and is completely malted and smoked on the distillery property.

The Virginia Highlands were settled by the Scotch and Irish; this is a traditional, pot stilled whisky honoring our ancestors."
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tombombadil
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by tombombadil »

If you're planning on continuing to use their malt then it might be a good idea to start by doing a run of 100% base malt with a neutral ale yeast. Get an idea of what flavor/ aroma you'll get from that. Then start experimenting with subbing other stuff in to get other flavors/ aromas.

Im in a similar situation.

There's a local company who uses locally grown barley to produce a pale malt. So I picked up a 50# sack. I did two batches, 20#s of malted barley and neutral ale yeast each. The left over 10#s went in to something else. I've only stripped the first batch, I'll do another strip and a spirit run this weekend.

It seems like it's pretty similar to other typical pale malt but it's cool that it's "local" I guess.
NeckStiller
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by NeckStiller »

Thank you to everyone for sharing your knowledge on the legal name description of a Single Malt. I was naive in thinking a single malt recipe was simply that a given malt irregardless of its base grain.

That said, I'm not a commercial distiller just a guy trying to produce fine spirits as a hobby for myself.

Thank you to those who defended my ignorance as well as those who gave input on the original purpose for my post. Good information here. Utilizing 05 as a medium with which to test a variety of malts for a malt whiskey is my next quest.
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Single Malt Yinzer
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Single Malt Yinzer »

Dude - make what ya want. Please don't feel limited by labels.

US-05 is my default. It makes great flavors.

I use honey malt to add a heavier malt flavor. Add in some peated malt to add character. There's a ton of other malts to add. If you want lighten it up add wheat. Sweeter - add corn.

Big list: https://www.northernbrewer.com/blogs/be ... rain-guide
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thecroweater
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by thecroweater »

Single Malt Yinzer wrote: Tue Mar 03, 2020 9:21 am You can make anything you want. I'm only stating if you call something Single Malt the expectation is that it's made with just malted barley per tradition. Think of it like this - if I juiced apples and called it ketchup would you agree? No. If I froze orange juice and called it ice cream would you agree? No. The OP asked about making single malt and it moved to whiskeys that aren't single malt. There is zero wrong with this, it just isn't single malt.
Well mate with all due respect it's obvious I don't agree with those false equivalents , commercially produced in the UK and perhaps only in the UK must only be barley malt. In the US and Oz, probably NZ , India, Japan and maybe everywhere else single malt is pretty much exactly what it sounds like :thumbup:
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Corsaire
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Re: Ideas for Single Malt

Post by Corsaire »

I think Belgian and Japanese whiskeys follow the Scotch definitions, like single malt, single grain, single blend and blended, but I know there's no set definition in the US. Don't know about the rest of the world.

Back OT,

I'd say go for the local stuff in large quantities. Go for the base malts. Use specialty malts in smaller quantities from a brewshop to play with recipes until you know what you like.

What kind of flavors are you looking for?
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