Toasting Your Own Grains

[Avalir]

Hey y'all,
[If you're only interested in how-to instructions, you can skip to the bottom section of the post]

So I wanted to make a quick post about this as I know I had a challenge yielding even vaguely helpful/insightful results via internet search. The most I was able to find seemed to be in the beer forums and usually pertained to toasting malt. I had an interest in toasting not only for added flavors and complexity, but also removal/reduction of less desirable flavors--when I first incorporated whole wheat into the grain bill, I was able to detect a very slight grassy flavor in the distillate, it wasn't terrible, but not fitting the profile I like and am pursuing.
This post is, of course, regarding toasting your own grains at home. I may be jumping the gun on this post as I won't even begin mashing my first attempt at home toasted grains until tomorrow. That being said, feel free to add or correct me if you feel the urge.
As a disclaimer, I've only toasted whole oats and whole wheat so far, but from what I've experienced the process, time, and temperature all ended up identical between the two and I'm confident it can be applied to most other whole grains also.
I did this using whole (non-crushed) grains. Set oven to 300F (I have a propane conventional oven)--I suspect up to 325F can also perform well, but low and slow will always give you more control and usually more satisfying results (as with most anything aside from a strip run). Just used a standard baking sheet lined with parchment (I feared aluminum foil may overdo the toast of the exterior without it being able to toast throughout). I found that 3lbs of either grain was the ideal fill; per the beer forums, people reccomended not more than 1/2 inch deep and I recall mention of someone attempting a 5lb load and will not do again (they didn't elaborate on the outcome, so I can only speculate). I did the oats and wheat on their own, one tray at a time, placed on the center oven rack to reduce variables. I briefly removed every 15 minutes to give the grains a quick stir before returning to the oven to ensure even/consistent toasting. Obviously, how long you toast depends on what flavors you're after, but this will likely be 30-90 minutes; I did mine for 90. As a tip, trust your nose for toasting (for anyone that's toasted your own wood, you know what I'm talking about).
While toasting the whole wheat, at the beginning, the primary aroma detected was grassy. At around 45 minutes it began to smell like sweet oatmeal cookies and the grassy odor began to wane. Around 75 minutes I was no longer noticing grassy aromas and it began to get a hint of carmel.
While toasting whole oats, it began similar to the wheat--grassy. Around 45 minutes, the grassy aromas waned and it began to smell like oats (not as much of a dramatic transformation as the wheat, I know). Around 60 minutes it definitely began to get some toasty scents. Around 75 minutes, the grassy odor was no longer present and a fresh bread aroma was mingled with the toasted oat aroma.
I immediately dumped the grains from the hot tray to paper bags for temporary storage so they wouldn't over-toast on the hot tray.

You probably could crush before, but that'll likely cause a quicker toast. I personally will continue whole for a couple reasons: flavor preservation--flavor fades the longer it lays around crushed, and the more exciting reason being crushing my toasted wheat was nearly as easy as crushing my malt--no straining required (for those that haven't crushed whole wheat berries, it is a royle pain--much much more strenuous than corn in my humble opinion).

I also want to add that the beer guys also reccomend letting toasted grains rest for anywhere from a day to a week in a paper bag. They advise mashing fresh toasted grains tend to impart an astringent taste in the beer. Not sure if we'd notice much after distilling, but it can't hurt to let rest.

So just a quick recap/toasting instructions for those that didn't want the long read:

Preheat oven to 300F (I have a propane conventional oven).
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Fill baking sheet with 3lbs of whole (non-crushed) grains. Spread the grains even across the baking sheet.
Place the baking sheet on the center rack of the oven.
Remove grains every 15 minutes to give then a quick stir to ensure even toasting and then place back in the oven.
Use your nose to determine ideal cook time. Cook time will likely be 30-90 minutes unless you're going for a much darker toast (I toasted for 90 minutes).
When toasting is complete, immediately transfer toasted grains into a paper bag to avoid over-toasting on a hot tray.
Let the toasted grains rest for several days in the paper bag prior to use (supposedly to avoid astringent tastes, or at least when used for beer).


Just thought I'd share in case anyone else was curious and/or having difficulty locating information/instructions.
Feel free to add to this or give feedback!