Peated Single Malt question...

[Orpheus123]

OK, so I've done a couple of single malts just using 12 lbs of 2-row in 4 gallons of water. I would like to try some peated stuff in there as well. I'm looking at the Simpson's English Peated malt. I'm told a little goes a long way. SO...what is y'all's opinion? I was going to start out with 11 lbs 2 row and 1 lbs of the Peated stuff. Is that going to even make a difference do you think? I realize it's not gonna be Islay level, but I thought I'd start small and build.

Also, I plan on just mashing it all together, so 12 lbs total at the same time.

I can't actually find any recipes for a peated single malt. Any help or suggestions would be welcome. Thanks fellas!

[SaltyStaves]

If I want a single malt that has nuisances of peat, I'll use up to 25% heavily peated Bairds or my local Gladfield malt. Those are 50ppm and 40ppm respectively. The Simpsons (medium) is around 20-30ppm.

[Orpheus123]

So, not much of a difference adding the 1 lb. I'll have to look for some other stuff then. My local brew shop only has the Simpsons. Any places online you would recommend?

[still_stirrin]

I would start with a 50/50 ratio of the peated malt. It will smell real smokey when fermenting. And the taste will have a good smoke flavor in the fermenter.

But the boiler will reduce the apparent smoke signature significantly, such that when first run (the spirit run, of course) the peat quality will be very low threshold. The good news is that as it ages, the smoke will return. But be forewarned … peat smoked flavor takes 2+ years to develop. And 4+ years, you’ll notice it gets superb.

It’s good to have other products (rum) ready while you wait on your single malt.
ss

[Saltbush Bill]

I recently put down a 28L barrel of Single Malt, I used a 50/50 mix of Golden Promise and this stuff....the Heavy Peat Smoked Malt .....third down in the list....... https://www.gladfieldmalt.co.nz/our-malts/distill-malts.
The best home distilled pleated whiskys that I've tasted "not mine" have been made using fairly wide cuts and lots of time on oak.
Every thing Ive been told and read says the hardest thing is keeping the smoke in the barrel.
Mine was put in the barrel on 28-4- 2023....so a long time to wait yet, small samples in the last month or two tell me that at least its heading in the right direction.

[VLAGAVULVIN]

I like to mash 100% of Crisp Scottish Ultra 80 Peat malt. Smells like Lagavulin

If it turns out a lot of peat then your hands are always free to blend it with more neutral malt distillate, eh?

And if there is not enough peat then there is just not enough peat so, nuthin to be done

[higgins]

I love a good Islay Single malt, but I like the Speyside and Highland versions, too.

I've made 5 single malts (4 had peated malt) and the highest percentage of peated malt (Simpsons, ~25ppm) I have used is 20%. That one is just now a year old in a Badmo barrel (maybe the lower sa/vol ratio of a badmo will retain more peat character). I collected that batch into 48 jars, going way down into the tails, and found that jar 48 (<5% abv) had a ton of peat in it, but nothing was left of the nasty tails, so I added it to the final cut. The first 3 jars were tossed, but most of the other jars not in the final mix went into feints for the next single malt (a few tails jars were too nasty to include).

The one before that is now 2 yrs old (11% peated malt) and is coming along nicely. But neither is anywhere near an Islay.

I've read that going deep into tails and recycling them from one batch to the next will boost the smoke level - I did that with the last 2 that I've done (both 20% peat). Time will tell whether or not that works. I plan to stick with a very similar peat level in future single malts and continue to recycle feints.

Hopefully another couple of years will tell the story that I want to hear.

[VLAGAVULVIN]

found that jar 48 (<5% abv) had a ton of peat in it, but nothing was left of the nasty tails, so I added it to the final cut

It was a sweet decision though it's hardly possible to call that fraction "sweet waters" in our peaty circumstances.

The one before that is now 2 yrs old (11% peated malt) and is coming along nicely. But neither is anywhere near an Islay.

What I did notice... even 100% of hard peated malts give a good taste but lose the most part of nose after a year or two of aging. Anyone to advise how to keep the phenols as phenols, please?