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Blockhead Bob's Brewing

Homebrew Recipe

Gnoel de Abbey Imperial Stout Blending Beer

Method:
Partial Mash
Style:
Imperial Stout
Boil Time:
90 min.
Batch Size:
5 gal.
Boil Size:
4 gal.
Efficiency:
0
Rating:
Source:
Brew Your Own
Source Notes:
November 2019, Vol. 25, No. 7 page 47. Part of "Winter Warmer", Christmas Ale brew special. The Lost Abbey Brewing Co.'s Gnoel de Abbey clone is a blend of two different beers. To re-create Gnoel de Abbey at home, brew both base beer styles, then blend in a 70/30 blonde-to-stout ratio. Bottle or keg what you don't blend as standalone beers.
Notes:
Using a 5-gallon kettle, start by steeping all the specialty grains (placed in a muslin bag) in about 4 gallons of water at 148F for 15 minutes. Remove grain bag then bring liquid to or near a boil. Turn off the flame and slowly add half of the malt extract, stirring to avoid clumping or scorching. Turn flame back on, bring to boil and immediately add bittering hops. Boil the wort for 90 minutes. Add the remaining malt extract, Irish moss and Cascade hops 15 minutes before flameout. Whirlpool and chill to 68F for fermentation and top up with water to 5 gallons before pitching yeast. Ferment using both yeast strains at 68F until 70-75% of the attenuation is reached, then allow to free rise to 72F to ensure beer finishes fermentation. (The English strain should produce some esters and enhance the malt in a way that the American ale strain cannot.) Add Bourbon-soaked oak chips or cubes to beer. Cold condition the beer by dropping temperature from 72 to 67F on day one and 10F per day thereafter until reaching 32F. Hold for one week and ensure all yeast and trub has been removed from the beer. Once both beers are complete, rack into a 70/30 blonde-to-stout ratio. Package beer to your preferred methods targeting carbonation levels between 2.5-2.7 volumes of CO2.

Brew Numbers

OG FG ABV SRM IBU
1.0941.01210.55365

Fermentables

NameAmount% Grain Bill
Extra Light Dry Malt Extract7 lbs.54.90
Dextrose (Corn) Sugar1.75 lbs.13.73
Chocolate Malt0.8 lbs.6.27
Notes: Calls for 0.4 lb chocolate and 0.4 lb Weyerman Carafa II malt
Roasted Barley0.8 lbs.6.27
Flaked Barley0.8 lbs.6.27
Honey Malt0.4 lbs.3.14
Notes: Gambrinus honey malt
Crystal Malt 1200.4 lbs.3.14
Crystal Malt 700.4 lbs.3.14
Notes: Crystal malt 70-80L
Crystal Malt 1650.4 lbs.3.14
Total: 12.75 lbs.

Hops

Hop Shopping List


NameAmountBoil TimeUseAA
Magnum (US)1.1 oz.90Boil14.9
Notes: 16.4 AAU
Cascade0.65 oz.15Boil7.6
Notes: 4.9 AAU
NameAmount
Cascade0.65 oz.
Magnum (US)1.1 oz.

Yeast

NameLabProduct
American AleWyeast1056
Notes: Choice for yeast 1
British AleWyeast1098
Notes: Choice for yeast 2
California AleWhite LabsWLP001
Notes: Choice for yeast 1
Dry English Ale YeastWhite LabsWLP007
Notes: Choice for yeast 2
NottinghamLallemand
Notes: Choice for yeast 2
SafAleFermentisUS-05
Notes: Choice for yeast 1

Other Ingredients

NameAmountTimeUseType
Irish Moss0.5 tsp.15 minutesBoilClarifying
Bourbon-soaked Oak Chips4 oz.2 weeksSecondaryFlavor
Notes: Soak two weeks before brew day to better absorb Bourbon character. Use American oak if possible.

Mash Steps

StepNameTempTimeType
1Partial Mash14815Partial
Notes: Using a 5-gallon kettle, start by steeping all the specialty grains (placed in a muslin bag) in about 4 gallons of water at 148F for 15 minutes.