Avery Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary Mephistopheles’ Stout clone

Avery Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary Mephistopheles’ Stout clone

(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.102  FG = 1.020
IBU = 45  SRM = 70+  ABV = 11%

A “devil” of a beer, this iteration of Mephistopheles’ was made specifically for the 20th anniversary 2020 Big Beers, Belgians, and Barleywines festival. This decadent imperial stout was aged in a 20th Anniversary Leopold Brothers’ whiskey barrel. While the actual beer rang in at 17% and required some tools most homebrewers don’t have access to, this is a scaled down, homebrewer-friendly version provided by Avery Barrel Herder, Andy Parker.

Ingredients
11 lbs. (5 kg) American 2-row pale malt
1.63 lbs. (0.74 kg) Special B malt
1.44 lbs. (0.65 kg) roasted barley
1.06 lbs. (0.49 kg) black malt
0.88 lb. (0.39 kg) aromatic malt
2.25 lbs. (1.02 kg) golden dried malt extract (DME)
2 lbs. (0.91 kg) dextrose corn sugar
12.2 AAU Sterling hops (60 min.)  (2 oz./56 g at 6.1% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Apollo hops (0 min.) 
1 package oak cubes 
~1 oz. (28 g) maple chips, charred
~1 cup Bourbon
Wyeast 3787 (Trappist Style High Gravity), or White Labs WLP530 (Abbey Ale), or LalBrew Abbaye Belgian Ale yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by step
The maple chips may be found in the grilling section of your hardware store. A propane torch can be used to scorch the exterior. You are just looking to caramelize the sap in the maple, not to turn them into charcoal. Soak the oak cubes and charred maple chips in Bourbon — just enough to cover. They should be soaked a minimum of two weeks, more if possible. If you can get your hands on a small used Bourbon barrel, then skip the oak cubes but still soak the maple chips. 

On brew day, add 1 tsp. of CaCl₂ and 1⁄8 tsp. of CaSO₄ (gypsum) along with 1⁄4 tsp. of 10% phosphoric acid. Employing a thick mash (1.5 qts./lb. or 2.5 L/kg), achieve a mash temperature of 153 °F (67 °C) and hold for 60 minutes or until fully converted. After mash is complete, raise temperature to 168–170 °F (76–77 °C) for mashout and a 10-minute recirculation. Begin collecting your wort and sparge with 170 °F (76 °C) water with a pH at or near 5.2. Sparge with enough water to collect roughly 6.5 gallons (24.6 L) of wort.

Boil for 60 minutes, adding the first hop addition, dextrose, and DME at the start of the boil. With 30 minutes remaining, add another teaspoon of CaCl₂. The first and most important reason to add this is to make sure there is enough calcium in the wort for yeast health, knowing that you will lose some of your original addition in the mash. Secondly, the CaCl₂ addition will round out the flavors and bring out the grain/malt character desired in the beer. With 10 minutes remaining, add a 1⁄2 tsp. of yeast nutrient. One Whirlfloc tablet can also be added at this time to help with beer clarity, although the beer will be opaque black. At knockout, add the Apollo hops.

After conducting a 10-minute whirlpool, chill rapidly to 66 °F (19 °C). Oxygenate thoroughly and pitch yeast. When gravity reaches 1.060 (after about four days of primary fermentation) increase temperature to 70 °F (21 °C) for warm conditioning for at least six additional days. If terminal gravity hasn’t yet been reached, letting it go a few more days is fine. Rack the beer into a secondary fermenter on top of the wood and Bourbon, or if you have a Bourbon barrel, then rack beer onto the maple and Bourbon in the barrel. Once flavor profile is achieved with a distinct wood and Bourbon character it’s time to package. Carbonate to 2.5 v/v or prime and bottle condition.

Avery Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary Mephistopheles’ Stout clone

(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.102  FG = 1.020
IBU = 45  SRM = 70+  ABV = 11%

Ingredients
9.4 lbs. (4.26 kg) golden dried malt extract (DME)
2 lbs. (0.91 kg) dextrose corn sugar
1.63 lbs. (0.74 kg) Special B malt
1.44 lbs. (0.65 kg) roasted barley
1.06 lbs. (0.49 kg) black malt
0.88 lb. (0.39 kg) aromatic malt
2.25 lbs. (1.02 kg) golden dried malt extract (DME)
2 lbs. (0.91 kg) dextrose corn sugar
12.2 AAU Sterling hops (60 min.)  (2 oz./56 g at 6.1% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Apollo hops (0 min.) 
1 package oak cubes 
~1 oz. (28 g) maple chips, charred
~1 cup Bourbon
Wyeast 3787 (Trappist Style High Gravity), or White Labs WLP530 (Abbey Ale), or LalBrew Abbaye Belgian Ale yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by step
See instructions for maple chips and oak cubes in the all-grain recipe.

Bring 3 gallons (11.4 L) of water to 162 °F (72 °C). Remove pot from the heat source then slowly stir in the DME until fully dissolved. Add your crushed grains (in a grain bag) and steep for 10–15 minutes. Remove grain bag and bring wort to a boil for 60 minutes, adding the hop additions as indicated.

Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe, making sure to top up the fermenter to 5 gallons (19 L) before pitching yeast.