Imprint Beer Co.’s Imperial Milk Porter clone

Imprint Beer Co.’s Imperial Milk Porter clone

(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.102  FG = 1.026
IBU = 30  SRM = 60  ABV = 11.4%

Ingredients
12 lbs. (5.4 kg) American 2-row pale malt 
2.5 lbs. (1.1 kg) malted oats
2.5 lbs. (1.1 kg) Weyermann Caramunich® III malt
12 oz. (0.34 kg) chocolate malt 
12 oz. (0.34 kg) Briess Midnight Wheat malt
8 oz. (0.23 kg) roasted barley
1 lb. (0.45 kg) lactose
8 AAU Magnum hops (60 min.) (0.5 oz./14 g at 16% alpha acids) 
Wyeast 1968 (London ESB), White Labs WLP002 (English Ale), or LalBrew London English-Style Ale yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by step
Mill the grains and mix with 6 gallons (23 L) of 165 °F (74 °C) strike water to reach a mash temperature of 152 °F (67 °C). Hold this temperature for 60 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear. Sparge the grains with enough water to collect 7 gallons (26.5 L) of wort, add lactose and stir to dissolve. At this point, check the gravity of the wort in the kettle. With that volume, the SG should be 1.073. Add sugar or dried malt extract if your gravity is too low. Boil for 120 minutes, adding hops according to the ingredient list.

After the boil, turn off heat and chill the wort to slightly below fermentation temperature, about 65 °F (18 °C). Aerate the wort with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.

Ferment at 66 °F (19 °C) for 10 days, then raise the temperature to 70 °F (21 °C) for 3–4 days. Upon completion of fermentation (check your gravity — being such a “big” beer this may take longer than expected), crash the beer to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours, and bottle or keg the beer and carbonate to approximately 2.25 volumes. 

Imprint Beer Co.’s Imperial Milk Porter clone

(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.102  FG = 1.026
IBU = 30  SRM = 59  ABV = 11.4%

Ingredients
8 lbs. (3.6 kg) pale liquid malt extract 
2.5 lbs. (1.1 kg) malted oats
2.5 lbs. (1.1 kg) Weyermann Caramunich® III malt
12 oz. (0.34 kg) chocolate malt 
12 oz. (0.34 kg) Briess Midnight Wheat malt
8 oz. (0.23 kg) roasted barley
1 lb. (0.45 kg) lactose
8 AAU Magnum hops (60 min.) (0.5 oz./14 g at 16% alpha acids) 
Wyeast 1968 (London ESB), White Labs WLP002 (English Ale), or LalBrew London English-Style Ale yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by step
Pulverize the malted oats as best you can. The more starch you can expose, the faster conversion will take place. Bring 1 gallon (3.8 L) of water to approximately 162 °F (72 °C) and hold there. Steep the malted oats in a fine mesh grain bags for 60 minutes. Begin heating another 1 gallon (3.8 L) to 170 °F (77 °C). Add the remaining crushed specialty grains to another grain bag. Mix both water and specialty grains in with the mashing oats. Steep an additional 15 minutes. Remove the grain bags, placing them in a colander and slowly rinse them with 2 gallons (7.6 L) of hot water. Add liquid extract and lactose while stirring, and stir until completely dissolved. Top up as necessary to obtain 6 gallons (23 L) of wort. Boil for 60 minutes, adding hops according to the ingredient list.

After the boil, turn off heat and chill the wort to slightly below fermentation temperature, about 65 °F (18 °C). Aerate the wort with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.

Ferment at 66 °F (19 °C) for 10 days, then raise the temperature to 70 °F (21 °C) for 3–4 days. Upon completion of fermentation (check your gravity — being such a “big” beer this may take longer than expected), crash the beer to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours, and bottle or keg the beer and carbonate to approximately 2.25 volumes. 

Tips for success:
Imprint Brewer and Co-Founder Ryan Diehl notes that in the interest of palate “mellowness,” you should target about 200 ppm of chloride, adjusting as necessary with calcium chloride. Between the water chemistry and the use of lactose, this recipe allows for a chocolate-forward expression without being overly roasty. Ryan also says that this recipe sells well on its own, but also serves as a fantastic base for their coconut porter (pictured), maple porter, and coffee porters. If pursuing those options, he advises leaving out the lactose.