Batch #10 - Irish Dry Stout

Batch #10 (Brewed Saturday, May 23, 2009)

Goal: A Guinness-like beer, but with more body and flavor

Ingredients:
6.6 lbs. Plain Dark Malt Extract (liquid)
8 oz. Malto Dextrin
12 oz. Crushed Crystal Malt 60L
4 oz. Crushed Black Patent
4 oz. Crushed Roasted Barley
1.25 oz. Palisade 6.7% bittering hops
1.5 oz. Argentine Cascade 3.2% flavoring hops
Nottingham dry yeast

Notes:
This was a fairly straightforward, but lengthy batch to brew. I steeped the crushed grains at 150 degrees for 30 minutes, then drained and removed the grain bags. Following that I added in the liquid malt extract and heated to boiling. The foaming action was minimal, and I added the Palisade hops right when the boil hit. With 5 minutes to go, I added the Argentine Cascade hops. When the boil was done, I covered the pot and cooled it in an ice bath in the kitchen sink until the wort was right about 80 degrees. I poured the wort through a strainer filter (there was a bunch of crap in the boil) and added water to 5 gallons. I measured the temperature (it was 72 degrees), measured the OG (1.056 @ 72 = 1.057 adjusted) and pitched the yeast on top. I stirred vigorously to disperse the yeast, put the lid on and put the fermenter in the closet.
By Sunday morning this thing was ROCKING!!!
3 nights later (tonight, Tuesday) I went ahead and racked to secondary. I didn't take a temperature measurement, but the gravity was 1.022, and if the temp was 70 degrees (shoulda been), I've already got about 4.5% ABV. A sample taste of this beer showed a good, complex flavor. It was nice and roasty, with a good balance of sweetness and bitterness. The hop flavor seems to be nice, too. I think this batch will turn out great! I am probably going to bottle it Friday night.