Mackeson XXX stout that little hint of licorice

[denver brewhoo]

what do you guys think? Maybe an ounce of anise for a 10 gallon batch? Maybe 2? Do not want this to be more than a hint of licorice.

Also, I'm thinking about 2-3 ounces of lactose. I think the Mackeson's is a little too sweet, and after surfing the various recipe sites it seems people usually use 2 oz per 5 gallon batch, so 2 oz in a 10 gallon batch ought to do the trick, don't you think?

Now that I'm doing 10 gal. batches I'm a lot more timid about just doing it and seeing how it comes out...10 gals of beer that you're not crazy about is a lot.

[toneyc]

I dunno, from looking at this month's BYO, the recipes they include for milk stouts all have 8-16 oz lactose, and the double chocolate stout I picked up from AHS yesterday has 8 oz. Two oz for a 10 gallon batch sounds insignificant.

:)
Toney.

[unkle bik]

One ounce sounds like quite a bit of anise for a 5 gal batch. You may want a hint of the licorice flavor, but not to overpower it.
In my stouts, I used about 2 tbs. of crushed fennel seeds to impart a licorice flavor.

[denver brewhoo]

Uncle, you know I have an unfortunate tendency to mix up dry measures and fluid measures....My 1 Tbs spoon says 15 ml on the handle, which I think of as 1/2 of a fluid ounce....so yes, I was thinking about 2 Tbs, and moreover this is for a 10 gal batch, so I think it will be a lighter licorice flavor even than your stout....

ToneyC, you are exactly right on the lactose; I was looking at one of the many recipes when I typed that, and that recipe looks to be out on the edge of the bell curve... in fact looks like the consensus on the Mackeson clones is about 8 oz for a 5 gallon batch, I think I'll cut that in half and use 8 oz for a 10 gallon batch...or maybe 6 oz, those Mackesons are pretty sweet.