"Piloncillo or other partially-refined sugar"

[turkeyjerky214]

Never used anything like this before, but the Abbey Dubbel I'm brewing on Friday calls for it.

I looked through what Kent has in stock, and I didn't see anything that fit this exact description. From googling it, it sounds like it's a mexican sugar which surprised me that it would be in a Belgian Abbey recipe. Can someone point me in the direction of what I actually need for this? The guy at St. Louis Wine and Beermaking said I could just use regular brown sugar. Would this work?

[Michael]

Piloncillo is available a Jay's International Market on South Grand. You'll find it as a hard cone that you can grate or add to boiling wort. It is similar to brown sugar flavor wise but not the same -- less processed. Should be a fun additive if you want to go down to south grand.

Mike

[Witch Doctor Dale]

That is a great store to browse thru. Amazing products there, a few I would be scared to taste even.

[siwelwerd]

What's the rest of the recipe? I'm a big fan of the Belgian Candi syrup Kent carries for a Dubbel. Brown sugar is not going to get you too much flavor wise.

[turkeyjerky214]

Edit: I actually made a couple changes (the percentages int the book added up to 109%). I'm not sure it's in the right category, but here's what I came up with:

Two Bits Abbey Dubbel
18-B Belgian Dubbel
Author: Radical Brewing



Size: 5.5 gal
Efficiency: 75.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 239.52 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.072 (1.062 - 1.075)
|===================#============|
Terminal Gravity: 1.018 (1.008 - 1.018)
|=======================#========|
Color: 18.64 (10.0 - 17.0)
|===========================#====|
Alcohol: 7.08% (6.3% - 7.6%)
|=================#==============|
Bitterness: 25.5 (15.0 - 25.0)
|========================#=======|

Ingredients:
9 lb 2-Row Brewers Malt
3.2 lb Munich 10L Malt
1.2 lb Caramel Malt 60L
.65 lb Aromatic Malt
1 lb Belgian Candi Syrup
1 oz Perle (7.5%) - added during boil, boiled 60 min
1 ea WYeast 1214 Belgian Abbey™

[bmock]

Brain, you can also get this from any neighborhood Mexican/Latino grocery. Find them in strip malls. It's also at my neighborhood Schnucks.

[siwelwerd]

One other suggestion, in any recipe where you have a pound of a crystal malt, split that up. Use a half pound of two different lovibond rated crystals--For example, 0.5 lb Crystal 60 and 0.5 lb Crystal 120, or in a dark Belgian like this, half Crystal 60 and half Special B. It's an easy thing you can do to add a bit more complexity.

The Candi syrup is the traditional thing for that style, but the Piloncillo would make a tasty beer as well.

[turkeyjerky214]

Thanks for the advice, guys. I mixed it up and added some Special B, but now the SRM is way out of style (21 when the max is 17). I'm still very new to putting together recipes. Is this a big deal?

Also, am I even putting this in the right style? I tried finding what style Abbeys fall into, but I got a lot of different answers.

[Michael]

Thanks for the advice, guys. I mixed it up and added some Special B, but now the SRM is way out of style (21 when the max is 17). I'm still very new to putting together recipes. Is this a big deal?

Also, am I even putting this in the right style? I tried finding what style Abbeys fall into, but I got a lot of different answers.

Brian

I think you'll find classic examples of this style that will have a range of color, so I would not be too concerned about trying to hit a specific color. Obviously it should not look like a porter or a pilsener, but your range and the expected color should be perfect and the beer should be quite tasty.

Mike

[siwelwerd]

Not sure what you mean by "Abbey". That recipe looks to be spot on for a Dubbel, or even a smaller Belgian Dark Strong. RDWHAHB