07/06/2012 – Created a starter

American ale yeast Wyeast 1056 – 1.6 L starter

07/08/2012 – Brew day

1 lb – English maris otter
0.875 lbs – English medium crystal
0.75 lbs – Flaked barley
0.5 lbs – Belgian aromatic malt
0.5 lbs – British chocolate malt
0.5 lbs – Belgian special B
0.25 lbs – English black malt
3.15 lbs – Gold malt syrup
2 lbs – Mutton’s light DME
0.5 tsp – Yeast nutrient
3 oz – Willamette hop pellets (45 min)
1 Tbsp – Irish moss (15 min)

Wort sat in brew pot for 5 hrs to settle, then poured into carboy through a fine screen in funnel to filter most of the hop debris.  Topped up to 5.25 gal.

Shake to aerate

O.G.: 1.060, 14.8 deg Brix

Fermentation chamber set to 68 deg F.

07/09/2012 – Pitched Yeast

07/14/2012 – Racked to secondary

I.G.: 1.013, 7.3 Brix

07/21/2012 – Prepared vanilla

2 – Madagascar vanilla beans
3 – Tahitian vanilla beans

Split each bean, scraped the inside and then sliced into ribbons.  Added a few ounces of vodka to cover.

07/22/2012 – Poured vanilla vodka and solids into the porter

08/02/2012 – Bottled 13 (yellow caps) and kegged the rest

Used coopers carb tabs in the bottles.

F.G.: 1.011, 7.6 deg Brix
ABV: 6.4%