I made Jamil's Red Irish ale exactly as per recipe, and it came out to dark and too roasty. should I cut the roasted barley in half next time?

extract or All Grain?

all grain, bought the roasted barley from B3

Was the Roasted Barley the same L value in the recipe as what you got from B3? Roasted Barley is a tricky one. They range from 300L to 500L upwards of 650L.

A couple of things to think about:

1.Jamil's recipe calls for 350L Roasted Barley, which is lower than what I usually see stocked. I know that my LHBS only carries 450L Roasted Barley.

2. Jamil's recipe is for a 6 gallon batch, with 5 gallon in the keg (leaving .5 gallon in kettle and .5 in fermenter). I dont know about in his book, but on the show he doesnt always say that, though all his recipes are formulated that way. So if you only made a 5 gallon batch you are basically too concentrated (and you OG should have been higher than expected too).

3. Jamil said that his recipe is a little bolder than say Smithwicks, and if you wanted something closer to Smithwicks you should use 5 oz., of the C40,C120 and RB instead of 6 oz. of each.


I have this same recipe in the fermenter right now, and I used the 450L RB because that was all I could get, knowing it might be a little dark. It was actually my first AG batch, and somehow my OG came out almost perfect to what I expected, aiming for a 70% efficiency (which is what Jamil calculates all of his recipes for, as he has said anything too much higher and he finds it can affect the flavors in subtle ways). It has only been fermenting for a week, so I am not sure how it looks.

I am not sure where I bought my Roasted Barley i usually buy in bulk. so I think it is either from NB or B3 so should be at 500L. Next batch should I put in 3 oz? And I hit all my numbers dead on at 70% efficiency.

I would say cutting it to 3 oz. would be a good place to start, especially if you have 500L RB.

I am getting ready to do this one!

I was planning on cutting the roast in half since mine is 500L roast.
I know some LHBS sell a 300L light roast!
But, I have a few other recipes needing 500L Roast, so I will just cut in half!

Jamil talks about this on the podcast, not quit the same flavor... But close.

I would like to find some 350L Roasted Barley, unfortunately B3 and NB do not carry it or my LHBS, I have been Googling it and found only 2 places so far that carry it, any body knows a reputable shop that does on line.

Midwest sells a 275L-325L Light Roast.
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdBySubCat.aspx?SubCat=11161&fd=1
They sell 1/2 lb bags also! Great for those specialty grains. And they crush small quantities for free.

And JZ's recipe is at the end of the color range at 17L. BJCP is 9L-18L, so for you, maybe even 2oz of 450L.
Looking at my color chart, I will be shooting for 12L-14L!