Brewing Porter at home

Name: Brewing Porter at home
Yield: 20 L
Ingredients: 4.27 kg Pale ale malt; 0.45 kg Light Munich malt; 0.42 kg Chocolate malt; 0.40 kg Caramunich II; 0.14 kg Roasted barley; 38 g East Kent Goldings; 24 g Fuggle; SafAle S-04: 10–16 g (0.35–0.56 oz) for 20 L (about 5.3 gal) (50–80 g/hl)

Dark with chocolate, coffee and caramel.

Base recipe for 20 litres (5.3 gal), calculated with the Brauwerkstatt beer creator. With one click you can adapt it to your batch size, bitterness, colour or alcohol content.

Adapt in the beer creator

Typical figures

Alcohol	4.8–6.5 %
Bitterness	25–40 IBU
Colour	60–90 EBC (30–46 SRM)
Carbonation	4.5 g/l (2.3 vol)
Yeast	SafAle S-04 (top-fermenting)
Fermentation temperature	17–20 °C (63–68 °F)
Brewing water	harder, for dark beers

Recipe for 20 litres (5.3 gal)

Original gravity: 13.4 °P (SG 1.054)
5.5 % vol
32 IBU
70 EBC (35.5 SRM)
Final gravity: 3.5 °P (SG 1.014)

Grain bill

Pale ale malt	4.27 kg (9.41 lb)	75 %
Light Munich malt	449 g (15.8 oz)	8 %
Chocolate malt	421 g (14.9 oz)	7 %
Caramunich II	399 g (14.1 oz)	7 %
Roasted barley	140 g (4.9 oz)	2 %

Hops

East Kent Goldings 5.5 % α	38 g (1.34 oz)	60 min
Fuggle 4.5 % α	24 g (0.85 oz)	15 min

Yeast

SafAle S-04: 10–16 g (0.35–0.56 oz) for 20 L (about 5.3 gal) (50–80 g/hl)

Mash schedule

68 °C (154 °F) · 60 min

Brewing water

Mash water	20.0 L (5.28 gal)
Sparge water	10.0 L (2.64 gal)
Total water	30.0 L (7.93 gal)

Brewing steps

Clean and sanitise everything that touches the wort after the boil.
Measure out 30 L (about 7.9 gal) of water and treat it with the brewing-water calculator. Dark beers cope well with harder water; aim for a mash pH of 5.3–5.5.
Split the water: mash water 20 L (about 5.3 gal), sparge water 10 L (about 2.6 gal).
Heat the mash water to 71 °C (160 °F) and mash in 4.27 kg (9.4 lb) Pale ale malt, 0.45 kg (0.99 lb) Light Munich malt, 0.42 kg (0.93 lb) Chocolate malt, 0.4 kg (0.88 lb) Caramunich II and 0.14 kg (0.31 lb) Roasted barley (gives about 68 °C / 154 °F).
Rest: 68 °C (154 °F), 60 min. Iodine test at the end: no blue colour = starch converted.
Measure mash pH 10–15 min after mashing in (cool the sample to 20 °C / 68 °F). Target 5.4–5.5.
Mash out: heat to 78 °C (172 °F) and hold for 10 min.
Rest 10–20 min, lauter slowly and sparge with 10 L (about 2.6 gal) water at 78 °C (172 °F).
Boil the wort for 60 min. At the start of the boil add 38 g (1.3 oz) East Kent Goldings.
15 min before the end of the boil add 24 g (0.85 oz) Fuggle.
10 min before the end of the boil add Irish moss (about 2 g / 0.07 oz, soaked beforehand).
After the boil stir a whirlpool and let it rest for 15 min.
Chill to 17 °C (63 °F), measure original gravity (target 13.4 °P), run 20 L (about 5.3 gal) into the fermenter, aerate well and pitch the SafAle S-04 (amount see yeast).
Primary fermentation 7–10 days at 17–20 °C (63–68 °F).
Measure final gravity (target about 3.5 °P). Priming sugar per bottle from the carbonation calculator (target 4.5 g/l), then bottle.
Bottle-condition for 2 weeks at room temperature, then keep cool.

Notes

Created with the beer creator (brewhouse efficiency 70 %, final gravity about 3.5 °P).