The holidays are a good time to give the gift of beer. Specialty beers are the best kind to give as gifts. With help from our friends at OliveNation, we brewed up a Chocolate Milk Stout using cacao nibs and lactose. In this post and video, we provide the recipe and our thoughts of the beer.

You can see the reflection of the iPhone in this glass of Chocolate Milk Stout

Recipe Details

Let’s get to the recipe. I lifted most of it from Northern Brewer, but I needed to use 6 pounds of liquid malt extract (LME) that was sent to me by mistake from my local homebrew shop (LHBS). Homebrewers have to problem solve all the time. My solution is delicious, just so you know.

OliveNation Milk Chocolate Stout

5 US Gallon Batch

WATER

Tap Water treated with a Campden Tablet

GRAINS & EXTRACT

6 pounds of Pilsen Liquid Malt Extract (LME)

2 pounds Rahr Pale Malt (907 g)
0.75 pounds. Fawcett Pale Chocolate Malt (340 g)
0.25 pounds. English Extra Dark Crystal (113 g)
0.75 pounds. Weyermann Carafa III (340 g)

SPECIAL INGREDIENTS

1 pound of lactose
4 ounces of Cacao Nibs soaked in 10 ounces of vodka added at kegging

HOPS

1 ounce (28 g) of Nugget Hops at 15.3% AA for 60 minutes

YEAST

1 packet of Safale S-04

Mini-mashed the grains at 150 °F (66 °C) for 60 minutes in 2.5 US gallons (9.5 L) of water. Add wort to 4 US gallons (15 L) of water and LME in kettle and boiled for 60 minutes.
Fermented 2 weeks at 68°F (20° C)

Original Gravity: 1.072
Final Gravity: 1.025
ABV: 6.17%

Chocolate Milk Stout Tasting Notes

The appearance of stout is black. None more black, one may say. It’s dark. There does not seem to be any highlight. The head is dark brown and thick.

The aroma hints at some chocolate goodness that awaits in the first sip. We detected some dark fruits and sugars. Mike got some smoke notes too.

The taste has chocolate notes and some caramel sweetness. There is a lack of roast. Without roasted barley, the flavors are a bit different in this stout.

The lactose is bringing a full mouthfeel. This beer is a sipper – just the right pint to have at the end of the day in front of a fire.

Thanks to our friends at OliveNation. They have been kind to us over the years and sent us the Cacao nibs to use in this recipe. You can browse all of their brewing flavorings and ingredients.

BREW ON!