Med Bag of Chips

Ham, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, and arugula.

Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, and mustard in a whole wheat wrap.

Fit Turkey Wrap

A Frankenstein of their ever popular Oatmeal Stout made with Chocolate. (6.2 ABV)

Heat 4.5 gallons of mash water to ~168°F (to achieve a target mash temp of 152°F). Adjust water salts beforehand if desired to target a balanced malt and roast profile.

Heat strike water

Add the crushed Maris Otter, flaked oats, crystal malt, roasted barley, chocolate malt, and Carafa Special II to the mash tun. Stir thoroughly to avoid dough balls and evenly hydrate the grains. Target mash temperature: 152°F (67°C).

Mash in

Hold the mash at 152°F for 60 minutes to ensure good conversion and a medium-bodied oatmeal stout mouthfeel. Perform a 10-minute mashout at 168°F or raise temp before lautering to improve runnability.

Mash rest

Sparge with enough water to collect approximately 6.5–7.0 gallons of wort in the kettle (adjust for system losses) at around 168°F. Aim for an original gravity ~1.058–1.062 for ~6.2% ABV after fermentation and attenuation.

Sparge

Bring the wort to a vigorous boil and start a 60-minute timed boil.

Boil

Add Northern Brewer hops at 60 minutes remaining in the boil for bittering. This addition provides a clean, firm bitterness to balance the malt and chocolate notes.

Bittering hop addition

If using lactose for additional sweetness and body, add the lactose at 15 minutes left in the boil. Dissolve lactose in a small amount of wort or add directly — it will not ferment and will increase final sweetness and mouthfeel.

Lactose addition (optional)

At 10–15 minutes remaining in the boil, whisk in the unsweetened natural cocoa powder. To avoid clumping, make a slurry with a cup of warm wort or water before adding. This gives a robust cocoa character without being greasy.

Cocoa powder addition

With 5 minutes left, add the chopped Belgian dark chocolate and split vanilla bean (scraped seeds plus pod). Stir to melt the chocolate and integrate the vanilla. Note: adding chocolate in the kettle carries a small risk of scorching — ensure good agitation or consider adding chocolate in secondary/on conditioning (see notes).

Vanilla and chocolate

Add East Kent Goldings (or Fuggle) at 5 minutes left to contribute subtle earthy/aromatic hop balance that complements the roasted and chocolate flavors.

Late aroma hops

At the end of the boil, chill the wort quickly to yeast-pitching temperature (around 66–68°F / 19–20°C) using an immersion chiller, counterflow chiller, or ice bath. Remove as much trub and hop material as practicable when transferring to the fermenter.

Cool wort

Aerate the wort well (shake, oxygenate, or use pure O2) and pitch the English/Irish ale yeast. Target primary fermentation temperature: 66–68°F (19–20°C).

Pitch yeast

Allow fermentation to proceed for 7–10 days or until activity slows and specific gravity approaches the expected FG (~1.014–1.016 if lactose used; ~1.010–1.014 without lactose).

Primary fermentation

Rack to a secondary fermenter or transfer to a keg after primary fermentation has subsided (~7–10 days). Add an additional 1–2 oz of melted dark chocolate (sterilized by heating to 160°F) and/or a split vanilla bean for 5–10 days of conditioning to deepen chocolate and vanilla aromatics without excessive vegetal or burnt notes. Alternatively, if you added all chocolate during the boil and are happy with flavor, skip this step.

Secondary chocolate/vanilla conditioning (recommended)

After conditioning, cold crash to near-freezing for 24–48 hours to clarify. Then prime and bottle with ~3.5 oz of priming sugar for 5 gallons (or force-carbonate in a keg to ~2.2–2.4 volumes CO2).

Cold crash & carbonation

Allow bottles to condition at 65–70°F for 2–3 weeks to carbonate and let flavors meld. If kegging, allow 3–7 days after force-carbonation for flavors to integrate. Cellar for additional 2–4 weeks if desired for smoother integration of chocolate and roast notes.

Maturation

Serve slightly cool (50–55°F / 10–13°C) in a tulip or nonic pint to highlight chocolate and roasted aromas. Expect a full, smooth mouthfeel from oats and lactose with pronounced chocolate/cocoa and roasted barley notes. ABV ~6.2% depending on efficiency and attenuation.

Serving

Maris Otter Pale Malt (crushed)

Flaked Oats

Roasted Barley

Chocolate Malt

Carafa Special II (dehusked black malt) or Midnight Wheat

Crystal/Caramel 80L

Natural Cocoa Powder (unsweetened)

Belgian Dark Chocolate (70% cacao), chopped

Lactose (milk sugar) — optional for mouthfeel/sweetness

Vanilla Beans, split

Northern Brewer (bittering)

East Kent Goldings (aroma/finish) or Fuggle

English/Irish Ale Yeast (Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale or White Labs WLP004)

Water (adjusted to moderate hardness; sulfate/chloride ratio ~1:1)

Priming Sugar (for bottling) or CO2 for kegging

Count Shakula- Green Room Brewing, FL

Make Count Shakula- Green Room Brewing, FL Recipe in just 19h 10m. A Frankenstein of their ever popular Oatmeal Stout made with Chocolate. (6.2 ABV)

Count Shakula- Green Room Brewing, FL

Descriptors

Tasting Notes

Food Pairings

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