Grumkins and Snarks Oatmeal Stout
Brewed: 1/8/2023 Kegged: 1/16/2023
Late in 2022, I looked through the 2021 version of the BJCP Guidelines and discovered that I'd never really brewed any beer in three of the Categories.

This included the 16. Dark British Beer Category.
I felt like I had to rectify this situation.
Of the beers in the 16. Dark British Beer Category, the one that most interested me to brew was 16B. Oatmeal Stout, and I went ahead and designed a recipe.
A dark, roasty, full-bodied stout with enough sweetness to support the oat backbone. Enough hop bitterness to balance out the malt sweetness.
I included a significant amount of both malted and flaked oats, and earthy Fuggles hops towards the end of the boil to give a little more depth of character.
To read more about the Oatmeal Stout Style of beer, check out it's page on BJCP.
Originally, I thought I'd brew it in time to be drinking this before the New Year, but I ended up not brewing it until January.
Note, I will be brewing something in the other two categories early in 2023. Stay tuned for those on Sheppy's Blog: BJCP Goal.
The name "Grumkins and Snarks" refers to mythical creatures that are mentioned in Game of Thrones. I don't remember adding these to the potential beer names list, so I don't know if I got the name from one of the books or the shows, but when thinking of names for this beer, "Grumkins and Snarks" jumped out at me from the list.
I think the name is pretty cool, and it seems to fit well with a dark beer.
Yum!
On untappd: Grumkins And Snarks Oatmeal Stout

For more about this beer, see Sheppy's Blog: Grumkins
Grumkins and Snarks Oatmeal Stout --- Batch 1 |
Style | Oatmeal Stout | Batch Size | 5.50 gal | |||
Type | All Grain | Boil Size | 6.60 gal | |||
Brewhouse Efficiency | 68.00 | Boil Time | 60 minutes |
Recipe Characteristics
Recipe Gravity | 1.056 SG | Estimated FG | 1.016 SG | ||||
Recipe Bitterness | 29.7 IBUs (Rager) | Alcohol by Volume | 5.3 % | ||||
BU : GU | 0.531 | ||||||
Recipe Color | 35.2 SRM |
|
|||||
Measured OG: | 1.055 | Measured FG: | 1.014 | ||||
ADF: | 74 | Measured ABV: | 5.4 |
Ingredients
Amt | Name | Type | # | %/IBU | Volume |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
8.02 gal | Denver, Colorado | Water | 1 | - | - |
5.00 g | Calcium Chloride (Mash) | Water Agent | 2 | - | - |
2.00 g | Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash) | Water Agent | 3 | - | - |
1.00 g | Baking Soda (Mash) | Water Agent | 4 | - | - |
1.00 g | Chalk (Mash) | Water Agent | 5 | - | - |
8 lbs 4.0 oz | Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) | Grain | 6 | 66.0 % | 0.64 gal |
2 lbs | Golden Naked Oats C15 (15.0 SRM) | Grain | 7 | 16.0 % | 0.16 gal |
1 lbs | Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) | Grain | 8 | 8.0 % | 0.08 gal |
12.0 oz | Chocolate Malt Dark (Proximity) (400.0 SRM) | Grain | 9 | 6.0 % | 0.06 gal |
8.0 oz | Roasted Barley (Proximity) (475.0 SRM) | Grain | 10 | 4.0 % | 0.04 gal |
1.000 oz | Magnum [15.80 %] - Boil 25.0 min | Hop | 11 | 26.0 IBUs | - |
1.00 Items | Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) | Fining | 12 | - | - |
1.000 oz | Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 10.0 min | Hop | 13 | 3.7 IBUs | - |
1.0 pkg | Nottingham (harvested) (Danstar #-) [23.66 ml] | Yeast | 14 | - | - |
Mash Profile
Name | Description | Step Temperature | Step Time |
---|---|---|---|
Saccharification | Add 32.06 qt of water at 159.0 F | 152.0 F | 45 min |
Heat | Heat to 158.0 F over 10 min | 158.0 F | 15 min |
Mash Out | Heat to 170.0 F over 7 min | 170.0 F | 10 min |
If steeping, remove grains,
and prepare to boil wort
Make 6 cup yeast starter a day or two before brew day.
Water salts bring Denver water profile (as defined by BeerSmith) to
Ca=105,Mg=8,Na=30,SO4=87,Cl=103,HCO3=147
Mash as directed.
Boil as directed.
Cool wort to as close to 60F as possible. Ferment in low 60's for a day or two then let the fermentation rise to ambient temp.
Keg after two weeks in fermentor. Force carbonate to taste.
Enjoy!
Brewing Record
Brew Date: | Strike Temp: | |||||
Mash Temps: | ||||||
Pre-boil OG | 1.051 (1.051 SG) | Pre-boil Vol | 7 (6.60 gal) | |||
Actual Mash Efficiency | Pitch Temp | |||||
Fermentation | ||||||
Day 1: | ||||||
Day ... | ||||||
Day ... |
Brewing Notes
1/5/2023 Picked up ingredients from Tom's Brew Shop on Monday. Am planning on making starter Saturday and brewing on Sunday.
1/7/2023 Making a starter from yeast harvested from X-Mas Ale. Really collected a huge amount and based on how it pushed out of mason jar when opened, I don't think I really need a starter. But the wort was made, so I went with it.
1/8/2023 Brewed in the garage today. Got started around 4:30. Basically finished by 9. Cleaned up by 9:30ish. 1.055 OG close enough. Toasted the oats before adding them. Not sure I did them long enough to really affect the flavor.
1/10/2023 Tilt says 1.019 at 71 degrees. Bubbling seems to have pretty much stopped.
1/12/2023 Tilt says 1.016 at 67F. Took a little sample. Not as dark as I thought it would be. Flavor seems nice. Might keg this weekend.
1/13/2023 Tilt says 1.015 at 66F.
1/16/2023 Kegged. Great flavor on the sample. I was thinking the color would be a bit darker, but that's ok. 1.014 FG is about perfect. 5.4% abv. 74% adf
1/18/2023 Tried a pint or two from the kegerator. Wonderful smooth rich coffee and dark chocolate flavor. Not much hop flavor. I'm actually pretty happy with the color in a pint glass. Carbonation is close. This might be the best tasting stout I've ever had.
1/27/2023 Really been enjoying this beer. Love it.
2/11/2023 Pairs great with my birthday ice cream. Great coffee and dark chocolate flavor.
2/17/2023 Did I mention that this is probably my favorite stout I've ever tasted? Well it might be.
2/26/2023 Brought some up to my travel brew day at Du's Brewery. Wasn't as big a hit as Doodle Bop, but people liked it too.
3/19/2023 Still tasting wonderful. As I've mentioned... Probably my favorite stout ever.
3/31/2023 Killed the keg. Makes room for No Drums, which makes sense to replace one black beer with another. Loved this beer.
1/5/2023 Picked up ingredients from Tom's Brew Shop on Monday. Am planning on making starter Saturday and brewing on Sunday.
1/7/2023 Making a starter from yeast harvested from X-Mas Ale. Really collected a huge amount and based on how it pushed out of mason jar when opened, I don't think I really need a starter. But the wort was made, so I went with it.
1/8/2023 Brewed in the garage today. Got started around 4:30. Basically finished by 9. Cleaned up by 9:30ish. 1.055 OG close enough. Toasted the oats before adding them. Not sure I did them long enough to really affect the flavor.
1/10/2023 Tilt says 1.019 at 71 degrees. Bubbling seems to have pretty much stopped.
1/12/2023 Tilt says 1.016 at 67F. Took a little sample. Not as dark as I thought it would be. Flavor seems nice. Might keg this weekend.
1/13/2023 Tilt says 1.015 at 66F.
1/16/2023 Kegged. Great flavor on the sample. I was thinking the color would be a bit darker, but that's ok. 1.014 FG is about perfect. 5.4% abv. 74% adf
1/18/2023 Tried a pint or two from the kegerator. Wonderful smooth rich coffee and dark chocolate flavor. Not much hop flavor. I'm actually pretty happy with the color in a pint glass. Carbonation is close. This might be the best tasting stout I've ever had.
1/27/2023 Really been enjoying this beer. Love it.
2/11/2023 Pairs great with my birthday ice cream. Great coffee and dark chocolate flavor.
2/17/2023 Did I mention that this is probably my favorite stout I've ever tasted? Well it might be.
2/26/2023 Brought some up to my travel brew day at Du's Brewery. Wasn't as big a hit as Doodle Bop, but people liked it too.
3/19/2023 Still tasting wonderful. As I've mentioned... Probably my favorite stout ever.
3/31/2023 Killed the keg. Makes room for No Drums, which makes sense to replace one black beer with another. Loved this beer.