Shadow Warrior!

In November 2008, I brewed a beer called Black Wine from Zymurgy. Here's the recipe I brewed.

The first few months, I was unimpressed, and when I bottled it, I thought it was far too sweet, and even jokingly referred to it as breakfast beer--something you could pour over pancakes.

Early this year, I stumbled across the last twelve bottles in my beer fridge, and Satan found a couple of bottles I had given him in his fridge. Color us impressed! The beer had changed into something resembling an Imperial Oatmeal Stout. Satan drank one, and suggested I change the name to Shadow Warrior, 'cause it'll kick your ass! I agreed. My 12 bottle stash has quickly dwindled to three bottles, and I knew it was time to rebrew a beer I swore I would never brew again.

I made a couple of modifications to the recipe. I increased the grain bill and reduced the amount of DME. Before, I had avoided roast barley, afraid it would be too roasty. But the roast would have helped cut the sweetness, so this time I am adding roast barley.

Here's the new recipe:

Shadow Warrior
6 gallons | 60% efficiency | 1.118 OG | 80.8 IBUs

7# Extra Light DME
10# US 2-row pale malt
1.5# Carafa III
1# flaked barley
1# flaked oats
.75# chocolate malt
.5# black patent
.25# flaked wheat
.25 oz Northern Brewer 8.5%/FWH
1 oz Chinook 13%/90
2 oz Northern Brewer 8.5%/90
.75 oz Northern Brewer 8.5%/30
.5 oz Mt. Hood 6%/30
1 oz Northern Brewer 8.5%/5
1.5 oz Mt. Hood 6%/0
1.5# corn sugar/secondary .5# Turbinado sugar/secodary
WLP002

Mash at 148°F for 75 minutes. I brewed an oatmeal stout as a starter for this beer. And I plan to also pitch the yeast from the recently brewed Dirktastic to try and get this thing down.