Potatoes in a Brew

[GARYSMIFF]

Hello,

Smiffy here with another off the wall question, I was looking to make another brew some time this week and was thinking of adding 1.5ish KGs of potatoes

I will as usual be using a step mash 40º-55º-66ºish using my RIMS

has any one had any brewdays with pots in and if so with what type Whites, reds, Sweet, new or other?

I dont want the pots to be the main flavor just to add another element to the brew so I can put a tick in the box and say do it again or stay away.

also what do you think Dark, mid or a light beer style?

I wait your disgust at what I am doing or praise of my avant garde approach

[Wolfy]

I'm sure if potatoes made even semi-decent beer its something that would have caught on quickly many (hundreds of) years ago.
Only suggestions I have is to use a white potatoes and mask it with a dark or mild beer, not a light beer.
Or you could use sweet potato and spices to make something like a 'spiced pumpkin' beer which seems something they do in the USA.

[Dr. Dextrin]

My guess would be that potatoes would bring about as much to beer as rice does - i.e. not a lot.

[boingy]

I wait your disgust

Bluuurggghh!


(as requested....)

[oldbloke]

STARCH
Maybe your 55 rest will convert it, if there's enough amylase in your malt, but...

[GARYSMIFF]

Thanks for the Feed back and I will let you know, Wolfy good point dont see a pint of Spud often

[GARYSMIFF]

Beetroot!!!

[far9410]

potatoes are great WITH beer, not in it

[Wolfy]

Beetroot!!!

Raspberrys are much nicer if you want red beer.

I do have some black-rice though, I want to use that in a light-American style lager with the hope of it it turning out some amusing dark colour.

[GARYSMIFF]

I have just ordered some dark Wheat malt, that will make a change to my wheat brews colour.

[basswulf]

Charlie Papazian, in the Joy of Homebrewing, writes:

Potatoes are a cheap and easily gelatinized form of starch. However, their use is discouraged by beer drinkers justifiably or unjustifiably prejudiced against "potato beer." Fermentables produced from potato starch do not contribute significantly to the character or flavour of the beer other than providing fermentables to be converted to alcohol.

Not a glowing endorsement although not out and out disgust either. I'm not sure plain potatoes would be worth it - it might be interesting to see what a coloured variety might do to a light-coloured beer though. I harvested the first of my 'Purple Majesty' crop last night, which have a purple / blue colour throughout which is retained even through cooking. The water does also get stained, so you could conceivably end up with something greenish (blue potato dye and yellow beer).

Wulf