#2 Coconut Stout

Wiper and True, Bristol

Partnering with North Brewing Co meant doubling down on the dark magic of stouts, combining the Leeds powerhouse’s expertise in adjuncts with our house approach to a beautifully nuanced, layered malt base. It was a joy to host Sam, North’s Production Manager, on a frosty brew day in January.

The two founders of North and Wiper and True were both dead-set on brewing a mushroom stout, but the more sensible team members at both breweries swiftly vetoed this. With Christian and Michael deflected, we quickly decided upon a rich, full-bodied stout recipe that’s all about coconut. 30kg of toasted coconut flakes were selected, to add complex caramelised sugars and nuttiness to a rich, dark malt bill. Amping up the coconut further, we also added 10kg of coconut flour to the boil. Produced by processing the flesh of coconut once the milk has been extracted, coconut flour brings further layers of sweet, gentle nuttiness, almost reminiscent of chocolate. Next up: hops. You can’t create a coconut beer without thinking about the famously divisive varietal Sabro. Both the teams at North and Wiper and True are fans of this hop when used carefully, and so we opted for 10kg of T-90 Sabro pellets in the whirlpool, to retain a slight edge of bitterness and avoid cloying sweetness. A litre of vanilla extract rounded everything off, creating a big, rich beer with a really enjoyable mouthfeel and bags of adjunct-fuelled flavour fun