At Hive Mind, we’ve always believed that the best products come from collaboration. That’s why, when the opportunity arose to join forces with our friends at Rave Coffee, we jumped at the chance to create something special: A rich, velvety stout layered with our honey and Rave’s signature coffee.
We are huge fans of dark beers here, and regularly brew a delicious heavy Smoked Honey Porter, we wanted to make something a bit more light and sessionable, and after having consumed a lot of Coffee from Rave, we thought this would be the perfect addition and showcase two wonderful ingredients together.
We wanted a stout that was dark and roasty, layered, and comforting, just like a coffee. We knew the right coffee would lift those honeyed notes and bring depth to the brew. That's where Rave Coffee came in. Their freshly roasted beans of their signature blend offered the perfect balance of sweetness and bitterness, with aromas that could stand up to the richness of stout.
For the brew we started with a base of dark malts to give that classic stout richness. Think chocolate, caramel, and roasted grain. Into this, we layered in whole rolled oats and rye during the mash to create a rounded smoothness. In total 7 different malts are in this recipe!
We then added two different hops: Cascade and Hallertau Blanc. These are often used on quite hop-forward IPA beers, but we wanted something to impart some zesty freshness to the beer so it was not too heavy. These hops impart flavours like grapefruit, floral spice, and light pine.
The honey was added later in the brew, preserving its delicate floral character while adding a natural, mellow sweetness that balances the roast. Finally, Rave Coffee’s freshly ground beans were steeped post-fermentation to lock in those vibrant, aromatic coffee flavours without bitterness taking over. We used a blend of ground and whole beans to gather as much flavour as possible from the coffee
Coffee and dark beer have always been best friends as the roasted malt and coffee share similar flavour profiles. Add in honey and oats, and you get a gentle sweetness that bridges the roast and bitterness, giving a rounded, moreish finish.
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