If you have brewed a few batches already and want to try Dry Stout, this is a straightforward, all-grain route to it. The backbone is Pale Malt, with East Kent Golding 5.5% doing most of the work in the boil.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Dry Stout |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.044-1.060 |
| Final Gravity | 1.010-1.016 |
| ABV | 4.5-6.0% |
| IBU | 30-45 |
| SRM | 30-40 (opaque black) |
| Difficulty | Intermediate (all-grain) |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Pale Malt, at a steady temperature to build the fermentable sugars this style needs. Sparge slowly so you do not lose efficiency. |
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2
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Boil · ~60-90 min Bring the wort to a boil and work through the hop schedule, starting with East Kent Golding 5.5%. This is also where you will add any fining agent for a clearer finished beer. |
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3
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Ferment · 18C (64F) Pitch Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale once the wort has cooled to fermentation temperature and hold it steady. Primary fermentation is the most active week, do not rush it. |
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4
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Condition · 4 weeks at 12C (54F) Rack to secondary (or leave in primary if your recipe calls for it) and let the beer round out at a cool, steady temperature. This step does more for the final flavor than people expect. |
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5
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Package · 1 day, then wait Bottle or keg once gravity has held steady for a few days in a row. Give it time to carbonate and, for bigger styles, additional time to mellow before your first taste. |
That’s the shape of brew day and the weeks after it. For the exact grain bill, hop schedule, and full step-by-step instructions with amounts, use the recipe card below.
What You Will Need
Sourcing your own ingredients locally is always fine, but if you want to skip a homebrew store trip, here is what’s in stock in our shop right now:
- Base and specialty grain: Grains & Adjuncts (e.g. Briess 2- Row Brewers Malt 1.8L – 10 lb)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Amarillo Pellet Hops 3 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. Voss Kveik Ale Yeast – 11 g (Pack of 5))
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. FastRack Drilled Rubber Stopper (#10-3 Pieces))
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Brewmaster – AD310 Corn Sugar (lb))
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. 12.5Ft. Wort Chiller with Copper Coil)
- Pour it right when it’s ready: a tulip glass shows off the color and holds the aroma better than a straight pint glass
Serve It Right
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A Dry Stout is best served in a pint or tulip, it fits the body and carbonation of this style better than a straight pint glass. Here is one from our shop: |
Ingredients & Gear for This Batch
Grain / Adjuncts |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter FASTFERMENT Floor Stand for FastFerment 7.9 Gallon Conical Fermenter |
Priming Sugar Corn Sugar (Dextrose) priming sugar for beer brewing 4 Pounds |
Equipment |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Dry Stout
Equipment
- 1 Large pot or kettle
- 1 Mash tun or large strainer
- 1 Thermometer
- 1 Fermentation vessel (e.g. carboy or bucket)
- 1 Airlock
- 1 Bottles or keg for conditioning
- 1 Bottle capper (if using bottles)
- 1 Auto-siphon or tubing for transferring beer
- 1 Hydrometer for measuring specific gravity (optional but recommended)
- 1 Digital scale for weighing ingredients
- 1 Cleaning and sanitizing supplies (e.g. PBW, Star San)
Ingredients
For the Mash – Liquor 12 Litres (21 Pints) – Mash Time 1 hr – Temperature 67°c/153 °F
- 8.6 lb Pale Malt Quantity 3.8kg
- 1.2 oz Flaked Barley Quantity 500g
- 1 lb Roasted Barley Quantity 450g
- 3½ oz Chocolate Malt Quantity 100g
For the Boil – 27 Litres (47½ Pints) – Boil Time 1 hr – 10 mins
- 2 oz (Hops) East Kent Golding 5.5% When to add – At start of boil (IBU 37.9)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other – When to add – For last 15 mins of boil
To Ferment – 18°C (64°F) – Conditioning 4 weeks at 12°C (54°F)
- 1 Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale
Instructions
- Heat 12 liters (21 pints) of water in a large pot or kettle to 67°C/153°F. This will be used for the mash.
- Add the pale malt, flaked barley, roasted barley, and chocolate malt to the mash tun or a large strainer.
- Pour the hot water over the grains and stir to ensure they are fully submerged. Let the mixture steep for 1 hour at a constant temperature of 67°C/153°F.
- After the mash, heat 27 liters (47.5 pints) of water in the pot or kettle to a rolling boil.
- Add the East Kent Golding hops at the start of the boil and let it boil for 1 hour.
- Add the Protofloc during the last 15 minutes of the boil.
- After the boil, cool the wort to 18°C (64°F).
- Transfer the cooled wort to a fermentation vessel, and pitch the Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale yeast.
- Seal the vessel with an airlock and let it ferment for 28 days at a constant temperature of 18°C (64°F).
- After fermentation, transfer the beer to a secondary fermenter (optional) and let it condition for 4 weeks at 12°C (54°F).
- Bottle or keg the beer and let it carbonate for 5 weeks at room temperature.
- After carbonation, the beer is ready to drink.
Get the fermentation temperature right on Dry Stout and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Dry Stout the Style It Is
Dry Stout sits in a well-established style family, and the version most homebrewers land on today reflects decades of small adjustments by brewers chasing balance rather than novelty.
Expect a beer that leans on pale malt and east kent golding 5.5% once it is finished conditioning. Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale is the yeast strain behind that profile, so keep an eye on your fermentation temperature.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 4.5-6.0%
- Bitterness: 30-45 IBU
- Color: 30-40 (opaque black)
- Serving temp: 50-55F (10-13C)
- Glassware: a pint or tulip
- Food pairings: oysters, red meat stews, chocolate desserts
Common Questions
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes, the grain bill and hop schedule scale linearly with batch size. Just make sure your equipment, mash tun and boil kettle both, can actually handle the volume you are scaling to.
What is the biggest mistake homebrewers make with this style?
Rushing the schedule. Pulling a beer off yeast too early or skipping conditioning time is the most common way to shortchange a recipe like this one.
Can I substitute a different yeast strain?
You can, but expect the flavor profile to shift. Stick close to the same yeast family (English ale, American ale, Belgian, lager, etc.) if you want a result close to what this recipe is aiming for.
Keep Exploring
Once you have this one down, here are a few more homebrew recipes worth trying next:
Browse the full homebrew recipe collection for more styles, or if you are just getting into the hobby, start with one of our homebrewing starter kits for new brewers.
This recipe is for adults of legal drinking age. Please brew and drink responsibly, and always sanitize your equipment thoroughly to avoid infection.
