Below are the notes I jotted down during the entire process.

LIGHT CARAMEL MALTS

Caramel 10L:

Dry Grain Analysis

-Aroma: Baked sweet goods, Nature Valley™ granola bars, gives an impression of trail mix-like sweetness.

-Taste: Candy bar/malt ball sweetness (nothing too cloying)

Grain Tea

-Not overtly sweet. Biscuit and granola bar character present. Sweetness associated with base malts still distinguishable.

Caramel 20L:

Dry Grain Analysis

-Aroma: Similar to Crystal 10 (baked sweet goods, granola) but more pronounced–gestures towards an elevated sweetness in flavor.

-Taste: That candy bar/malt ball sweetness was again present, but more prominent–not cloying though. Slight artificial sweetener character but not offensive.

Grain Tea

-More pronounced sweetness than Caramel 10 but had a mild candy-like caramel flavor that was absent in its predecessor.

Caramel 40L:

Dry Grain Analysis

-Aroma: Caramel and toffee elements are apparent while retaining less "graininess" than C10 or C20.

-Taste: Artificial sweetener. More prominent "caramel" flavor akin to Werther's Original Hard Candies. Has a very synthetic element to it.

Grain Tea

-Surprisingly very different than chewing on the grain! The sweetness is much richer–almost toffee-like. Saccharine element has more depth yet a surprisingly "cleaner" tasting sweetness than C10 and C20. Little artificial sweetener character present.

DARK CARAMEL MALTS

Caramel 120L

Dry Grain Analysis

-Aroma: Scent associated with the sweetness of a freshly-baked chocolate cookie. Faint toffee/burnt sugar elements.

-Taste: Chocolate-like sweetness, candy bar. Hints of caramel/toffee, less discernibly so than in the C40 malt.

Grain Tea

- Milk chocolate sweetness, hot cocoa. Surprisingly little to no dark fruit qualities.

Caramel 150L

Dry Grain Analysis

-Aroma: Raisin, fig, hints of black licorice (all very artificial).

-Taste: Artificial raspberry flavoring, raisin, fruited syrup within a chocolate truffle.

Grain Tea

- Cheap red wine, artificial raspberry flavoring, raisin (all very astringent).

Special B

Dry Grain Analysis

-Aroma: Rounder dark fruit aroma, soft elements of chocolate.

-Taste: Delicate yet rich raisin fruitiness. Chocolate notes present yet devoid of any roasty elements.

Grain Tea

- Softer mouthfeel than darker Caramel Malts. Rounded dark fruit flavors with a faint chocolate finish.

Overall Impressions:

LIGHT CARAMEL MALTS

Caramel 10L: Chewing and smelling the dry grain gives a very pleasant, approachable sweetness–one that would nicely accent the malt bill of several hop-forward pale beers. However, simply using 1.5 ounces in a tea did not properly express that unique aspect of the grain. From personal experience, using this malt in several Pale Ales and IPAs, I've had to increase the percentage of Caramel 10 (to about 3-4% of the grist bill) in order to accentuate that unique sweetness.

Caramel 20L: I was pleasantly surprised how prominent the sweetness was in this grain without obvious artificial sweetener elements. Although I'm usually cautious of using it in my hoppy pale beers altogether, I may have to reconsider using C20 at a lower percentage. When too much is used, it almost tastes as if a Sweet'N Low packet was accidentally dropped into the glass. However, with the appropriate amount, the sweetness that it imparts could really underline any citrusy or tropical fruity notes provided by the hops.

Caramel 40L: Such a big jump from Caramel 20. The richness was MUCH more pronounced than C10 or C20. Regardless of the percentage, it's likely too much for sweetness for an American Pale or low-strength IPA. However, the saccharine character would beautifully boost several grain-based flavors found in brown ales, porters, and stouts.

DARK CARAMEL MALTS

Caramel 120L: Of the dark malts, this was easily the sweetest. However, it was a chocolatey-sweetness, making it a great companion to any roasted malt with chocolate-forward characteristics. Additionally, I couldn't detect any overt dark fruit character–a trait that some find unpleasant and actively try to avoid when brewing dark ales. Furthermore, If combining caramel malts within a single recipe, I could see C120 playing well with C40 in a chocolate-forward brown ale or stout.

Caramel 150L: I'm not sure if this was just a bad bag or personally find something aversive with the grain, but I'll likely avoid it in the future. The artificial character was integrated with every flavor present.

Special B®: Compared to C150, this malt had much more authentic and resonant dark fruit character. The flavors had smoother edges and a less astringent mouthfeel. Just from the grain tea, you can tell that Special B® has versatility– it's able to contribute dark fruit, toffee-like sweetness and chocolate-like qualities without being overly garish. It would work well as the only caramel malt used in a dark ale or along with C40 and/or C120, giving it more depth to it's flavors.