Belgian Honey Blonde-- Please Critique

pa-in-utah · 04-28-2007, 06:34 AM

Went to the LHBS and this is what we came up with..... What is your opinion??

1 lb German 2-row Pils
1/2 lb German Light Crystal
1/8 lb Honey Malt
3.3 lbs Light LME
1 lb light DME
3 lb Honey for 15 min
1 oz Fuggles for 50 min
1/2 oz Saaz for 20 min
1/2 oz Sazz for 1 min
1/2 oz Sweet Orange peel for 15 min
WLP 400 Belgian WIT yeast

OG 1.059
FG 1.013
Approx ABV- 5.9%
21 IBU
4.6 SRM

Should I use a starter since the OG is fairly high? Let me know what you think.

pa-in-utah · 04-29-2007, 02:36 AM

Any advice....... What do you guys think??

**BierMuncher** · 04-29-2007, 02:40 AM

Looks pretty good. Between the honey and the wit yeast, be prepared for a lengthy primary.

Remember that the wit yeast has a tendency to beach itself on your fermeter wall and especially with a high sugar additive like honey, you'll need to keep that yeast swirled down off the walls.

Sounds like a nice mild dare-I-say slightly fruity recipe. When are you brewing?

pa-in-utah · 04-29-2007, 03:11 AM

I have to empty my primary first.......I am brewing on cinco de brewo..... Next Saturady. I expect 2-3 weeks in the primary. Should I "agitate" the yeast from time to time??

I am going to secondary prior to bottling.

Do you think the orange is "too much"??? That was a last minute "little kick". I think it will be a nice change.

pa-in-utah · 04-29-2007, 05:32 PM

hate to keep posting my own thread...... BUT..... Looking for advice and guidance on this recipe.

BierMuncher, I appreciate your input and I value your knowledge, thank you!! Keep the excellent posts coming for us!!

Professor Frink · 04-29-2007, 06:26 PM

I think the orange peel will be a nice addition. For my first dozen brews or so, I didn't use a starter, but once I did, I do one every time now. I wouldn't expect you'll need to agitate the yeast, once those puppies start going, they'll take care of themselves.

**BierMuncher** · 04-29-2007, 08:42 PM

I agree with XC.
The orange will do nicely with a Belgian.

Keep an eye on your fermenter walls. If you start to see thick krausen that looks like pudding up there... give the fermenter a slight swirl back and forth to wash it back down.

I do that regularly now with any Belgian wit yeast I use. It really helps the fermentation stay at its peak. Otherwise, you'll loose enough yeast to the walls that the fermentation may slow down.

cool brew · 05-02-2007, 12:32 AM

Did you already brew it? I am doing something similar. Here is my recipe.

Amount Item Type % or IBU
4 lbs Light Dry Extract (8.0 SRM) Dry Extract 37.2 %
2 lbs Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 18.6 %
2 lbs Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 18.6 %
1.00 oz UK Fuggles [4.00%] (60 min) Hops 13.7 IBU
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [4.00%] (30 min) Hops 10.5 IBU
1 Cinimon stick (9 min)
1.00 oz UK Fuggles [4.00%] (7 min) Hops 3.7 IBU
0.50 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (Boil 7.0 min) Misc
1 lbs 12.0 oz Honey (1.0 SRM) Sugar 16.3 %
1 lbs Candi Sugar, Clear (0.5 SRM) Sugar 9.3 %
1 Pkgs Belgian Ale (Wyeast Labs #1214) Yeast-Ale
-----------------------
Measured Original Gravity: 1.070 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.017 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 6.9 %
Bitterness: 27.9 IBU
Est Color: 6.8 SRM

It is a bit darker than the style allows, but I'm not doing any comps yet so I should be fine... As far as these recipes go, I think we have something veryt similar. Can you smell orange in your primary? Mine has no scent of orange, and I may end up throwing in a whole orange cut in half when I transfer to the secondary (I'm primary fermenting for 10 days to make sure the honeyferments right). Do you thinkthe whole orange is a good or bad idea? Lets keep eachother posted on how these are going. I'll send you a bottle if you send me one, lol.

pa-in-utah · 05-02-2007, 05:38 AM

[QUOTE= I'll send you a bottle if you send me one, lol.[/QUOTE]

I can always mail a "glass ornament".... I am brewing on Saturday. Our recipes do look similiar. Where did your recipe come from? Mine was on a wim at the LHBS. Had an idea and hope I make a good brew!!! Goodluck with the cinnamon stick.

I will keep you posted.

cool brew · 05-02-2007, 11:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pa-in-utah

Goodluck with the cinnamon stick.

Yeah, just experimenting a bit. I did the same as you, just went to the HBS and started buying. It came out to 50$, pretty expensive recipe. Let me know if you get a lot of orange aromas, because although I don't want it to overwhelm the beer, I do want some Orange in there.

Well good luck to you and