WhiteDog87

Recipes 

I am going to make a Belgian Tripel or Golden Strong Ale this week and I was wondering If any of you out there had any good ideas or recipes to put a little twist on the recipe.

I know that pretty much all of the beers character for this kind of beer comes from the flavorful and aromatic Belgian yeast, so I am looking for any thing else I could add to the beer, that would not throw the flavor out of balance and add a nice subtle complexity to it.

Any ideas or suggestions?

beergolf

Recipes 

The most basic Tripel is 80% pils, 20% sugar, bitter to a .375 BU:GU ratio with 2/3 of the IBU's at 60, 1/3 at 30.

To add a little complexity you can add a little Munich (3-5 %). I also have tried some Turbinado sugar instead of plain white sugar. It adds a subtle difference.

If you add any spices, such as corriander or orange peel, add very little so the flavor is barey noticable. I prefer a simple tripel but that is my taste.

You are right, the yeast is the star, so different yeasts will produce differnt flavor. They all are good, but my favorite is 3787, followed closely by 1214. 3522 is another good one.

sweetcell

Recipes 

in the tripel issue of BYO, they suggested that a tripel could have up to 10% of either munich or wheat - so 70% pils, up to 10% munich or wheat, and 20% sugar. beergolf's earlier suggestion of 80 pils/20 sugar is indeed the more classical tripel recipe.

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What hops should I grow? Hop grower's comparison table

Drinking: Mein Kolsch, Trapped in Amber (Am. imperial brown), Dubbel Down
Fermenting: Not So Random (Belgian) Blond, Cranial Cap DIPA
Aging: Vertical Epic 09.09.09 clone, 09.09.09 2nd runnings w/brett, Farewell to Eurocrats (Chocolate BDSA), Lucky Number Tripel, Saison & On & On w/brett, Midnight in Brussels BDSA w/brett, Breakfast of Champions Stout v2 (~KBS clone)

WhiteDog87

Recipes 

What is Turbinado sugar and what did it add to your beer? (I'll google it lol)

I too enjoy a nice clean simple Tripel, but i plan on entering mine into a competition for mainly Tripels and Golden Strong Ale's, so I wanted to do something to make it stand out.

Have you had any luck with adding citrus?

beergolf

Recipes 

Turbinado is a less refined cane sugar. It is a little darker, so if you are going to enter it into a comp, check the SRM to see if it stays in guidlines. It just adds a subtle difference in the flavor. Hard to explain.

Calder

Recipes 

What does the Turbinado do? I've never used it, just plain sugar.

For the OP: Add Grains of Paradise, Corriander, or orange zest, but as BG noted, it needs to be subtle. If you can tell what it is, it is too much, and the judges might think so too.

Climber

Recipes 

I too was thinking of making Tripel soon. I'd like to have a thick lacy head on it. I know cara-pils or more appropriately the wheat in this recipe will help with head retention. How do you make the tiny bubbles that lace the rim? Skip the protease rest?
Not trying to hijack you White Dog. I'm sure this info can't hurt your recipe.

WhiteDog87

Recipes 

No worries, info never hurts. I think using a good Belgian pils malt helps with the lacing too, along with the wheat you were talking about.

After thinking about it some more I think I may turn my recipe into a "Belgian Specialty Ale" because I want to make something really interesting and unique for this competition, and doing that will probably change the beer so it dosnt fit in the style guidelines. Or hey, I just might make both!!!

bchurch

Recipes 

Spices typically are not used in a Belgian golden strong, so if you add spices, like say corriander which is like a La Chouffe enter it in cat. 16E Belgian specialty.

TripleF

Recipes 

Using Belgian candi sugar makes a difference in taste compared to cane sugar.

Also, as far as a twist, using a small amount of coriander and orange peel (a teaspoon of each in a grain bag) for 5-10 minutes of the boil will add complexity but not overwhelm the recipe.

I use WLP500 or WLP530.