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**DubbelDach** · 09-29-2009, 03:08 PM

Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: WLP320
Yeast Starter: Yes
Batch Size (Gallons): 5
Original Gravity: 1.049
Final Gravity: 1.012
IBU: 11.7
Boiling Time (Minutes): 60
Color: 3.06
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 1 week @ 65F
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 2 weeks @ 65F
Tasting Notes: Yes, you can use watermelon juice and it retains flavor!

5 lbs. German 2-row Pils
4 lbs. German White Wheat Malt

0.5 oz. Mt. Hood (Pellets, 5.00 %AA) boiled 60 min.

1 lbs. Wildflower Honey
4 cups Watermelon Juice (fresh squeezed, not pasteurized, added to 2ndary)

1 vial. White Labs WLP320 American Hefeweizen Ale

Pictures of adding fresh pressed watermelon juice then racking beer on top.

This beer definitely retained watermelon flavor... Don't let anyone tell you that there's too much water in watermelon. It was awesome.

FishinDave07 · 09-29-2009, 03:59 PM

Simple, I love it. On a scale of 1-10; 1 being non-existant, 10 being IN-YOUR-FACE!!! how is the flavor and aroma?

*Subscribed* and soon to brew!

cercueil · 09-29-2009, 04:04 PM

Just curious..Why the honey?

**DubbelDach** · 09-29-2009, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FishinDave07

Simple, I love it. On a scale of 1-10; 1 being non-existant, 10 being IN-YOUR-FACE!!! how is the flavor and aroma?

I'd say 5-6? It's there, but it's not a wine cooler. Definitely still a beer. Definitely noticable that it's watermelon as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cercueil

Just curious..Why the honey?

Started out as me adjusting my Orange Honey Hefe recipe... Changed a few things here and there. Knowing a little more about honey, sugar, and fermenting now than I did then, I'd probably go 5 lbs pils, 5 lbs wheat and ditch the honey next time.

But since this is how I last proven-brewed it, that's how I listed it.

homebrewer_99 · 09-29-2009, 08:55 PM

Nostalgia and I shared a couple of his WW last week.

Very similar recipe, but I don't remember him mentioning honey.

The melon flavor was there and tasted good, but so was a greenish pithy odor on top that could have come from the white part of the melon of the hops. We weren't sure.

But in any case very much worth the while...I tried to find some watermelon today without any luck.

Issius · 10-03-2009, 05:22 PM

I did a similar recipe to this and bottling is coming up in a few days. I added 4 cups of watermelon juice (diluted with water so my blender could get started) to the secondary.

I was thinking about using watermelon juice as a bottling sugar. Do you think it would be worth doing? Or should I just use 1-1/4 cups of my wheat DME?

FishinDave07 · 10-04-2009, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Issius

I did a similar recipe to this and bottling is coming up in a few days. I added 4 cups of watermelon juice (diluted with water so my blender could get started) to the secondary.

I was thinking about using watermelon juice as a bottling sugar. Do you think it would be worth doing? Or should I just use 1-1/4 cups of my wheat DME?

Im sure DD will comment on this, but i don't think you can measure how much sugar is in watermelon juice to get adequate carbonation.

**DubbelDach** · 10-05-2009, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FishinDave07

Im sure DD will comment on this, but i don't think you can measure how much sugar is in watermelon juice to get adequate carbonation.

I just added to 2ndary and let it ferment out again (see the cool pink and white trub rings in my pics above...), then went with the priming sugar for the bottles. Would hate to not know and then get bottle bombs.

If the concern is not getting enough flavor from the juice, thus trying to eek out more by using at the last possible minute (as a priming sugar)... Don't worry. Plenty of flavor from the juice even if it ferments out in 2ndary.

Not enough flavor/too much water in watermelon juice = urban myth!!!

Issius · 10-07-2009, 11:44 PM

Thanks for replying. I've decided to use some of my left over wheat DME as a priming sugar rather than add more watermelon juice, mainly for the reason you gave. There doesn't seem to be any real understanding of the amount of fermentable sugars in watermelon juice and I'd rather not have my bottles explode.

**RandalG** · 10-17-2009, 12:12 AM

So how did you get the juice from the melon in a blender or some other way?