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duffman2 · 10-13-2011, 08:06 PM

Looks like I missed my mark on this year's batch. Gravity came in really low at 1.040 I think and now its down to like 1.014 so getting close to done.

But my sample tasted weak and without a lot of that wow pumpkin flavor. Still haven't added spices yet so I will do that soon. I guess the only thing I am thinking about is adding malto dextrin and a little lactose to sweeten it up a bit.
And might want to add a little extra spice to kick it up a notch.

Just not sure yet on how much is too much lactose. Anybody try to do this with their thunderstruck?

Justibone · 10-14-2011, 01:26 AM

Without the spice, it's not even close. The pumpkin is hardly noticeable, it's the spices that do it for ya!

steven_b · 10-15-2011, 09:46 PM

Just brewed the extract version of this pumpkin ale this morning. Missed Halloween, but looking forward to having this beer on tap come Thanksgiving!

Steven b~

OlRed · 10-16-2011, 02:00 AM

I brewed the extract version of this and had my first bottle tonight after only two weeks in the bottle and it was AMAZING!!!!

I followed the recipe exactly except I used 6lbs of light DME and .25 lbs of amber DME because I had some laying around. I'm not sure if that really changed the end result but either way this recipe is freaking awesome. I used McCormick's pumpkin pie spice for the spice tea. It ended up with just the right amount of sweetness/pumpkin pie flavor without being overpowering. Thanks for the great recipe!!!

gclunde · 10-17-2011, 01:16 AM

This sounds like a great recipe

Stephonovich · 10-17-2011, 11:54 AM

Brewed on a whim yesterday. I used fresh sugar pumpkin, roasted for 1.5 hours. Ended up being about 120 oz because I had no idea how much a pumpkin weighed, and by the time I weighed the pieces, figured oh well.

Wort tasted great, but after talking with guys at LHBS, I did a spice add at flameout, and will do a spice tea before bottling.

O.G. was 1.064. I used two packs of S04; really quick start. (Didn't have time for a liquid with starter)

I plan on primary for 3 weeks, and bottling for 2 - just in time for Thanksgiving.

makisupa · 10-18-2011, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by makisupa

I just finished brewing Thunderstruck Pumpkin Ale with my electric HERMS and thought I'd offer some tips. This is my third time brewing this recipe but my first on an electric HERMS. Before, I was using a three-kettle, direct heat, and pump-fed system to brew this recipe and I suffered from stuck sparges and clogged pumps. Today's brew went off with out a hitch! Here's how...

I use an electric HERMS that's operated with two pumps and a HERMS coil in the HLT. I use a silicone tube inside my MLT (Sabco-style) for re-circ and I allow my mash to re-circ through the coil for entire mash. I wanted to accomplish this today without getting clogs and I did!

I added 1.25lb of rice hulls to the recipe and made sure to mix them well with the other grains and wheat. I mashed-in with the grains to hit the 158-deg mash temp. Then, I took my room temp Libby's pumpkin (which was already baked for 30-min at 350-deg) and placed it in a 1-gal paint strainer/bag and laid that flat across the top of the grain bed. My re-circ tubing was relatively close to the pumpkin/bag.

That's it! I mashed for 60-min with constant re-circ and then fly-sparged for about 45-minutes to collect my wort. The pumpkin color/flavor was extracted nicely, my efficiency was normal (75%), and the pumpkin stayed collected in the paint strainer. I hope this helps anyone who might be considering this recipe for their HERMS.

It's been three weeks since brewday and I've kegged my Thunderstruck. I used Wyeast 1968 (Wyeast's equivalent of WLP002) from a 1500mL starter and hit 1.020 as my FG. I was hoping to do better but alas...

Fermentation occurred over 6 days at 65-deg. After, I tried agitating the carboy and increasing the temp to 68-deg to get it to drop a couple more points but it didn't budge from 1.020.

I should also mention the beer dropped bright right away. Love this yeast's flocculation ability but I'm not all that thrilled with its attenuation.

ckarpys · 10-19-2011, 06:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by duffman2

Looks like I missed my mark on this year's batch. Gravity came in really low at 1.040 I think and now its down to like 1.014 so getting close to done.

But my sample tasted weak and without a lot of that wow pumpkin flavor. Still haven't added spices yet so I will do that soon. I guess the only thing I am thinking about is adding malto dextrin and a little lactose to sweeten it up a bit.
And might want to add a little extra spice to kick it up a notch.

Just not sure yet on how much is too much lactose. Anybody try to do this with their thunderstruck?

Same, my gravity is about 1.042, just racked to primary. Guess I'll keep a watch on it and will probably do the same.

BrewBeer4fun · 10-20-2011, 11:51 AM

My first attempt was the same way. My efficiency was horrible and came in at 1.040 and was Very weak and no prominent pumpkin flavor was discernible. I brewed it again last weekend and decided I would not miss my gravity this time. I brewed another 5 gallon batch, using 60oz of baked pumpkin which carmelized beautifully. I did however have to beef up the grain bill and try a different mash technique to achieve the 1.067 OG I ended up with. I used a 1 tsp of Pumkin Pie Spice in a tea for this batch and when tasting the wort, it seemed like I had finally achieved pumpkin perfection! Time will tell, I have at least 2 more weeks before I can keg it and try the final product.

mrwilson · 10-20-2011, 08:47 PM

Brewed this today. My OG came out at 1.052. Six gallon boil with five gallons at finish probably the reason. Topping off to 6 seemed excessive so I left it at five gallons. Will see how it goes. Also put 1 tsp of pumpkin spice in at 10 min left.