gio
Well-Known Member
I have a belgian dubbel thats been cold conditioning in a secondary for about three weeks now. It's not bad but its not quite what I wanted to be as its lacking the flavors I wanted. I was thinking as an experiment to rack some of the beer off to a smaller 3 gallon carboy and adding in some fruit. I'd only want a very small amount to give a tiny bit of flavor (maybe a pound or so?) I'm not sure what fruit I'd use yet, possibly plums, currants or sour cherries.
I'm not sure how to sanitize the fruit or it is even necessary to do so. Would soaking it in star san work? Or I've also heard some people heating fruit in 160 degree water to sanitize it. If I heated it, should I add enzymes to break down the pectin? Another option is I have a food dehydrator and I was wondering if I dried the fruit myself beforehand if that would effectively eliminate bacteria in the fruit and reduce the risk of contamination. Or maybe I could do all three.
I'm not sure how to sanitize the fruit or it is even necessary to do so. Would soaking it in star san work? Or I've also heard some people heating fruit in 160 degree water to sanitize it. If I heated it, should I add enzymes to break down the pectin? Another option is I have a food dehydrator and I was wondering if I dried the fruit myself beforehand if that would effectively eliminate bacteria in the fruit and reduce the risk of contamination. Or maybe I could do all three.