Using real blueberries in brewing

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BeerPressure

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I've searched for "blueberry' and "blueberries" but didnt get too much info on when to add them to the beer? During boil? during chilling? during secondary?

My relatives own a blueberry farm and i have access to alot of berries so I would like to make a blueberry wheat for all the people that dont like anything else I brew.
 
I added Oregon fruit in secondary. Tasting this after a couple of months I thought I will not make this again. Six to nine months later this one of the better beers I've made.
 
Pick them, rinse them, dry them, freeze them.

When you're ready to move your beer from primary to 2ndary, thaw them.

I'd line my 2ndary bucket with a nylon grain bag... Then dump the thawed blueberries in. Use a potato masher to squish 'em up and then tie off the bag. Rack beer on top.

Notice: No boiling or heating. The alcohol in your beer will protect.

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I used 3 lbs of blueberries in Biermuncher's Centennial Blonde recipe and it's fantastic!!!
 
i'd put them in the secondary. you'll probably want to wash them, then put them in star san, which should get anything off the outside, then freeze them. this will break some of the cell walls and let the flavor out more. might also want to smash them rather than put them in whole to make the flavor extraction easier.

i'd use a lot too, as blueberry is a bit of a delicate flavor.
 
Thanks. I just weighed out and rinsed 3lbs of some nice looking blueberries. I'm gonna brew the American Wheat recipe from brewing classic styles for the base beer.
 
I brewed that recpie... Im gonna split it into 2 secondaries on sunday, and put 3 lbs in one and 7 in the other! then I can find out how much is good :D
 
Man, if I had free blueberries, I'd be making wine. Had rain at blossom time, so no berries or apples this year.
 
ok, so last week i got lazy, I racked (my American wheat) off the yeast, and all 5Gs went onto 6 lbs of frozen costco blueberries.... the beer is back to 1.000 and has a GORGEOUS red color, but there is nary a hint of flavr! :( ill give it another week, maybe carb or cold will help the flavr?
 
Maybe you should've thawed and mushed up the blueberries. I just brewed my wheat this saturday so i have not racked onto the fruit yet.
 
They were thawed frozen blueberries :)

i did mush them, but not very dedicate. Im just guessing that my meade making experience was closer to where i should have been (10-15 lbs for 5 gallons)
 
6 lbs in 5 gallons should give you a bit of flavor but more noticeably an aroma of blueberries. 10 - 15 lbs in 5 gallons would add more flavor, especially if you were at 3 lbs / gallon. Like someone said earlier, blueberries don't have a ton of flavor on their own (generally speaking).

Don't know if that helps but that's what I can add.
 
im going to add blueberries to a pale ale this weekend, 6lbs for a 5 gallon batch, really? im looking for just a hint of blueberry, not blueberry with a hint of beer. any input?
 
hmm, i was hoping for flavor and no color. thats no fun!

Use a bottle of LD Carlson's extract then.

I'm convinced that all blueberry, raspberry, or cherry wheat commercial brewers out there must use extracts and no fruit. Look at the pic above... And that's with a minimal amount. No way can you keep a beer yellow unless it's the clear extract.
 
I put 6lbs frozen in my porter and it came out awesome. Just enough blueberry flavor, and a slight pinkish/purpule to the head.
 
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