Octoberfest/pumpkin ale

hey guys, im still new to the hobby and fumbling my way around a little bit. i dont have the equipment or the know how to start a batch with scratch ingredients. i have a brew house octoberfest kit that i want to add some pumpkin and a few spices to.

my question is, what process should i take on adding the pumpkin? do i add it to the primary or secondary or both? i'll add the spices to the secondary. if i add the pumpkin to the secondary, is there going to be any bottling issues with sugars like a raspberry beer? is the sugar levels in the pumpkin much lower than the raspberries?

anything to point me in the right direction would be appreciated.

I add the pumpkin to the beginning of the boil and the spices to the boil in the last ten minutes. I did it for an Ale, but I would assume it would work the same for adding it to any brew.

i just brewed a pumpkin ale friday, only my 3rd batch so i'm no expert. however theis recipe called for 30 ounces of pumpkin to be added in the last 5 minutes of the boil.

is there anything wrong with racking to the secondary early? the vigorous fermenting seems to have passed, im just worried about fruit flies and want to move it to an air-locked carboy. any suggestions?

how does that work leaving the slurry of yeast behind? will it still ferment properly? is there still enough floating yeast to finish the job?

I've brewed several pumpkin ales, and I always add the pumpkin to the mash. If you are an extract brewer, add it to the steeping grains.

Pumpkin isn't like secondary fruit additions. You get much more utilization of the pumpkin's starch/protein properties from adding it to the mash.

is there anything wrong with racking to the secondary early? the vigorous fermenting seems to have passed, im just worried about fruit flies and want to move it to an air-locked carboy. any suggestions?

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Why isn't your primary in an air-locked carboy or something else airtight?? You shouldn't be fermenting in an open container!!

its not in an open container, its an actual primary fermenter, i guess used more for wine, it has a tight fitting lid, so it would take quite the smart fly to get in there...


im using this because ive had too many volcanoes when using carboys and it just makes a mess.