Sorachi Saison

Amount Item Type % or IBU
Grains:
6.00 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 55.8 %
2.00 lb Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 18.6 %
2.00 lb Wheat Malt, Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 18.6 %
Hops:
1.00 oz Tettnang [4.50%] (60 min) Hops 16.3 IBU
0.50 oz Sorachi Ace [13.70%] (15 min) Hops 11.0 IBU
1.00 oz Saaz [4.00%] (20 min) Hops 8.7 IBU
0.50 oz Sorachi Ace [13.70%] (5 min) Hops 4.4 IBU
Extras:
0.50 oz Coriander Seed (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
0.75 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
0.50 lb Candi Sugar, Clear (0.5 SRM) Sugar 4.7 %
0.25 lb Candi Sugar, Amber (75.0 SRM) Sugar 2.3 %
Yeast:
1 Pkgs Belgian Saison I Ale (White Labs #WLP565) Yeast-Ale
Mash:
Single infusion mash @ 153.

Actual OG: 1.053 (1.057 Planned)
Actual FG: 1.020 (1.016 Planned)
IBU: 40.5


I brewed this on New Years Eve, and it turned out GREAT! I've tested against a commercial microbrew saison (Victory Brewing), and think mine is as good, if not a little better. It's got a bitter bite to it (Sorachi Ace 13% AA), but washes off the tongue clean without aftertaste. It is very citrus in smell and taste. A very good 'lite' style beer. When it gets to 95+ degrees outside, this will be a nice brew to cool you down.

I will likely brew this again and change the Orange peel to include less orange and more grapefruit. I also plan on replacing corriander with peper and/or seeds of paradise.

You've got raspberry and strawberry versions of this showing in your sig - would you mind posting them into this thread, too? An extract version of your first recipe would be much appreciated, too. Thanks.

I'll certainly post them when they are done and tasted, assuming they don't taste bad.

I never did extract Saison, but from what I've read, is it even possible? I guess you can get pils extract...

Well, I finally bottled the Strawberry and Raspberry Saisons this weekend. Should be 2-3 weeks until they are ready for a first taste test.

They both taste fairly good for warm uncarbonated brew. The hop character has really dulled down (which is great, because during racking tastings, the hops were overwhelming for the type of fruit beer I wanted to create).

So...give me 2 weeks and I will post the recipes for the other 2. Not much changed (some added acidulated malt and frozen fuit), but I'll certainly get the recipes up asap.

Ok, so I've tried it. I'll try to post recipes this weekend.

The Raspberry one tastes ok, but I over did it on the hops. They're mellowing out from when I bottled it, but still a wierd bitter flavor in an otherwise sweet beer.

The Strawberry one is good, but over done on the strawberries - I used 6# of strawberries in a 3.5 gallon batch. It just REEKS of strawberry. Good, but a little overwhelming. If you absolutely love strawberry, it tastes great...if you wanted a noticable hint of it...cut that down to 1#/gallon.

What temps did you ferment with that yeast strain? I did an AG saison with that strain and fermented at about 65*F, only went from SG 1.075 to FG 1.039, I mashed way too low (like 135*F due to a faulty themometer) but I have read a bit about that strain liking way high temps...

I fermented at approximately 70-75. When the temp dropped overnight it got down to 67-68, but I tried to keep it in the upper ranges whenever possible. I know that for the first 3-5 days I kept it upstairs where it was a bit warmer most of the time, but secondary was almost constant 67-69.

My second brew of this (changed up the coriander and added crushed peppercorn, used 1 grapefruit as part of the orange zest) mashed at about 149-147. It's definately not as good as the first one (this recipe).

Update: After a few more weeks, the Strawberry is pretty good. It's not too overwhelming, yet certainly a strawberry beer.

Both of them are overhopped, so I would cut out the Sorachi hops and find something that better suits the style if I were to do this again (and I will).

Thanks for the postings. Experiments are fun, when they end up at least drinkable!!

I made this yesterday. I bumped up the clear candy sugar to a #1.

Should I have crushed or cracked the Corriander?

To get the full effect of coriander, it should be crushed. For less effect, cracked might do.

I would taste as you move to secondary to see if you get the full flavor your want and possibly add some in secondary, although I don't know how well that would work either. Maybe a coriander 'tea' with it crushed and steeped would work?


I'm sick of the coriander taste anyways. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

Also, there's another Saison thread where seefresh and I are planning a possible Saison swap. If you'd be interested, come on over.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=38335

o|||||o, how'd it go? how's it tasting now?

I had an HSA problem with mine (stuck CFC and had empty the pot out). It never cleared from primary and tastes like crap. Had to dump it to make room for a keg that tastes good.