Fig Belgian Dubbel Recipe, Thoughts/Suggestions?

Hello all,

So I'm looking to design a Belgian Dubble that also implements figs. However, I LOVE Allagash's dubbel, and I would like to incorporate a nice chocolate finish that the allagash dubbel achieves with their beer.

However, I don't want the fig flavor to overwhelm the chocolate finish. So I'm pretty much stuck on my recipe, and welcome criticism/suggestions.

Take a look below.

18-B Belgian Dubbel
Author: Sean Torres

Size: 6.0*gal
Efficiency: 85.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%

Original Gravity: 1.065 (1.062 - 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.016 (1.008 - 1.018)
Color: 17.26 (10.0 - 17.0)
Alcohol: 6.46% (6.0% - 7.6%)
Bitterness: 19.5 (15.0 - 25.0)

Ingredients:
8.0*lb Belgian Pils
4.0*lb Munich TYPE II
.5*lb Belgian Aromatic
.25*lb Pale Chocolate
.25*lb Belgian Special B
.25*lb Candi Sugar Amber (optional, read below)
1.0*oz Styrian Goldings (6.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60*m
1.0*oz Styrian Goldings (6.0%) - added during boil, boiled 1.0*m
1.0*ea WYeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes™
1.5*lb Figs - added during boil, boiled 10.0*m
1.5*lb Figs - added dry to secondary fermenter

00:03:00 Dough-in - Liquor: 4.06*gal; Strike: 142.1*°F; Target: 132*°F
00:18:00 Protein Rest - Rest: 15.0*m; Final: 132.0*°F
00:48:00 Sacch Rest - Rest: 30*m; Final: 150.5*°F
00:48:00 Fly Sparge - Sparge Volume: 5.15*gal; Sparge Temperature: 168.0*°F; Runoff: 6.79*gal

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Now here's the thing, I've added clear candi sugar to my Tripel after 5, and it worked wonders. It kept a healthy fermentation going. However, this is the first time I will be brewing with figs, and I don't want to over complicate my beer.

Therefore, I plan on taste-testing the beer on the 5th day to judge the balance before I add the Candi Sugar. So please note that that step is optional.

And that's it. Let me know what you think.

I have done several dubbels using raisins and dates. In fact I am drinking the one with dates right now. I would not boil the figs for 10 minutes. I have added the raisins or dates at flame out. I chopped them up and put them in a hop sack. If you boil them I would worry about pectin and very cloudy beer. I only ised about 6 0z of fine chopped fruit and it left a slight flavor, but raisins and dates are a lot more flavorful than figs.. I may up it some next time.Addiing some in the secondary should increase the flavor.

Also Belgian beers usually include sugar to make "more digestable" as the Belgians would say. I would use Candi syrup either D45 or even D-90. Use enough to be about 15% of the fermentables and then reduce some of the Munich to keep the OG the same. The rocks from the brew store really do not add any flavor. The syrup does. Your BU:GU ratio is right on for a dubbel at .29.

The Og is not that big so adding the sugar in the boil you would have no problem fermenting it out if you use a starter.. Just give it plenty of time to finish. Belgian yeasts can take off quickly and then take a long time to get the last few points, but they will.

Good luck with your brew. I love my Belgians.

Good point on the figs. However, I was going to caramelize them for the boil and throw chopped up figs into the secondary. Check out this link for an example of caramelized figs in the boil.

http://medicinalpurposes.wordpress.com/2012/04/15/partigyle-brew-day-photos-imperial-fig-stout-export-stout/

Would this effect the process?

didn't realize I didn't attach the link

SeanGC said:

Good point on the figs. However, I was going to caramelize them for the boil and throw chopped up figs into the secondary. Check out this link for an example of caramelized figs in the boil.

http://medicinalpurposes.wordpress.com/2012/04/15/partigyle-brew-day-photos-imperial-fig-stout-export-stout/

Would this effect the process?

Click to expand...

Carmelizing the figs sounds good.

I restructured the recipe. Only problem is, when I put in 2 lbs of Syrup, it overshoots the SRM for the style. So I knocked it down to 1.5lbs. Will it achieve the chocolate notes I'm looking for at 10%?

Ingredients:
8.0*lb (57.1%) Belgian Pils - added during mash
3.0*lb (21.4%) Munich TYPE II - added during mash
1.5*lb (10.7%) Belgian Candi Syrup - added during mash
1.0*lb (7.1%) Belgian Caravienne - added during mash
.5*lb (3.6%) Cara-Pils® Malt - added during mash
1.0*oz (50.0%) Styrian Goldings (6.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60*m
1.0*oz (50.0%) Styrian Goldings (6.0%) - added during boil, boiled 1.0*m
1.0*ea WYeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes™
1.5*lb Figs - added during boil, boiled 10.0*m
1.5*lb Figs - added dry to secondary fermenter

I eliminated the Special B, and replaced it with Caravienne. I figured I'd lose some of the SRM from the Special B, and I can be a bit more generous with the Caravienne, since it contributes a dried fruit flavor that should (hopefully) complement the figs. I also threw Carapils in there for head retention. No need for pale chocolate, since I'm getting chocolate from the syrup. Same thing with the Amber Candi Sugar.

Alright so, I bumped my recipe up to 10 gals (12 before equipment, trub loss), and I made some last min edits.

Additionally, the market I went to only had 2.5lbs of figs left. So I decided to substitute the final .5 with dates. Do you think this is a good idea?

Here's the Recipe:

Ingredients:
12.0*lb (44.4%) Belgian Pils - added during mash
8*lb (29.6%) Munich TYPE II - added during mash
4.0*lb (14.8%) Belgian Candi Syrup - added during mash
2.0*lb (7.4%) Belgian Caravienne - added during mash
1*lb (3.7%) Cara-Pils® Malt - added during mash
2.0*oz (50.0%) Styrian Goldings (6.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60*m
2.0*oz (50.0%) Styrian Goldings (6.0%) - added during boil, boiled 1.0*m
1.0*ea WYeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes™
2.5*lb Figs - added during boil, boiled 10.0*m
.5*lb Dates - added during boil, boiled 10.0*m

Update on this brew. Followed above recipe, minus 2lbs of Candi Syrup to add during fermentation. Started at 60, raised to 62 day 2, 64 day 3, and 66 day 5.

Added 1lb of candi syrup day 3, and 1lb of candi syrup day 5.

Thieved out some wort (I know, early, but wanted to taste the impact). The Belgian Ardennes is a great yeast strand. Spicy, and fruit. However, not enough was fermented out for me to tell the impact of the figs or D 90. I'll taste again one week from today.