3711 session beer?

I will be dabbling in some Belgian beer brewing this summer, and am looking to brew a nice session beer based on 3711. Something in the 4-5% abv range. I know this yeast ferments like a beast, so the sg will have to be pretty low, will the beer end up to dry with such a light grain bill?
I plan to brew a couple of the saison recipes on this board, but those are 7-9% beers and will likely end up in bottles. American citrus hops? Noble? Honey or sugar additions?

i've had this in primary since saturday: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f71/belgian-table-beer-189321/
would probably work well to bump up your yeasties before doing something big

No problem. Traditional saisons are not high-gravity beers -- many are in the 4-6% range. You *want* it to end up dry -- it's characteristic of the style.

I definitely recommend belgian pilsner rather than US pale as your base malt. If you're doing extract, take the extra time to search out the pilsner extract than standard pale malt extract. IMHO US pale malt is a bit too bland for a beer this light.

bwarbiany said:

No problem. Traditional saisons are not high-gravity beers -- many are in the 4-6% range. You *want* it to end up dry -- it's characteristic of the style.

I definitely recommend belgian pilsner rather than US pale as your base malt. If you're doing extract, take the extra time to search out the pilsner extract than standard pale malt extract. IMHO US pale malt is a bit too bland for a beer this light.

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i have some best malz pilsen that needs to be used up, so i would be brewing with that. i have little experience with saisons, but i have read of brewers getting down to 1.002 with the 3711 strain. not sure if there would be a big taste difference between 002 and say 006?

Try Eulipion's honey-Rosemary Saison in the recipe section. I made a version w/o rosemary & subbed Cascade hops to really emphasize the citrus. It was so good it was like crack to me!

As for dryness, don't fear that--makes the beer really crisp & refreshing!

A little bit of wheat malt and/or munich (or vienna for that matter) can help balance out the dryness. I've always had this yeast finish down to 1.002-1.003, yet the dryness has never really seemed overwhelming to me, even when starting out at 1.056 or so. A session strength Saison this yeast would be perfect, seeing as a few pints of a 7% beer, no matter how refreshing, leaves me kinda useless for doing much of anything afterwards.

3711 will finish low, but somehow still it has good mouthfeel.

A Low OG SAison is great for a summer brew.

I just did a Rye Saison with 3711 that went from 1061 to 1002. I am going to carb it tonight, but the taste out of the fermenter was really good. I'm excited for this one.

I as well just did a honeysuckle raspberry ginger saison and the dryness and peppery finish was perfect, 3711 was the perfect yeast in my case

brewvall said:

I as well just did a honeysuckle raspberry ginger saison and the dryness and peppery finish was perfect, 3711 was the perfect yeast in my case

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Gonna add it was 5.4 abv

Brewvall:

When and where did you use the honeysuckle? And did its flavor/aroma really make it to the finished beer? I've been thinking of using it in a beer. thanks!

Thanks for the replies! What do you guys think about shooting for a gravity of 1040, pils malt with maybe 5% wheat and 5% caramunich, hopped with citra and sorachi? Maybe a 60 minute sorachi and addition and equal amounts citra and sorachi at 5 and 10 minutes, to about 25 ibu? Or should i go with saaz, etc?

I hate caramel malts in my Saisons but that may just be me. You'll be very happy using 100% pils, hell that is that DuPont does.

DannPM said:

I hate caramel malts in my Saisons but that may just be me. You'll be very happy using 100% pils, hell that is that DuPont does.

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yea, it might stand out in such low gravity beer eh? i put there for color mainly, but maybe ill cut it out.

Especially with a Saison, it's all up to you man. Try the recipe exactly as you first imagined it, like it? maybe but not perfect, start tweaking, what did you like? What did you dislike? Make the changes you need to perfect the beer to your tastes over a few batches and viola, you have a better output than asking for other's opinions.

Other people's opinions on exact tastes will never be a sub for your own palette and experimentation, again just my opinion.

true, but as a beginner brewer, getting recipe feedback and opinions to help me start out is great, especially on a beer style i have not brewed before. heres what i have for now, what ya think?

79% efficiency
OG 1.037
IBU 20.6


6lbs pilsner 85%
1lb wheat 14.2%
1oz caramunich .8%

.25oz sorachi @ 45
.25oz citra @ 10
.25oz sorachi @ 10
.25oz citra @ 2
.25oz sorachi @ 2

Looks good. What kind of mash profile are you going to use?

DannPM said:

Looks good. What kind of mash profile are you going to use?

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was thinking 149 for 90 minutes. beersmith calculates 1.005 for an fg, but who knows?

FWIW, JZ suggests mashing 145-147 for a saison!

I am making this one soon, as I will have some washed 3711 ready to rock.


5 lbs, 4 oz Belgian Pilsner
1 lbs, 8 oz Weyermann Pale Wheat
0 lbs, 8 oz Aromatic
0 lbs, 4 oz Weyermann De-Husked
Carafa III ®

Tettnang, German Pellets 1 oz @ 60 mins

I am shooting for an OG of 1.034, 17 IBU and 15 SRM. If it gets down to 1.004 it will have an abv of around 4.5%. Nicely sessionable. If it finishes higher than it will be like a Belgian Mild.

Let us know how it turns out! I hope to nrew tomorrow night, still deciding if i want to use the citra and sorachi, or go with noble hops. I fear getting cat piss from the citra.

BC2 said:

Brewvall:

When and where did you use the honeysuckle? And did its flavor/aroma really make it to the finished beer? I've been thinking of using it in a beer. thanks!

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I made a tea that was 2 cups honeysuckle 1 gallon water, but in all honesty for 10 gal batch I needed to double it. Then at the end of the boil nearing 140 added the tea. As for aroma there was very little as for sweetness the same is true, but there is a distinct sweetness.

Veedo said:

79% efficiency
OG 1.037
IBU 20.6


6lbs pilsner 83.5%
1lb wheat 13.9%
1oz caramunich .8%
2oz acid malt 1.7%

.25oz sorachi @ 45
.25oz citra @ 10
.25oz sorachi @ 10
.25oz citra @ 1
.25oz sorachi @ 1
mash at 149F

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mashing this in now. changed the last hop additions to 1 minute, and added 2oz of acid malt for ph (which turns out i most likely didnt need, ph=5.3) i heard jayz's podcast on saisons and mash temps, but i dont think he used 3711. from what ive read, this strain will finish low without much care for mash temp. we shall see!

How long do you think i should primary this beer for? Im fairly certain fg is stable and there doesnt seem to be any off flavors. No experience with 3711 or saisons for that matter.