Belgian Tripel - when to add orange peel?

I will be making my first Belgian style tripel this weekend, and I am going to add some crushed corriander and some orange peel. I'm looking to add slight nuance with these flavorings, and am planning on a perhaps a 3 week primary, 1 week in the secondary (if needed? Maybe not...), and 2 month rest in the bottles.

1. Should i add my orange peel in the secondary (if so, how many days?), or in the last 15 min of the boil?

2. Should I add my crushed corriander seeds in the secondary (if so, how many days?), or last 10 min of the boil?

3. how much orange peel should I add? I have no idea what is too much or too little. 3 peels? 1 peel? Don't want a strong crazy orange flavor. just a hint of it.

Thanks everyone!

I've put 3 grams coriander and 7 grams orange peel in my Tripel. I add with 10 minutes left in boil. I coarse crush the coriander in a baggie with a hammer. Kinda depends on the yeast. I use WY3787 which throws off a lot of spiciness and esters. I think a Tripel is all about the yeast. I put in very small amounts of coriander, orange peel or grains of paradise. Just enough to know it's there. You do not want to overpower the yeast.

You add both Bitter Orange Peel and Coriander to the end of the boil, usually 5 - 10 minutes before flame out.

FYI, orange peel nor coriander are traditional in a Trippel. The spiciness comes from the yeast.

In a trippel? Never. Monks make trippel, they like to keep things simple

Also, if i were you i would let it bulk age in the secondary for a lot longer then 1 week.

Parker36 said:

In a trippel? Never. Monks make trippel, they like to keep things simple

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Got a lot of similar comments from others, so the peel is gone!

jjp36 said:

Also, if i were you i would let it bulk age in the secondary for a lot longer then 1 week.

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yes, let it age in a secondary, preferably in a cold place - about a month of lagering in a very low temps are what belgians do. after that you have to add new yeast prior the bottling.

I let my Tripels sit in primary for 1 month. Gives the yeast a chance to ferment out and clean up after themselves. No secondary, go straight to keg. I then let them sit in the cellar (carbonated) for a month or two. I then put them in the fridge and let them sit there for 1 month before tapping.
BTW, it is true that most belgians do not use spices in a Tripel. I only use spices in such small amounts that the yeast is still the star but it does accentuate the taste. YMMV

Don't let anyone tell you not to use spices in a trippel. They are right that it is not nessesary, by any means, but a lot of breweries, including Victory (golden monkey) add spices and it complements the beer nicely. Just be careful if you do add some not to add too much.

I never have spiced a Tripel and never shall, but you're welcome to do so! Just ensure that the spices are so subtle as to be indistinguishable from the yeast ester profile - that's the thing about Golden Monkey (if indeed it is spiced; I never knew it was, and Victory says nothing about spices on their website).

Cheers,

Bob

thanks for all the helpful thoughts. I will do a 3-4 week primary and then a 2 month secondary. After those two things have happened, do I still need an extended bottle-conditioning period? Or just do the normal 3-4 weeks to build up the carbonation?

Hmmm, bottling could be tricky. Sorta high alcohol and yeast has been dormant for 2-3 months. Might have to add more yeast at bottling. I would not cold condition until after you bottle and carbonate. Might want to try a bottle or two before doing the whole batch. I have never bottled so someone else might have a different opinion...

I cold age in a corny for 2-4 weeks cold as the fridge will go. Then let it warm up for 2 days and add the sugar and SAFBREW T58 DRY ALE YEAST @ Williams Brewing.


"Excellent performance in beers with alcohol contents of up to 8.5% v/v but can ferment up to 11.5% v/v."


From http://www.williamsbrewing.com/pdfs/y09.pdf.

The T-58 also has a wide temp range for fermenting making it great for bottle conditioning.

I have been hoping to do a Golden Monkey clone and the yeast has puzzled me. I thought about propogating yeast from the large amount of sediment at the bottom of their bottles. Now I'm worried that the yeast in the bottle may not be the same strain as used in their primary fermentation process. I tried to e-mail a couple people there, but figure this is a bit of a secret and have received no response. Any thoughts?

If I can't get the yeast from their bottles, what do you suggest? I've read suggestions of WYEAST 3522 Belgian Ardennes with .5oz Corriander or .3oz for 5 minutes.

Also, the clones I've read don't come out at the 9.5% that GM boasts from Victory. Any thoughts on how to boost that up? I could just boost the base malt, but I'm worried that some of the other ingredients should also be boosted to cover up a little more alcohol...