Adding Raspberries into the brew..

My Raspberry Wheat just arrived today. It comes with an extract but i wanna use real raspberries. Getting the beer to be a little on sweeter side, how does one approach that?

I was also wonder if people puree the raspberries or just put them in whole, which method yields the best end product?



Another quickie, i got a liquid yeast with it, i put it in the fridge ASAP as thats what it said on the package. The yeast will be OK in the fridge until i make the beer right? A couple weeks or so it will be in there.

There are several methods for adding fruit. The method I use is to heat the raspberries to 160 for a few minutes, let them cool to room temp, and then add them to the secondary when I rack from primary. The later you add them in the process, the more flavor will come through. Most people will say it is fine to add fruit directly to the secondary without sanitizing them and that heating removes flavor. I've never had this issue, and I'd rather not take the chance of contamination.

To get the most out of their fruit, some people crush and freeze, followed by puree. I would say to puree your fruit, as you will be releasing all the juice that way.

Your yeast should be fine in the refrigerator until the date posted on the packet.

exactly what i was looking for man, thanks a lot.

so if i added some raspberry puree a couple days before i keg it up, i should have a pretty tasty and sweet beer?

Yes. If you are adding a fair amount. I often add anywhere from 42-64oz, to get a pretty fruity beer. As for sweet, it depends on if the puree is sweet. A lot of the fruit i get is more sour than sweet.

One thing I'm uncertain about is how long it takes for the fruit flavor to be absorbed in the beer. My guess would be a very short time if you are doing puree or juice. Your mentioned "couple days" should be fine. If it was whole fruit I would suggest longer. Happy brewing.