woodchuck pear beer clone

I am new to bewing and this forum. So far I have finished one pale ale malt extract brew (come out great)

I have one porter (extract with steep grains) that is about to be bottled. (3 weeks primary fermentation) I will be adding vanilla to it at bottle along with the corn sugar mixture to carb it. I also have a green apple riesling going for the past 4 days.

Ok, here is my question. I would like to do a pear beer as well. Sort of like woodchucks pear beer. I figured I would post this idea for any suggestions. I have looked around and have not found too much. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Are you pressing your own pears? It is a PITA to do it. I have one perry with cider mixed this year, initial tasting at 3 months was very fusel tasting. I have also heard perry requires serious aging periods before it mellows.

I have heard pears are hard to work with to get a good product, I know pressing they are. So far, I am not sure what to expect out of the pears.

An easy way to do a pear beer would be to make the newell wood chuck clone. Instead of using concetrated AJ to back sweeten, use pear juice. Be sure to sulphite and sorbate as needed. You would need to keg carb if you want residual sugar.

This would taste more like a cider than a beer though, since there is no wort, no hops etc. I have used the newell clone concept with apple juice concentrate and a raspberry infusion - both came out really good, especially when I added malic acid to tarten up the drink. I plan on trying lemonade concentrate and several others the next time I dig into one of my ciders.

Forgot to throw this in:
Newell's Groundhog Cider (woodchuck amber clone)
- https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f81/newells-groundhog-cider-woodchuck-amber-clone-85887/

I have not started anything yet. But I do agree that pressing my own pears would be a PITA and am hoping to avoid that. That newell recipe looks very good. I have not dived into making cider yet. But love the concept. I think the pear juice to back sweeten is a great idea.

On a side note--I do not have a keg setup as of yet. Is it possible to carb in bottles?

Thanks for the info I definately found my new hobby

If I were you I would try to set your sites on getting a kegging set up - even if very basic. It makes cider easy with regard to sweetening and carbing.

Unfortunately, if you don't have a kegging set up you have to get creative if you want carbonation. For example, you could try to find fruit flavored extracts for candy or something to give the essence, but extra sugar = restart of your fermentation to card. The other option is bottle pasteurization - there is a sticky on how to do this that pappers put up. I however have never tried it and it seems a lot of folks have bottle breaking here and there for the process.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f32/easy-stove-top-pasteurizing-pics-193295/

Thank you. I have bookmarked the newell recipe and will wait until I get a kegging system. I'm not quite at that stage just yet but assume I will be soon. Today is bottling day for my porter. Then Saturday am going to start a irish red. The advice you gave is great. Thank you again.

I hear you - sometimes the coin just isn't there. When you can do it - jump all over it. remember, you can use your kegs as fermenters too (trying to help you rationalize cost haha).

Funny you are doing an Irish red ale - I just did one this past weekend. If you need a good recipe I have one that had a bunch of positive reviews, though it is my first time trying it.

Well, at home now with a glass from my first brew (a pale ale), sanitizing everything for the bottling process of my porter. Already got the corn sugar/water boiled and am ready for the transfer. Yeah, its not really a question of having the coin. It's convincing the girl that I will continue to do this "hobby". However I did drop a few on three glass carbows, couple-a buckets and all the other equipment so far. I just figured I would wait a little on the kegs. To spread out the equipment that has been building up the the house all of a sudden. As far as the irish red ale I was thinking of going with a kit from a local brew store. Here is the link.

http://www.americanbrewmaster.com/product_info.php?cPath=19&products_id=2530

But yeah I would open to suggestions as far as the recipe goes though.

Yeah i have been very surprised at how much my wife has let me go with this "hobby" haha. She is very good to me (as you can see from my fermenter shots on my profile).

As for the kit - tough to rate a kit without ingredients - but I am sure it will be a good kit. Truth be told, I got my recipe (highly rated) from a kit at midwest. I have spent a small fortune there, so I don't mind posting it (the ingredients are listed).

Go liquid yeast if you can (wyeast 1056 or WL01). Yeasts really do make a difference.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/irish-red-ale.html

pretty rave reviews....

Thanks for the recipe, I will see about piecing that recipe together from my LHBS. The bottling process went very well last night for my Porter. It has a very nutty aroma to it. I yeilded about 48 12oz bottles. Could have gotten a little more but I wanted this batch to be cleared well and sphoned from the carboy to a bucket with the sugar water mixture then from that bucket to a bottling bucket. Leaving a little behind.

Cidahmaster, could you reveal the irish red recipe?

oxybrew said:

Cidahmaster, could you reveal the irish red recipe?

Click to expand...

Oh sorry - didn't see this - you can find the recipe at this link


http://www.midwestsupplies.com/irish-red-ale.html

There are instructions in a PDF as well (read the description for ingredient quantities). The hop schedule etc is in the PDF link for that kit.

Let me know if you can figure it out and i will grab it for you.