Autumn Seasonal Beer Thunderstruck Pumpkin Ale (AG and Extract versions)
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OP
OP
It'll be almost impossible to strain. Just leave it in and accept a lot of trub.
ckarpys
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I actually boiled the pumpkin in a mesh bag for the hour with the extract. I got most of it out and when racking to secondary it was nice and clear.
Not sure of the results yet but i think I will get beer
Again thank you Yuri for the great recipe! Ours is finally ready to serve. It's amazing the difference a week makes. I took a sample last week & as delicious as it tasted I knew it wasn't quite ready. Still needed a couple of days to carbonate & to let the spices balance out. We served this up last night at our block party and it was a HUGE hit. Everyone loved it. In fact most people preferred this brew over some of the others we have on tap. I must say this brew was by far the funnest beer I've brewed up as well as the most delicious. Everything turned out better than anticipated, taste, FG, ABV%, etc...
I was a little concerned that I over did it w/ the spices. I didn't make a tea for the boil and when I took a sample prior to transferring to the 2ndary I felt like it needed more spice. I went ahead and added the "tea" to the 2ndary and when I took a sample last week I was like "crap I think I used too much" Most of my friends thought it tasted delicious last week but everyone said "wow you can really taste the spice" Exactly 1 week later the beer is finally ready to serve & the spices tapered off; in fact exactly the way I was anticipating, so mission accomplished! Like Yuri stated initially, just add the spice to taste. I'm definitely going to brew this again & may keep it on heavy rotation depending upon pumpkin availability.
Yuri, if you're ever in Austin hit me up b/c I owe you a beer or 2 for the amazing recipe!
Picture below for what we are calling "Smashin Pumpkin Ale"
http://www.chrisgomezphoto.com/austin/hbe3b17b#hbe3b17b
I was a little concerned that I over did it w/ the spices. I didn't make a tea for the boil and when I took a sample prior to transferring to the 2ndary I felt like it needed more spice. I went ahead and added the "tea" to the 2ndary and when I took a sample last week I was like "crap I think I used too much" Most of my friends thought it tasted delicious last week but everyone said "wow you can really taste the spice" Exactly 1 week later the beer is finally ready to serve & the spices tapered off; in fact exactly the way I was anticipating, so mission accomplished! Like Yuri stated initially, just add the spice to taste. I'm definitely going to brew this again & may keep it on heavy rotation depending upon pumpkin availability.
Yuri, if you're ever in Austin hit me up b/c I owe you a beer or 2 for the amazing recipe!
Picture below for what we are calling "Smashin Pumpkin Ale"
http://www.chrisgomezphoto.com/austin/hbe3b17b#hbe3b17b
I tried to strain my batch with a funnel and one of those nylon bucket strainers. It was a huge mess! I got a lot of pumpkin out, but it took forever because i had to constantly dump the pumpkin out of the strainer and move it around to unclog it. Even then there was still a good amount of pumpkin in the primary. I think I lost some fermentable sugars too in the still wet pumpkin thAt was dumped, because my OG cAme in a little low, around 1.045. I plan on brewing this up again in a few weeks, and I'm just gonna dump it all into the primary and not even bother straining the wort. Less mess, less hassle, and less time consumed. just let time separate the pumpkin from the wort as it ferments and clears. It might even add some more pumpkin flavor sitting on all that pumpkin trub?
Dynachrome
Well-Known Member
Has anyone else placed their pumpkin on top of the grain bed to use the grain as a strainer, it works pretty well.
OP
OP
The all grain recipe provides the ability to keep a lot of the vegetal solids out of the wort through lautering. That's much harder to do when brewing the extract version.
Well... so far so good. Brewed a 10gallons batch of this brew yesterday and it went well. Beer smelled really good and tasted good as well. I drank my hole hydrometer sample!!! First time it happens.
I used Maris Otter grain for the 2-row; it is a more consistent grain so if I want to brew this again this should help in terms of consistency.
The beer is now sitting at 68-70F degrees and it is a slow start for fermentation; It's been there since 5 p.m. last night and very little activity so far. Didn't make a starter but split the batch in 2 carboys and had one WL002 flask for each. Should kick-off soon I guess.
Don't know if you have access to the Celestial tea in the US but I used tea bag of the Bengal spice tea and it smelled awesome. It has Cinammon, Ginger, Nutmeg, cardamom, clove.... it is amazing; I used 2 teaspoon 5 minutes before end of boil and I suspect I will have to do a spice tea before bottling as well. The spices were very subtle. Here is the link : http://www.celestialseasonings.com/products/herbal-teas/bengal-spice
Anyhow, just wanted to share my experience and thank Yuri for what seems to be a very solid brew.
Oh yeah... I have used a real pumpkin and 1 lbs of rice hulls; the sparge was good, despite a broken sparge arm so I had to be creative; my efficiency was a little lower than usual and got an after boil OG of 1.055...not far from the recipe. Pre-boil OG was 1.049. And for people that are not sure about using pumpkin in this recipe I can assure you it adds some complexity. I could totally taste the pumpkin in my pre-boil hydrometer sample and this is before the spice addition so it is not the spices that reminded me of pumpkin!! Mash started at 158F and went down to 150F (it is getting cold in Montreal) so put a bit of heat back after 30 minutes and brought it back up to 158F; I guess it will be fine...anyone could comment on a mash temperature that swings like this? Is it a big deal?
Cheers
I used Maris Otter grain for the 2-row; it is a more consistent grain so if I want to brew this again this should help in terms of consistency.
The beer is now sitting at 68-70F degrees and it is a slow start for fermentation; It's been there since 5 p.m. last night and very little activity so far. Didn't make a starter but split the batch in 2 carboys and had one WL002 flask for each. Should kick-off soon I guess.
Don't know if you have access to the Celestial tea in the US but I used tea bag of the Bengal spice tea and it smelled awesome. It has Cinammon, Ginger, Nutmeg, cardamom, clove.... it is amazing; I used 2 teaspoon 5 minutes before end of boil and I suspect I will have to do a spice tea before bottling as well. The spices were very subtle. Here is the link : http://www.celestialseasonings.com/products/herbal-teas/bengal-spice
Anyhow, just wanted to share my experience and thank Yuri for what seems to be a very solid brew.
Oh yeah... I have used a real pumpkin and 1 lbs of rice hulls; the sparge was good, despite a broken sparge arm so I had to be creative; my efficiency was a little lower than usual and got an after boil OG of 1.055...not far from the recipe. Pre-boil OG was 1.049. And for people that are not sure about using pumpkin in this recipe I can assure you it adds some complexity. I could totally taste the pumpkin in my pre-boil hydrometer sample and this is before the spice addition so it is not the spices that reminded me of pumpkin!! Mash started at 158F and went down to 150F (it is getting cold in Montreal) so put a bit of heat back after 30 minutes and brought it back up to 158F; I guess it will be fine...anyone could comment on a mash temperature that swings like this? Is it a big deal?
Cheers
Yuri, I brewed the recipe you posted back on page 69. It's been in the bottle for about 5-6 weeks. It's pretty tasty, but I feel like there's a little too much dark fruit character (Special B?) that clashes with the pumpkin and spice. Have you tried yours yet, and what did you think? It could also be that my fermentation temps were a bit too high, so I'm curious to hear your opinion.
Thanks
Thanks
dont mean to pester anyone, but my question kind of got skimmed over a couple pages back. i primaried for 2 weeks, transferred to a glass carboy which has been sitting for 17 days at 55-60F. think the colder temps will hurt anything? i havnt added any spices yet, so my question is could one just add the spices along with the priming sugar, then add to the bottling bucket, before bottling? or should i mix up a spice tea and add it to the carboy to let it sit for a bit longer? thanks for any help in advance.
I personally don't think the cold will hurt if your fermentation was complete; otherwise you might have put the yeast asleep! About adding the spice tea at the bottling time I was also wondering about this....I assume you could also do that. I don't think it can hurt, you might just have to wait a few more weeks for the spice to balance out and integrate to what will become the real taste of your brew.......hope this help
OP
OP
I like mine and find it not to differ much at all from the original. If anything, I think the Special B works well with it. I don't get a clashing flavor like you describe.
Justibone
Well-Known Member
The cold temps will not have hurt the beer, you're right, so long as the fermentation was complete.
I added the spice tea at bottling (I bottled some and kegged some), and it was detectable, but I wish I had added more.
That's the nice thing about the keg -- I just opened it last night and added another batch of spice tea and it immediately tasted even more pumpkin-y.
The cold temps will not have hurt the beer, you're right, so long as the fermentation was complete.
I added the spice tea at bottling (I bottled some and kegged some), and it was detectable, but I wish I had added more.
That's the nice thing about the keg -- I just opened it last night and added another batch of spice tea and it immediately tasted even more pumpkin-y.
Hmm, how much did you add the first time?
Justibone
Well-Known Member
Started with 1 tsp. Went to 1 tbsp. Like the 1 tbsp better.
YMMV.
YMMV.
Justibone said:Started with 1 tsp. Went to 1 tbsp. Like the 1 tbsp better.
YMMV.
YMMV indeed. Spice bombs are the reason I'm not too big on pumpkin beers in general, despite really liking some of them (pumpkin beers, not spice bombs).
I do have a question for people on this thread. I brewed 10 gallons last week-end. The fermentation took off 24 hours after I pitched the yeast (WL002) but it was not very vigourous and lasted only 48 hours....looks like it is pretty quiet now. HAve you experienced the same type of fermentation? Should I pitch in safale dry yeast and see what will happen? Will pitching Safale over the Wl002 create weird reaction/taste?
thanks for your input
thanks for your input
jeepinjeepin
Well-Known Member
terrenum said:
What is the gravity?
Mine never made a lot of krausen, but it fermented pretty aggressive. I had maybe half an inch to an inch layer of krausen on the top, but when I looked at the wort I could see all kinds of activity going on trough the glass. It looked like I had my carboy on a stir plate because there was so much activity from the yeast! I could see chunks of pumpkin bouncing around and yeast swirling all over. It got to that point in like 8 hours of pitching, and slowed down alot by 48 hours. When I took my FG at 7 days, it was at 1.010. These yeast work fast and hard so I'm sure yours is fine too.
Original gravity was at 1.055. Pretty much on target. Haven't taken a read yet; wanted to wait at least a week.
Thanks refect, my fermentation was very similar to what you described. only an inche of Krausen but lots of stuff bouncing in the wort; I guess I'll be fine. Will take a read in a week and then I'll see!
Thanks refect, my fermentation was very similar to what you described. only an inche of Krausen but lots of stuff bouncing in the wort; I guess I'll be fine. Will take a read in a week and then I'll see!
Justibone
Well-Known Member
Pitching a nice, clean-fermenting yeast over the top of your original yeast is usually not a problem. It affects attenuation, of course, but repitching a different strain is often better than the alternative. Of course, if you don't have to do it, don't do it.
The first time i just used the pumpkin spice package from Austin Homebrew. It came out awesome. It was a huge hit at our Halloween block party last weekend. Everyone loved it. Bottles even turned out awesome. When we brewed it I used a starter & it took off quick. High Krausen & a lot of activity that tapered off after about 3 days. All the numbers OG/FG/ABV were all pretty spot on. Will definitely use fresh pumpkin again, it took a while to bake & puree but it was well worth it.
thetmaxx
Well-Known Member
I'm pretty sure it soured, starting to taste pretty bad. I have a new batch fermenting now, so far so good. And I'm using my own spice blend I use in in my pumpkin pies.
Here's the result of my first stab at this one. It came out excellent. I added spices 10 minutes to the end of boil and they do not seem to have dulled. If anything, they have melded into something quite savory and refreshing. It was a three gallon batch with the following spice quantities: 1 tsp cinnamon, 0.5 tsp each of nutmeg, ginger, allspice.
Here's the result of my first stab at this one. It came out excellent. I added spices 10 minutes to the end of boil and they do not seem to have dulled. If anything, they have melded into something quite savory and refreshing. It was a three gallon batch with the following spice quantities: 1 tsp cinnamon, 0.5 tsp each of nutmeg, ginger, allspice.
Congrats! This is a very good looking brew. Can't wait to try mine. one more week in primary and then in the bottle....will do a spice tea in my buttling bucket if I need to.
Hi Yuri
My buddy and I have been following this recipe for a pumpkin ale in which we will be racking into the secondary tomorrow morning. (its been in the primary for over 3 weeks now).
We plan on making a spiced tea with similar spices, plus adding hint of vanilla bean which we've heard is strong, so we'll experiment with the tea before adding.
But what I really want to know is can we dry hop as well? (We've had some issues with overall sweetness with other beers we've made),
Since we definitely want to add the flavors of the spices, we were thinking if we maybe added a half to 1 ounce of loose hops to the carboy before racking and adding the spiced tea, we can at least add to the perception of a hop flavor with the aroma. And in two weeks we will keg and or bottle.
We are fairly new to brewing, and still have a lot to learn, so my apologies if this seems like a bad plan on our part. But if you have any advice, it would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Dan
UPDATE
we decided not to dry hop this time around and stuck to just adding the spiced tea with about 1/4 of a whole vanilla bean. Sampled the beer out of the primary without the spiced and it was really good...looking forward to see what the spices do!
Justibone
Well-Known Member
As for dry hopping a pumpkin beer... what hop aroma did you want to add? Citrus doesn't seem like it would go well, grassy and pine-y sound terrible... Maybe spicy from Saaz?
I don't think I would dry-hop a pumpkin beer.
Also, if you add the spices directly into the keg (a good idea, IMO, because fermentation seemed to decrease the flavor of the spices for me), expect some of the spice to settle to the bottom and the first few pours will likely have some spice sediment. Not a big deal - the third beer was perfectly fine for me.
I don't think I would dry-hop a pumpkin beer.
Also, if you add the spices directly into the keg (a good idea, IMO, because fermentation seemed to decrease the flavor of the spices for me), expect some of the spice to settle to the bottom and the first few pours will likely have some spice sediment. Not a big deal - the third beer was perfectly fine for me.
bottled today. we added the spices along with the priming sugar. i never really thought about the spices floating around in the beer until i took a look in the bottling bucket, spice chunks everywhere. think the spices will stick to the bottom of the bottle, or is that stuff going to be floating in the beer?
OP
OP
I know I would not.
Justibone
Well-Known Member
You should be fine so long as you do the "homebrew pour"... i.e., pour the whole bottle in one smooth motion leaving the yeast at the bottom of the bottle with about half an inch of beer.
yea, i hope it binds good with the layer at the bottom of the bottle. the spices seemed to get kicked up into suspension easily. can anyone comment how solid the layer at the bottom of the bottle is with this brew? ive had some beers that never really stuck well, and others you could pour tlll the bottle was empty without getting any floaties in the beer. for example, the dark horse ipa that i had a couple weeks ago. it was impossible to pour that beer without it looking like a milkshake.
Justibone
Well-Known Member
Store it colder for longer, the yeast cake will get good and compact.
It depends on the flocculation of the yeast... some are just better at settling out than others. Usually the yeast have no problem settling, but it is other stuff (hop particles, insoluble proteins, etc.) that gets kicked up.
It depends on the flocculation of the yeast... some are just better at settling out than others. Usually the yeast have no problem settling, but it is other stuff (hop particles, insoluble proteins, etc.) that gets kicked up.
Good evening,
Here is an update: bottled my beer last week-end with a final gravity slightly higher than expected at 1.020. The beer didn't taste too sweet even if we all know it is not dry at that level of residual sugar. The spices were very subtil so I added a spice tea at bottling which added fresh spices aromas. You could taste them afterward but not overwhelming. I assume anyway that they will fade out with few weeks in the bottle.
I do have an anecdote and would like feedback and your opinion on this....:
I brewed a Belgian witbier on Sunday, on the same day I bottled the pumpkin ale. I always have a bucket with Aseptox(same product as one-step but different brand name) when I brew so I just trow my tools in there and use them during the brewing process. We were finished brewing and wraping up (cleaning, etc.) getting ready to bottle the pumpkin, so my friend gave me the bucket and I used a plastic spoon that stayed in the bucket for few hours while we were brewing to stir the corn sugar in my 8 gallons of beer I was about to bottle. Once finished I emptied the bucket to find out that my friend had thrown in the aseptox solution a disgusting clothe that had sit on my balcony for 3 weeks (obviously he thought we were finished and didn't think I would used the spoon to stir the beer....) My question: would the aseptox solution be strong enough to sanitized the dirty clothe and not contaminate my spoon??? Will my batch be ok? Am I paranoiac? I guess I need reassurance !!! If my beer is good and taste good I assume it is fine and if it is contaminated I should also find out when I open a bottle, correct? ....but what is your feeling on this stupid anecdote??? FYI, I used the clothe too clean a bunch of dusty stuff from the basement using lysol and clorox, so I guess the clothe was clean before it sits on my balcony for 3 weeks!!! F***ng ****!!!
Here is an update: bottled my beer last week-end with a final gravity slightly higher than expected at 1.020. The beer didn't taste too sweet even if we all know it is not dry at that level of residual sugar. The spices were very subtil so I added a spice tea at bottling which added fresh spices aromas. You could taste them afterward but not overwhelming. I assume anyway that they will fade out with few weeks in the bottle.
I do have an anecdote and would like feedback and your opinion on this....:
I brewed a Belgian witbier on Sunday, on the same day I bottled the pumpkin ale. I always have a bucket with Aseptox(same product as one-step but different brand name) when I brew so I just trow my tools in there and use them during the brewing process. We were finished brewing and wraping up (cleaning, etc.) getting ready to bottle the pumpkin, so my friend gave me the bucket and I used a plastic spoon that stayed in the bucket for few hours while we were brewing to stir the corn sugar in my 8 gallons of beer I was about to bottle. Once finished I emptied the bucket to find out that my friend had thrown in the aseptox solution a disgusting clothe that had sit on my balcony for 3 weeks (obviously he thought we were finished and didn't think I would used the spoon to stir the beer....) My question: would the aseptox solution be strong enough to sanitized the dirty clothe and not contaminate my spoon??? Will my batch be ok? Am I paranoiac? I guess I need reassurance !!! If my beer is good and taste good I assume it is fine and if it is contaminated I should also find out when I open a bottle, correct? ....but what is your feeling on this stupid anecdote??? FYI, I used the clothe too clean a bunch of dusty stuff from the basement using lysol and clorox, so I guess the clothe was clean before it sits on my balcony for 3 weeks!!! F***ng ****!!!
Your beer will probably be fine. Just relax and let time tell.
Dynachrome
Well-Known Member
I'd bet the swimmers got killed off making the trip over to the spoon.
IMHO it will be beer. (Probably good beer too).
IMHO it will be beer. (Probably good beer too).
Justibone
Well-Known Member
If it is dirty, it cannot be sanitized properly.
I agree with the poster above. "Swimmer" bacteria were probably killed off. The cloth itself, though, would not have been considered "sanitized" if you used it to touch your wort or anything that touched your wort.
Remember: yeast are pretty strong, and when you pitch a few billion cells, they can outcompete bacteria fairly well. That being said, even a small infection can affect flavor.
I would say you have nothing to worry about, but who knows, really? You just have to relax, don't worry, and enjoy a homebrew that isn't infected.
silver02ws6
Well-Known Member
Thank Yuri for this great recipe. I had my first sip of the pumpkin ale last night now that its fully carbed and I think I hit a home run. Was rushing to get this one drinkable by thanksgiving. Only let it spend 9 days in the primary then went straight to the keg and started carbing it up.
I went with McCormick pumpkin spice and All spice. 1 tsp total 3/4 pumpkin spice and 1/4 all spice. Its actually turned out very nice. Def screams pumpkin pie on the nose and in the mouth.
I went with McCormick pumpkin spice and All spice. 1 tsp total 3/4 pumpkin spice and 1/4 all spice. Its actually turned out very nice. Def screams pumpkin pie on the nose and in the mouth.
