Final Pumpkin Ale recipe

well i finally decided on a recipe, and started the brewing tonight. i'll let you guys know how it is around christmas.

Bill’s Pumpkin Beer

Ingredients:
Partial Mash:
- ½ lb. Breiss 2-row malt
- ½ lb. Briess wheat malt
- ½ lb. Breiss crystal malt (40L)
- 2 15 oz. cans pumpkin
Base:
- 3.3 lbs. light malt extract
- 3.3 lbs. amber malt extract
- 1 cup light brown sugar
Hops:
- Bittering: 1 oz. Mt. Hood AAU = 4 (60 minutes)
- Flavoring: None
- Finishing: ½ oz. Cascade AAU = 2.85 (15 minutes)
Adjuncts:
- 2 teaspoons Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon each: Ginger, Cloves, Nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon Irish Moss
Yeast:
- White Labs East Coast Ale yeast (WLP008)
- Starter: Boil ½ quart water for 10 minutes, add ½ cup LME, boil for 10 minutes
Priming Sugar:
- ¾ cup corn sugar

Raw AAU = 6.85
IBU = 20.1

Instructions:
1. Prepare yeast starter 48 hours in advance
2. Boil as much water as possible for 15 minutes
3. Bring 2 gallons of boiled water to 160 F
4. Add pumpkin, then crushed grains (in straining bag) to water, rest 1 hour at 155 F
5. Remove bag, wash grain bag with 1 gallon of 160 F water
6. Bring grain/pumpkin “tea” to boil
7. Remove heat, stir in malt extracts and brown sugar
8. Bring back to boil for 2 minutes, add 1 oz. Mt. Hood hops
9. Boil for 45 more minutes, add ½ oz. Cascade hops
10. Boil 5 minutes then add 1 teaspoon Irish Moss
11. Boil for 8 more minutes, add spices, boil for 2 more minutes
12. Cool wort rapidly in water bath
13. Transfer wort to fermenter, bring volume to 6 gallons, aerating at the same time
14. Pitch yeast, stir, ferment at 68-72 F for 7-10 days
15. Rack to 5 gallon secondary fermenter for 2 weeks, add spices if necessary
16. Dissolve ¾ cup corn sugar in 2 cups of boiled water, add sugar water to bottling bucket
17. Siphon fermented wort from fermenter into bottling bucket without splashing
18. Bottle condition for 2-4 weeks

the yeast starter worked wonders. fermentation started about 5 hours after pitching and is chugging along quite nicely now. the house smelled like a holiday candle last night when i brewed. the clove smell was a little overpowering; i hope the flavor mellows over the next month. OG was 1.046.

wed

I'm glad you made a starter and was pleased with it.

I really hope your brew is ready for Christmas.

I've said this before, but if you use that much Ginger/Cloves/Nutmeg/Allspice it'll take months to mellow out.

I've also recommended halving all of those ingredients if you want to make a quick beer. Those flavors won't be too overpowering, but may still be a bit harsh.

1 tsp of cloves. Brother, that'll knock your head off. It may never mellow.