Experimental Beer The Spruce is Loose! - American Pale Ale

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Darwin18

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2008
Messages
5,335
Reaction score
961
Location
Fuquay-Varina, NC
Recipe Type
All Grain
Yeast
WLP001 - California Ale
Yeast Starter
Yes - 1 L (Stir Plate)
Batch Size (Gallons)
5.5
Original Gravity
1.056
Final Gravity
1.012
Boiling Time (Minutes)
60
IBU
38.0
Color
6.7 SRM
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
21 days @ 66F
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
None
Additional Fermentation
None
Tasting Notes
Excellent balance between the spruce and the base style. Spruce is enjoyable!
This was my first attempt using spruce in brewing beer. I had tried a spruce beer a few years ago in Asheville during a brewery tour and it wasn't really my thing. My wife, however, loved it. I decided I'd brew a spruce beer this year for her. Recipe details are below and assume 75% efficiency:

Grain Bill

- 9.5 lbs of Maris Otter (3.0 SRM)
- 1.25 lbs of Munich Malt (9.0 SRM)
- 0.5 lbs of Cara-Pils (2.0 SRM)
- 0.25 lbs of Crystal 60 (60.0 SRM)

Hops & Spruce Additions
- 1 oz Cascade (8.60%) FWH
- 1 oz Cascade (8.60%) 10 minutes (10 minutes left in boil)
- 1 oz Cascade (8.60%) 0 Minutes
- 4 oz of Spruce Tips 15 minutes (15 minutes left in boil)

Mash

- Single Infusion / Medium Body
- Mash in with 18 quarts of water to hit 153 F for 60 minutes.
- Batch Sparge out with 4.40 gallons of water.

Boil

- Boil for 60 minutes

Overall Impressions

- This has an excellent balance between the spruce and the American Pale Ale base style. The spruce is prevalent but not dominating, and allows for the hop aroma and flavor to come forward. As a judge, I realize that I'm drinking an American Pale Ale that has spruce in it; it's not a spruce bomb. This will be something that I brew on a regular basis.

Spruce tips were obtained from: http://spruceontap.com/

Awards / Recognitions

- 3/7/2015: CARBOY Shamrock Open XX - This beer took 2nd place in the Spice/Herb/Veg category out of a total of 32 entries in that category.

Pictures!

spruce_2.jpg


spruce_5.jpg


IMG_0912.jpg
 
Thanks! I've been wanting to make a spruce beer with tips from my area. I had initially thought that Chinook would be a good hop, but agree with cascade. Let the spruce bring the woody/piney flavor and not the Chinook hops!
 
Update:

This beer scored a 38 at the NHC 1st Round in Austin and went to mini-BOS but sadly did not advance. Looking forward to brewing this again in the late fall.
 
I'm making this tomorrow, only using Douglas Fir tips instead of spruce tips.

The fir tips I harvested today smell absolutely amazing.
 
Centennial actually works pretty well too. I used a Two Hearted clone as the base for a spruce IPA once and it was awesome. A little much for some people, but I did use a little more spruce than I should have, which was also freshly picked from my and a neighbor's yard (they didn't care). I also added at every stage of the boil, just as you do with hops.
 
Those look great. How did the brew go for you?

Kegged this tonight. The hydro sample is really good. Even though I used fir instead of spuce, the description is pretty similar....a very nice pale ale, with noticeable (but not overpowering) fir in the aroma and especially in the finish.

:mug:

20150523_221256-1.jpg
 
Sounds great! This was the first recipe I've uploaded to HBT and I'm thrilled that someone out there brewed it (besides me)!
 
A bit of an update on this beer: I brewed this one for 2018 and it took a 2nd place ribbon at the 2nd Annual Port City Plunder (Wilmington, NC). The spruce tips were much more intense this go around and it came out a bit too sprucy for my tastes. I'm still working through water issues at my new house, but this is still a pretty solid recipe.
 
A bit of an update on this beer: I brewed this one for 2018 and it took a 2nd place ribbon at the 2nd Annual Port City Plunder (Wilmington, NC). The spruce tips were much more intense this go around and it came out a bit too sprucy for my tastes. I'm still working through water issues at my new house, but this is still a pretty solid recipe.

Congrats on the ribbon, that is outstanding.
 
Think I'm going to base a recipe on this with a Belgian saison yeast. And probably pilsner grain instead of the pale.
Sounds good. For some reason I only like non traditional beer
 
Think I'm going to base a recipe on this with a Belgian saison yeast. And probably pilsner grain instead of the pale.
Sounds good. For some reason I only like non traditional beer
Sorry, non traditional beer ingredients in sour or saison styles. Always find they clash with clean American styles and malty British styles.
 
I’ve obtained some spruce tips with the plan to make a Strong Ale to be aged until December. In your opinion as the brewer and a beer judge, do you think the spruce character would need to be increased from your recipe to be perceived in a 10%, medium-thick body strong ale? I’ve always read that spruce should be added for the full 60’ boil, but all the recipes I see on HBT are adding it in the final 15’ or less of the boil. Some others make a tincture. Thoughts here? Thanks in advance!
 
I've treated it a lot like hops in the past. Personally, I would add some at both but keep the 60' addition minimal. I've had best luck pairing with some piney/resinous hops. Centennial worked great for me, but if you're doing a strong ale perhaps that's not what you're going for. I'm also not an expert.
 
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