Pear ale

I was thinking about it the other day and thought a pear ale could be a tasty creation, however I wasn't really sure how many pears I would need to use and when I should add them. I've heard that adding them to the secondary is a good time. I guess I was just thinking about adding the pears to a pale ale recipe. Any input? thanks

I think pears might work in a Hefe, just a thought.
I've never used fresh fruit before, so I can't help with the amount.

Good luck, keep us posted

Whatever you're putting in your beer, make sure you have a really, really good base beer first. Just remember that anything you put into the beer that was not originally part of the style will help highlight any flaws, not cover them. If you are going to go for it, I'd get pear puree, if you can find it, and dump in maybe two pounds into secondary. Personally, I think pear ale would be pretty nasty, but hey, it's your beer.

There is a commercially available pear beverage (think hard cider but with pears) I think it is made by Woodchuck. Its actually pretty good.

It's called a perry, if I'm not mistaken.

As for flavoring a beer with it, I would tend toward a lager. The smoothness would help bring out the pear flavor, I would think..

jpuf said:

I think pears might work in a Hefe, just a thought.
I've never used fresh fruit before, so I can't help with the amount.

Good luck, keep us posted

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Funny, both times my wife has tasted my most recent batch of hefewiesse beer, she mentioned a slight pear taste. I was going for the banana and clove, and to me that's what I detect in the smell/taste, but she picks up some pear. I think the recommendation of pear in a hefe, with maybe an american hefe yeast strain, would be a nice summer brew if the pear is subtle.

Fruit in a Pale Ale, except citrus, would probably be a mistake. The bitterness & hops would really clash with the fruit. A hefe would work, as would a Blonde or a Mild. Two pounds in the secondary would be a good place to start. Give it a week to ferment out (even though fruit doesn't have much sugar in it), then taste it. If it's too fruity, that will mellow.

EmptyH said:

There is a commercially available pear beverage (think hard cider but with pears) I think it is made by Woodchuck. Its actually pretty good.

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Woodchuck does indeed make Pear cider and I honestly think it is one of the worst things I've ever drank. It literally tasted like some Bath and Body Works (TM) pear perfume/body-spritz smells.

Nasssssty.

For those still following this, I used pear puree in secondary for a kolsch and it tasted great in the summer. The girls like it.

I would go with an untraditional Lager instead (fermented closer to ale temps) and name it "Peary Mason". Use glacier, palisades, & nugget hops along with an apple forward German yeast. Pilsener malt base with a touch of munich. Frozen pears in the secondary.

jrecords said:

I was thinking about it the other day and thought a pear ale could be a tasty creation, however I wasn't really sure how many pears I would need to use and when I should add them. I've heard that adding them to the secondary is a good time. I guess I was just thinking about adding the pears to a pale ale recipe. Any input? thanks

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I added my pears to a blonde ale. I added 5 lbs of Asian pears in the 2nd fermentation bucket. I sliced them through a food processor, froze them overnight, let sit at room temperature for about 8 hours, then added to the 2nd fermentation bucket. When I bottled, I poured the 2nd fermentation bucket into the bottling bucket, through a strainer. I am left in bottles for about three weeks and just put them in the fridge two days ago. I will be trying them today. In the interim, I have opened about three and they have a wine flavor, which has diminished over time, but there is still a cider taste. Now that they have been in the fridge, I will see if there is a further change.