Belgian Blond Ale SWMBO Slayer - Belgian Blonde

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I think you will be fine. Gelatin works great and it's cheap. I use it but I find it takes a little longer to carb, if you bottle.
I brewed a Zombie Dust, OG 1.078 and it took over a month to fully carb. I think it was due to the high OG.
 
Okay, we dropped to 1.019. Progress is good. Color has lightened a bit. I gently shook the FB in a circular motion to try to rouse the yeast and was very careful NOT to introduce Oxygen. I'm also spacing my ice blocks further away from the bucket to raise the temp the final few days.

View attachment 1458597517020.jpg
 
I just pulled this one out of fermentation and placed in the fridge to cold crash for 2 days. As stated, my OG was 1.072 and today it was 1.012. ~8.5 ?
Anyway, I meant to add gelatin because the flaked wheat contributed a ton of floaters. I'll pull it out after crashing and allow it to warm to 70°F prior to adding the gelatin. My question is 2 fold. Do I need extra yeast for bottling since I've cold crashed it? How long do I let the gelatin do its thing before bottling?
 
Anyway, I meant to add gelatin because the flaked wheat contributed a ton of floaters. I'll pull it out after crashing and allow it to warm to 70°F prior to adding the gelatin. My question is 2 fold. Do I need extra yeast for bottling since I've cold crashed it? How long do I let the gelatin do its thing before bottling?

Don't raise the temp on the beer before fining. Add the gelatin while the beer is still ice cold and then put back in your fridge for a day or two. I use my kegerator for cold crashing. I noticed recently that my beers were crystal clear when I was keeping my kegerator at 36-38*. When I recent raised my serving temps to mid 40*'s, they're not clearing quite as well. Good thing I recent acquired a fermentation fridge and Black Box. Looking forward to seeing how my Helles turns out, as it's currently ramped for a diacetyl rest before crashing.
This may help you:
http://www.bertusbrewery.com/2012/06/how-to-clear-your-beer-with-gelatin.html

Also, you won't need more yeast for bottling.
 
Just dump it in hot. Easy peasy. See the comments from the linked article...


Bellicose Brewer 02.13.2016 on 7:27 PM Reply
Perhaps i missed on this thread, but did you chill the gelatin/water mixture before adding to the keg or did you add at 150F? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated?


David 03.31.2016 on 6:40 AM Reply
No, don’t chill it before adding it. It “gels” as it cools so you want to add it hot to the beer so that it gels in the beer, dragging the particulate down with it.
 
Bottled this today. Man there was alot of yeast and what I can only think is probably flaked oat protein at the bottom. 4.5 gallons and I was able to bottle about 37 -12oz bottles and 1 -22 oz bottle. I was able to get around ~52 bottles last 5 gal batch iirc. Now I wait..... good thing I still have some of the last batch chilled and ready to drink.
 
Here is the 1st bottle of my PM BIAB SWMBO slayer. This was bottled on 4/5 and allowed to condition for a week, then put in the fridge on 4/12. I just placed another bottle in the fridge and you could read the your texts through it. This is one sweet beer, the head has died off some from initial pour.
 
I've been in a bit of a brewing rut lately and have been brewing mostly ordinary bitters, which I love but have been wanting to try something different. Just haven't had the time, money, or motivation to try something new.

On a whim, I decided to brew a belgian blonde, although I know almost nothing about this style. Anyway, picked up the grains for this recipe yesterday and I'll be brewing this tomorrow, and I'm actually really excited to try something new.

Seems like a lot of wheat compared to other recipes, but I left that as is. Might boost with .75lb table sugar to get it a little closer to the books and the LHBS recommended the Wyeast 1214 so I'm going to give that a try. Also wanted to use some hops I have in the freezer to save some money, so Ill be using .5oz each of spalt and northern brewer.

Looking forward to tasting this!
 
I know this thread is coming up on a decade old (!), but I'm just wondering why this is listed as a Belgian Blonde and not a witbier. Not knowing anything about belgian styles, I jumped right in and brewed this thinking it was a belgian blonde. But after doing a little reading, with nearly 50% wheat and a witbier yeast this seems like it should be in the witbier category.

I used the 1214 yeast and some other noble hops, so I'm just trying to figure out what it is that I brewed....I'm looking forward to tasting it either way!
 
This thread really needs some more attention. My wife loves all wheat beers, especially belgians, so I figured it was a good one to have around. Followed the recipe exactly as posted. She is SLAYED... wife absolutely loves this beer (and so do I).

This is the best beer I have made, hands down.
 
This thread really needs some more attention. My wife loves all wheat beers, especially belgians, so I figured it was a good one to have around. Followed the recipe exactly as posted. She is SLAYED... wife absolutely loves this beer (and so do I).

This is the best beer I have made, hands down.

Brewed this a week ago for a birthday party in July.
5 gallon batch
OG 1.058
Used a slightly different yeast than than recipe called for. WLP 410 and trub from a previous brew (Paulaner Hefe)

I'll report back after the party on how it turned out.
 
Brewed this a week ago for a birthday party in July.
5 gallon batch
OG 1.058
Used a slightly different yeast than than recipe called for. WLP 410 and trub from a previous brew (Paulaner Hefe)

I'll report back after the party on how it turned out.

Kegged it today. FG was 1.004. Tasting later this week or early next week.

:mug:
 
I know this thread is coming up on a decade old (!), but I'm just wondering why this is listed as a Belgian Blonde and not a witbier. Not knowing anything about belgian styles, I jumped right in and brewed this thinking it was a belgian blonde. But after doing a little reading, with nearly 50% wheat and a witbier yeast this seems like it should be in the witbier category.

I used the 1214 yeast and some other noble hops, so I'm just trying to figure out what it is that I brewed....I'm looking forward to tasting it either way!

Essentially, you called out the difference between a Belgian Blond and a Wit, the yeast. Belgians aren't much for sticking to style characteristics, they use fruits, wild yeast, varying fermentation temps, add wheat to non typical wheat styles, used varying types of sugars, etc. Historically, and as far as I know to this day, the monks and the breweries that brew mostly Belgian beers brew what they want, how they want, and the beer falls into one a a handful of "styles."

What I would call the "main" belgian styles are:
Saisons
Dubbel
Tripel
Quad/Belgian strong Dark - if you research there's info out there on what might draw the line between these two, but it's pretty gray.

Then you can get into lambics, krieks, enkel/single, flander's red, the list could go on and on
 
Thanks for the recipe, BierMuncher. I've read the first 20 pages of almost all your recipes now and plan on making many of them!

This is my first AG, and actually probably more like my first time brewing beer (once, years ago, I used a kit for 1 gallon PM which didn't go well at all). I have an added problem in that I live in China, and couldn't find the liquid yeast, but managed to find Mangrove Jack's Belgian Wit Yeast M21. I searched the thread but didn't see much about it. Anyone have experience with using this yeast in this beer? I saw this comment on another thread, so figured it would work.
M21- Wit yeast, a really nice character, lower attenuation than I expected. but clean, with a traditional type wit character. (maybe a little extra banana though)
 
Just opened the first bottle (of my first home brewed beer!) after a week bottled, already pretty tasty. Can't wait to see how it develops over time.

I used the M21 and I like the beer, but can't give much more of a description as I have nothing to compare it to. Would like to get my hands on the liquid yeast one day and do a head to head!

Thanks for the recipe, BM!
 
What do other folks do with the WLP400 yeast cake after brewing this? Been thinking a black wit but don’t have any midnight wheat that most recipes call for. Thought about White IPA also but no unmalted wheat. I think I tried a white ipa with this once but was not crazy about it...could have been my recipe. I’ve had other white ipa’s that I liked.

Appreciate suggestions ... I like this yeast and hate to let it go after 1 batch.
 
Look into washing yeast then just save the unwashed slurry instead. Lots of effort with little benefit and increased risk.

I keep a collection of yeast slurry to be used as needed. A loosely capped mason jar of slurry covered in beer will keep for months.
 
I wasn’t very clear in asking my question. I’m looking for recipe suggestions for wlp400 that are not Belgian blondes. I’ve made this recipe 8 times over the last 5 years...it’s awesome stuff. I like this yeast and would like to try it in something other than a blonde and wondered if others have recipes they like to use this yeast in. Maybe a little deviation from this recipe ... Belgian Amber? Belgian de Negra ?
 
I wasn’t very clear in asking my question. I’m looking for recipe suggestions for wlp400 that are not Belgian blondes. I’ve made this recipe 8 times over the last 5 years...it’s awesome stuff. I like this yeast and would like to try it in something other than a blonde and wondered if others have recipes they like to use this yeast in. Maybe a little deviation from this recipe ... Belgian Amber? Belgian de Negra ?

A Belgian IPA ala Raging *****, a white IPA or a Witbier
 
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