Thinkin' on a Saison recipe

I've been tossing ideas around in my head for a little while. Want to keep it fairly simple. Any thoughts on this recipe?

Brew Type: Partial Mash
Style: Saison
Brewer: BBD Brewing
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Volume: 4.10 gal
Boil Time: 60 min


Ingredients
Amount Item Type % or IBU
4.50 lb Pale Liquid Extract [Boil for 5 min] Extract 33.33 %
5.00 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 37.04 %
2.00 lb Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 14.81 %
1.00 lb Wheat Malt, Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 7.41 %
0.50 oz Pearle [8.00 %] (60 min) Hops 10.0 IBU
1.00 oz Hallertauer [4.80 %] (20 min) Hops 7.3 IBU
0.50 oz Pearle [8.00 %] (10 min) Hops 3.6 IBU
0.50 oz Saaz [4.00 %] (10 min) Hops 1.8 IBU
1.00 lb Sugar, Table (Sucrose) (1.0 SRM) Sugar 7.41 %
1 Pkgs Belgian Saison (Wyeast Labs #3724) Yeast-Ale

Beer Profile
Estimated Original Gravity: 1.064 SG
Estimated Final Gravity: 1.013 SG
Estimated Color: 8.3 SRM
Bitterness: 31.5 IBU
Estimated Alcohol by Volume: 6.64 %

Looks good.

I am also getting the itch to brew a saison but have to wait till the the weather turns a little warmer so I have a place to put it.

Gonna experiment a little and use Maris Otter and rye malt just to see what happens.

I think what you got there is a nice lite saison.

Cool, thanks. I'm waiting until the end of July or early August. We should have a good spell of heat around then. I'll just watch the weather forecast and time to that.

Looks good.

Want to try it with a twist - buy some Sorachi Ace

I like that you're not throwing spices and crap into it. Looks good to me.

LakeErieBrew said:

I like that you're not throwing spices and crap into it. Looks good to me.

Click to expand...

Believe me, that was completely intentional. I'm no expert, but after doing a lot of reading on the style I wanted to have all my spice come from the yeast.

jezter6 said:

Looks good.

Want to try it with a twist - buy some Sorachi Ace

Click to expand...

I'm guessing that it brings out a lemon grass flavor. Is that why you suggest it?

I have never tries them but have read a little about them. I have been pondering burning up some argentine cascades that I ended up with. Some say they impart a lemon grass flavor.

Just curious about your suggestion.

Yes, lemon grass, a little extra citrus flavor boost, and a nice sharp hop bite.

I love em.

Put this in the fermenter last night. Made it just like in the first post.

Oh man... I just opened one of these. Went against my own (and so many other's) advice and threw one in the fridge after less than a week in the bottle. I couldn't resist! This is going to be so nice when it gets fully carbed. It spent almost 2 months in fermenter, so it's about conditioned... just not quite carbonated.

This smells like my batch of apfelwein I made. So fruity. The taste is fantastic. Dry and a little tart. As I drink it, I get more of a tingle of pepper in my mouth that builds with each sip.

Towards the end of the glass, an earthyness almost like Orval (but not nearly as pronounced) starts to show up.

I think a saison is going to be at least an annual brew for me... this is so good, and it's not even ready yet.

After 3 weeks it's fantastic! ABV is almost 9% but you can't taste it a bit. One of those beers that sneaks up and smacks you in the back of the head if you're not careful. Still smells like apfelwein!

I went even more bare-bones with mine. 91% pilsner, 9% munich, with sterling and saaz. I bottled it a month ago, and it tastes great- apple, peach and spice coming through with a tart finish.

Did you have much trouble with the 3724? I did- I almost want to switch yeasts for next year's saison to 3711 or something, but I want the same finish that I got this time.

I used 3711, actually. Loved it. Finished out at 1.001. Fermented out like a champ and tastes wonderful.

Ah, I just saw the 3724 in the original recipe you had. I'll probably give the 3711 a try next year, then. The 3724 tastes great, but it slowed noticably every time the temp got under about 85 and pretty much quit below 80. I've never invested in a beer heating system (and I didn't see the point for 1 beer), so it took over 5 weeks to drop to 1.004.

Been drinking this outta my TAD system tonight. Gotta say the 9% goes straight into your brain!!!! Wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's damned tasty though. When you drink it, you can't belive it's got as much alcohol as it does. This one has gotta rank with the SWMBO slayer on the stealth druk meter.

foollow up post!!!!


WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!