Love to know what you think about my recipe

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jphalabuk

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I have in my secondary (so it's too late to do much about it except anticipate) this Blackberry-Wheat recipe:

7 lbs Wheat LME
8 oz Carapils
8 oz White Wheat

2 49 oz cans of Blackberry puree (I have used the flavor extract before and did not care for the flavor)

1 oz Hallertau @ 60:00
.5 oz Hallertau @ 30:00
.5 oz Hallertau @ 5:00

2 lbs thawed, frozen blackberries

WLP320

I believe my SG was 1.050.

The puree makes the beer very, very purple, and there is a lot of sediment. It smells incredible.

Anyone care to make a prediction?
 
I really hope you like blackberries!

When did you add the fruit during this process? Judging by your OG, that doesn't take into account the fruit, which means you just made a Blackberry Wheat Wine!
 
Everything went into the primary. I cannot remember if I took my gravity reading before or after I added the blackberries, but I am 100% sure I had added the puree by then.
 
And you added (2) 49oz cans, like the Vintner's Harvest or Oregon Fruit cans? I'm going off memory, but each of those cans should have bumped your OG by about 10-15 points in a five gallon batch. And going by your OG, that amount of extract would have already gotten you well above 1.050.

Either way, since you added them before fermentation started, you're going to lose some flavor and aroma due to the volatility of fermentation. But not even counting the frozen fruit, I'd estimate your OG to be about 1.070 at least, but probably closer to 1.080 if not higher.
 
KeystoneHomebrew said:
And you added (2) 49oz cans, like the Vintner's Harvest or Oregon Fruit cans? I'm going off memory, but each of those cans should have bumped your OG by about 10-15 points in a five gallon batch. And going by your OG, that amount of extract would have already gotten you well above 1.050.

Either way, since you added them before fermentation started, you're going to lose some flavor and aroma due to the volatility of fermentation. But not even counting the frozen fruit, I'd estimate your OG to be about 1.070 at least, but probably closer to 1.080 if not higher.
Click to expand...

Maybe i misread the hydrometer. I did use a calculator to project what the OG WOULD BE, and it was 1.050. Sorry to monopolize your time, but if i steeped in 3 gallons of water, added my ingredients exactly and ended up with a 5 gallon batch, could i really be off by .03? Not saying im sure any more about my facts, by what potential mistakes could cause me to read that low?
 
I was saying you are probably off .3, not .03, just to clarify.

If you didn't give the wort a proper stirring your reading could be off (I've done that a bunch of times). Just so I'm on the same page with you, you plugged in the LME AND the fruit and the calculator said you should be at 1.050? That's impossible if the case. Just the LME I can see, especially if it was Alexander's or Mountmellick brand, as there's a touch more water weight.

No worries on my time. I'd much rather be helping you than doing paper work!
 
KeystoneHomebrew said:
I was saying you are probably off .3, not .03, just to clarify.

If you didn't give the wort a proper stirring your reading could be off (I've done that a bunch of times). Just so I'm on the same page with you, you plugged in the LME AND the fruit and the calculator said you should be at 1.050? That's impossible if the case. Just the LME I can see, especially if it was Alexander's or Mountmellick brand, as there's a touch more water weight.

No worries on my time. I'd much rather be helping you than doing paper work!
Click to expand...

Thanks! Maybe i did not stir it well, or maybe i read it wrong. When i go to bottle and take a FG reading is there any way to work backwards? More to the point, can i just assume if it ends up at a normal FG reading that i messed up a measurement earlier on? Maybe this time i dont obsess about where i made the mistake and just enjoy it.
 
If I've learned anything on this crazy train of homebrewing, is that trying to fix a beer only makes it worse!

It's going to be a good beer, just stronger than you anticipated. Keep an eye on fermentation. If you see or notice fermentation lagging or stalling (hydrometer reading > 1.020) get some more yeast into the fermenter and let it ferment down. That'll prevent you from producing bottle bombs.

But long rambling post short, if the FG ends up in the butter zone, it was a stirring issue. Please let me know how the beer turns out. Now I'm vested in it!
 
I will be sure to let you know. I really appreciate the help. I am less than a year into this homebrewing thing, and i am hooked.
I have also learned there are a ton of good folks like yourself that are eager to help.
 
Just bottled a few days ago. FG was 1.010, so that seems good (and probably means I screwed up the initial measurement). Smell was great. taste was good. I will crack one open in a couple weeks and report back.
 

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