Raspberry Wheat Recipe (Feedback Please)

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Recipe: Waw's Raspberry Wheat
Brewer: Me
Asst Brewer:
Style: American Wheat
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
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Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Size: 6.41 gal
Estimated OG: 1.048 SG
Estimated Color: 4.9 SRM
Estimated IBU: 17.3 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
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Amount Item Type % or IBU
3.00 lb Fruit - Raspberry (0.0 SRM) Adjunct 26.1 %
4.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 34.8 %
4.00 lb Wheat Malt, Ger (2.0 SRM) Grain 34.8 %
0.50 lb Honey Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 4.3 %
0.25 oz Centennial [10.00%] (60 min) Hops 9.8 IBU
0.25 oz Centennial [10.00%] (30 min) Hops 7.5 IBU
0.25 oz Centennial [10.00%] (15 min) (Aroma Hop-SHops -
1 Pkgs American Hefeweizen Ale (White Labs #WLP32Yeast-Wheat


Mash Schedule: My Mash
Total Grain Weight: 8.50 lb
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Name Description Step Temp Step Time
Step Add 10.63 qt of water at 170.6 F 155.0 F 60 min


Notes:
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You adding the fruit to the mash? or boil? You have to consider the pectin will set if you heat it too long. If you want the raspberry flavor you want to add it to the secondary.

+1 to that. I'd add the raspberries to the secondary. Freeze them for a couple of days to break down the membrane walls. You would then let the thaw. You could blender 'em and then put in a muslin bag, put them in your secondary, and THEN rack your beer on top of it or you could skip the blender and do the same process.

Malts look good, but go super light on the hops in a fruit beer. 15ibu is the most you'd ever want.

I recently did a raspberry wheat with a similar grain bill. I am actually drinking one now! Cheers. I used 1oz Hallertauer 4aa for 60 minutes and .25oz Hallertauer 4aa at 20 minutes. Turned out great!! +2 to adding your raspberry to 2nd fermenter. I just tossed mine right in. Wish would have put in a nylon bag or transfered through a nylon bag into keg, as I got a few seeds and some floaties out of the tap.
Produces a beer with a very "natural" raspberry taste that is a lot cleaner and more natural tasting than say Purple Haze.
One conern may be yeast- White labs describes that one with minor banana/clove flavor. Don;t think you want any of those flavors mixing against the raspberry flavor. I am not familiar with that yeast so i cannot comment on it's actual flavor profile. I used Wyeast 1010, turned out great.

I'd use some Noble hop varieties and lower the IBU's as mentioned above.

As always great feedback. I will lower the IBU's a bit, and will definatley add the raspberrys to the secondary. I want to use Hallertauer hop pellets but my local store is currently our of stock. Any reccomendations on a decent substitute.

http://www21.inetba.com/westboylstonhomebrewemporium/_hops.htm

I could buy hops instead of pellets but I have never used whole hops before. Is it that much different?

I also had one more question in regard to yeast. I actually have some left over White Labs #WLP004 that I washed and have been storing, do you think that could be used or should I go with a wheat beer type yeast.

As always thanks again for your feedback, my brews always turn out great because of it.

i started using pellets, but get whole or plug hop whenever i can, especially for dry-hopping. i know a lot of people used pellets to dry hop because they settle out, but to each their own. The only thing i notice on whole or plug hops is that they absorb a lot of liquid. I usually toss in an extra pint of wort in the boil to account for the whole hops. If it is a big hop boil, like 2-3 oz of whole hop, i add a little more. If you never used, you won't believe the weight of them in your strainer after the boil. I also let my strainer sit on top of my primary bucker, covering as much as possible, to try to collet a little extra liquid that will drip out of the hops. Getting whole hop Hallertauer will be better than so pellet of something you aren;t looking to use.

As far as the yeast, I am not familiar with WhiteLab as my LHBS has only Wyeast, and it is all i use. However, if you are looking to do a raspberry wheat, use a low banana/clove ester wheat strain. If you were in columbus, i would gladly give you a washed Wyeast 1010. Good luck. If you have any more ? on this, give me a shout.

My understanding is that hop pellets have a little better utilization potential than whole hops.

you are right. generally better utilization. but that doesn't translate to better flavor/taste. don;t want to knock either or. i think both have their strengths and weakenesses. just a preference thing i guess. once i started working with whole/plug hops, feel like i got comfortable with whole hop and let it roll out. just stating, IMHO, use whole hop of a variety your are looking to use, rather than use a pellet of something you are using as a substitute. :rockin::rockin:

Well I brewed this yesterday and wow is it going. I managed to get some Hallertauer pellets, and went with the WHite labs English Ale Yeast (Its reccomeded for both wheat and fruit beers). I have to say that the krausen is huge on this one, I've never had a batch bubbling away like this one. Its like a torrent of yeast inside the carboy.

I did have 1 more question. I'm going to add the raspberrys to the secondary. I'm going to freeze them for a few days them add the ber on top. Do I have to sterilize the raspberrys before adding them or will the cold kill the bacteria. Thanks again for all the help. Here's to more batches.

I used frozen rasberries that were pasturized. I heated them briefly and cooled to room temp, all in a sanied vessel. If you are using fresh, i would recommend heating to 165-170 for 10 minutes to kill anything off. Also make sure you wash them well. I have heard of others just washing off and tossing in, but i am way to anal to be that riske.

beesy said:

you are right. generally better utilization. but that doesn't translate to better flavor/taste. don;t want to knock either or. i think both have their strengths and weakenesses. just a preference thing i guess. once i started working with whole/plug hops, feel like i got comfortable with whole hop and let it roll out. just stating, IMHO, use whole hop of a variety your are looking to use, rather than use a pellet of something you are using as a substitute. :rockin::rockin:

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I agree. I have 5 lbs of whole hops in the freezer and prefer them over whole hops. I don't mind throwing them in as the bittering addition though. I much prefer my whole hops for flavor and aroma.

hell yea!!! the Wyeast 1010 wheat strain i use gets nutty too. I use 10 gallon primary fermenter buckets and have had a batch have some krausen crusties end up on the underside of the lid with the sides covered almost all the way to the top. That has to be messy in a carboy!!:rockin::rockin:

beesy said:

hell yea!!! the Wyeast 1010 wheat strain i use gets nutty too. I use 10 gallon primary fermenter buckets and have had a batch have some krausen crusties end up on the underside of the lid with the sides covered almost all the way to the top. That has to be messy in a carboy!!:rockin::rockin:

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Yeah, luckily im using a blowoff tube, otherwise i'm pretty sure the airlock would have blown off by now.