Salanis
Well-Known Member
So I've done several batches under the guidance of a brewmaster and done a couple brews all my own (from the local outlet's "kits"). I'm getting ready to try my hand at my favorite beer style: Saison. I know this is a varied and interesting style, and I hear *tons* of conflicting advice, so I have a couple things I'd like to get advice on.
The Fermenter: Single fermenter or move it to a secondary? I know the normal debate and have had good luck with just a single fermenter. Problem is, I have a 6.5gal bucket and a 5gal "better bottle" carboy and neither of those will work on its own. I'm thinking a 6gal better bottle aught to have enough overflow space to deal with the liveliness of a Saison yeast.
The Malt: Okay conflicting stories about the malt. I show up at the homebrew outlet and the guy there is telling me Saison's are primarily wheat based. This doesn't seem right. I've heard of a number using wheat, but not as the primary fermentable. Getting a bunch of wheat extract seems a bit odd.
Partial mash or extract: I'd kind of like to try partial mash, but I keep hearing how if I do that, I need to get a false-bottom mash tun. I hear other things about just using bags. I know it's not "as good", but I used that when under direction of a brewmaster, and it seems like a lot of people have used that to good effect.
Any advice people can give would be great. Thanks in advance. I apologize if this is the wrong section of the board for this.
The Fermenter: Single fermenter or move it to a secondary? I know the normal debate and have had good luck with just a single fermenter. Problem is, I have a 6.5gal bucket and a 5gal "better bottle" carboy and neither of those will work on its own. I'm thinking a 6gal better bottle aught to have enough overflow space to deal with the liveliness of a Saison yeast.
The Malt: Okay conflicting stories about the malt. I show up at the homebrew outlet and the guy there is telling me Saison's are primarily wheat based. This doesn't seem right. I've heard of a number using wheat, but not as the primary fermentable. Getting a bunch of wheat extract seems a bit odd.
Partial mash or extract: I'd kind of like to try partial mash, but I keep hearing how if I do that, I need to get a false-bottom mash tun. I hear other things about just using bags. I know it's not "as good", but I used that when under direction of a brewmaster, and it seems like a lot of people have used that to good effect.
Any advice people can give would be great. Thanks in advance. I apologize if this is the wrong section of the board for this.