Belgian Tripel

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Abrayton

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I am planning to brew Midwest supplies Belgian Tripel extract kit. To kick it up a bit I'm thinking about adding an extra pound of lite DME and an extra pound of candy sugar. Any advice if this is a good/bad idea or any extra grains or hops I would want to add to balance the flsvor? Also will two 11 g packets of dry yeast be enough? Thanks for any advice.
 
I am guessing that you are a fairly new brewer, so this is my advice. Take it or not.

Brew the kit as it is. There is a balance in a good recipe. Once you change that then you have to change other parts. If you add more fermentables then you have to add more hops to balance it out. Until you really understand recipes, you are better off following the recipe as written.

You are better off learning how to control all of the parts of the brewing process before you start changing things too much. Learn about things like proper yeast pitching, making proper sized starters, controling fermentation temps etc. Make a few good beers before you go crazy. I know that as a new brewer you want to try new stuff but believe me, getting the process down will have you making good beers faster than trying stuff that you do not know will work.

It is a lot like cooking. You can just open up the spice cabinet and start throwing spices in, or you can learn which ones work together. Too much of one throws a recipe out of whack. Learn what works and then improvise from there.
 
Thanks for the advice. I won't get crazy on this one. I am new to brewing. This will be my third batch. How about yeast? Do I need to pitch two or more packets of dry or liquid for this high gravity beer? I'm leaning toward Belgian Abby ale yeast activator - wyeast 1214 - 4.25 oz
 
Thanks for the advice. I won't get crazy on this one. I am new to brewing. This will be my third batch. How about yeast? Do I need to pitch two or more packets of dry or liquid for this high gravity beer? I'm leaning toward Belgian Abby ale yeast activator - wyeast 1214 - 4.25 oz

Good deal, 2 dry packs is enough however keep in mind that big beers 1.080 and higher often need a little help for the yeast like plenty of O2 and yeast nutrient to ferment out. With these beers it's not just about pitch rates.
 
I love tripels- I've brewed two and used the white labs equivalent to 1214, WLP500. That's the Chimay yeast I believe. They both came out good. I pitched a 1600ml starter rather than 2 vials. Just be patient - the beer won't be at its best for months after brew day. I would recommend bottling in Belgian bottles and priming for high carbonation.
 
I'm going to go with wyeast 1214 and use fast pitch instead of making my own starter wort. Each can is 1L. If I use two cans of fast pitch and one 4.25 oz yeast activator pack I should be on track correct?

.
 
I'm going to go with wyeast 1214 and use fast pitch instead of making my own starter wort. Each can is 1L. If I use two cans of fast pitch and one 4.25 oz yeast activator pack I should be on track correct?

.

Depends on the age of the smack pack but that should put you in the ballpark. You will need to swirl that starter every time you think about it assuming you don't have a stir plate.
 
I like to brew a recipe as it is writen the first time. If it's an established recipe or kit you know it will be at least deicent if you manage to have good brewing technics. Once you know what the beer is like you can make adjustments to your taste or make corrections in your process if it needs refined. If you dont get your technics and processes down flat the beer will be different every time you brew it and you won't even have changed the recipe yet. I would pick a recipe for a beer you like to drink, is easy to brew, and has a quick turnaround. Then i would brew it back to back to back until you can make it taste true to style and taste the same at least two batches in a row. This way you are familiar with the style and can pick out your mistakes easier. I know repetative brewing helped me sort out my process.
 
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