I want to make a kick-ass pumpkin ale... I found this recipe, but am a little leary using it. The last online recipe I used for a blueberry weizen called for adding 3lbs of fruit puree to the secondary, but they didn't say anything about a blow-off tube or not to use a 5-gallon carboy. 
big mess.
If you have any recomendations- I'd love to hear them!
Cheers
Pumpkin Ale
Perfect for the season, this is a favorite beer of mine to brew this time of year (although I haven't brewed in a long time), and it's always good. This is mostly an extract-based recipe, though there is a short mash/rest with the pumpkin and malt. Use this recipe as-is, or as a basis for experimentation.
Ingredients:
6-10 pounds of pumpkin
1 pound of Vienna malt, 4L
½ pound crystal malt, 40L
½ pound malted wheat
6 pounds light or amber malt extract
1 cup brown suger (optional)
½ cup molasses (optional)
1 ounce Mt. Hood hops (boiling)
½ ounce Hallertauer hops (finishing)
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ to 1 teaspon pumpkin pie spices (see below)
Wyeast 1056, American Ale
Directions:
The first thing to say is do not use canned pumpkin! Real pumpkin is the only way to go here, otherwise you'll be dealing with a huge mess. You've been warned.
You'll first need to roast the pumpkin in the oven, similar to cooking squash. This softens the pumpkin and begins breaking it down. Cut the pumpkin into manageable pieces (should be cleaned, of courseold jack-o'lanterns work great), place in a shallow baking pan and add a bit of water to the pan. Roast in a 325°-ish oven for about an hour, or until soft. Or check a cookbook
.
There's two ways you can incorporate the finished pumpkin: a partial mash-style method or simply a soak with the grains as the water heats. For the soak method, simply add the pumpkin and the grains to your pot of water, put it on the heat to boil. When it boils, remove the pumpkin and grains.
For the partial mash, add the pumpkin and grains to hot water (between 150 and 170 degrees Fahrenheit is fine, I believe) and let rest for an hour, then bring to a boil and remove the pumpkin and grains. (Note: I don't have sparging equipment, so this removal is simply via a wire strainer.)
Add the malt extract (6 pounds is for dry, you could easily get away with 7 pounds if it's syrup), optional brown sugar and molasses, Mt. Hood hops and boil for 1 hour. After 45 minutes, add the finishing Hallertauer hops. At the very end of the boil, add the vanilla and pumpkin pie spicesthese are volatile and adding them to the boil any sooner will essentially nullify their flavor.
Ferment for 1 week, or until primary fermentation settles down, and rack to a secondary for 2 more weeks. The secondary fermentation is not strictly necessary, but I like it for clarification and for letting the flavors mellow. Bottle, priming with ½ cup of corn sugar, and drink after a couple of weeks.
As for the spices, I like a typical mixture of what you'd put into a pumpkin pie: cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, mace, maybe ginger. I'd avoid buying the generic "Pumpkin Pie Spice" from the store, and mix your own insteadyou'll have more control over the outcome. This spice essence is one of the first things you notice when you open a bottleyum!
I've heard of recipes that don't actually use pumpkinseems weird to me. I personally think real pumpkin adds a unique flavor and texture to the finished beer that you just can't replicate otherwise.
And, a quick note about the hops. Mt. Hood is a nice spicy, slightly sweet hop (a variant of Hallertauer, actually) that seems to complement this beer well. For finishing, you don't have to stick to Hallertauer; play with it a bit. Cascade might be a nice finish, or if you want to reduce the hop bite, omit the finishing hop altogether.
big mess.If you have any recomendations- I'd love to hear them!
Cheers
Pumpkin Ale
Perfect for the season, this is a favorite beer of mine to brew this time of year (although I haven't brewed in a long time), and it's always good. This is mostly an extract-based recipe, though there is a short mash/rest with the pumpkin and malt. Use this recipe as-is, or as a basis for experimentation.
Ingredients:
6-10 pounds of pumpkin
1 pound of Vienna malt, 4L
½ pound crystal malt, 40L
½ pound malted wheat
6 pounds light or amber malt extract
1 cup brown suger (optional)
½ cup molasses (optional)
1 ounce Mt. Hood hops (boiling)
½ ounce Hallertauer hops (finishing)
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ to 1 teaspon pumpkin pie spices (see below)
Wyeast 1056, American Ale
Directions:
The first thing to say is do not use canned pumpkin! Real pumpkin is the only way to go here, otherwise you'll be dealing with a huge mess. You've been warned.
You'll first need to roast the pumpkin in the oven, similar to cooking squash. This softens the pumpkin and begins breaking it down. Cut the pumpkin into manageable pieces (should be cleaned, of courseold jack-o'lanterns work great), place in a shallow baking pan and add a bit of water to the pan. Roast in a 325°-ish oven for about an hour, or until soft. Or check a cookbook
.There's two ways you can incorporate the finished pumpkin: a partial mash-style method or simply a soak with the grains as the water heats. For the soak method, simply add the pumpkin and the grains to your pot of water, put it on the heat to boil. When it boils, remove the pumpkin and grains.
For the partial mash, add the pumpkin and grains to hot water (between 150 and 170 degrees Fahrenheit is fine, I believe) and let rest for an hour, then bring to a boil and remove the pumpkin and grains. (Note: I don't have sparging equipment, so this removal is simply via a wire strainer.)
Add the malt extract (6 pounds is for dry, you could easily get away with 7 pounds if it's syrup), optional brown sugar and molasses, Mt. Hood hops and boil for 1 hour. After 45 minutes, add the finishing Hallertauer hops. At the very end of the boil, add the vanilla and pumpkin pie spicesthese are volatile and adding them to the boil any sooner will essentially nullify their flavor.
Ferment for 1 week, or until primary fermentation settles down, and rack to a secondary for 2 more weeks. The secondary fermentation is not strictly necessary, but I like it for clarification and for letting the flavors mellow. Bottle, priming with ½ cup of corn sugar, and drink after a couple of weeks.
As for the spices, I like a typical mixture of what you'd put into a pumpkin pie: cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, mace, maybe ginger. I'd avoid buying the generic "Pumpkin Pie Spice" from the store, and mix your own insteadyou'll have more control over the outcome. This spice essence is one of the first things you notice when you open a bottleyum!
I've heard of recipes that don't actually use pumpkinseems weird to me. I personally think real pumpkin adds a unique flavor and texture to the finished beer that you just can't replicate otherwise.
And, a quick note about the hops. Mt. Hood is a nice spicy, slightly sweet hop (a variant of Hallertauer, actually) that seems to complement this beer well. For finishing, you don't have to stick to Hallertauer; play with it a bit. Cascade might be a nice finish, or if you want to reduce the hop bite, omit the finishing hop altogether.
