Belma and Brett?

[eulipion2]

I've used Belma in quite a few things, but have limited experience with brett. I'm looking to brew a session brett APA/IPA for summer, and thought that the flavor descriptors for Brett C would blend nicely with the Belma strawberry/melon.

Has anyone used brett (any strain) with Belma?

 

[LuDiamond]

I realise this is an old thread but it is the only hit i could find on brewing a belma / brett c ipa. Did you try this? Any thoughts? I have not used either but the descriptors seem like a great match

 

[eulipion2]

Sadly, no. I did a Brett C/Mosaic brew that was fantastic, but no Belma. Given the nice pineapple from the Brett C, I think Belma would be a good fit, but Belma's subtle and fades quickly, so you might need to use more of it.

 

[LuDiamond]

Well I have subsequently ordered 100g Belma leaf and a vial of WLP645 so I guess I will find out.

Never brewed with brett before but I have read plently enough. Wanted to do 100% brett c to maximise fruit character without too much horse/barnyard. Any advice on ferm/pitching temps? Im planning a 5 - 6% Belma single hop IPA. I imagine it will need at least a month to ferment and a month to bottle condition.

 

[radwizard]

Check out the Brett IPA's in the Recipe section Wild Ales. There is a couple of Belma IPAs in there. It's a pretty popular hop with Brett.

 

[eulipion2]

Well I have subsequently ordered 100g Belma leaf and a vial of WLP645 so I guess I will find out.

Never brewed with brett before but I have read plently enough. Wanted to do 100% brett c to maximise fruit character without too much horse/barnyard. Any advice on ferm/pitching temps? Im planning a 5 - 6% Belma single hop IPA. I imagine it will need at least a month to ferment and a month to bottle condition.

From my notes on the Mosaic/Brett C beer:
6 gallons
6 lb Briess Pilsner
4 lb Briess Pale Ale

.25 oz Mosaic - 60
1.25 oz Mosaic - 15
2 oz Mosaic - 5
2 oz Mosaic - 0
2 oz Mosaic - dry hop

WLP645 - 4 liter starter from two tubes.

Brewed 6/20/15
Dry hop added 7/7/15
Bottled 7/17/15

Mash 152°F for 60 minutes
Mash-out 170°F for 15 minutes
Boil for 90 minutes

OG 1.047
FG 1.004
ABV 5.7%
IBU 49.5

The beer won me a gold (Amer. Wild) and a BOS runner-up at a nearby competition a couple months after bottling. Unfortunately I didn't note my fermentation temperature. I thought the beer really hit its prime at 2-4 month after bottling.

I'm sure replacing the Mosaic with Belma would make an awesome beer. I think the trick is to use a fairly light grain bill to allow the hops to shine. Good luck!

 

[SanPancho]

i would have to reiterate what has been said above- go big on the belma. it just doesnt seem to be very strong, so you gotta use alot. maybe even do long hopstand/whirlpool, big dry hop charges, etc. etc. i've been very underwhelmed by this one. my buddy works for morebeer and did alot of their hop ordering- same opinion. very underwhelming.

we do a few all bretts with single hops and i feel that brett c plays nice with most of them. but belma is pretty subtle/weak so use alot.

did i mention you should use alot of belma?

 

[LuDiamond]

Thanks for the advice. I will definitely rethink doing this as a single hop as it sounds like Belma may not hold its own. Any recommendations to pair with Belma? Im keen to try something new so not Mosaic, Citra, Simcoe or Amarillo (used them all recently). I brewed a single hop wheat with Nelson Sauvin and was really impressed, might try that pair.

 

[eulipion2]

I think Belma can hold its own if you use it in place of the Mosaic in the above recipe. Large-ish late additions paired with a light grain bill will be fine. It'll even stand up to the pineapple of the Brett C. It's been my experience that no matter how you use it, Belma (flavor and aroma) seems to fade pretty quickly.

Belma pairs well with other fruity hops (Mosaic, Azacca, Citra), but it's easily overpowered, so your Belma flavor additions might need to be double those of the other hops just so you can taste it. I haven't tried it with piney/dank/resinous hops.

My favorite Belma pairs are more Continental. One of my earliest Belma brews was a session saison with a light grain bill, Wyeast 3711, and Strisselspalt. Also very nice with Styrian Golding.