Belgian Dark Strong Ale Easy Chimay Blue clone

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Pretty much used OP recipe.

10/10/2011
OG 1.68
Had a banana factory in my basement for 11 days while in primary and it got to 1.016 with no bubbles, last night I racked to secondary.

Immediately fell in love with my beer just by the color alone. What a color? I think the color tasted great even before I sampled. Quite honestly the taste shocked me. After my first 2 batches being pretty hoppy IPA's, it took a second to recogonize the complexity of the beer. Dry, Fruity, damn smooth. It's going to be a long few weeks.

Sitting outside now at about 50F.

I've been kegging, but I might have to bottle a few and have my wife hide them and swear to not let me have them for a few months.

Thanks

The red clone recipe that I started a week before this is still bubbling away at 18 days (OG 1.082). Seems I have a somewhat dyslectic couple of batches, a blue that's going to around 7%, and Red that might be on it's way to 9%.
 
I finally tapped this bad boy last night, and my lord! This was a bad beer to be drinking on Halloween outside with a fire going handing out candy!

My neighbor came over and we downed about 8 or 9 pints between us. His wife came out, grabbed his glass and sipped. Without hesitation she said "that is fantastic"!

I love it when my beer is a success!!

mwmoose152 said:
OK. Here it is:

8 oz Belgian cara-munich malt
6 oz Belgian aromatic malt
4 oz Belgian special b malt
2.5 oz British chocolate malt

8.75 lbs muntons extra light dry
1.5 lbs dark candi sugar
1/2 oz yakima magnum @ 15.5 % AA

15 min left,
1/2 oz german hallertau hersbrucker
1/8 tsp grains of paradise
1 tsp irish moss

2 min left,
1/4 oz german hallertau hersbrucker
1/8 tsp grains of paradise

Wyeast 1214 or 1388.

1/2 cup corn sugar AND 1/3 cup clear candi sugar at bottling.

Seems more involved. Thoughts?
Click to expand...
 
Used to love drinking this when I was stationed in Europe. Hands down my favorite beer there.

I'll be making this one soon enough.

 
Once again FAttyLiver's recipe is great. About a month ago I did a 10 gallon batch since this recipe has proven so good. No problems stepping this recipe up by simply doubling the ingredients.
 
I brewed a batch in July '11 (summersolstice's recipe) with minor modifications - 2 additional lb. of DME (to get 9.3% abv), added some grains of paradise and made my own invert syrup instead of using Lyle's Golden Syrup.

I can definitely vouch for this and will brew it again. It's close to Chimay blue if you let sit for a while - it's too sweet the first month or so in the bottle. After some time it is very good and pretty much spot on (evidently as my first batch is all gone!)

Cheers
 
How would this convert to all grain? Beersmith uses alot of munich malts...isn't the general base grain pilsner for belgians?
 
My understanding is that Chimay uses a six row winter barley as their base, which is malted to their own specifications.
 
Not sure if you noticed, but the OP was in 2008, so may not get the original recipe in AG.
 
Id recommend using BeerSmith or a similar piece of software to do the conversion. You'll likely want to tweak the recipe after the conversion anyways.
 
2 posts in the last three months, just saying that you might want to begin thinking about it yourself, instead of asking others. I'd replace the extracts with a mix of six row, Belgian pilsener, and Munich.
 
Followed fattyliver's but added the full 6 lbs of Amber LME, one whirflock tablet, the Lyle's syrup, and dark rock candi instead of the liquid (my bad). Used a 3L starter so all should be well.

Hops in the suspension for strange reason or maybe it's the proteins. I used whirflock in this and the last brew. I don't really care and as far as I'm concerned I'd rather get more beer with a little more solids than less beer and less solids. It should compact out over 3-4 weeks. This picture is taken about an hour after pitching the yeast.

DSC04272.jpg
 
Video of fermentation after 24 hours. It was reading 74 on the sticker but I assume it was a bit higher inside. Concerned that the temp was a lil too high to cause overpowering fruity esters I moved it downstairs into the basement in the lower 60's to restrict too much banana. Is this a good idea? I like the clove side of belgian as much as the banana.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Ingredients:



Northern Brewer Amber LME 6 lb - 60 min.

Northern Brewer Munich LME 6 lb - 45 min.

Hard Dark Belgian Candi sugar 1 lb. - 30 min.

Lyle's golden syrup - 15 min.

2 packets dried wine yeast as nutrient - 15 min.

Whirflock tablet - 15 min.

Steeping grains 45 min. at 155 degrees straight in 8 qt.pot with 6 qts. water and poured through colander into full boil 32 qt. pot with 5 gallons of boiling water

Belgian aromatic malt 0.25 lb
CaraMunich 0.50 lb
Munich (German) 2.00 lb
Special B 0.50 lb
Torrified wheat 0.50 lb. as adjunct

Hallertauer (Germany) 1.00 oz pellet - 60 min.
Styrian Golding (Slovenia) 1.00 oz pellet - 30 min.

Yeast:
White Labs WLP500 3L starter
Give 4 days advance starting 1l and step up twice into 2L flask. Can cold crash in fridge night before brew day after action stops and decant wort but I threw it all in since my yeast was still in suspension. Pitched at room temps. Wort at room temps before pitch.

OG was 1.111 . . . please come down my high gravity :rockin: . . . . .but not that far down.
 
I'd like to try FattyLivers's recipe, and I am new the brewing hobby. My local store only carries Pilsner LME. If I want to do an extract brew, can I increase the Special B or Aromatic Malt to compensate for the lighter LME? How do I convert, or am I totally off track? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
 
I'd either order online if the extract wasn't available at your LHBS, or make the jump to all-grain using DeathBrewer's super simple method. It saves you a few bucks too, going all grain. :)
 
I agree, you'll need to find a different supplier than your normal LHBS. Those grains are designed to provide a different flavor profile than the LMEs, and increasing them will not reproduce the amber/munich flavors.
 
Order online . . .and order a bit more to cover the shipping cost. Just took a hydro reading after 1 week of fermentation. I'm down to 1.023 now and it still going to drop some more. That's 11.55% abv . . .and I must say the taste is out of this world! I can;t believe what this recipe produces. There is the apple cider component but that is quite normal and I'm sure will clear up in a few weeks. I get such an awesome flavor profile of this WLP500 and flat at that. I couldn't imagine what it will be like carbed to style by the end of this year . . .phenomenal. And it's not too sweet imho at all. I'm glad I added the extra 3 lbs of amber.
 
Down to 1.020 now at 1.5 weeks. 11.94%. What should I do about bottle carbing at 12%? Does the WLP500 stand the high abv?

On tasting it's bubblegum, solvent, fruity. I don't think I'll be able to drink one until xmas 2012 or later.
 
I'd let it sit for awhile. Months...the repitch yeast two days before bottling and carb like normal. The flavor will improve better and more consistently if you bulk age it
 
O.k. I just went to my local homebrew store and bought some supplies for this batch. I'm also using the WLP500 as they didn't have the other.

One thing I'm not sure if I want to change to is or not is, and I"m asking for opinions on this.

I had to buy a full Lb of the torrified wheat? I have .5 already set to go but I'm curious as to whether I should just go ahead and use the other .5 lb or not? what is your opinions on this matter? how will if effect the flavor?

Shoud be brewing it sunday if all goes well.

The wife also just ordered me a two cornelius keg sytem, should be here on the 14th.




Fattylivers post is #70 for those catching up late.

FattyLiver said:
I followed the OP recipe fairly closely but tweaked it to get it to the magic 9% of Chimay Blue.

I also used Amber Belgian Candy syrup instead also.

I did however split it into two 2.5 gallon batches one with WLP500 and one with WY1214

Ingredients used

Ingredients
-----------
Amber LME 3.30 lb, Extract, Extract
Aromatic Malt (Belgian) 0.25 lb, Grain, Steeped
Northern Brewer LME - Munich 6.00 lb, Extract, Extract
Candi Sugar, Amber (Belgian) 1.00 lb, Sugar, Other
CaraMunich 0.50 lb, Grain, Steeped
Munich (German) 2.00 lb, Grain, Steeped
Special "B" (Belgian) 0.50 lb, Grain, Steeped
Torrified Wheat 0.50 lb, Adjunct, Steeped

Hallertauer (Germany) 1.00 oz, Pellet, 60 minutes
Styrian Golding (Slovenia) 1.00 oz, Pellet, 30 minutes

This somehow hit exactly 1.09 OG. This batch was almost meant to be so far.

I am 3 weeks into the primary and the gravity is as follows.

WY1214 batch = 1.022
WLP500 Batch = 1.0215

Taste test was delicious. The 1214 batch smells a bit better, while I preferred the taste of 500 batch a bit more. By a bit I mean minuscule and I can already tell these will both be delicious.

Odds are I am going to just bottle this from primary after week 4 since my FG is hit and it already tastes magical.

I decided I am going to add some 1214 before bottling to make sure nothing dare goes wrong while conditioning.

I'll report back sometime towards the end of June after I know I will cave in and try some of each early.

Thanks for the initial blueprint.
Click to expand...
 
Thinking about brewing this for my next (2nd) batch. Two questions one would it make any difference if I.added champagne yeast at bottling to help with carbonation. Two I don't have a secondary, would this be fine sitting in primary for a month or more to age. I may end up buying a secondary anyway just to free up my primary. Sorry for the Noob questions.
 
Thinking of brewing it tonight but I haven't tried the candy sugar at all. This is my first go using it. The guy at the store said " just use it in the boil"
But after reading here it seems I add it in the last 5 minutes of the boil or add it in the primary? I've even read add it when kegging? so which is it or will it really make a difference in when I add it? if I add it in the primary or during kegging what is the proper way to accomplish that? just throw it in there solid the way it is? water it down into a syrup then add it what's the scoup on using it?


 
A Belgian strong ale is what it is because of that candi syrup. I would keep it as a late addition at the last 5 minutes or even at flameout. That's what I would have done if I didn't use rock candi instead. Now for adding it in the primary or even a secondary I don't know how it would add anything and it would be difficult to get it very diffused into the wort. It should be sterilized by the boil though and if you did add it in primary or secondary it should be boiled anyways in a small amount of water before adding it to primary, secondary, keg, etc.

I heard a mp3 a little while ago where Jamil spoke about adding the long chain fermentables in the boil or flameout and then adding the short chain fermentables into the primary once the first 2/3 of active fermentation are done so the yeast are not weakened by chewing on the sucrose/glucose first. Worth a try if candi syrup is considered the latter.
 
I'm itchin' to brew this now. Might have to make a trip to the LHBS to get the ingredients for this after my hefe is done and I can use my primary for this one. I figure I can drink the hefe while waiting for this bad boy to get done.
 
At 3.5 weeks I have now racked it to secondary for it's looooong conditioning time and it stands at 12% abv after a gravity check. It . . tastes . . awesome! Alcohol is nicely hidden. Curious if it will get more complex in it's aging?
 
Need advice on two fronts:

1. What should my fg be?


Og was 1.055

After 2 weeks in primary down to 1.048

After 3. Weeks still at 1.048


What should I be targeting as fg before bottling? Any general guidelines or advice would be appreciated.

Given no change in the last week, should I be re-pitching?


2. Also there has been advice regarding adding yeast at bottling time. How much should be added, and if I re-pitch should I also add more at bottling time.


Thanks much,

Dan
 
I just put mine into the secondary after two weeks in the primary.

For some reason I hit 1.060 OG and after two weeks I have 1.016. Looks like it going where I need it so far.

I believe I have a 1.060 in the OG due to putting closer to 6 gallons in my primary bucket as opposed to 5 gallons exactly. I had approx 3/4 to the gallon mark of trub in the bottom of my primary so I think I guestimated it about where I wanted it to go into the secondary any thoughts or opinions on what I could have done a bit differently to get my OG a bit higher the route I went?

Now I'll let it sit in the secondary for 4 weeks maybe 5-6 depending on how I feel? or do you think 4 is plenty and I should keg it after that?

Ohh and temp in my coat closet has been pretty steady from 64-67 degrees.


EDIT: I based mine off of fattylivers recipe

 
Something probably happened to stop that ferment, but it's definitely not done or ready. I'd try repitching some yeast now and make sure your temp is consistent with no extreme heat or cold(rough range of mid 60s to mid 70s). There's no such thing as too much yeast, really - it will only eat and live on as much sugars as are present.

Caveat - I'm a lazy brewer, so there are some that will readily disagree with my methods. Many here are huge on a starter, and it's healthy for the yeast and helps you get a fast ferment, but I'm lazy - just pitch it right in. I have never had trouble getting a good ferment just tossing it right in to the bucket, although I sometimes get 2 vials for big beers.

You don't need to add yeast at bottling time(althouh some do). There is enough yeast in suspension that will do the work for you. The time to repitch is *now*, not at bottling time, you don't want to create bottle bombs. There's no single magic number, as there are many factors that go into the gravity. I'd look for a sub-1.020(something in the teens) gravity that stays there for a week before going to bottle.

Chris
LazyBrewer


danbaldi said:
Need advice on two fronts:

1. What should my fg be?


Og was 1.055

After 2 weeks in primary down to 1.048

After 3. Weeks still at 1.048


What should I be targeting as fg before bottling? Any general guidelines or advice would be appreciated.

Given no change in the last week, should I be re-pitching?


2. Also there has been advice regarding adding yeast at bottling time. How much should be added, and if I re-pitch should I also add more at bottling time.


Thanks much,

Dan
Click to expand...
 
AZOTH99 said:
I just put mine into the secondary after two weeks in the primary.

For some reason I hit 1.060 OG and after two weeks I have 1.016. Looks like it going where I need it so far.

I believe I have a 1.060 in the OG due to putting closer to 6 gallons in my primary bucket as opposed to 5 gallons exactly. I had approx 3/4 to the gallon mark of trub in the bottom of my primary so I think I guestimated it about where I wanted it to go into the secondary any thoughts or opinions on what I could have done a bit differently to get my OG a bit higher the route I went?

Now I'll let it sit in the secondary for 4 weeks maybe 5-6 depending on how I feel? or do you think 4 is plenty and I should keg it after that?

Ohh and temp in my coat closet has been pretty steady from 64-67 degrees.

EDIT: I based mine off of fattylivers recipe
Click to expand...

Ya the extra water did it to you. Here's what you can do : boil 2 lbs of Belgian candi syrup, maybe 1 lb. of clear and 1 lb. of D-45 and add those to the secondary carefully after cooling. How much headspace in your Bright tank(2ndary) ? The key is carefully , to avoid adding oxygen to your brew. This will add maybe 15 pts. to your gravity, more complexity, and more mouthfeel depending on how sweet or cloying it already was going into secondary but with the water being too much it might have been thinner and watery. The yeast should work on that candi syrup a bit but be careful of another krausen formation if the yeast chews through the clear syrup. They probably won't do anything with the D-45. This is of course experimental.
 
Hello everybody!

My name is Hakan. I live in Norway. This is my first post here. I have never brewed beer before, I was just looking for information on the Chimay Blue when I found this forum. I just had to take a go!

So, about five weeks ago I brewed Summersolstice's recipe. Yesterday I invited two friends of mine (that love trappist beer!) and made them taste...

Guess what? They loved it! And so did I. It was really close to the CB.

I have read about the need for aging, but after three weeks (where it went from 1.068 to 1.015) in the primary (no secondary) and 18 days in bottles it has carbonated well and tastes great already. This was way better than I dared hope for.

Thanks to all of you for the inspiration. This was great fun and the third badge is almost ready for bottling...

Again; thanks to all of you!
 
summersolstice said:
Steep the grain in 3 gallons of water at 156F for 40 Minutes:

32 oz Munich Malt
8 oz Special B
8 oz CaraMunich
4 oz Belgian Aromatic
8 oz Torrified Wheat

Remove the grains and add another gallon of water and add:

3lbs Munich Malt Extract
4 lbs Amber Malt Extract

1 oz Hallertauer (60 mins)
1 oz Styrian Goldings (30 mins)

16 oz Lyle's Golden Syrup at 45 mins
2 packets dried wine yeast as nutrient at 45 mins.
1 Whirlflock tab at 45 mins

Cool wort to 75F and pitch yeast starter. Cool to ambient temperature and remain throughout fermentation. Bottle.
Click to expand...

Chimay blue
 
I haven't looked at this thread in a couple of years and I'm surprised at the activity and the popularity of this recipe. Believe it or not, I still have some of this original recipe in bottles in my wine/mead/beer cellar in the basement. It's now nearly 4 years old and, on a whim, I entered it in a narrow local brew club competition comprised of English Brown Ale, India Pale Ale, German Wheat and Rye Beer, and Belgian Strong Ale. During judging done by the owner and brewer of the local brewery, this Chimay clone took best of show with some pretty stiff competition. I hope everyone is having fun with it.
 

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