I'm pretty new to homebrewing. Have done four extract batches from kits and they all turned out pretty well. I'm looking to move in more experimental directions and have formulated a rough draft of my own recipe. I guess it's sort of a raspberry braggot. Please take a look and offer suggestions before I spend money on these ingredients.
6 lb Ultralight LME
1 oz Vanguard hops @ 60 min.
1 package red star Champagne yeast (especially looking for advice re: what yeast to use)
6 lb California honey added to carboy ~day 2 when fermentation is active
~day 10 when fermentation has died down:
rack to secondary and add 49 oz can of Oregon brand raspberry puree. Condition for about 3 weeks.
4 oz corn sugar (or honey?) at bottling (or not at all?)
Beersmith gives the following profile without factoring in the raspberry puree, which I couldn't figure out how to do:
Est OG: 1.084
Est FG: 1.020
Est ABV: 8.46%
Bitterness: 18 IBU
Est Color: 7.6 SRM
So what do you think?
I don't want this to be too hoppy, but would you add additional flavoring hops @ 15 min?
Should I consider crushed specialty grains to add more depth to the "ale half" of the recipe, or will that make it taste too weird?
Will champagne yeast do anything funky to regular wort before the additional honey is added?
Since this has a lot of honey, should I consider adding yeast nutrient, or will the LME take care of the yeast's needs?
What about adding the raspberry puree earlier, like before racking to secondary, to allow more of the sugars to ferment out? Anyone have experience using Oregon fruit puree?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
6 lb Ultralight LME
1 oz Vanguard hops @ 60 min.
1 package red star Champagne yeast (especially looking for advice re: what yeast to use)
6 lb California honey added to carboy ~day 2 when fermentation is active
~day 10 when fermentation has died down:
rack to secondary and add 49 oz can of Oregon brand raspberry puree. Condition for about 3 weeks.
4 oz corn sugar (or honey?) at bottling (or not at all?)
Beersmith gives the following profile without factoring in the raspberry puree, which I couldn't figure out how to do:
Est OG: 1.084
Est FG: 1.020
Est ABV: 8.46%
Bitterness: 18 IBU
Est Color: 7.6 SRM
So what do you think?
I don't want this to be too hoppy, but would you add additional flavoring hops @ 15 min?
Should I consider crushed specialty grains to add more depth to the "ale half" of the recipe, or will that make it taste too weird?
Will champagne yeast do anything funky to regular wort before the additional honey is added?
Since this has a lot of honey, should I consider adding yeast nutrient, or will the LME take care of the yeast's needs?
What about adding the raspberry puree earlier, like before racking to secondary, to allow more of the sugars to ferment out? Anyone have experience using Oregon fruit puree?
Thanks in advance for any advice!