Persimmons in Beer?

[HopSong]

I'm wanting to make a saison.. never have. I have a few pounds of frozen Hachiya persimmon pulp in my freezer and thought.. saisons seem to often have fruit added in the final stages of fermentation or dry hopped(fruited).

I see precious little on the internet about using this fruit in beer. Anyone point me in the right direction? Maybe I'll just keep adding it to smoothies and think of something else to use for the saison.

 

[Teromous]

You're probably not finding a lot of info about it because there aren't a lot of persimmon saisons. I say go for it.

 

[Cider123]

Sounds like a good combo. My grandfather loved persimmons.

 

[HopSong]

No persimmon saisons.. What, then, might the persimmons go with? I'd think anything hoppy would cover up the delicate flavors of the fruit.

 

[unclebrazzie]

Persimmons would do well in a saison, I think.
Couple of attention points:

• Yeast: In my (limited) experience, perfumed fruits like quince and, I expect, persimmon, go well with Danstar Belle Saison. Not my fave yeast, but its flavour profile seems to be quite compatible with fruit-forwardness. Dupont yeast(Wyeast 3725 I think) or Wyeast3711 (French Saison) would work better with more hop-forwardness, or with subtler fruits like lemon. IMHO of course. That "faux" Brett strain which used to be marketed as "Trois" sounds like a good candidate too.
• Pectin: persimmon contains quite a bit of pectin, as well as those sclerata you also find in pears and quince. Either you find a way to remove them (pectinase, filtering, ....) of you learn to live with them.
• Hops: persimmons needs hops that allow them to shine. My bet is that exotic hops (Galaxy, Equinox, Simcoe,...) would be too dominating, and you'd need something more subtly fruity/floral like Centennial. Depends on the angle you're interested in of course.
• Timing: How long are you planning on leaving the beer on the fruit/pulp? Do you want clean "fresh" persimmon flavour, or something more rugged and dirty? Optional Brett (re)fermentation becomes relevant here.
• Souring: Fruit beers love a bit of sourness. Wether by Brett/oxygen, or by actual Lacto/Pedio action, think of a way to provide a bit of tartness to offset the sweet flavour of the fruit.

Exciting project! Keep us informed!

 

[myerstyson]

This is currently the third "persimmons" thread in HBT that I am subscribed to! Can't wait for someone to actually use them and report back. They're not in season yet here, but will be soon.

Good luck.

 

[madscientist451]

Sierra Nevada has a persimmon saison on their website, it says they use a French style saison base and that its dry and complex, so that may give a hint to what yeast they chose. If its available at all, probably only at the brewery taproom.

 

[unionrdr]

I thought saison as soon as I saw the title! I'm thinking the belle saison or the French Wyeast 3711 here, as the 3711 seemed to cut the barnyard flavor on the back, which would help the fruit here in my opinion. Willamette or some similar hop would work here as well.

 

[SeraW]

Friend of mine down in San Diego made a Persimmons sour Saison about half a year ago. Amazing flavor. Can't tell you exactly how he made it or what blend he used, but I can at least report that it went down super easy and tasted nice. Just a wee tart, bright fruit flavor.

 

[stpug]

I'm all for you trying it out and reporting back

My guess would be that the persimmon flavor would be so subtle it may become lost, but I've been wrong plenty of times before.

 

[Phunhog]

Valiant Brewing in Orange Co. makes a seasonal Saison using persimmons. Drop them a line...I am sure they would guide you in the right direction.