Red Dead Desert Ale (Holiday Ale)

[Cervesarius]

So a friend and I are sitting around, having a beer, planning the next home brew we will whip up for Christmas time. Of course the standard ingredients are thrown out there: how about nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger root, etc... But then I started thinking: I live in the southwest; we don't have any Christmas' resembling a Nat King Cole song. So I threw together this recipe to highlight two local, delicious ingredients: prickly pear and hibiscus. I also went with falconer's hop blend to throw in the Arizona citrus/floral angle. Critiques and comments are encouraged.

Extract recipe:

6lbs DME light

1lb Crystal 20
1lb Pale 2-row
.5lb Red Wheat
Steep at 152 for 30 minutes

1oz Falconers @60
1oz Falconers @45

6oz Dried Hibiscus Flowers @15
12oz Prickly Pear Syrup @10

No idea how red the flowers and syrup are going to make it. We will find out. If anyone has any suggestions or has worked with hibiscus or prickly pear please throw some comments out.

 

[Cervesarius]

Brewed this up last weekend. Fermentation is quick starting at 12 hours. Of course the oxygen and yeast nutrients I add always seem to kick the process up a bit.

As for the pre-fermentation wort I have a few observations. 1. I opted to added the puree from 5 fresh prickly pears instead of the 12 oz of syrup. I did this after scrubbing the needles off of course. 2. The addition of the hibiscus added no SRM change whatsoever. 3. Although the prickly pear puree was bright purple/pink, the final color of the wort was pale. There was a slight reddish hue to it however, but not enough to change it from a pale. 4. As I used the puree instead of the syrup, I am going to prime for bottling using the prickly pear syrup. I think this will give it a nice flavor and add some prickly aroma.

 

[Cervesarius]

I have a few refinements to throw in. When dealing with the prickly pear, it is important to peel the outer skin off with a potato peeler. My friend and i just chopped up everything, minus the thorns, and threw it in. This led to an odd vegetative taste that I haven't experienced before that almost certainly came from this cactus rind.

Secondly, Falconers Flight is a fantastic hop blend. I think a hop schedule using purely centennial and cascade would also be perfect. Also anytime you can throw Citra into the mix I am supportive.