jakegreen58
Well-Known Member
I have wanted to brew a cucumber saison for some time. Once I tried Cigar City's Good Gourd, I was hooked. I understand that it might be a "love it or hate it" sort of beer. But I finally took a shot a making my own cucumber saison. I will let you know how it was brewed and describe how it matures. Constuctive critism and comments welcome. I used 3 x 30cm of medium-to-large sliced cucumbers in 20L beer in secondary.
Here is the recipe:
Grist:
4.7 kg (10.4 lbs) pilsner malt
1.1 kg (2.43 lbs) wheat malt
Hops:
60' Northern Brewer (9.2aa) @ 48g (1.7oz)
10' Saaz (3.2aa) @ 50g (1.76oz)
0' Saaz (3.2aa) @ 43g (1.5oz)
Yeast: 2x packets of Mangrove Jack French Saison: M29 : Re-hydrated at 90F.
Yield = 20L beer
Secondary: 3 x 30cm of medium-to-large sliced and peeled(no skin) cucumbers added to 20L beer. Kept at room temp and transferred from 6 gallon fermenter to a sanitized 5.25 gal carboy with cucumbers.
A simple recipe to let the cucumber shine. I mashed at 150F, boiled for 100 minutes, flame-out and rest for 20 minutes and cooled with immersion chiller. At 90F I placed into fermenter and pitched at 75F.
I let it ferment for 2 weeks @ room temp but no more than 76F and racked onto the cucumbers. Tasted the beer after 48hrs and cucumber was very noticeable, especially in the aroma. After 3 days I racked to a keg and force carbonated.
After 1 week in keg, the beer is intense in cucumber aroma and tastes amazingly like cucumber. This beer is clearly young and needs maturation. But the spice from the Saaz hop is also noticeable and slightly balances the cucumber punch. There is no maltyness at all, as intended. A dry mildly spicy pale ale background.
Here is the recipe:
Grist:
4.7 kg (10.4 lbs) pilsner malt
1.1 kg (2.43 lbs) wheat malt
Hops:
60' Northern Brewer (9.2aa) @ 48g (1.7oz)
10' Saaz (3.2aa) @ 50g (1.76oz)
0' Saaz (3.2aa) @ 43g (1.5oz)
Yeast: 2x packets of Mangrove Jack French Saison: M29 : Re-hydrated at 90F.
Yield = 20L beer
Secondary: 3 x 30cm of medium-to-large sliced and peeled(no skin) cucumbers added to 20L beer. Kept at room temp and transferred from 6 gallon fermenter to a sanitized 5.25 gal carboy with cucumbers.
A simple recipe to let the cucumber shine. I mashed at 150F, boiled for 100 minutes, flame-out and rest for 20 minutes and cooled with immersion chiller. At 90F I placed into fermenter and pitched at 75F.
I let it ferment for 2 weeks @ room temp but no more than 76F and racked onto the cucumbers. Tasted the beer after 48hrs and cucumber was very noticeable, especially in the aroma. After 3 days I racked to a keg and force carbonated.
After 1 week in keg, the beer is intense in cucumber aroma and tastes amazingly like cucumber. This beer is clearly young and needs maturation. But the spice from the Saaz hop is also noticeable and slightly balances the cucumber punch. There is no maltyness at all, as intended. A dry mildly spicy pale ale background.
