Adding honey

[weitzel44]

Still new to this, about to brew my third batch (first two where great!!). Was going to try and add some honey to a Bock kit that i have. But i have found nothing about how exactly to do this. Any suggestions on adding honey would be great.

Ill be using local honey from a friend that has several hives. Its just the straight with nothing done to it or added to it.

 

[freisste]

I understand honey to be nearly 100% fermentable, so it leaves little flavor and will dry a beer out. I've heard that you will get the most flavor if you add it at flameout or even add it to the primary after initial fermentation starts to slow.

 

[weitzel44]

I understand honey to be nearly 100% fermentable, so it leaves little flavor and will dry a beer out. I've heard that you will get the most flavor if you add it at flameout or even add it to the primary after initial fermentation starts to slow.

not sure what flameout is. Im still quite new

 

[FastAndy]

not sure what flameout is. Im still quite new

Flameout is the end of your boil when you turn the flame off on your burner. Sometimes it's also called knockout.

 

[richlong8020]

IMO adding honey has been a great idea for my beers. I have made numerous styles with honey and I always add it at the 30 min mark.

 

[CoryM616]

IMO adding honey has been a great idea for my beers. I have made numerous styles with honey and I always add it at the 30 min mark.

Are you replacing some of the other fermentables with it?

 

[richlong8020]

No I have not replaced any fermentables. I've made a Honey Bee ale, Honey porter, honey belgans... Always, IMO, keep it at the 30 min mark. The honey flavor is great. If u want more of just an essence add it at the 10 min mark. Honestly adding honey is a great idea. Then when you tire of honey try agave nectar, fruit purée, and so many other options. Even try different honey options.

 

[richlong8020]

Also if you have an email I have three good honey recipes. Love them all

 

[daveooph131]

No I have not replaced any fermentables. I've made a Honey Bee ale, Honey porter, honey belgans... Always, IMO, keep it at the 30 min mark. The honey flavor is great. If u want more of just an essence add it at the 10 min mark. Honestly adding honey is a great idea. Then when you tire of honey try agave nectar, fruit purée, and so many other options. Even try different honey options.

Doesn't most if not all of the honey character burn off during the boil though if you add at 30min?

 

[richlong8020]

I've never had that happen. You can taste the honey in the honey bee ale. The sweetness of the honey in the porter (which was my favorite). Frankly the honey in the Belgian was the only thing I looked for in that beer and the ABV was amazing.

It just depends on what your looking for in the honey essence. Do you want a honey taste or a honey aroma?

 

[richlong8020]

Actually I should add that these recipes are calling for 3+ lbs of honey. I also have a cinnamon honey ale recipe that I want to try. Just a simple ale with 3 lbs of honey at the 30 min mark and a tbsp of cinnamon at flameout. Sooooo looking forward to that one.

 

[cacm2226]

Are the recipes extract recipes? If so, it would be great if you could send them to me. I'm pretty fond of honey beers.

 

[bookworm0367]

+1 To sending the recipe.... Message that over my way also

 

[richlong8020]

Sounds good, actually PM me ur email. I use iBrewMaster and I can send it to you straight from the app.

 

[Tippsy-Turvy]

I made a honey bee ale recently too and it was absolutely delicious! I wanted to have an extra strong honey aroma so I ignored the instructions (to add all at 30mins)and I added 1lb at ~15mins and another 1lb into the primary.

 

[richlong8020]

See I don't like the idea to add into primary. The reason I add to the boil is so I know it's all sanitized. A boil at 212+ deg it's all good. But hey if it works for you and you liked it then great. Gotta love honey.

 

[Tippsy-Turvy]

I understand where you're coming from but I had no problems at all. Perhaps it's the high sugar content that keeps honey antiseptic as my honey jars are not kept in the fridge and I've never see mould. But sure, I'd agree with you, if you want to be super-extra safe then add at flameout.

 

[ToffKriger]

I just brewed this honey ale recipe, hat type of honey flavor should I be expecting? I followed the recipe, except I added .5-1 lb of extra older home made honey to it -

4 lbs Extra Light Dry Malt Extract

3 lbs Fireweed Honey

1/2 lb Honey Malt

1 1/2 oz Cascade Hops 10 HBUs (Boiling) 60 mins

1/2 oz Cascade Hops (Aroma) 1 min

Wyeast 1056 American Ale

For Bottling:

1 1/4 cup Dry Malt Extract Or 3/4 cup Corn sugar



Add cracked Honey Malt to 1 1/2 gals of cold water and bring to boil. When the boiling starts, remove the grain. Add the Extra Light Dry Malt Extract and Fireweed Honey then bring to a boil again. Add 1 1/2 oz Cascade Hops. Boil for 59 mins. Add 1/2 oz of Cascade Hops and boil for 1 min. Sparge the hops with cold water then add the wort to the fermenter with cold water to make 5 gals. Add yeast when the temp reaches 70º. Add yeast when the temp reaches 70º. Ferment at 65º for 5 days or until fermentation slows. Rack to a secondary fermenter. Let it age 2 weeks in secondary, then bottle or keg. For bottling, use 1 1/4 cup of dry malt extract boiled with 2 cups of water added in the bottling bucket.


I brewed it Sunday. Would anyone suggest adding a little bit for a nice aroma and flavor at any point?

 

[richlong8020]

The honey taste should be very apparent in your brew. You added it for an hr? Should be a very full taste. In my honey added brews I add at the 30 min mark. Great taste. Hope it turns out well.

 

[Ster]

I would be intersted to see your OG and FG. That's a lot of malts/honey, but honey might not be quite as fermentable.

I also wonder if you will have any hop taste at all. I thyink 0.5 cascade would be negligable in a strong ale like this.

Keep us posted.

 

[ToffKriger]

Well, the .5 at the end was for aroma. There was 1.5 oz added for an hour. And I think I did a pretty good job sparging the hops, first time doing it somewhat correct, so we'll see. Ill keep you posted.

 

[Ster]

Oops, didn't read the 1, only saw the 1/2

 

[EndlessPurple]

The honey ales sound very good. I do not make much beer, but wanted to add a comment about the honey. On the mead forum, the general standard is no boiling of honey for mead. It is very sanitary right out of the bottle.

Boiling can remove some of the flavors of the honey. With mead that may be more important than with beer though. The beer has quite a bit of malt and hop flavors as well. The delicacies of the honey flavor lost from boiling might get overwhelmed anyway.

 

[meltroha]

You do not get honey flavor adding in the boil, you will get a little if you add it to the secondary, or prime with it. The honey flavor comes from honey malt.

 

[richlong8020]

You do not get honey flavor adding in the boil, you will get a little if you add it to the secondary, or prime with it. The honey flavor comes from honey malt.

This comment is just not true.

I've made honey ales, cinnamon honey ales, honey porters, vanilla honey porters and all of the honey has always come through in the taste and in the aroma. I also have a Belgian honey that I really want to get started on too.

I'm not saying you're wrong but I'm just saying these were my results. Just my opinion. ; )

 

[Jayslay]

I don't post much, but last weekend I did a cool partial mash I call Jays Killer Bees Ale and it's a honey wheat sorta ale?! . 2-row, white wheat malt, carapils, Honey malt, Light DME, golden DME and Honey. I balance the real honey and honey malt, but I add my honey at Flameout. Same with 80% of my DmEs and LMEs and sugars. Hopped with Hallertaur tradition. I remember honey is delicate but can boost ABV and honey malt adds more color and complexities.

 

[Jayslay]

The honey ales sound very good. I do not make much beer, but wanted to add a comment about the honey. On the mead forum, the general standard is no boiling of honey for mead. It is very sanitary right out of the bottle.

Boiling can remove some of the flavors of the honey. With mead that may be more important than with beer though. The beer has quite a bit of malt and hop flavors as well. The delicacies of the honey flavor lost from boiling might get overwhelmed anyway.

Though I do have a bottle of honey at home that mentions not to feed it to a child under one year of age. Honey can harbour certain nasties like Clostridium spores.. Bad for infants, but for a beer drinker, honey actually cannot sustain any fungus or bacteria. It's ageless if stored right and other then spores or landed debris on its surface, sanitary.

That's why I also have no need to boil off its delicious smells. Pasteurization temp for a bit is just fine 160-170F

 

[vnzjunk]

If you are bored. Or want a better understanding of what you mite be brewing with when you add honey to your beer......this is a pretty good read.

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/11/tests-show-most-store-honey-isnt-honey/

 

[quincy07]

I posted a question on here a few days ago about adding honey to a hefeweizen recipe I found and was told to use honey malt for flavor because honey will dry out the beer and is completely fermentable so it won't leave any flavor or sweetness. I'm confused now because in this thread I'm reading that adding honey w 30 minutes left of the boil will give good honey flavor.

Here is the recipe for the hef I am wanting to make:

1 lbs 8.0 oz Wheat Liquid Extract
0.60 oz Tettnang hops - Boil 60.0 min
8.0 oz Wheat Dry Extract [Boil for 15 min]
1 lbs 8.0 oz Wheat Liquid Extract [Boil for 15 min]
1 pkg Weihenstephan Weizen (Wyeast Labs #3068)Yeast

How much honey, and when, should I add for a good, but not cloyingly sweet, honey flavor?

Sorry to high jack the thread

ETA: this will be my second brew and will be made in my Mr. Beer fermenter

 

[Jayslay]

What sort of final volume are you going for quincy? Looks like a 2-3 gallon batch to me?
If you arn't using honey malt I would add your honey as late as possible. Right after your boil is off the heat, but between 160F and 220F. This gives it time to sterilize and/or pasteurize but not during boil so your aromatics will be reserved.

The cloyingly sweet flavor you get from adding too much honey malt, from my reading experience and personal use of it.
I have been using 4-12 oz of honey malt in various beers, including my last two brews, a Hefeweizen and a Honey Wheat.

 

[meltroha]

As I stated, you will not get honey flavor from adding honey in the boil, you get the flavor from honey malt. I have experienced this, read about this and spoke to professional brewers about this. You can make up your own mind whether you believe me or not though.

 

[quincy07]

What sort of final volume are you going for quincy? Looks like a 2-3 gallon batch to me?
If you arn't using honey malt I would add your honey as late as possible. Right after your boil is off the heat, but between 160F and 220F. This gives it time to sterilize and/or pasteurize but not during boil so your aromatics will be reserved.

The cloyingly sweet flavor you get from adding too much honey malt, from my reading experience and personal use of it.
I have been using 4-12 oz of honey malt in various beers, including my last two brews, a Hefeweizen and a Honey Wheat.

This is for a 2.5 gallon batch. It was advised in my other thread to add 8 oz of honey malt, if I remember correctly. Would that be too much for that size batch?

 

[meltroha]

This is for a 2.5 gallon batch. It was advised in my other thread to add 8 oz of honey malt, if I remember correctly. Would that be too much for that size batch?

I would treat it the same way you would crystal malt, I like 6%-8%, don't exceed 10% total honey and crystal, unless you want it real sweet.

 

[quincy07]

I would treat it the same way you would crystal malt, I like 6%-8%, don't exceed 10% total honey and crystal, unless you want it real sweet.

This is going to be my 2nd brew, first was a mr beer kit, so I haven't dealt w any grains or hops yet. How would I calculate the percentage of grains? Is that a percentage of the total volume of beer, 2.5 gallons? Or a percentage of wort ingredients?

Sorry for the noob questions, I just want to understand what you're telling me rather than just smiling and nodding and saying uh huh.

 

[meltroha]

Np, man, we were all there. Is the percentage of total fermentables, lme, dme, grains, sugars, etc. if you have 10lbs. Of total fermentables, 10% would be 1lb.

 

[quincy07]

Np, man, we were all there. Is the percentage of total fermentables, lme, dme, grains, sugars, etc. if you have 10lbs. Of total fermentables, 10% would be 1lb.

So if I have 3.5 lb fermentables, as per the recipe i posted, for my 2.5 gallon batch. 10% would be .35 lb or 5.6 oz. Is that right?

 

[meltroha]

So if I have 3.5 lb fermentables, as per the recipe i posted, for my 2.5 gallon batch. 10% would be .35 lb or 5.6 oz. Is that right?

Exactly!

 

[quincy07]

Exactly!

Hey! I got one right! Lol.

Thanks for your help!

 

[meltroha]

Np, enjoy the hobby, cheers!

 

[Jayslay]

People debate whether a Half pound (8oz) is too much or not enough in a five gallon batch. Some batches of honey malt may have flavouring differences even within a malting house. More likely though is that people have different taste thresholds so you may want to start low and work up to 8 oz in a 2.5 G batch. I'm drinking a honey blonde with loads of honey comin through and loving it. Some may call it "cloyingly sweet". Different strokes for different folks. May latest experience is 4oz in a Hefeweizen and 8oz in a Honey Wheat, love it.