Witbier Austin Homebrew's Blue Moon Clone (AG)

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shagington said:
I just brewed this recipe on the 27th of December. I can't wait for it to get done. I added .5 ounces of both the bitter and the sweet orange peels to give it a tad more orange/tangy flavor. My only concern is that my original gravity came out to 1.036. A bit worried. How long did you leave yours in the secondary?
Click to expand...


So how did it turn out. I am looking for a brew like Blue Moon, New Belgium Summer Wheat, or the new DogFishHead
 
I'm not sure. I think a substantial percentage of flaked wheat is what traditionally makes it a wheat, though.
 
A few questions before I brew this sucker:

1) What fermentation temp did you guys use? The instructions claim 72-78, that seems a bit high.

2) Is adding any fresh orange peel zest necessary or is the citrus punch already pretty good?

3) The instructions list adding the special ingredients at 15 minutes -- I've always heard at flameout so the boil doesn't drive off flavors. Suggestions?

I'm pumped up about this beer, last time I did a wit (Hoegaarden Clone), it turned out amazing: arguably my best beer ever.
 
I'd follow the instructions. definately add the orange peel - 15 mins worked fine. I don't recall on the fermentation temp, but I'd stick to ~ 70'.
 
I see that the recipe calls for corriander seed. I have some crushed corriander, could that be used? If so, should I use a smaller amount? Thanks. Can't wait to get started on this one.:rockin:
 
I did a step mash, but it's not really necessary. It did yield good results, though.

Protein Rest Add 10.00 qt of water at 131.1 F 122.0 F 30 min
Saccrification Add 7.00 qt of water at 208.0 F 154.0 F 30 min
Mash Out Direct Heat to 168.0 F over 2 min 168.0 F 10 min

The first step was a protein rest at 122'. Read here for more details.

After the protein rest, I added 7 qts of near-boiling water to raise the mash to the sacc rest. You could simply do single rest at this temperature for the starch->sugar conversion.

The final step is the mashout. It's debatable if this is necessary, too. I do it to help with the sparge efficiency.
 
Mine turned out much different then expected. I hit my OG and attenuated a bit high to have a lower FG then anticipated. I also did everything as suggested.

It turned out much more yellow than Blue Moon -- more along the color of Hoegarden. The citrusy notes are much more lemony than orangey and it doesn't have the same mouthfeel that BlueMoon on tap has.

Overall, I really like the beer and plan on doing a little experimentation with it. But I definitely didn't think the beer I brewed came out anything like Blue Moon -- granted, I do not blame the recipe at all -- it definitely could've been my brewing. Anyone else have similar results?
 
Mine was definately oragney, not lemony. Maybe that had something to do with the orange peel you used? I didn't do a side-by-side w/ BM or HG, but I definately will next time. If mine turned out more like HG, I wouldn't care, I really like it, too.
 
Lil' Sparky said:
Mine was definately oragney, not lemony. Maybe that had something to do with the orange peel you used? I didn't do a side-by-side w/ BM or HG, but I definately will next time. If mine turned out more like HG, I wouldn't care, I really like it, too.
Click to expand...

I actually didn't end up using anything extra than what was included. I had blue moon on tap two nights before I tried it and from the bottle when I did try it -- very different. Like you are saying, it's still a great beer.

How long did it take yours to hit its prime?
 
My boil came out darker than expected. Is ths normal or did I "scorch" the sugars? Thanx.
 
AG version? I doubt you scorched anything. It'll probably be much lighter than what it looks like now. Here's what my finished product looked like.

Belgian%20Wit.JPG
 
I have made AHS Blue Moon clone many times and it's always good, but I must say their Belgian Wit kit is even better (and cheaper) than the blue moon clone. If you want recipe, let me know.
 
Post it up. Better yet, post the recipe in another thread. I don't think Forrest minds if we're giving him props.
 
curve ball question? Anyone tried culturing some blue moon yeast from the bottle? Not even sure if this is possible but maybe...
 
Lil' Sparky said:
This seems to be a popular beer people like to brew and it's probably one of the best beers I've ever brewed - everyone loved it! It's AHS's recipe. I can't take any credit for it.

Ingredients
Amount Item Type % or IBU
5.00 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 50.0 %
3.00 lb Wheat, Flaked (1.6 SRM) Grain 30.0 %
1.00 lb Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 10.0 %
1.00 lb White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM) Grain 10.0 %
0.50 oz Cascade [6.90%] (45 min) Hops 10.0 IBU
0.50 oz Cascade [6.90%] (10 min) Hops 3.9 IBU
0.18 oz Orange Peel, Bitter (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
0.18 oz Orange Peel, Sweet (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
0.35 oz Coriander Seed (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs Belgian Wit Ale (White Labs #WLP400) Yeast-Wheat

Mash Profile
Name: Double Infusion, Medium Body
Mash Grain Weight: 10.00 lb
Grain Temperature: 72.0 F S
parge Temperature: 168.0 F
Sparge Water: 3.79 gal

Name Description Step Temp Step Time
Protein Rest Add 10.00 qt of water at 131.1 F 122.0 F 30 min
Saccrification Add 7.00 qt of water at 208.0 F 154.0 F 30 min
Mash Out Direct Heat to 168.0 F over 2 min 168.0 F 10 min
Click to expand...

What efficiency is this based off of?
 
70% brewhouse efficiency.

For some reason it won't let me edit the original post. Says something about a drop-down prefix that isn't there...
 
Lil' Sparky said:
AG version? I doubt you scorched anything. It'll probably be much lighter than what it looks like now. Here's what my finished product looked like.

Belgian%20Wit.JPG
Click to expand...

There's no head at all. Why is that?

The Blue Moon I get has crazy head and lacing. I have to poor, let it sit for 5 mintues to settle, then poor the rest.
 
Brewed this up today. Other than hitting 1.051 OG (was supposed to hit 1.042) it was a pretty good day. I'm still trying to dial in my crush with my grain mill and think I've found it with today's effort. Also added some fresh orange zest along with the orange peel for some extra flavor.
 
I'm brewing this one tomorrow. I have whole coriander to crush and picked up some dry orange peel granules (bulk) from whole foods. They smell great and are pretty sweet to the taste...It's either this or zest from navel oranges. Any recommendations? my LHBS stocks nothing and I just got an order in from AHS so it will be a while before I order anything else.

If zest. How much? I know to avoid pith but not sure how much?
 
I'd go with the orange peel. It's probably about the same you'd get from the HBS. I don't have any experience w/ zest, but I know a lot of people use it. Maybe someone will chime in.
 
I brewed one with a slightly different recipe with the same results. Its not my favorite homebrew, but definitely the my friends/familys' favorite. Great beer on a hot day.
 
When I made this the other day I added the zest of one orange in addition to the bitter and sweet peel. I will sample later today and let you know how it tastes.
 
Everyone says this is good but how does it compare to blue
moon?
 
i noticed no rice hulls. any issues with stuck sparges? if you were to brew this beer for a second...third..fourth time, would you use rice hulls next time around?
 
I've done it with/without. Kind of depends on your MLT setup. In any case they certainly don't hurt, and it's cheap insurance against a stuck sparge.
 
This is my first all grain kit I brewed on Dec 29and my OG was 1.057.. Seems high to me? I have a 10 gal round with SS braid and I fly sparged. Tasted great, very sweet. So I continued on...
It has been a vigorous ferment, and 13 days later it's still bubbling every 5 seconds or so. But I want to transfer soon, so I checked my SG and its 1.032. Is this ok? It seems like I have a long way to go? Taste seems like its on course...
Should I bother with a secondary?
I really want to get my spring beers going....
I just know I'm gonna get a RDWAHAHB for this, but I'm curious if anybody else have seen the likes of this....
 
If you used WLP400 or the Wyeast equivalent it can take 4 weeks to finish fermenting. No need for secondary, just bottle after 4 weeks or until you are certain it has finished fermenting, whichever is later.
 
Hey I'm going to be making this in Brazil this weekend with all brazilian ingredients, I'll post results!
 

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