BOMM braggot

[homoeccentricus]

Three related questions

1. Has anyone made a BOMM braggot with Duvel yeast? Results? Recipe?
2. Has anyone made an imperial stoutish BOMM braggot with Duvel yeast? Results? Recipe?
3. When we brew a triple in Belgium, some of us add the sugar not during the boil but into the 2nd or 3rd day of fermentation. They reasoning is that the yeast should first digest the maltose and maltotriose of the beer, and then get the sugar so to speak as dessert. Is this method applied in braggots? Meaning that the honey is added three days or so in the fermentation? Would this work? How about the nutrient additions/degassing etc.?

Thanks for your input!

 

[loveofrose]

1. Has anyone made a BOMM braggot with Duvel yeast? Results? Recipe?

If you mean Wyeast 1388, yes. Same BOMM recipe except you start with water steeped in 20 L Crystal Malt for 30 minutes at 160 F. Unlimited variations possible, of course.

If you mean cultured from a bottle of Duvel, no. Not that I know of (as the creator of BOMM). The one recipe I do know of that was cultured from a bottle of Duvel turned out badly. We are getting Duvel after it ships overseas though. Your Belgian mileage may vary.


2. Has anyone made an imperial stoutish BOMM braggot with Duvel yeast? Results? Recipe?


Nope. When you do it, let us know how it is.


3. When we brew a triple in Belgium, some of us add the sugar not during the boil but into the 2nd or 3rd day of fermentation. They reasoning is that the yeast should first digest the maltose and maltotriose of the beer, and then get the sugar so to speak as dessert. Is this method applied in braggots? Meaning that the honey is added three days or so in the fermentation? Would this work? How about the nutrient additions/degassing etc.?


It works both ways if you pitch a large starter. If there is a large percentage of malt sugar versus honey, I would say late addition of the honey is likely to be safer for complete ferment.

Nutrient additions are a tough call here. If you add a lot of malt, nutrient are pretty much covered. If you steep grains like I suggested above, change nothing from the original BOMM recipe. I personally add Fermaid K to pure beer recipes. I find ferments are faster and cleaner. Just my observation. pH buffering is not necessary in beer wort ; however, braggots are different. The more the honey percentage increases, the more likely your ferment will need help. It just depends on the individual recipe.






Better brewing through science!

 

[homoeccentricus]

OK, thanks for the info. And yes, I did mean the Wyeast 1388. I was too lazy to look up the number. The yeast in a Duvel bottle is a different, bottle yeast. That's the same here in Belgium. Are there any other clean English or American yeasts that are typical for a stout that would also combine well with honey?

 

[loveofrose]

Well, Wyeast Scottish Ale is often used for stouts. I've seen Nottingham and US05 used in stouts as well.

I've only tested US05 in mead. It was pretty good, but very beer like. I don't think that would be a problem in a stout style Braggot though.

Personally, I would be inclined to try the Scottish ale. It has a nice ester profile that I think would work well.


Better brewing through science!

 

[homoeccentricus]

I was thinking of brewing a sweet porter or stout, and then add the honey and let the sucker dry out. But not sure whether that is a good idea.

 

[loveofrose]

I was thinking of brewing a sweet porter or stout, and then add the honey and let the sucker dry out. But not sure whether that is a good idea.

It depends on what you want. Generally, adding honey to a beer thins it out and reduces body. For some big stouts, that maybe desirable.


Better brewing through science!