Brewing with honey

[level-one]

I'm interested in brewing a honey blonde ale and have been looking for a recipe. But as I've been reading up on using honey in brewing I've found some conflicting information. On the one hand I've heard that you need to sterilize the honey because it can have contaminants (wild yeast?) so you add it in the boil. On the other hand I've read that adding it into the boil is just sugar that will ferment out and create a dry beer with no real honey flavor, so you should add it into the fermenter directly. Having spent so much time learning sanitation and always trying to avoid infecting beer, the adding it directly to the fermenter idea makes me cringe a little bit, but what is the advice on using honey? And any recipes for a honey blonde ale you can point me to?

 

[Teufelhunde]

If honey was filled with wild yeast, mead would be impossible to make, as it is simply honey, yeast, and water....none of it boiled....I have added honey to the end of the boil in a beer before, and you can definitely taste the honey in the finished product.

 

[AzOr]

Adding honey anytime is ok. Even after fermentation starts is ok. I’ve always added mine prior to chilling, only to get an accurate hydrometer reading.

Here’s a recipe that’s more honey forward. I have not tried it yet but it’s on my to brew list.

 

[DBhomebrew]

Honey flavor is rather delicate, especially when boiled. Yes, honey does carry wild yeast and such. The good stuff, at least. At full strength, the yeast can't eat the honey. Diluted with water, it can. Mazers take care of the wild fauna with a big ol' pitch of the yeast we want.

For honey flavor in beer, I've seen some here suggest using honey malt rather than honey.

 

[Airborneguy]

I’ve never had a beer made with honey or maple syrup added at any time between the boil and the completion of fermentation, show any flavor from either.

I’m planning to brew a smoked maple porter soon where I will add the maple to the keg after a long fermentation and cold crash.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Specialty honey can also be used to add unique flavors. Examples: orange blossom (see above), buckwheat (Buckwheat ESB recipe [link]).

 

[DBhomebrew]

Adding to @BrewnWKopperKat's buckwheat recipe, this is the link to Wiekert's accompanying "Make Your Best... " article.

Make Your Best Honey Ale

 

[DBhomebrew]

Orange blossom is a very delicate honey. The OB recipe above is labeled as a braggot, presumably ~50% of the sugars coming from honey.

The buckwheat 'ESB' is a honey ale, but buckwheat is known as a very strong [and uniquely] flavored honey. So much so, that many mazers don't use it.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

A couple of additional resources for recipes / ideas:

• Mastering Homebrew (Mosher) for flavors beyond orange blossom and buckwheat.
• Modern Homebrew Recipes (Strong) is another source for recipes and techniques when brewing with specialty honey (including orange blossom).

 

[Steveruch]

Orange blossom is a very delicate honey. The OB recipe above is labeled as a braggot, presumably ~50% of the sugars coming from honey.

The buckwheat 'ESB' is a honey ale, but buckwheat is known as a very strong [and uniquely] flavored honey. So much so, that many mazers don't use it.

The only buckwheat honey that I ever tasted reminded me of malt extract.

 

[Steveruch]

I just milled the grains for a honey amber lager that I am brewing tomorrow. I plan to add the honey once primary fermentation is almost done.

 

[Protos]

Some people add honey to primary regularly and have no problems but you never know if your particular batch of honey is contaminant-free or not.
Boiling does really strip honey of its flavour.
What I do, I pasteurise my honey. I dissolve it in warm water, heat to 80C/176F and keep at that temp for an hour in a disinfected multicooker or a vacuum flask. No [significant] contaminants, no flavour loss. Most of the flavour is stll there when I pitch the solution into the fermenter. Another thing is that the subsequent fermentation diminishes it greately. Anyway, some of the flavour retains and transfers to the beer.

I won't say I like honey flavour too much out of context of the familiar sweetness of honey but it's completely different story .

 

[wepeeler]

Interested. I'm doing a beer Olympics for my brew club, and I'm planning on doing a ginger honey Kolsch. Ginger in the boil and honey into the keg. Had great success with Maple syrup in the keg, so I'm assuming the same thing with Honey? How much for 5 gallons though? I did a full pound of maple syrup, and it was super maple at first but mellowed out very nicely after about a month or so.

 

[Airborneguy]

Interested. I'm doing a beer Olympics for my brew club, and I'm planning on doing a ginger honey Kolsch. Ginger in the boil and honey into the keg. Had great success with Maple syrup in the keg, so I'm assuming the same thing with Honey? How much for 5 gallons though? I did a full pound of maple syrup, and it was super maple at first but mellowed out very nicely after about a month or so.

Did you shake the keg after purging it? I’m planning to with the maple porter I’m going to make.

 

[wepeeler]

Did you shake the keg after purging it? I’m planning to with the maple porter I’m going to make.

I did. It clogged pretty good when I racked right on top of the syrup, so I took keg out and rolled it. I had added 1/2 lb when racking, and I actually heated another 1/2 lb with a small amount of bottled water in a saucepan on the stove and added directly to keg. MUCH better results that way.

 

[AzOr]

Interested. I'm doing a beer Olympics for my brew club, and I'm planning on doing a ginger honey Kolsch. Ginger in the boil and honey into the keg. Had great success with Maple syrup in the keg, so I'm assuming the same thing with Honey? How much for 5 gallons though? I did a full pound of maple syrup, and it was super maple at first but mellowed out very nicely after about a month or so.

One of the NW breweries does a honey kolsch and I’m pretty sure they use both honey and honey malt.

 

[wepeeler]

One of the NW breweries does a honey kolsch and I’m pretty sure they use both honey and honey malt.

I'd like to avoid honey malt, but thanks for the idea!

 

[level-one]

Thanks for all this great information. Newb question here, a couple have used the term 'mazers' - have no idea what that is.

 

[AlexKay]

Honey stand: cool the boiled wort to 150-160, add honey. It's still tricky to get it to dissolve completely, but the warmer temperature really helps.

The braggots I make are 50% honey and while you can tell it's there, they don't taste strongly of it. If you want in-your-face honey you need to use honey malt.

 

[Rish]

Thanks for all this great information. Newb question here, a couple have used the term 'mazers' - have no idea what that is.

That's what some call people who make mead.

 

[odie]

I wait until primary phase of fermentation is about done. then add honey, or maple syrup, or candi syrup directly into the fermenter (the kag in my case) and just let the yeast do it's thing. They will find it and finish it up. seem to retain the flavors better than adding to the boil.

 

[level-one]

I wait until primary phase of fermentation is about done. then add honey, or maple syrup, or candi syrup directly into the fermenter (the kag in my case) and just let the yeast do it's thing. They will find it and finish it up. seem to retain the flavors better than adding to the boil.

Thanks. Here's a follow up question, does this mess up the sugar needed to calculate for bottling? Typically I add like some simple syrup when bottling and use an app to calculate how much to add in order to carbonate the beer. I imagine adding honey after fermentation is complete could risk blowing out the bottles with too much carbonation?

 

[Rish]

Thanks. Here's a follow up question, does this mess up the sugar needed to calculate for bottling? Typically I add like some simple syrup when bottling and use an app to calculate how much to add in order to carbonate the beer. I imagine adding honey after fermentation is complete could risk blowing out the bottles with too much carbonation?

No, as long as you let the sugar in the honey or other addition completely ferment out after you add it, then you prime as usual. Just check sg over a few days to make sure it's done before bottling.

 

[odie]

Thanks. Here's a follow up question, does this mess up the sugar needed to calculate for bottling? Typically I add like some simple syrup when bottling and use an app to calculate how much to add in order to carbonate the beer. I imagine adding honey after fermentation is complete could risk blowing out the bottles with too much carbonation?

nope. the beer should be left alone to work on the honey. Once FG is stable, fermentation is complete. then bottle.

 

[VikeMan]

Having spent so much time learning sanitation and always trying to avoid infecting beer, the adding it directly to the fermenter idea makes me cringe a little bit, but what is the advice on using honey?

I wrote an article for BYO about 10 years ago on Brewing with Honey. It's behind the paywall, but if you have an online subscription: Brewing With Honey - Brew Your Own
I suspect similar articles have appeared in BYO since then as it's a fairly polpular topic, so there may be something that's not behind the wall.

The advice in the above posts is all good. In short, the later in the process you add honey, the more of its flavor you'll retain. Adding honey on the cold side (i.e. post boil) does slightly increase the risk of contamination. But thousands (millions?) of batches of mead (including low gravity meads) made with non-pasteurized honey prove that the risk is very small. Also, and this may seem obvious, the more honey you add, the more honey flavor there will be. The predominant flavor in honey is sweetness, and the sugars causing that sweetness are fermented, so it's the subtler honey flavors that survive, and need to be present in high enough concentrations to be tasted.

 

[mattdee1]

Through the years I've pretty much come to the conclusion that honey (and syrup) in craft beer functions more as a marketing tool than as a meaningful contributor of flavor to the beer. I only say that because of the few dozen beers touting honey I estimate that I have tried, there never seems to be anything "honey" about how they taste (to me, at least). I certainly would never pick it out as a flavor component without first reading the brewery's tasting notes.

I of course acknowledge that just because I have never tasted honey in beer doesn't mean that nobody has or that no homebrewer has used it successfully.

 

[aceluby]

I have an imperial honey lager on tap right now. The honey flavor is fairly prominent and it's based off a local beer of the same type. ~14lbs of grain as the backbone with 3 lbs of honey added at 10 minutes before the boil. It's a really tasty beer, so much so that I try to limit to only one a day so I don't blow through it.

 

[jtgoral]

Because I collected lots of honey this year from my backyard hives I add 1-2lb of honey to every beer I brew lately .
In last 5 minutes of boiling. 6lb bottle of LME + honey gives me OG~=1050. In BIAB I reduce malt amount to get required OG.

 

[AzOr]

When I first started brewing a long time ago, back when our hops would arrive via carrier pigeon, a popular recipe was a honey brown. I brewed it a few times but only remember that it was tasty. Moderate gravity, dark gold/ light amber, with just enough hops to balance.
A local brewery has a honey ale that reminds me of that. A simple yet delicious beer.

 

[Dr_Jeff]

We brewed a Blond Ale in Alaska and added a bunch during fermentation, enough to likely move it into the braggot category, it would put a thumping on you.

 

[bloombrews]

Has anyone used Campdon tablets to stop the Honey from totally fermenting out? I added 3 pounds into 10.4 gallons of a Wheat beer today, that is done fermenting. It took off like wild in a few hours again, once the beer Kolsch yeast, seen the sugers!
I just do not want the honey taste to "disappear" if I let it ferment, every last sugar out. I do see (read) that the honey taste stays behind, and only the sugar ferments out.... So, not sure if I should add Campdon tabs before it is terminal gravity again.....
Your Thoughts???

 

[bloombrews]

I have an imperial honey lager on tap right now. The honey flavor is fairly prominent and it's based off a local beer of the same type. ~14lbs of grain as the backbone with 3 lbs of honey added at 10 minutes before the boil. It's a really tasty beer, so much so that I try to limit to only one a day so I don't blow through it.

You need more fermentors and brite tanks... LMAO

 

[wrbeach]

I've read through the thread here and there seems to be a lot of good advice. I'm planning for a honey wheat currently and thinking I've settled for a little bit of honey malt as a steeping grain and then adding honey to the fermenter after primary fermentation has settled down. My questions, though, are how much will the honey affect the abv on the final product when added after primary fermentation. Also, is there any tips on choosing the right kind of honey? I know I've seen some thoughts about different concentrations or quality.

 

[RM-MN]

how much will the honey affect the abv on the final product when added after primary fermentation.

Exactly the same as if it were added before fermentation starts. The yeast love simple sugars. The difference may be in flavors as the initial fermentation pushes a lot of CO2 out the airlock and can take aromatic compounds with it. Honey flavor is sugars and aroma.

 

[bloombrews]

I just did a blueberry flower honey, wheat beer. I used WLP-029 Kölsch yeast. At near terminal gravity (no more gravity points moving down), I added 3 lbs of the honey to the 10 gallons of beer, fermentation kicked up again fast, then after 3 days, I cold crashed it and added campdon tablets.
The beer is fantastic now, with tons of honey flavors. Only short term "problem" is getting the sulfur out from the campdon tabs. I will only use 1/2 tablet/gallon next time instead of 1/gallon. It just took me too long to knock the sulfur taste out, by slowly purging the beer with CO2 through the "oxygen" stone, and bleeding off excess pressure through a small bleeder valve on top.
O.G. 1.049 for 6 days, now 1.014. Add Honey, then referment for 3 more days (now 9 days). Gravity went from 1.014 to 1.026 when I added the honey.
I then cold crashed when the beer again, reached 1.014 after 9 days. I used BeerSmith software to calculate what the effect that adding 3# honey to the "Primary", and it came back 1.5% more a.b.v. I did NOT add the honey in the primary, for some reason, Beer Smith does not give me any abv addition if I say that I am adding the honey to the secondary or tertiary... Not sure why, as the secondary addition sure as heck, adds more alcohol when it referments.

EDIT (5-17-2023) I was able to get most of the sulfur out by "burping" CO2 into the oxygen stone, and venting out the top of my brite tank. It only took about 5 minutes of burping to get most out. I will try to finish up scrubbing out the rest, today (next day after initial burping)
So I guess 1tablet/ gallon is "OK", as long as you plan on doing some purging, to get the stink out
The honey taste is still fantastic and blends well with the Base grain - 50% Bestmalz Red-X and 50% flaked Wheat (Red-X is awesome!)

 

[cmac62]

Of course you can always use the honey to carbonate the beer, then chill it to slow fermentation at the desired carb/sweetness levels you like.

Edit: Or if Kegging, Kmeta and sorbate to stall the yeast then carb as usual. I keg, so if I wanted to use honey, I think I would back sweeten with it, then you get all the flavor.

 

[Rish]

how much will the honey affect the abv on the final product when added after primary fermentation

Depending on the honey, it'll add 35-40 points per pound per gallon. Last mead I did came in at 38 ppg.

 

[bloombrews]

Depending on the honey, it'll add 35-40 points per pound per gallon. Last mead I did came in at 38 ppg.

I believe you mean 35-40/how many gallons your adding honey into (35-40 divided by gallons of beer)
As you can read in my post above (#35), my 3# added .012 to the SG (4 for each pound of honey)
This was in a 10 gallon batch

 

[bloombrews]

Of course you can always use the honey to carbonate the beer, then chill it to slow fermentation at the desired carb/sweetness levels you like.

Edit: Or if Kegging, Kmeta and sorbate to stall the yeast then carb as usual. I keg, so if I wanted to use honey, I think I would back sweeten with it, then you get all the flavor.

I never did this, but I think that not letting some of the sugar ferment out of the honey, you will have a cloying sweat beer, even if your base beer is a big ABV bomb. Especially if you add what I did - 3 lbs in 10 gallons. I tasted it before it refermented and the sweetness was way too much. Maybe if you just added a lot less?
Has anyone done this without letting some of the sugar ferment out and dry up the sweetness?

 

[cmac62]

@bloombrews Yeah, if you back sweeten it could get really sweet fast. Would have to be very judicial with the honey. Of course OP's beer could be super brut, like 1.00 or lower and then use a little honey to back sweeten it. I think that would work, but still need to be careful.