cherry wheat?
- Thread starter BHTGdogs
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk:
You can add just about any fruit or berry flavor to a wheat beer but word of caution, use a neutral yeast like us-05, wheat beer yeast leaves a clove taste that just doesn't mix well with a fruity/berry beer.
There are a lot of post around here about adding fruit to a beer, most add frozen cherry's in the secondary. I tried it with unsweetened juice but not enough of the flavor was left so I added extract when I bottled.
There are a lot of post around here about adding fruit to a beer, most add frozen cherry's in the secondary. I tried it with unsweetened juice but not enough of the flavor was left so I added extract when I bottled.
It's been years since I made a fruit beer, but I was always worried about releasing pectins in the beer.
Ah yes, on page 92 of "New Complete Joy of Home Brewing," Charlie specifically mentions berries and says anything you use should be pasteurized before being added to your batch.
It's a great book and even better reference. Get it if you don't already have it.
Ah yes, on page 92 of "New Complete Joy of Home Brewing," Charlie specifically mentions berries and says anything you use should be pasteurized before being added to your batch.
It's a great book and even better reference. Get it if you don't already have it.
Slainte-brew
Well-Known Member
I have usually racked on to frozen fruit in a secondary, has worked well for me. Have pasteurized some and not others, no ill effects either way. Might just be lucky.
I also have played around with pectic enzyme, haven't been able to tell if it is really working or if it is other factors. If you are doing this in a wheat beer pectin haze won't really matter.
I would say that any wheat kit/recipe should be fine to add fruit to.
I also have played around with pectic enzyme, haven't been able to tell if it is really working or if it is other factors. If you are doing this in a wheat beer pectin haze won't really matter.
I would say that any wheat kit/recipe should be fine to add fruit to.
blackntan
Well-Known Member
Now here's just a crazy idea, not sure if it would actually work or not.... What about using a couple of cans of the cherry pie filling in the brew pot. It has a very good cherry favor, and could the filling be used as a fermentable for the alcohol content?
Well, I think the idea is you want to try avoiding any boiling of the fruit, but if you were to add it per the guidelines of Mr. Papazian, then it might work! But then I don't think you'd want to use too much since getting it from steeping actual fruit would be a very different concentration.
![Craft A Brew - Safale BE-256 Yeast - Fermentis - Belgian Ale Dry Yeast - For Belgian & Strong Ales - Ingredients for Home Brewing - Beer Making Supplies - [3 Pack]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51bcKEwQmWL._SL500_.jpg)
drlars
Well-Known Member
I think the first thing you have to ask yourself is, what sort of cherry taste do you prefer? I've had beers where the cherry is just represented by the tartness more than cherry flavor. If its Sam Adams Cherry Wheat you're after (not a favorite of everyone on the forums, but I happen to really enjoy it for what it is - especially with some hot wings and football at the local BW3s...) then you should probably be looking at flavor extract to be added at bottling.
In my personal experience so far, anything that gets added into a primary fermentor gets mostly chewed up by the yeast so as to be unrecognizable, flavor-wise. Now, there are some threads on mashing fruit (particularly pumpkin), but people seem to talk more about 'mouth-feel' than flavor in these instances. I just did a partial-mash cranberry ale with a pound of cranberries in the mash and 32oz of 100% cranberry juice in the top-off water. I can tell you that while I could detect a tartness, there was no cranberry flavor there (even before ferm started).
If you like Sammy A, definitely go with the flavor extract. Like with my latest, sometimes I do both fruit and extract, hopefully to find some sort of 'happy medium'. Now as to which brand or how much.... I haven't seen alot of threads here on flavor extract, unfortunately, and I'm a beginner, too.
In my personal experience so far, anything that gets added into a primary fermentor gets mostly chewed up by the yeast so as to be unrecognizable, flavor-wise. Now, there are some threads on mashing fruit (particularly pumpkin), but people seem to talk more about 'mouth-feel' than flavor in these instances. I just did a partial-mash cranberry ale with a pound of cranberries in the mash and 32oz of 100% cranberry juice in the top-off water. I can tell you that while I could detect a tartness, there was no cranberry flavor there (even before ferm started).
If you like Sammy A, definitely go with the flavor extract. Like with my latest, sometimes I do both fruit and extract, hopefully to find some sort of 'happy medium'. Now as to which brand or how much.... I haven't seen alot of threads here on flavor extract, unfortunately, and I'm a beginner, too.
Fruit Delight:
This was my first partial grain. The first batch was delicious, but my most recent batch is way overpowering (must have got an inconsistent cherry extract).
5 Gallon yield.
6 lbs pale malt extract
1/2 lb crystal 40L
1-1/2 oz Hallertauer hops
1 oz Cascade hops
us-05 or Wyeast 1056 yeast
Steep grains in a bag in 2-1/2 gal water. Bring almost to a boil, kill heat and pull grains, then pour an additional qt. of boiling water through the grains and squeeze excess.
Add malt extract, stir until completely dissolved, then add heat and bring to a boil.
Add Hallertauer hops and start clock.
After 55 minutes, add Cascade hops.
After 60 minutes, kill heat.
Cool wort.
Pour into Carboy and top off with water to 5.5 gallons.
With wort temp at ~70F, take OG reading and then pitch yeast.
Ferment normally.
When FG is stable (about two weeks), transfer to secondary and add 1 sml. bottle of cherry extract. Condition for an additional 2 weeks (minimum).
Bottle or keg normally.
This was my first partial grain. The first batch was delicious, but my most recent batch is way overpowering (must have got an inconsistent cherry extract).
5 Gallon yield.
6 lbs pale malt extract
1/2 lb crystal 40L
1-1/2 oz Hallertauer hops
1 oz Cascade hops
us-05 or Wyeast 1056 yeast
Steep grains in a bag in 2-1/2 gal water. Bring almost to a boil, kill heat and pull grains, then pour an additional qt. of boiling water through the grains and squeeze excess.
Add malt extract, stir until completely dissolved, then add heat and bring to a boil.
Add Hallertauer hops and start clock.
After 55 minutes, add Cascade hops.
After 60 minutes, kill heat.
Cool wort.
Pour into Carboy and top off with water to 5.5 gallons.
With wort temp at ~70F, take OG reading and then pitch yeast.
Ferment normally.
When FG is stable (about two weeks), transfer to secondary and add 1 sml. bottle of cherry extract. Condition for an additional 2 weeks (minimum).
Bottle or keg normally.
drlars
Well-Known Member
@ acid rain: with your two batches, you used the same amount and brand of cherry extract, or did you vary it at all? And is 'small bottle' = 4 oz then? It would be nice to have a list of the different extract brands and their strengths, taste reviews, etc. but I haven't found that thread yet.
@ BHTGdogs: this would be a fine recipe to use for a cherry wheat as well: simply replace the pale malt extract with wheat malt extract. I would add most of it with only 10 min left in the boil, though, to try to lighten the color of the finished beer.
@ BHTGdogs: this would be a fine recipe to use for a cherry wheat as well: simply replace the pale malt extract with wheat malt extract. I would add most of it with only 10 min left in the boil, though, to try to lighten the color of the finished beer.
