Did I screw up my Saison?

[HoppyDaze]

So the recipe called for Saaz hops which nobody had. Saaz is generally 4% I used Sterling instead at 6%

Recipe:
saaz 2oz 90min
saaz 1oz 60min
saaz 1oz 5min

What I did:
sterling 1oz 60min
Northern brewer .5oz 60min
sterling 1oz 30min
sterling 1oz 5min

Gain bill was 9lb belgian pilsner, 3lb wheat, .5lb Vienna, 1lb Sucrose @ 15min

Did I overhop this beer? the hydro sample was really bitter...

Also, question regarding the yeast I used WY 3711 (french strain). I pitched at 83F and the ambient temp in the room its fermenting in is 80F. Is this too warm for this yeast? It started fast; like 3-4 hours after I pitched the airlock was pumpin

Thanks all!

 

[Arkador]

Sounds a bit hoppy to me (3oz at 60+min) that will mellow with aging.

as for temp, 80 is not too high for a Saison (even 85 is a reasonable temp, they like it warm)

 

[android]

no worries, the hops should be fine. and the temps may have started a little high, but saison strains need high temps to finish out, so you should be golden.

 

[HoppyDaze]

The problem is that this beer is meant to be drank in six weeks. It is for the Duck's football home opener against Purdue. Its gonna be a blood bath. Wait...I think this beer just found a name

 

[philrose]

one thing about the french strain is that the heat range is a bit lower than the belgian strain.

 

[HoppyDaze]

one thing about the french strain is that the heat range is a bit lower than the belgian strain.

Do you think I should move it to 75F temperature??...its only been going for a day and half

 

[zman]

Sorry for Hijacking this thread. I just did a Saison as well and it is stuck @ 1.020. However, it has been unseasonably cool here in Colorado over the last few weeks. WE are back into the 90's so I moved it to one of the warmer parts of the house hoping it will finish lower.

 

[philrose]

Do you think I should move it to 75F temperature??...its only been going for a day and half

I've got one going that was just brewed yesterday with the same yeast. I made a quart sized starter ar 1.030 then fed it a bit more DME the day before I brewed, pitched the whole thing into some 1.080 saison. Next day there's high krausen at 83*.

Its got big aroma from the yeast today. not really banana esthers but the same family. I think its going to taste peach-ish.

I say if you're into the esthers, let it roll. The flavor will be more interesting than something like a hef that got too hot.

 

[HoppyDaze]

this beer definitely got too hot. It has a taste that I cannot even begin to describe. How long do you think it will take before it mellows out? 1 month? 3 months? 5 years?

 

[daveooph131]

this beer definitely got too hot. It has a taste that I cannot even begin to describe. How long do you think it will take before it mellows out? 1 month? 3 months? 5 years?

Try to describe it so we can help....I just brewed a saisson with the same yeast I started at 78ish, and then ramped up to 82F for a few days. I did this to keep it from getting a real hot alcohol taste.

 

[HoppyDaze]

it has a hot alcohol taste and its real spicy. Its very drinkable though.... I had never had a Saison before so its possible that it tastes exactly how it is supposed to. It is spicy...I have never had spicy beer before and now that I have; its of my opinion that pepper has no place in beer at all. Sure would like a pro check this out...maybe I had a bad batch of yeast or something. I now realize that I used pilsner malt in this batch and did not do a 90 min boil. Possible DMS?

 

[daveooph]

It is not DMS. It sounds like it taste like it should. I just did the saisson with 3711...Saisson's are spicy and they also can have a little alcohol note to them. However, the alcohol note should not be so hot....If it is overally hot that would probably be because of too hot of fermentation. However, like I said the yeast did what it was suppose to, should have hints of pepper and various other spices.

 

[ChshreCat]

The pepper notes are what a saison is about! Some folks even cheat and put black pepper in the boil or secondary. (don't flame me, I said cheat with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek). The yeast was designed to give you those wonderful flavors and define the saison.

 

[HoppyDaze]

Maybe the style just doesnt suit my taste...is there a commercial example I should try?

 

[tcklord]

Maybe the style just doesnt suit my taste...is there a commercial example I should try?

You could try Ommegang Hennepin Saison, or Chimay Red label, might not technically be a Saison but has those spicy notes.

 

[slothorentropy]

Made a stupid mistake with my fifth AG batch today, first saison. Everything went perfect until racking/pitching. The last temp I took when chilling was around 82F, and I assumed (as on other brew days) that it would chill around 5-7 degrees F when racking to the fermenter, so I didn't take the temp before pitching the yeast (was also distracted by some really good rye whisky). I pitched from a 500ML starter (made with Wyeast 3711) that had been warmed to room temperature (maybe 78F). I did end up taking the temp after pitching--81F. I know that's high for this strain... It's going to ferment at around 75F or so... What do you guys think? Off flavors, or should this strain be able to handle it?