I thought I'd share my version of the Rubaeus Clone. Here's a picture of it side-by-side with the actual Rubaeus for comparison. Clone is on the left, actual Rubaeus is on the right.
The clone is definitely good, though I'd say the actual Rubaeus is quite a bit sweeter with a little bit heavier body and slightly maltier profile.
The main differences in my take on the recipe was that I used S04 Yeast which is probably why it's a bit drier, and I also bumped up the Special B Malt slightly to make the color a little darker. Lastly, I simply used 7.5lbs of boiled raspberries in the secondary. I think the color came out great this way as I didn't end up needing to add cherry juice or anything else to get a deeper red hue.
I posted my 5.5 Gallon recipe if anyone's curious. I think if I brewed this again, I'd use a slightly less attenuating yeast, and probably mash a bit higher at say 154-155 or so. I would also puree instead of boiling the raspberries, but I had pounds of boiled/frozen raspberries in the freezer from months ago that I'd been saving to make beer/cider with.
Oracle, I like your idea of backsweetening with a honey/water solution. I think I might try this in a single glass to see how it is, as the Raspberries in my version definitely overpower the malt presence since it is quite tart in overall.
Ingredients:
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Amt Name Type # %/IBU
1 lbs Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM) Adjunct 1 8.6 %
5 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 2 43.1 %
5 lbs Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM) Grain 3 43.1 %
8.0 oz Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 4 4.3 %
1.6 oz Special B Malt (180.0 SRM) Grain 5 0.9 %
1.00 oz Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 14.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg SafAle English Ale (DCL/Fermentis #S-04) Yeast 7 -
Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 11 lbs 9.6 oz
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Name Description Step Temperature Step Time
Mash In Add 17.70 qt of water at 164.1 F 152.0 F 60 min
Sparge: Batch sparge with 2 steps (1.31gal, 4.35gal) of 168.0 F water
Notes: