How do I "correctly" add fruit to a beer?

[stratslinger]

SWMBO requested something lighter (to counter the bock, american stout, and robust porter I've got on tap or will soon have on tap) and out of season, so I decided to try my hand at a Raspberry Wheat ale.

I'm using Jamil's base recipe for an Apricot Wheat, as listed in Brewing Classic Styles, and it's happily working away in primary.

I'd like to use real fruit, rather than a fruit extract, to flavor this beer - but Brewing Classic Styles was a little muddy on what is the "right" method for doing so.

I'm assuming that 3lbs of fresh raspberries is gonna be dang near impossible to come by this time of year, so I'm expecting to use frozen raspberries. How should I proceed? Just puree them and toss them into secondary and rack the beer onto them? Thaw and rack the beer onto the whole fruit? Some other method entirely?

I've tried searching HBT as well, and as yet I haven't come across the magic set of keywords to find what I'm looking for. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help out!

 

[Schnitzengiggle]

Freeze it, thaw it, freeze it again, thaw it, smash it, add it...done.

 

[HopToItHomebrew]

What about the sterile fruit purees that can be added directly to the secondary? You can find them at your LHS and are often used for meads, fruit beers, and wines. Good luck!

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

i've used the blueberry fruit pure' from my LHS (like hoptoithomebrew mentions) for a blueberry wheat that came out pretty good. served it up over fresh blueberries in the glass. just watch out for the very active second fermentation.....

 

[solbes]

Look for cans of whole raspberries from Oregon at your local grocery store. They should be the small 15 oz cans and generally run $2.50-3 each. Use 2 in 5 gallons if you want the raspberries a little in the background; use 3 if you want them front and center.

I pureed in my sanitized blender for ~ 2 secs and poured into my carboy. After primary was complete, I racked the beer right on top and gave it another 3 weeks to ferment and settle out. Tasty, although a little strong (3 cans in 5 galls).