Mango-Habanero Wit Recipe

[JWasheville23]

I have a 5 Gallon batch of Belgian Wit fermenting away on day 2 in primary. I plan on bottling half as is once primary has finished, and racking the other into secondary w/ mango and habanero. Here is the recipe for the Belgian kit (Extract) I brewed:

Malt: 6lbs Weizen DME
Steeping Gran: 1/2 lb vienna, 1/2 lb wheat malt
Hops: 1 oz Hallertau at 60 min, 1 oz Saaz at 10 min
Yeast: WLP 400 Belgian Wit

So the plan is to rack half onto 3lbs Mango that have been frozen, thawed, and pureed, as well as 1 fatali habanero that has been frozen, thawed, seeded, and sliced into my 3 gallon carboy. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions or comments on the amount of mango and habanero. Also, how long should I let it sit in secondary? Should I give it a taste after a period of time and possibly remove the pepper before the mango? I have read numerous other recipes w/ mango infused brews and the general consensus seems to be 1 to 1.5 lbs per gallon. The habanero . . . . depends on the strength of the pepper. Secondary for at least 2 weeks? Also, is there a need to gently stir the secondary when racking? I know that risks oxygenating the beer, so maybe not?

I would like the mango to be pretty noticeable, but not overwhelming. I would like the habanero to add a nose of lemon (the fatali is very lemony on the nose) and of course give the beer a little kick for finish. What do yall think?

 

[JWasheville23]

Belgian wit was in primary for 2 weeks, and got cold crashed on day 12 because my oil furnace stopped working, but it was good timing at least cause fermentation was already done.

So I racked a little less than 3 gallons of the wit on 3 lbs frozen mango that I pureed in my food processor, and i fatali habanero that was seeded, veined, and diced. Going to let it sit for at least 2 weeks and see what it looks like then. It has started to ferment again.

 

[Fletchatx]

Any update on this? I am thinking about doing one soon with both mango and habanero. I'm curious to see how this is turning out with the fruit/pepper amounts, timeframe, etc.

 

[JWasheville23]

So I tasted it a week and half ago and it had a very mild mango and pepper flavor. I was looking for more heat, so I added two more habaneros for a total of 3 habaneros. 4 Days after I added the extra peppers I bottled it. It was in secondary for around 21 days I think, maybe a little longer.

It has only been in the bottle for 5 days now, but I drank one last night and it was actually really good. However, the mango flavor is very subtle but the pepper flavor is not. I wish more of the mango flavor in the flavor, and I think it may have been the fact that I didn't get good quality came through. I bought Dole brand non-organic frozen chunks. So maybe it would be better to go with fresh over-ripe mangos and make a puree with those for a better flavor. That is probably what I will try to do next time I make this. The mango changed the color of the beer and there is a slight hint of sweetness, but it is almost hard to detect.

So, 3 peppers (1 per gallon) de-seeded and de-veined gives a strong pepper heat that I find perfect; however, most people would probably say it is too much heat (I eat a lot of hot peppers and love the heat). It gives a nice flavor and a bit of burn, but nothing crazy. So 1 pepper/gallon at the habanero heat level is definitely going to give you noticeable up-front heat.

 

[KayBeer]

Reading through your posts, do you think more Mango would have produced a stronger Mango flavor? I have done several fruit beers, but haven't done mango yet. Most of those I have used fruit in the primary. This one I am only planning to use the fruit in the secondary, but have read that only imparts aroma, and not so much flavor. I would prefer to have a stronger Mango flavor with a little habanero kick. Was there still a Mango flavor, or only aroma in this beer?