maple wheat questions

[justbrewit]

So I asked SWMBO what she wanted me to make next and she pops off with a maple wheat beer. I haven't made a wheat beer yet but I've been wanting to so no biggie. But a maple wheat, hhmmm, that's interesting. How much maple would I put in, when in the process would I add the real maple? I'll be doing AG I'm making this one my first 10g batch so here's what I'm thinking; 15 lbs 2 row 12 lbs wheat malt Some sort of low aau hops Maybe 1-2 gallons of real maple syrup? Is that too much? Should I add it towards the end of the boil? Add it to the secondary? Should I add any speciality grains? Husks? Need help woth this one big time, any and all input will be appreciated

 

[scinerd3000]

i can tell you to buy grade b syrup for more flavor than grade a and also cheaper....otherwise i dont know that i have ever heard of a maple wheat...this could be interesting

 

[Tonedef131]

I did a maple mead with a half gallon of maple syrup in a 5 gallon batch. The maple flavor barely came though, so I would think in a beer you have to use at least twice that much. I would recommend starting with a very low gravity wheat beer then adding the syrup, even by doing that it will likely be high gravity.

Have you thought about adding some cardamom? That is what they use to flavor artificial syrup and a bit might bring out the maple flavor a bit more.

 

[justbrewit]

One of my all time fav beers was a maple but they stopped making it, Pete's wicked maple porter. Had great maple after taste it was amazing. I'm hoping to have a nice wheat beer with a good maple flavor to it.

 

[Tonedef131]

I'm hoping to have a nice wheat beer with a good maple flavor to it.

Yeah, we figured. Like I said I would scale the recipe back to compensate for the huge level of sugars the syrup will add. You also might just wanna do a 5 gal batch because maple syrup is quite expensive. As for when to add it, just add it late in the boil to make sure it's sanitary.

 

[justbrewit]

Well, maple sap is boiled down to make the syrup isn't it? It should be all ready to go without a boil shouldn't it?

 

[Tonedef131]

Well, maple sap is boiled down to make the syrup isn't it? It should be all ready to go without a boil shouldn't it?

Well it was sanitary during it's boil but I doubt the syrup maker went to the trouble of saitizing everything that touched it post boil. You might be alright adding it to the fermenter and if you wanna take the chance go for it. Or you could add it at the end of the boil just to be sure.

 

[justbrewit]

Only thing I was worried with boiling it was losing some of the maple flavors during the boil. Maybe if I add it at flame out? I'm not sure how fragile the flvors are with maple and if they will boil off

 

[Tonedef131]

Only thing I was worried with boiling it was losing some of the maple flavors during the boil. Maybe if I add it at flame out? I'm not sure how fragile the flavors are with maple and if they will boil off

Maple Syrup is maple sap that is concentrated by boil, so you have nothing to worry about. Boiling it will only concentrate the flavors if anything, most of the flavors we recognize in maple syrup come from caramelization.

 

[justbrewit]

Ok so then I'll add it with my 30 min hops. What about my malt to wheat ratio? I'm thinking about using some saaz hops, those are pretty low aau hops aren't they? I think I will go with the grade b stuff as mentioned before. Most likely 2 gallons of it

 

[squeekysheep]

i would use the most wheat you can, since you are adding lots of sugars. and good flavorful grains since you will be using fewer.

this is on my list of beers to make i love wheat.

 

[justbrewit]

I'm keeping the wheat a little lower cause this will be my first wheat beer and my first 10g batch and don't want a stuck sparge.

 

[Mr. Nice Guy]

Sam Calagione at Dogfish Head recomends to use the maple syrup after a few days fermentation. He says that if the bottle hasn't been open to make sure it is clean on te outside then just open the syrup and pour it in. If it has been opened then boil it with some extra syrup to make up for the water.

I would think this later addition would add more maple flavor and be easier on the yeasties.

 

[thelorax121]

I have heard that alot of times, the maple flavor does not come trough using just maple syrup. The owner fo my LHBS has an interesting trick where he adds a bit of Fenugreek to give his beer a distinct maple flavor (the spice is also often used by Aunt Jemima and the likes for making the cheap, fake maple syrup)

 

[justbrewit]

I have heard that alot of times, the maple flavor does not come trough using just maple syrup. The owner fo my LHBS has an interesting trick where he adds a bit of Fenugreek to give his beer a distinct maple flavor (the spice is also often used by Aunt Jemima and the likes for making the cheap, fake maple syrup)

interesting, is this fenugreek easily available? is it carried at lhbs?might be a cheaper way to go instead of shipping maple in from VT.

 

[justbrewit]

Sam Calagione at Dogfish Head recomends to use the maple syrup after a few days fermentation. He says that if the bottle hasn't been open to make sure it is clean on te outside then just open the syrup and pour it in. If it has been opened then boil it with some extra syrup to make up for the water.

I would think this later addition would add more maple flavor and be easier on the yeasties.

do you stir it up once you add it or just pour it in and let the action of the yeast stir it up? i would think doing it this way would also add about 2 weeks to the fermintation. i know honey takes a while to ferment so i would assume that since maple is a thick syrup that it would slow the fermentation does as honey does.

i'm glad i started researching for this beer now, i need it done and in the keg, carbed by the 13th of sept