Pumpkin Ale

[lolznrofls]

Update..bottle conditioning two weeks now..not much carbonation and not much head at all..hmmmmm..I figured I would have mild carbination by now.hmmmm

 

[dustinolsen84]

I am planning on brewing a pumpkin myself. I have researched and it appears that the pumpkin actually does nothing, but the spice gives the flavor. What I don't know is how much to put in. NB says to only put in 1tsp pumpkin pie spice, but I think that is low. Any thoughts on how much to put in?

 

[BigPerm]

Lmao..anytime you add sugar your og is going to go up.which means hopefully more alcohol. ..my batch finished at 6.3% abv..only slightly higher than the projected 5% of the origional recipe..I also added another 1/2 tsp of pumpkin spice mix with my priming sugar and I also dumped 1 tsp of vanilla extract to the secondary..now I just have to wait a week or so to carb up. Pas turise then wait till fall to crack these babies open..well hopefully they last that long..cheers!

Pasteurize? Why on earth would you pasteurize it?

 

[lolznrofls]

Pasteurize? Why on earth would you pasteurize it?

Thats easy..im bottle conditioning and carbing..so once I get the carbination just right I paturize to kill off the yeast and avoid bottle bombs..I dont have a spare fridge to store my brew in and my house doesnt have a basement..so I have to kill the yeast to properly store it..and I lack the resources to just cold crash and force carb.

 

[lolznrofls]

Pasteurize? Why on earth would you pasteurize it?

I dont have a kegging system, spare fridge, or a basement..need to kill the yeast to store it at room temp

 

[saskd]

Thats easy..im bottle conditioning and carbing..so once I get the carbination just right I paturize to kill off the yeast and avoid bottle bombs..I dont have a spare fridge to store my brew in and my house doesnt have a basement..so I have to kill the yeast to properly store it..and I lack the resources to just cold crash and force carb.

Are you using a calculator to figure out the amount of priming sugar? Have you had a problem with bottle bombs in the past? I bottle condition as well and have never had a problem storing beer at room temp. If you use the right amount of priming sugar it shouldn't be a problem. The yeast can't keep producing CO2 when they run out of sugar to eat.

 

[lolznrofls]

Pasteurize? Why on earth would you pasteurize it?

I dont have a keg system, a basement, or a spare fridge to cold crash and store it..so how else would you stop the fermentation after bottle carbing?

 

[peterj]

I dont have a keg system, a basement, or a spare fridge to cold crash and store it..so how else would you stop the fermentation after bottle carbing?

Like saskd said, it stops on its own. You only add enough sugar for the yeast to eat to produce the right amount of CO2 to carbonate it. Once they eat that, there's nothing left for them to turn into CO2.

 

[BigPerm]

Like saskd said, it stops on its own. You only add enough sugar for the yeast to eat to produce the right amount of CO2 to carbonate it. Once they eat that, there's nothing left for them to turn into CO2.

This is of course assuming there isn't a bigger problem afoot (wild yeast contamination, fermentation not complete)

As mentioned, assuming you are at terminal gravity, the yeast will consume the sugar added, and nothing else. So, if the amount of sugar you add is calculated to give a certain carbonation level, you'll never have a problem. Some people just add 1/2-2/3 c. corn sugar for priming. In this case, you may have some styles carbed too high/low, but bottle bombs will never be a problem.

Further, there are several very good reasons to NEVER pasteurize your beer:

1.) You're going to kill the yeast. The yeast plays a vital role in bottle conditioned beer and will continue to smooth flavors over time. Generally speaking, most styles peak after about 4-6 weeks in the bottle. If you kill the yeast after its carbed, say 3 weeks, your beer will never properly mature and you risk dead yeast (autolysis) flavors.

2.) Yeast preserves your beer by reducing oxidation. This is why bottle conditioned beers last so much longer than filtered/pasteurized beers. In those, the best day to drink it is the day its packaged. The yeast in the bottle will preserve for much longer, but if you pasteurize, you lose this effect.

In short, don't do it. Sorry to hijack the thread.

 

[lolznrofls]

Sorry all I had an issue posting earlier..but no I dont use a calculator..I use the priming sugar that comes with my kit..this is my fourth beer brew so im still using partial extract kits.

 

[saskd]

Sorry all I had an issue posting earlier..but no I dont use a calculator..I use the priming sugar that comes with my kit..this is my fourth beer brew so im still using partial extract kits.

If you're using the sugar that came with the kit then it should be the right amount of sugar for that kit. You can leave them at room temp without having to worry about bottle bombs.

 

[lolznrofls]

My pumpkin beer has been bottled 3 weeks now..it has slight fizz..but no head at all..man all this waiting..your killin me smalls! Cheers all!

 

[lolznrofls]

Update..just cracked a bottle..nicley carbed..but the head seems a little poor..not much lacing. .big bubbles..hopefully it tightens up a hair

 

[BigPerm]

Sorry all I had an issue posting earlier..but no I dont use a calculator..I use the priming sugar that comes with my kit..this is my fourth beer brew so im still using partial extract kits.

Just as an aside, I would always measure it anyway, at least with a measuring cup to be sure it's in that 1/2-2/3 cup range. I've heard stories about my LHBS giving a higher amount than necessary....

 

[Ravenshead]

To further BigPerm's comment about measuring, you should really use weight not volume measurements when priming. The packing density of sugar or any powder really, can vary greatly. Here's a good calculator:
http://hbd.org/cgi-bin/recipator/recipator/carbonation.html

 

[lolznrofls]

What do you guys think about those coopers carb drops..for 12 oz bottles...I had seen a few of those type products at the lhbs and was wondering if anyone used them

 

[Ravenshead]

They work but they're a fairly expensive was to by sugar and they don't give you much control over your carb levels.

 

[erodzon]

So I got a 29oz can of pumpkin and evenly spread it out on a pan, lightly dusted it with dark brown sugar and baked at 365 for 50 min. I added it to the boil and continued to brew my smashing pumpkin ale extract kit from northern brewer. The og was originally supposed to be 1.054 but I got 1.046. I also added an extra tsp of pumpkin pie spice, and half a tsp of brown sugar at the end of the boil. Any idea why the og is so low? Could it be from the pumpkin I added?