Racking onto pumpkin and pie spice

[Cheapo]

Hey guys,

I'm just wondering what the better way to rack onto a secondary ferment of pumpkin and spice would be; whether I should just empty the pumpkin cans and spice in there, maybe stir it a bit, and then rack it in....or should I give it a gentle bit of cooking with some sugar (would this rid me of any flavor though?)

 

[iambeer]

Hey guys,

I'm just wondering what the better way to rack onto a secondary ferment of pumpkin and spice would be; whether I should just empty the pumpkin cans and spice in there, maybe stir it a bit, and then rack it in....or should I give it a gentle bit of cooking with some sugar (would this rid me of any flavor though?)

You could also bring the adjunct temps to pasteurization (180F) without adding sugar. I don't know how strong your beer is before secondary but adding sugar doesn't seem like a good idea to me ever. I have some very strong belgian ales in the cellar that I will probably never drink because they are not tasty enough to get drunk off of so fast.

 

[DocScott]

Honestly, I'd rack onto the spices and leave out the pumpkin at this point. It doesn't add flavor, makes your beer hazy, and will cause you significant loss of wort/beer to trub loss/absorption. If you insist on using it, I would spread it out on a cookie sheet and bake it for a while - 30-45 min at 350 to caramelize some of the sugars then add it and rack on top without stirring.

Again, I'd leave it out this batch and next time add it to your mash/steep if you want.

 

[jrobidoux]

You can also make a potion with vodka and your pie spice, to spice the beer without getting the spice crud in it.

 

[kblankenship11]

I agree with DocScott. I wouldn't add the pumpkin at this point either. The last pumpkin ale I made I added a teaspoon of this and pasteurized in a quarter cup of water before adding to secondary.

 

[Cheapo]

maybe I can do half and half- I'm honestly curious what the difference would be. Half with pumpkin and half without!

 

[twistr25]

maybe I can do half and half- I'm honestly curious what the difference would be. Half with pumpkin and half without!

Did you have any pumpkin in the boil? You can certainly try it half and half, but if you didn't have pumpkin in the boil originally, I wouldn't expect a whole lot of flavor from it in either.

 

[Cheapo]

I decided just to add the pumpkin pie spice............and then made a batch with pumpkin in the boil

 

[Cheapo]

(BUMP) update:

Well I bottled this one last night, and man oh man was the spice obvious. Not overpowering but about as strong as I'll make it I think. Good idea with the spice, its very aromatic and really gives it a nice flavor...can't wait til its all carved up and ready. Thanks for all your advice guys.
I also made a batch with the pumpkin in the boil (not sure if I've mentioned it already) and did the spice there too, but with half the amount. That one is fermenting as we speak, but I'm going to be patient with it to let it really clear before bottling.