Raspberry brew

[MoBeer44]

So i have been surfing the internets looking for a good raspberry ale/wheet recipe. The pol's recipe looks good but i also found this one, unfortunately i do not know how to read a recipe and know how it is supposed to taste/look. So i need help please, how does this look, is it worth a brew? (Believe it or not this came form the food network website.)

8 pounds American II Row Pale malt
1/2 pound 60L Crystal malt
1/2 pound Cara Pils malt
1/2 ounce wheat
2 teaspoon gypsum
1/2 ounce Willamette hops
1 ounce Fuggles hops, divided
1/2 ounce Kent Goldings hops
1 (4-ounce package) California liquid ale yeast
5 pounds frozen red raspberries

thanks Pat

 

[The Pol]

5 pounds sounds like A LOT of raspberries

They are pretty strong berries.

My recipe was a great hit, the wifey KILLED that batch.

2 pounds I think is what I used... it left a great raspberry flavor, but didnt overpower. Id think 5 pounds would be CRAZY BERRY

 

[Pete08]

Someone posted a McMennimen's Ruby Ale recipe that called for 8 lbs of 2 row, which was then racked onto 6 lbs of raspberry. It is very raspberry-ish. I would cut it down to no more than 4 lbs. It isn't bad, but I think it could be better with less berries.

 

[winstonofbeer]

Are you throwing in the berrys during boil, fermenter, or keg?

Trying to do a berry beer. But wife wants no bittering to be present...just super sweet like a mikes berry *eck*

Was planning on useing my blonde recipe and just throwin in berrys and see what happens but i dont want the one to be drinkin 5 gal of OMG beer it tastes like a bitter berry!! lol

 

[Pete08]

I fermented as normal, then racked into secondary on top of berries. After ten days, I racked the ale off the berries and let it clear another ten days before bottling.

 

[winstonofbeer]

Did you come up with a slight hint of berry flavor?
I am looking to make it so you taste fruit and hide the beer flavor per say.

I have tried a few fruit beers but they still taste like beer but with just a hint of berry flavor..

With putting berries in the secondary....What prevents the beer from starting to restart fermenting?

Wouldnt the sugar in the berries react to the unused yeast and start everything over again?
Or is that the point to get the flavors to help meld?


Sorry for so many questions....
Not allot of topics on fruit beer that i have found

 

[Pete08]

With 6lbs of raspberries, it is very berry-ish, read tart. Some folks have described it as almost like a wine cooler, if that helps.

Yes, racking the beer onto the berries will start a secondary fermentation. You want that to help extract the flavor from the berries. I don't know from first hand experience, but the general thought seems to be that if you boil the berries with the wort, you will lose flavor. Also, if you ferment the berries with the wort in the primary, you could lose flavor.

The secondary fruit fermentation will not be as vigorous as the wort. If you leave it alone for 10 days or so, the fermentation is done, and most if not all the remnants of the fruit will settle out. The, as mentioned, racking to another vessel for another 10 days or so will help clear the beer. Mine was a reddish pink with a pink head!

I have both a porter and an amber fermentating as I type. I plan to bottle half of both as normal, then racking the other half of each onto 1.5 ish lbs of blackberries, and .25 lbs each of raspberries and blueberries. I want some berry flavor, but not a dominant one.

 

[Dinklefwat]

I read somewhere that you could use liqueurs for priming sugar. Has anyone tried this? I have a bottle of Razzmatazz that I wanted to use to make a raspberry wheat brew...

 

[MikeFlynn74]

I used the oregon puree- it was strong but very nice. And convienent.

 

[Pete08]

If you use 6 lbs of berries, I wonder if it would be prudent to add 1/2 lb or so of lactose to counter the tartness.

 

[winstonofbeer]

so what is the up and downs to using fresh or froz berries vs a store bought can puree?

Will the puree go further than using fresh or froz?

Thanks for the help

 

[Pete08]

I believe there is less worry about puree being sanitized.

 

[MikeFlynn74]

The puree is execellent quality stuff

 

[winstonofbeer]

But what is the ratio between canned puree and froz or fresh fruit?
Say 1lb of fresh fruit equals 8oz of caned puree?

Is there a taste differnce between using puree and fresh / froz fruit?

 

[MikeFlynn74]

Dunno- I just used a whole can in my Ras Wheat.

 

[winstonofbeer]

Otherwords just play around with it till you find what your looking for in flavor.
In you ras wheat. Was it a 16 0z can? On a scale of 1 -10 1 being barley a hint 10 being rasberry wine cooler How much flavor did you get?

 

[MikeFlynn74]

Whatever the Oregon Puree can was. It was a 11 on the scale of raspberry flavor

 

[winstonofbeer]

Awsome!!!
Thanks for you help. Will buy a can today and be ready for next brew day this weekend

 

[Pete08]

Awsome!!!
Thanks for you help. Will buy a can today and be ready for next brew day this weekend

You are getting the big can, right? I'm asking because in the grocery stores here they sell the 16 oz cans for baking, but in one of the LHBS I have seen the 48 oz (???) cans.

 

[JMD87]

I used the frozen berries in the supermarket... I think between 2-4lbs. I let them defrost, mashed them up while still sealed in the bag, then opened and just poured right into secondary. They're pasturized and all that good stuff so no infections, turned out really tastey cause you're using real berries.

I also agree 5lbs is too much.