Raspberry Cream Ale - Looking for feedback

[WoodlandBrew]

My wife loved the Raspberry Wheat beer we made recently, but the temperatures here have dropped a little too far for the Saision yeast that we used for that beer. We're not quite down to lagering temperatures yet, so I thought a cream ale might be worth a try.

I would love to hear some critique of this recipe.

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Batch size: 3 gallons
OG: 1.047
FG: 1.009
ABV: 5.0%
IBU: 15
Style: 6A Cream Ale
Recipe type: All Grain (stove top BIAB)


Grist:
3lbs 12oz (1700 grams) American 6 Row
11 oz (306 grams) Corn, Flaked
4 oz (102 grams) Cara Pils (Dextrine Malt)
3 oz (76 grams) Biscuit Malt
5 oz (136 grams) Corn Sugar (added at flame out)

Water Adjustments
1/8 tsp CaSO4 (Gympsom) to bring SO4 level to 24ppm
1/2 tsp CaCl (Calcium Chloride) to bring Cl level to 136ppm

Mash
1.5 hour at 149 degrees.

Hop Schedule
0.2 oz (6 grams) Challenger at 60 minutes (10.5 IBU)
0.15 oz (4 grams) Challenger at 10 minutes (2.9 IBU )
0.15 oz (4 grams) Challenger at 5 minutes (1.6 IBU)

Pitch
100 billion cells required. One vial of WLP810 San Francisco Lager.

Fermentation
63 degrees for 3 days, then 70 degrees until FG is reached.
Rack to secondary, add WLP566 Belgian Saison II if FG is above 1.012. Add 3 lbs of pasteurised frozen raspberries.

Bottling
250 grams of corn syrup dissolved in 1 cup of water (1)
(for corn sugar use 80 grams)

 

[Garrett]

This sounds pretty awesome. Id love to try it if it comes out good!

 

[Herky21]

did 3 oz of biscuit malt contribute much?

 

[WoodlandBrew]

did 3 oz of biscuit malt contribute much?

I haven't boiled the wort yet. Biscuit is being used as an alternative to crystal because it has more of a cake taste than a toffy taste. It is only about 3% of the grain bill to keep the color light. I'm hoping it will add just a little character. Would you bump up the Biscuit?

 

[FastAndy]

The biscuit substitute sounds good. I tried raspberry in a wheat once but used extract and hate it. Do the berries add any color at all?

 

[WoodlandBrew]

They actually do add a fair amount of color. I did a Raspberry Wheat recently with 1lb per gallon and it's just about pink. It tastes much different than the extracts, it's not as intense. Like there is more to it than just flavor. It's hard to describe. I prefer the real fruit flavor, and the cost is about the same.

 

[FastAndy]

Thanks! I've got a blonde recipe I've wanting to try with fruit.

Cheers

 

[Herky21]

I'd try it with 3 oz of biscuit. I have a cream ale about ready to bottle with as little as 2 oz. of a single grain. I was just curious if you had made it already and if the 3 oz. had done much.

 

[WoodlandBrew]

I'll let you know how the wort tastes. None of the grains are really bold, and it's a 3 gallon batch, so I think it will be okay. Brewing tomorrow!

 

[WoodlandBrew]

Brew day went well. The mash efficiency was much higher than was expected, so I tweeked the recipe a little to keep it balanced. By adding another half gallon of water and bumping up the hops a little the vital stats are the same as originally intended. The color is a little dark for a cream ale, and the biscuit doesn't really come through in the wort. Depending on head retention and final gravity of this brew I might get rid of the Cara Pils and boost the Biscuit next time.