South Texas Jalapeno Wheat

[panamax4]

First off, I've been lurking and soaking up information on the forum for quite a while and would like to thank everyone that contributes.

I live in South Texas and am interested in designing a regional beer. I live in the coastal bend region of Texas very near the Rio Grande Valley. The region is known for the fusion of Mexican and southern food and culture, incredibly hot temperatures and Rio Grande Valley citrus. With this background in mind I began jotting down ideas for a regional beer. I determined there are a few things I would like to incorporate into this recipe.

First, I determined that a wheat beer would serve two purposes: 1) It will be light and refreshing on hot days in the Texas summer and 2) it will pair nicely with a slice of Rio Grande Valley Valencia Orange or Navel Orange.

Second, as hot as the weather is down here we still love spicy food. The Jalapeno is a constant on in south Texas dinner plate and I decided it needed to be incorporated into the beer. I want the beer to be very drinkable so after reading around the internet forums for hours I decided to use half a Jalapeno in the boil and another half in secondary. The kicker is the second jap will be grilled over wood along with some cebola dulce(sweet onion) to incorporate a bit of bbq flavor into the recipe. I am hoping this process will result in jap flavor up front with just a touch of heat on finish.

I decided on saaz bittering hops in order to have a crisp slightly bitter beer for those hot August days. I thought of Cascade and Amarillo hops for flavor and aroma to further increase drinkability and introduce more citrus flavor.

What I have so far is listed below. I am very open to suggestion as this is the first theme recipe Ive done. Please feel free to tear the recipe apart if you feel it necessary. It would also be a huge plus if I could incorporate some aspect of ice tea, another south Texas must, in someway that doesnt detract from the beer. Maybe just appearance and color of the beer would be nice for this? Anyways thanks for the read if you made it this far!

Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Estimated OG: 1.046 SG
Estimated IBU: 20.8 IBUs Boil Time: 60 Minutes

6 lbs Wheat Liquid Extract (8.0 SRM)
1 lbs Pilsner Liquid Extract (3.5 SRM)
0.75 oz Saaz [4.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min
0.75 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 30.0 min
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Boil 0.0 min
0.50 Items jalapeno (Boil 60.0 mins)
0.50 Items grilled jalapeno w/ onion Secondary

1.0 pkg Hefeweizen IV Ale (White Labs #WLP380)

 

[KIAKillerXJ]

Being a Tx native, would love to try this concoction! Looks pretty good-- but don't know how much diff you are gonna be able to tell from the second half of that jalapeño grilled with onion vs just a plain half of a pepper. Dont think you'll get any BBQ flavor from it. Unless u just want the story with it. Maybe add a bit of mesquite to the secondary? For iced tea-- just shoot for color, too many flavors are going to be muddled otherwise

 

[TzeentchPlayer]

If you're open to the idea of steeping some grains you could always get some Mesquite smoked malt from AHS for that BBQ flavor you're looking for.

 

[panamax4]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm definitely up for steeping grains, however the more I think about a wheat with bbq flavor the more I'm skeptical of my own idea. Has anyone had a similar beer with smoky flavor? Thanks again for the responses.

 

[strambo]

I don't think the wheat and orange fit with the jalapeno. How about a pale ale instead using the jalapeno as described with some steeping grains and sans orange garnish (or try the orange garnish, might be good and doesn't affect the batch anyway).

 

[Butter]

I like the idea of an Orange wheat. Or a mesquite pale ale. Don't know how you could incorporate a pepper though. Maybe in the secondary?

 

[Oddball]

I have an apricot wheat that I am transferring to the secondary tomorrow to add jalapenos to. I will let you know how it turns out...

 

[panamax4]

Thanks again for the suggestions guys, please keep em coming. I fully understand that this is not a normal ingredient bill and that it may be awful in the end. A pale ale is definitely my second choice and I appreciate the ideas.

Oddball-Please let me know how yours turns out. That should be pretty similar to what I'm shooting for. Mind if I ask for the recipe to compare?

 

[Oddball]

Thanks again for the suggestions guys, please keep em coming. I fully understand that this is not a normal ingredient bill and that it may be awful in the end. A pale ale is definitely my second choice and I appreciate the ideas.

Oddball-Please let me know how yours turns out. That should be pretty similar to what I'm shooting for. Mind if I ask for the recipe to compare?

19 l batch

4lbs. Wheat lme
2lbs barley lme
4lbs. apricot puree

.5 oz sterling 60 min
.75 oz. liberty 30 min
1 oz liberty 15 min

Nottingham dry yeast

I made this at the request of my wife and only added the 3 roasted jalapenos (for me) to 1 gallon just to see how it turns out.

 

[HokieBrewer]

Wheat orange jalepeno sounds great. I'd avoid the mesquite or onion though. How about a handful of cilantro or epazote at flameout?

 

[panamax4]

Oddball-Thanks a ton man. Please keep me informed with how your batch turns out.

Hokiebrewer-I like the cilantro idea a lot. I think I will divide the wort in half and try some cilantro in secondary for the first batch and if it turns out well follow your suggestion in the second batch.

Keep the advice coming, this is very helpful.

 

[Oddball]

Oddball-Thanks a ton man. Please keep me informed with how your batch turns out.

I definitely will, but it might take a little while. I am going back to the states (Oklahoma) for the holidays, so it will be in the growler for about three weeks before I can even bottle it.