Spice Mix for Belgian Wit

[goplayoutside]

Hey Gang -

I am thinking about what spice mix to put in a belgian wit. The plan is to add it all at flameout, here is what i have so far:

1 oz coriander
1 oz bitter orange
1 oz sweet orange

I want to add some star anise. How much is a good idea? I want it to contribute to complexity without overpowering things. And when in the boil is it best to add the anise? Also from the perspective of not overpowering things, do I have too much orange? What about adding some crushed black pepper? Again any info on when and how to add this stuff would be great, I've never put spices in beer before.

 

[ChemE]

Jamil recommends:

1-2 oz fresh citrus zest (any fruits will do)
0.5 oz indian coriander
0.25 chamomile

 

[BobA]

I like to add 1 teaspoon crushed clove in with the coriander.

 

[SnickASaurusRex]

This is mine:

2 oz fresh zest. (Saville for bitter, Valencia for sweet, Tangelo for fruity) (about 2 fruits)
.75 oz coriander
2 grams paradise seed (ground)

The Chamomile is a real nice idea.

 

[SnickASaurusRex]

The go easy on the spices. They should be just almost there in flavor.

If you are going with the dried orange stuff, I really suggest not to. They still have the orange pith on them and make for a bitter brew that will take extra weeks to calm down in the bottle. The fresh is a good route, they get the idea across. use a vegie peeler to just get the zest without the white pith.

Don't worry to much about finding the bitter oranges. Just put a bit of grapefruit zest in to help balance it.

 

[ChemE]

The best tool for zesting fruit bar none is the microplane. Vegetable peelers tend to take the pith too which as SnickASaurusRex pointed out is highly bitter and wholly undesirable. If this is a style you enjoy making this tool is $15 well spent and is available at any Bed Bath & Beyond.

 

[SnickASaurusRex]

Yeah! Forgot about those. I have been working in kitchens all my life. I could probably do surgery with a good peeler or birds beak knife.

If you freeze the fruit first. A peeler will skim right over the pith.

 

[chefmike]

If you freeze the fruit first. A peeler will skim right over the pith.

It is the little tricks like this that make masters in the kitchen (or brewhouse).

I zest 20 lemons for my limoncello liquor....

 

[SnickASaurusRex]

chefmike - if you don't mind a recipe for said liquor would be great. I used to make a bunch of different ones but not in a while.

 

[goplayoutside]

Lots of good feedback here-- I can see that lots of folks are dubious about the bitter orange peel. Others have told me I should use it for authenticity and cut back on the hops to reduce bitterness. Thoughts?

 

[Schnitzengiggle]

I saw a thread here recently on Sichuan Peppercorns, they are supposed to be kind of citrusy, completely different profile than black and white peppercorns, it may add some complexity and a little "je ne sais quoi"!

Wikipedia: "Sichuan pepper has a unique aroma and flavour that is not hot or pungent like black or white pepper, or chili peppers, but has slight lemony overtones and creates a tingly numbness in the mouth (caused by its 3% of hydroxy-alpha-sanshool) that sets the stage for these hot spices."

 

[SnickASaurusRex]

The problem with the bitter orange peel is that 98% of it that you find still has the pith on it. the creates an astringent and unpleasant bitter flavor. If you can find a fresh curacao orange use that zest, or find a good source of dried curacao zest (not peel). Grapefruit zest or saville zest will taste nearly identical if blended with some sweet orange zest.

It took nearly three months to mellow the pith flavor out of my saison.

Here is the schezuan link; It was my doing:

Stir Fry Rye IPA