Troegs Nugget Nectar Clone

[ILBMF]

I made this recipe and I'm drinking it right now. NOT NUGGET NECTAR! I knew it wouldn't be hoppy enough so I basically doubled the dry hops in the keg and left the 6-pack I bottled exactly like the recipe. The kegged version is better (more hops) and they are both good IPA's, but NOT NUGGET. Case closed!

 

[cwheel]

Yep, when the alledged "clone" is made with various base malts and the "real" recipe is 80% Vienna, you know it's not going to taste like the real thing. They are going to release Nugget Nectar here in a few weeks, and I'm going to pick some up in hopes of getting a better match with an 80% Vienna grain bill.

 

[ao125]

Went on a tour of the Troegs brewery last year. Apparently the secret to Nugget Nectar is their hopback, that they pass the beer through.

Seems like that should be part of any clone.

Perhaps?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00420OIT8/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[ILBMF]

The hopback is merely another way to do what a lot of us do. I use a large medium screen bag to hold the flameout hops suspended for about 20 minutes covered in the hot wort. After that, my immersion chiller gets banged against the bag during the cooling process. Same effect as the hopback for the most part. It's all about huge hop aroma and flavor which is very easy to overdo once you figure out how to.

In my experience I've had to back off on dry hopping and I'm a hop sicko. This recipe is good, but not even close to nugget nectar. The real deal has a punch in the mouth like none other. My IPA is even hoppier, but it's based on a big Simcoe presence. This Nugget stuff has a unique malt and hop combo that is just fascinating to me. It has it all. Bitter, hoppy as hell, and a mellow malt presence that is just there enough to get the job done. It's a true masterpiece when it's on like last year's offering, not the year before.

Somebody needs to get a recipe of this stuff. I'm going to try myself, but I think it will take a concerted effort from all interested to narrow it down.

 

[dcp27]

Somebody needs to get a recipe of this stuff. I'm going to try myself, but I think it will take a concerted effort from all interested to narrow it down.

check this thread, much more attempts/info: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/nugget-nectar-clone-158796/

 

[ILBMF]

Good read. My only problem is that the clone was based on the 2010 offering from Troegs which was all bitter and lacked the hop and malt punch...however I thank you for the link because it was a great window forward. I know one thing for sure, this beer will require more than 9 ozs of hops per 5 gallon batch to get close to Nugget Nectar on it's best day.

I'm up to 11 ozs per 5 gallons on my own IPA which is some sick stuff, but a hell of a lot of the hops are hopburst method, flameout and dry hops for a super citrus/grapefruit breakfast drink smack in the face. I'll probably need a doctor before this year is over. I love beer!

 

[cwheel]

I too love beer. Here is the NN clone that I'm going to try sometime over the next month. 0 min hops are in a hopback - contemplating throwing some Simcoe in the hopback also.

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 7.31 gal
Post Boil Volume: 6.50 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Bottling Volume: 4.50 gal
Estimated OG: 1.071 SG
Estimated Color: 9.1 SRM
Estimated IBU: 91.1 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 79.5 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
12 lbs Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 1 77.4 %
1 lbs 8.0 oz Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 2 9.7 %
1 lbs 8.0 oz Pilsner (2 Row) UK (1.0 SRM) Grain 3 9.7 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 4 3.2 %
0.75 oz Warrior [15.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 5 31.0 IBUs
0.75 oz Nugget [13.00 %] - Boil 40.0 min Hop 6 23.6 IBUs
1.00 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.00 %] - Boil 15. Hop 7 19.1 IBUs
1.00 oz Palisade [7.50 %] - Boil 15.0 min Hop 8 10.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Simcoe [13.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 9 7.1 IBUs
1.25 oz Nugget [13.00 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 10 0.0 IBUs
2.0 pkg American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056) [124.21 Yeast 11 -
1.25 oz Warrior [15.00 %] - Dry Hop 10.0 Days Hop 12 0.0 IBUs
1.00 oz Nugget [13.00 %] - Dry Hop 10.0 Days Hop 13 0.0 IBUs

 

[ILBMF]

I like the base malts for that recipe. The one I used was the one in BYO magazine only I doubled the dry hops and still needed to hop the keg to get close to the hop nose of the real deal. I'm going to suggest to you that at least 3.0 or even 3.5 to 4.0 ozs for dry hopping. I can tell you from my experience that CTZ (I used columbus) was a small part of the dry hops and seems to be needed. Also, Simcoe is a must. I believe the recipe called for 1.0 Simcoe, 1.0 Nugget and .25 CTZ. I doubled that and still came up short. Then I added another .5 Simcoe, .5 Nugget and 1.5 grams Columbus to the keg and it's getting there. The base malts ain't quite there that's why your Vienna bill may be the ticket at least according to the Troegs bros.

I've never used Vienna, can anyone describe the flavor profile compared to American 2-row? Any bisquit flavor at all or what?

 

[reddskinnfan]

Yep, when the alledged "clone" is made with various base malts and the "real" recipe is 80% Vienna, you know it's not going to taste like the real thing. They are going to release Nugget Nectar here in a few weeks, and I'm going to pick some up in hopes of getting a better match with an 80% Vienna grain bill.

Well, when your trying something that isnt well documented and the general consensus is that your close, I call that a success. A clone, maybe not. But how does anyone know that Troegs isn't just try to throw off? Even BYO gave a similar recipe in their latest rendition.

 

[ILBMF]

I recently finished two cornys of the BYO clone which wasn't close at all...even with extra dry hops.

 

[cwheel]

Well, when your trying something that isnt well documented and the general consensus is that your close, I call that a success. A clone, maybe not. But how does anyone know that Troegs isn't just try to throw off? Even BYO gave a similar recipe in their latest rendition.

I wasn't saying you couldn't make a good beer, or even one that's close. Just wanted to point out (to those that didn't know) that the Troeg's bros say it's 80% Vienna.

 

[Dirty25]

I think the Vienna malt is the key to this. Vienna lagers always end up really sweet to me (Boston lager) and those grain bills are almost all Vienna. People using C malts are off, website states no C malts. They must get all the color from the Munich and Vienna malts.

 

[bobbrews]

Nugget Nectar isn't sweet though. It seems to be 1.069/1.013 give or take. Hopback Amber is 10 SRM, and Troegs uses 1-3% Medium Crystal and Chocolate malt to finalize the color. Nugget Nectar is more like 14 SRM, so I wouldn't doubt the use of some specialty malts for a color adjustment. We're not talking much here... 2-4% each maybe.

A lot of people are believing that this beer is 80% Vienna, and yet no one has even come close to the malt character of Nugget Nectar. It's kind of tough to completely fudge up a clone if you're told that 80% Vienna followed by 20% split Pils and Munich is definitely the grist. I am of the opinion that there is actually more Pils malt in Nugget Nectar than Vienna with the addition of Crystal and Chocolate malts. Time to go back to the drawing board.

 

[dcp27]

I think the Vienna malt is the key to this. Vienna lagers always end up really sweet to me (Boston lager) and those grain bills are almost all Vienna.

Boston Lager contains zero vienna

Nugget Nectar isn't sweet though. It seems to be 1.069/1.013 give or take. .

I measured the FG at 1.018 last year, I thought that batch was sweeter than usual tho

 

[bobbrews]

I measured the FG at 1.018 last year, I thought that batch was sweeter than usual tho

Interesting. Was it completely degassed in a covered container? Evaporation will boost the density of liquid and residual C02 will skew the reading.

That said, this years batch was much drier than the past 5 batches. It's the only batch that I have truly enjoyed in that time frame. I would be shocked if this year's FG was higher than 1.014.

 

[dcp27]

Interesting. Was it completely degassed in a covered container? Evaporation will boost the density of liquid and residual C02 will skew the reading.

yes, OldSock also got the same

 

[doomXsaloon]

I've been following this thread for days...read through and have been building a recipe. I've been questioning the grain bill....there seem two be two schools...one with 80% Vienna (as the bros claim), or the other with the majority of Pilsner malts....? I'm wondering if anyone has brewed both and what the results wer. Thanks

 

[D_Nyholm]

Wish there really was a finalized version of this recipe. I am thinking of trying to brew it based on what i have:
50% Vienna
25% pils
25% Munich
Small amount of crystal to get some color.

 

[D_Nyholm]

Just brewed an iteration of this and hit almost 80% efficiency. Here is what I brewed:

Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 7.63 gal
Boil Time: 90 min Equipment: My Equipment
End of Boil Volume 5.98 gal Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %


Ingredients
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
6 lbs 11.4 oz Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 1 42.2 %
4 lbs 7.6 oz Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 2 28.1 %
4 lbs 7.6 oz Pilsner (2 Row) UK (1.0 SRM) Grain 3 28.1 %
4.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L (120.0 SRM) Grain 4 1.6 %
1.50 oz Nugget [13.00 %] - Boil 90.0 min Hop 5 65.6 IBUs
0.25 oz Nugget [13.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 10.2 IBUs
0.50 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.00 %] - Boil 20.0 min Hop 7 13.3 IBUs
0.75 oz Palisade [7.80 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 8 6.7 IBUs
1.50 oz Simcoe [12.70 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 9 0.0 IBUs
1.00 oz Nugget [13.30 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 10 0.0 IBUs
0.50 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [16.30 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 11 0.0 IBUs
0.25 oz Palisade [7.50 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 12 0.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [35.49 ml] Yeast 13 -

Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.073 SG Measured Original Gravity: 1.074 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.015 SG Measured Final Gravity: 1.015 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 7.7 % Actual Alcohol by Vol: 7.8 %
Bitterness: 95.9 IBUs Calories: 251.8 kcal/12oz
Est Color: 10.5 SRM


Im excited to see how this comes out. I am not expecting an exact clone, but a damn good IPA.

 

[D_Nyholm]

So after a 4 days in primary, mine is down to 1.016 and the sample tastes pretty darn good. Not as bitter as I expected for almost 100 ibu, but it is still early. Really looking forward to the dry hop in a week or two.

I think one of the boutique beer shops around here still has some nugget nectar on the shelves, hoping I can get a bottle or two for comparison.

 

[cwheel]

Keep in mind that as mentioned earlier in this thread, the Troegner bros are on record saying that Nugget Nectar is around 80% Vienna malt. Bet your beer still tastes good though

 

[D_Nyholm]

So after a 4 days in primary, mine is down to 1.016 and the sample tastes pretty darn good. Not as bitter as I expected for almost 100 ibu, but it is still early. Really looking forward to the dry hop in a week or two.

I think one of the boutique beer shops around here still has some nugget nectar on the shelves, hoping I can get a bottle or two for comparison.

Yeah, I knew that and that is why I went up higher on the Vienna, but.not to 80%. On their site it states that this beer uses the same base as the amber, but the amber doesn't say to have any Vienna in it! I didn't want to overdo it with Vienna in case. There is obviously a lot of different ideas about this beer and even the brewers or the brewery aren't sharing everything.

 

[redraider77]

I wanted to resurrect this thread with a recipe I found on keystonehomebrew.com

All Grain:

7.75 lb Vienna malt
4.5 lb Dark Munich malt
2.75 lb Pilsner malt

Mash: 150 F
60 minute boil

Hop Schedule:

The bittering addition will change, depending on whether you’re brewing with extract or all grain:
All Grain: 1 oz Nugget 60 minutes
Extract w/grains: 1.5 oz Nugget 60 minutes

The rest of the hop schedule is the same for both recipes:
¾ oz Columbus (also known as Tomahawk or Zues) 20 min
1 oz Palisade 10 min
½ oz Nugget 5 min
1.5 oz Nugget 1 min
¾ oz Simcoe 1 min
¾ oz Columbus 1 min

Ferment between 66-69 F (Ideally)

Wyeast 1056 or White Labs 001 (3 packs/vials, or make an appropriate starter)

When fermentation has stopped, move to secondary. Then follow below is the dry hopping schedule. All of the dry hopping happens at once, not back to back.
1 oz Nugget 5 days
¾ oz Columbus 5 days
½ oz Simcoe 5 days

After 5 days, bottle or keg as usual. Then enjoy when it’s carbed up!

Does anyone have an opinion on this one? I have never had a real Nugget Nectar and probably wont anytime soon but I'm fascinated by its description and would love to brew something similar.

 

[BridgewaterBrewer]

I would mash higher, like 154 but some recipes say 152.

 

[B13rG33k]

Here's the Nugget Nectar recipe located in Zymurgy (31:4) July/August 2008.

For 5 U.S. gallons (19L)
O.G. 1.075
86.5 IBU
11.4 SRM
90' Boil


6.5 lbs Continental Pils Malt
7.0 lbs Munich Malt
5.0 oz Crystal 120L

1.00 oz 13%aa Nugget 60'
0.50 oz 13%aa Simcoe 30'
1.00 oz 16%aa Warrior 20'
1.25 oz 16%aa Tomahawk 0' or hopback
1.00 oz 8%aa Palisade 0' or hopback
1.00 oz 13%aa Simcoe DH
1.00 oz 8%aa Palisade DH

Cal-Ale yeast

Mash 152F.

What should my FG target be for this recipe? I purchased everything identical sans Tomahawk. My local shop only had Columbus as a replacement. Which obviously won't effect my FG

Also, I'm doing BIAB, so what should my full volume of water be?

Your help is greatly appreciated

 

[bolus14]

Had this for the first time last night after years of avoiding it thinking it was a hop bomb. After the first sip I thought why have I waited all this time. The hops are there, I would say mango,apricots, a little bit of pine to balance the fruity hop taste. The malt is definitely there, sweeter than in an IPA, with a nice lingering stickiness.

Anyway, I know it's been a couple years since anybody's posted on this but wondering if anybody's gotten close to a clone?

 

[bolus14]

Disregard my.above post, looks most people have found a different to discuss this one in

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=158796&page=30