Looking to brew up a raspberry wheat for my sister’s wedding at her request. I’ve never brewed this style before (wheat beer +/- fruit) so I thought I’d kick this out for some pointers. I want more of an American Wheat style so will probably use a neutral yeast- will WLP001 work or does anyone have specific recommendations.
6lb 2-row
4lb white wheat
0.5lb munich
Hallertauer 1oz at 60min, .5oz at 20min
Is there any role for crystal malts in the style?
Then there is the issue of the raspberries. I’ve seen the vintners harvest cans which sounds easy enough. Buying fresh raspberries might turn this into quite the expensive brew. I’d plan on adding them to the secondary for 1-2 weeks. I am going for hints of raspberries NOT fermented raspberry juice so will 3lbs suffice for a 5.5 gallon batch?
Mash temp seems to be high in most recipes I’ve seen ~154F x 60min.
60min boil
Wedding is in September and hoping to have 1-2 test runs prior to the final product.
Crystal malt is un necessary. I do 60% wheat and 40% 2 row for the base malt, basically just flip what you have there, and .5 lb munich. hops look good.
3 lbs of fruit for 5 gallons will give you a hint of raspberry that you’re looking for. 6 lbs gives a straight forward raspberry. Id also mash a bit lower than 154, I like my wheats a bit dry and refreshing. Mash at 150-152 for my tastes. I also like to add the zest of a couple lemons in the last minute of the boil, the tartness of the lemon plays well with the raspberrys!
Thanks for the tips. The lower mash temp makes a lot of sense now that I think about it. Will start with 3lbs and go from there and I’ll give the lemons a shot.
I think the test runs will get progressively better up until September, just because raspberries don’t really come into season until Summer.
I’m doing a fruit hef this weekend - thinking about trying some un-preserved jam to go along with frozen blackberries (maybe some pineapple?). I’m adding in secondary (and will try the lemon zest, too!).
Learned my lesson a long time ago - PUREE if you’re using a carboy. Strain if you’re using a fruit with lots of seeds (raspberries, blackberries, watermelon, etc).
Be sure to account for the volume and sugar contributed by the fruit. Even a small amount of raspberries can increase your ABV enough to thin out the beer and leave it unbalanced and unpleasant.
Only issue I could see is with pectic haze. I don’t know if that will be too much of an issue in a hefeweizen, but make sure you account for it. Jam has a lot of pectin in it.
That’s why I picked weissbier as the base style - if it was an American Wheat base, and I wanted that clear pink hue, I’d probably just use the frozen or seasonal fresh berries. A little more expensive, but saves the hassle of trying to fine out all the pectin.
What makes Fort so delicious then? Anybody ever messed with a super fruit beer like fort? How do they make it so good? I had a four year old bottle of it that was fabulous, and even a one year old bottle was outstanding.
My only experience with fruit beer is using concentrated fruit juice (the stuff you get in grocery store for making juice - 1 can juice, 3 or 4 cans water). I used 4 cans in 5 gals and it got very berry. I’d try two cans and see how it was and then move up if you need more. My wife loves this one which I’ve named “The Walrus of Beer” - Berry Wheat (do I need to explain?)
I added Maltodextrin to my Raspberry Wheat and liked the results. It mellowed out the raspberry tartness. Might deviate from the traditional wheat beer style, but makes it more palatable for a wedding. A couple ounces of raspberry extract will help enhance the aroma for that wedding crowd, as well.
I LOVE that beer - Sam Calagione is a magician with fruit.
I think raspberries play nicely with big, bold beers (when you design them with their sugar addition in mind). Their acidity and bright flavor give contrast to the boozy, rich, cloying qualities of barleywines and big stouts. Its like the fresh raspberry sauce on top of a double-chocolate cheesecake (a dish that begs for FORT, not PORT).