Fonio is the hot new adjunct that all the cool kids (well, Garrett Oliver, anyway) are using. What is it? Find out here
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Interesting info on Fonio, thanks for that. Will be waiting for Drew to post a review on his Fonio Pale Ale.
Unfortunately, it seems a bit unreasonable, cost-wise, right now. Looks like it’s going for somewhere near $10/lb on Amazon and maybe I would try it once, but I won’t be buying any for inventory.
Something to keep on the radar and hopefully it will show up at a more reasonable price in the near future.
Yeah, Ashton mentions the cost. He said that it’s cheaper for commercial brewers so you might talk to a brewery about getting some. I have a pale ale and tripel with it coming up.
This sounds a lot like the recent interest in teff. It could be a viable option with a few more years of development to get the yields up and the prices down, but I think it’s a niche product until then.
Agreed. There’s a lot of interest in it right now, but probably more as a curiosity.
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I want to add, though, that I think those years of development are worth the investment. We need crops that are less water-intensive and more sustainable than our current staples.
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I just kegged the Fonio Blond/Pale Ale thingy and it’s currently sitting on gas about 8 feet to my left. The flat “warm” taste I had (it was sitting at 40°F crashing but had warmed up by the time I got to it) was intriguing. Not a ton of hop character, by design, and yet the flavor was still vaguely tropical with a pleasant earthy nuttiness to it.
Better review in a couple of days when the keg is carbed up.
It’s been a couple of days…
I can tell you that the tripel I made with fonio was so good I’ll use it in every one until my supply is gone. I think it added a very slight tangerine/pineapple flavor and lightened the body like rice would. Made for a dangerously drinkable tripel.
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You are all making me rethink fonio. I had a bottle of fonio something or other from a local brewery a year or so ago that I couldn’t even finish. There was definitely no tangerine/pineapple etcetera…it was harsh and bitter. It’s possible it was a bad recipe, or it was brewed wrong, or I had a bad bottle (or all three). Ok, I believe! I believe! I’ll look for an ale with fonio from somewhere else (or brew a tiny batch myself).
As we all know, final quality is in the hands of the brewer.
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True, though this brewery is known for its quality. I remembered one more element today: our palates. If I pick up these flavors again with a completely different beer brewed with fonio, I’ll have to consider that it may just taste strange to me.
I need to be clear that those flavors were very slight. But I detected no off flavors.
There was a really nice article on fonio in the spring issue of CB&B. I liked the description that the head brewer of Brooklyn Brewing gave for it:
"Fonio tastes “nutty” when eaten like couscous—which it resem-
bles on the plate—but it doesn’t really bring that flavor to beer.
Instead, it brings tropical-fruity, wine-like flavors reminiscent of sau-
vignon blanc and gewürztraminer—lychee fruit, gooseberry, mango,
etc. It also gives a soft, round, silky mouthfeel to beers. We’re gen-
erally using it at 15 to 20 percent of the grist. The fonio “signature”
flavors are always recognizable, and they don’t seem to be yeast
strain–dependent, so the flavors show up as strongly in lagers as
they do in warmer fermentations. In a pale ale, those aromatics are
a great complement to dry-hop aromatics; in a pilsner, they bring a
really nice lilt of fruit to the profile. People often say, “Wow, this kinda
smells like white wine,” and they like that"
This seems to jive with Denny’s description above. These flavors are what I really love when paired with a Saison yeast strain and I may just have to give this a try when I brew another one in a few months.
He also suggests adding the Fonio during the mash’s final saccharification rest to help drive the flavors and aromas. The starch is already there, it just needs rehydration. Hmm. As a BIAB single step brewer, maybe I could just add the grain during the last 15-20 minutes of a 60 minute mash??
Now to figure out how to source it.
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I definitely agree on the flavor, although it’s subtle. The flavor is why is like it I tripel, but didn’t feel it worked with BDSA. Can’t say I’ve noticed the mouthfeel. It definitely thins body.
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So what percentage pf the grist are you using it in your tripel, Denny?
12-14. Along with an equal amount of sugar. WY3787, of course. Nice light body, very slightly tropical/pineapple notes. But just enough to enhance, not define, the tripel. Drew has been using it in saison, too.
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