Brew Award-Winning Fruit Beers
Fruit has always been a popular ingredient in craft beer, and homebrewers now have more ways than ever to incorporate fruit into the brewing process. I’ve used fruit many ways myself, but I also wanted to seek out advice from other brewers on how they use fruit. I’ve learned many of these techniques while doing commercial collaborations (including some that I’ve written about before, including previous articles on Catharina sour and grape ale), but wanted to see what other options are available today.
To explore these choices, I talked with (and got recipes from) a number of brewers who had won awards for their beers, including some that I tried: Nate Pahl (Belgian blonde ale with apple, elderflower, and lemon peel), Todd Donnelly (American wheat beer with apricot), Juan Jaramillo (Catharina sour with Andean blackberries and raspberries), and Sean Torres (Belgian dubbel with figs). In addition to each of theirs, I have also included my own National Homebrew Competition-medaling blackberry Baltic porter recipe at the end of this article. I also consulted some other brewers who offered advice, including Richard Sheppard who had medaled with a Berliner weisse with pear. Past Meadmakers of the Year Thomas Eibner, Curt Stock, and Scot Schaar had previously given me good recommendations for working with fruit that also would apply to beer. Its a diverse group of experts to help cover a diverse category of beer.
Ways of Using Fruit
Fruit is available in many forms. For many brewers, fresh, ripe, in-season fruit is the first choice. For Catharina sour in Brazil, that fruit choice is a defining factor for the style. Selecting seasonal fruit can be a labor of love, as sorting the fruit to choose the best examples takes effort. At the very least, remove rotten, bruised, or damaged fruit, then clean them and remove any leaves, stems, seeds, pits, skins, or other unwanted bits.
Nate and Juan mentioned selecting either heirloom or unusual varieties that judges might find interesting. Sean and Richard suggested sourcing fruit from backyard trees or farmer’s markets in-season when bulk fruit is less expensive. Fresh fruit can be used as is, or further processed. Curt recommends freezing and thawing fresh fruit, and then using it in the primary fermentation. Thomas suggested running the fruit through a juicer in instances when the skins or seeds would give too much tannin or other flavors. I remember him using this approach when using strawberries to reduce the ‘seedy’ flavor from the little black seed-like bits on the surface.
Sean, Richard, and Nate mentioned pureeing the flesh of the fruit in a blender before adding to a recipe. Some fruit can be roasted, grilled, or sautéed before using to caramelize sugars and add extra flavor. Scot roasted pineapple, Sean broiled figs, and I remember Tomme Arthur of Lost Abbey talking about sautéing raisins and then deglazing them with Port wine. So, fruit can certainly be used as naturally as possible or transformed through cooking processes.
Home juicing or pureeing fruit is essentially the same process used when buying commercial juices or purees, although those products will often have preservatives or stabilizers added. Fresh-frozen fruit products can also be sourced to increase variety or when a fruit is out of season. When buying juices or concentrates, read the ingredients carefully since some products are pure fruit, while others may include sugar syrup, apple or grape juice, or other products. I have used RW Knudsen and Brownwood Acres juices. I have also looked for syrups from ethnic or international markets, particularly for products from Eastern Europe or Scandinavia (Adriatica black currant and Bende sour cherry, notably). Some products intended for making fruit wines can be useful; I have experience with the Vintner’s Harvest fruit wine base, for instance. Other products are available, but these are ones I have been able to source and use where I live.
Todd makes a lot of meads and ciders, and cites this experience as helpful when working with fruit (and I concur). He experimented with Amoretti flavorings, particularly their water-soluble extracts. Perhaps he found success using these products because he is a pharmacist and is comfortable with small measurements, compounding, and scaling up test measures. He recommends starting with manufacturer recommendations and adjusting to taste, working with small samples first and scaling up for the final batch.
Another option is blending in the fruit. Fruit wines or meads can be made separately and blended with a finished base beer, just as a juice or extract can be added. The advantage of this approach is that the beer and fruit components can be individually optimized (possibly including fermentation with different yeasts) and then blended to taste. Many fruit beers require a final adjustment anyway, and this allows for more alternatives. Curt first suggested this idea to me, which I also medaled with.
Putting Fruit to Use
Before you start grabbing fruit, spend some time with your concept. Yes, be aware of what fruit is available to you, but take care in pairing the fruit with the base beer, or how you choose complementary fruits, or how you use spices in support of your fruit. Nate told a story where his wife had mixed an apple soda with an elderflower lemonade and liked the results.
Scot suggested looking in Page & Dornenburg’s The Flavor Bible for known good (and bad) flavor combinations. Sean stressed finding compatible flavor combinations from the base beer and the fruit. These flavors can either amplify or enhance key components of the base style (think dark or dried fruit flavors in dark Belgian monastic ales), or perhaps provide a known complement (think about orange, raspberry, or cherry with beers that have a chocolate malt flavor, mirroring flavors found in confections).
Fruit can be added at several stages of the brewing process. Adding fruit during the primary fermentation is a common meadmaking approach, since the fruit adds nutrients that honey lacks and encourages a more vigorous fermentation. As wort typically has sufficient nutrients, this makes fruit usage in the primary more of a choice than a requirement.
One consideration is how whole or pureed fruit will be added and removed from the batch, or if the fruit will cause racking problems. Many brewers recommended putting the fruit in mesh bags to facilitate separation. Fruit that has been juiced doesn’t have this problem, although careful racking will improve clarity.
Fruit in the mash or boil is possible, and is something I have done when using pumpkins and similar vegetables, but I don’t think this has advantages when making most fruit beers because much of the character is lost or degraded during the boil, and fruit pectins can be set, which can cause permanent haze.
Catharina sours are typically made with fresh fruit added when fermentation is about 75% complete to preserve as much fresh-fruit character as possible, but while not seeming like a cocktail or unfermented drink. Fruit can be used in other styles in the same manner.
Juices and syrups can be added at any point, although adding late in fermentation or post-fermentation best preserves their character. The trade-off is fresh-fruit intensity versus a more fully fermented flavor. Fruit can be added at multiple times in the process, of course, and is often used during final adjustments before packaging.
Extracts, juices, and finished fruit wines or meads can be mixed in after the beer fermentation is complete or mostly complete. I recommend a final tasting and adjustment, which also can include adjusting final sweetness and acidity levels, as the last step. Just as a good chef will taste and correct the final dish before serving a plate, a good brewer will do the same with a beer being packaged or sent to a competition.
Watch This!
• Learn more about brewing with fruit in this video from BYO Technical Editor Ashton Lewis.
Recipes
To further explore examples of fruit/beer style pairings that work, forms of fruit, and ways to add fruit to beer, we’ll dig into the award-winning fruit beer recipes I’ve collected below.
Catharina Sour with Andean Blackberry and Raspberry, All-Grain
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.051 FG = 1.013
IBU = 8 SRM = 4 ABV = 5.1%
Andean blackberry (Moras de Castilla) are small, very dark, sweet, and intense blackberries when ripe. Perhaps a mix of elderberries and loganberries would be the best substitute if you can’t source them. They are mixed with raspberries in this recipe to add a bright acidity and freshness. The fruit is purchased as a pulp and briefly pasteurized before using, which adds a somewhat non-traditional (for Brazil) jammy note. Traditional kettle souring techniques can be used, but this recipe leverages the Philly Sour strain to ferment and sour jointly. This recipe also uses the technique to naturally carbonate in a keg using the fruit sugar, though you could add the fruit to the fermenter with an airlock if you plan to bottle.
– Recipe courtesy of Juan Jaramillo, Django Cerveceria, Quito, Ecuador
Ingredients
5 lbs. (2.3 kg) Pilsner malt
4 lbs. (1.8 kg) wheat malt
1.5 lbs. (680 g) pale ale malt
8 oz. (227 g) Carapils® malt
10 g kosher salt
1 oz. (28 g) Simcoe® hops (whirlpool)
2.7 L (2.9 qts.) blackberry puree
2.7 L (2.9 qts.) raspberry puree
WildBrew Philly Sour yeast
Step by Step
This recipe uses a single-infusion mash. In 17 quarts (16 L) of water, mash the grain at 151 °F (66 °C) for 60 minutes. Raise the mash to 169 °F (76 °C) and mash out for 10 minutes. Sparge slowly and collect 6.5 gallons (24.5 L) of wort. Boil for 60 minutes. Add the salt in the last 10 minutes of the boil. At the end of the boil, turn off heat and let cool to 194 °F (90 °C) and then add the whirlpool hop addition. Stir the wort and let rest for 10 minutes. Cool to 72 °F (22°C) and then pitch the yeast.
When the fermentation has slowed considerably, pasteurize the fruit purees by bringing them up to 160 °F (71 °C) for one minute before cooling it. Once cooled, move puree to a keg and then transfer the slowly fermenting beer on top of it. Allow the beer to continue fermenting using the fruit as a priming sugar, while creating carbonation in the pressure-safe container. This process takes 2–3 weeks, then crash cool to 32 °F (0 °C) and hold for a week, then transfer under pressure to a fresh keg.
Catharina Sour with Andean Blackberry and Raspberry, Extract Only
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.051 FG = 1.013
IBU = 8 SRM = 4 ABV = 5.1%
Ingredients
7.1 lbs. (3.2 kg) wheat liquid malt extract
10 g kosher salt
1 oz. (28 g) Simcoe® hops (whirlpool)
2.7 L (2.9 qts.) blackberry puree
2.7 L (2.9 qts.) raspberry puree
WildBrew Philly Sour yeast
Step by Step
Use 6.5 gallons (24.5 L) of water in the brew kettle; heat to 158 °F (70 °C).
Turn off the heat. Add the malt extract and stir thoroughly to dissolve completely. You do not want to feel liquid extract at the bottom of the kettle when stirring with your spoon. Turn the heat back on and bring to a boil.
Boil for 60 minutes. Add the salt in the last 10 minutes of the boil. At the end of the boil, turn off heat and let cool to 194 °F (90 °C) and then add the whirlpool hop addition. Stir the wort and let rest for 10 minutes. Cool to 72 °F (22°C). Pitch the yeast.
When the fermentation has slowed considerably, pasteurize the fruit purees by bringing them up to 160 °F (71 °C) for one minute before cooling it. Once cooled, move puree to a keg and then transfer the slowly fermenting beer on top of it. Allow the beer to continue fermenting using the fruit as a priming sugar, while creating carbonation in the pressure-safe container. This process takes 2–3 weeks, then crash cool to 32 °F (0 °C) and hold for a week, then transfer under pressure to a fresh keg.
Apricot American Wheat, All-Grain
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.051 FG = 1.013
IBU = 19 SRM = 4 ABV = 5%
Any basic American wheat or rye recipe can be used as the base, as long as you avoid using recipes that have dry hopping or substantial late-hop additions. Other fruit flavors can be selected, with peach giving a similar result. Add the extract just before packaging, but taste and adjust the level to suit your palate. Small trials are recommended before dosing the entire 5-gallon (19-L) batch.
– Recipe courtesy of Todd Donnelly, Chardon, Ohio
Ingredients
6 lbs. (2.7 kg) wheat malt
4 lbs. (1.8 kg) 2-row pale malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Munich malt
5 AAU Willamette hops (60 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 5% alpha acids)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Hallertauer hops (0 min.)
3 mL Amoretti Apricot Water Soluble Extract
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), White Labs WLP001 (California Ale), or SafAle US-05 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Mash in all malts at 152 °F (67 °C) for 60 minutes. Mash out at 168 °F (76 °C) for 15 minutes, recirculating wort during this time. Sparge with 170 °F (77 °C) water, collecting 6.5 gallons (25 L) of wort.
Boil the wort for 90 minutes, adding Willamette hops with 60 minutes remaining in the boil. Add the Hallertauer hops at the end of the boil.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C), pitch the yeast, and ferment until complete. Rack the beer, blending in the apricot extract and adjusting to taste. Add priming sugar and bottle, or keg and force carbonate.
Apricot American Wheat, Extract
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.051 FG = 1.013
IBU = 19 SRM = 4 ABV = 5%
Ingredients
6 lbs. (2.7 kg) wheat liquid malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Munich liquid malt extract
5 AAU Willamette hops (60 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 5% alpha acids)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Hallertauer hops (0 min.)
3 mL Amoretti Apricot Water Soluble Extract
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), White Labs WLP001 (California Ale), or SafAle US-05 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Use 6.5 gallons (25 L) of water in the brew kettle; heat to 158 °F (70 °C).
Turn off the heat. Add the malt extracts and stir thoroughly to dissolve completely. You do not want to feel liquid extract at the bottom of the kettle when stirring with your spoon. Turn the heat back on, add the first wort hops, and bring to a boil.
Boil the wort for 60 minutes, adding Willamette hops at the start of the boil. Add the Hallertauer hops at the end of the boil.
Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C), pitch the yeast, and ferment until complete. Rack the beer, blending in the apricot extract and adjusting to taste. Add priming sugar and bottle, or keg and force carbonate.
Belgian Blond with Apple, Elderflower, and Lemon Peel, All-Grain
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.060 FG = 1.007
IBU = 12 SRM = 5 ABV = 7.1%
While the recipe calls for transparent apples (a pale green, tart apple), another variety with similar characteristics could be substituted (such as Granny Smith). Nate also uses locally pressed sweet apple cider when the apples are not available. This option is in the extract version of the recipe. The elderflower and lemon peel can be added to the keg as well.
– Recipe courtesy of Nate Pahl, Clayton, Ohio
Ingredients
8.5 lbs. (3.9 kg) Pilsner malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) wheat malt
8 oz. (227 g) aromatic malt
6 oz. (170 g) acidulated malt
4 oz. (113 g) flaked wheat
4 oz. (113 g) flaked oats
1 lb. (0.45 kg) corn sugar
2 AAU Hallertauer Mittelfrüh hops (60 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 2% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Saaz hops (20 min.)
1 oz. (28 g) Hallertauer hops (whirlpool)
1 oz. (28 g) Saaz hops (whirlpool)
2 lbs. (907 g) transparent apples
4 oz. (113 g) dried elderflower
2 oz. (57 g) freshly zested lemon peel
Wyeast 1388 (Belgian Strong Ale), White Labs WLP570 (Belgian Golden Ale), or Mangrove Jack’s M31 (Belgian Tripel) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Mash in all malts and grains at 149 °F (65 °C) for 60 minutes. Mash out at 168 °F (76 °C) for 15 minutes, recirculating wort during this time. Sparge with 170 °F (77 °C) water, collecting 6.5 gallons (25L) of wort.
Boil the wort for 90 minutes, adding hops at the times indicated in the recipe. Add the sugar in the last 15 minutes of the boil. The whirlpool hops are added after the boil has ended and the wort has cooled to 175 °F (80 °C). Stir the wort vigorously and then leave the hops in contact with the wort for 20 minutes at this temperature. Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C), pitch the yeast, and ferment until complete.
Wash, peel, and slice the apples, adding to the secondary along with the elderflower and lemon peel. Rack the beer onto the fruit and spices in the secondary and allow to rest for one week. Rack the beer, add priming sugar and bottle, or keg and force carbonate.
Belgian Blond with Apple, Elderflower, and Lemon Peel, Extract
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.060 FG = 1.007
IBU = 12 SRM = 5 ABV = 7.1%
Ingredients
5.5 lbs. (2.5 kg) pale liquid malt extract
1.6 lbs. (0.7 kg) wheat liquid malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) corn sugar
2 AAU Hallertauer Mittelfrüh hops (60 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 2% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Saaz hops (20 min.)
1 oz. (28 g) Hallertauer hops (whirlpool)
1 oz. (28 g) Saaz hops (whirlpool)
2 lbs. (907 g) transparent apples
4 oz. (113 g) dried elderflower
2 oz. (57 g) freshly zested lemon peel
Wyeast 1388 (Belgian Strong Ale), White Labs WLP570 (Belgian Golden Ale), or Mangrove Jack’s M31 (Belgian Tripel) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Use 6.5 gallons (25 L) of water in the brew kettle; heat to 158 °F (70 °C).
Turn off the heat. Add the malt extracts and stir thoroughly to dissolve completely. You do not want to feel liquid extract at the bottom of the kettle when stirring with your spoon. Turn the heat back on and bring to a boil.
Boil the wort for 60 minutes, adding hops at the times indicated in the recipe. Add the sugar in the last 15 minutes of the boil. The whirlpool hops are added after the boil has ended and the wort has cooled to 175 °F (80 °C). Stir the wort vigorously and then leave the hops in contact with the wort for 20 minutes at this temperature. Chill the wort to 68 °F (20 °C), pitch the yeast, and ferment until complete.
Add the apple cider, elderflower, and lemon peel, and allow to rest for one week. Rack the beer, add priming sugar and bottle, or keg and force carbonate.
Belgian Dubbel with Roasted Figs, All-Grain
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.071 FG = 1.017
IBU = 21 SRM = 27 ABV = 7%
Figs were selected because of their availability from a local tree, and were paired with a dubbel in order to complement its raisin and dried-fruit character. The figs were roasted and broiled to caramelize the sugars, adding another tie to the flavor of the base beer. The figs are mashed up and added at the end of the boil in a mesh bag before the wort is chilled and transferred to the fermenter.
– Recipe courtesy of Sean Torres and Phil Gardner, Staten Island, New York
Ingredients
5.4 lbs. (2.4 kg) Pilsner malt
4.3 lbs. (2 kg) Munich malt
13 oz. (369 g) aromatic malt
9 oz. (255 g) CaraMunich® Type II malt
4 oz. (113 g) Special B malt
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) D-90 candi syrup (10 min.)
8 oz. (227 g) D-180 candi syrup (10 min.)
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) roasted figs (0 min.)
6.2 AAU Styrian Golding hops (60 min.) (1.15 oz./33 g at 5.4% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Styrian Golding hops (1 min.)
Wyeast 1762 (Belgian Abbey II), White Labs WLP540(Abbey IV), or SafAle T-58 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Prepare the roasted figs. Select fresh, ripe, plump figs (Black Mission figs, preferably). Wash and dry them, cut the stem and top off, then slice in half lengthwise. Roast cut side up in a 325 °F (163 °C) oven for 2–2.5 hours, removing them before they burn or get too dry. The goal is to get the figs very soft and the sugars deeply caramelized. Run the figs under a broiler briefly if necessary to get final caramelization. Let cool and then mash the figs into a paste and reserve for later.
This recipe uses an infusion mash. Mash in the malts at 151 °F (66 °C) in 18 qts. (17 L) of water, and hold this temperature for 90 minutes. Sparge with 170 °F (77 °C) water until 6.5 gallons (25 L) of wort is collected.
Boil the wort for 90 minutes, adding the hops at times indicated in the recipe. Add the candi syrups with 10 minutes remaining in the boil. Put the fig paste in a mesh bag and add at knockout. Steep for 15 minutes, then pull the bag and chill to 66 °F (19 °C).
Oxygenate, then pitch the yeast. Ferment at 66 °F (19 °C) until fermentation is complete. Prime and bottle condition, or keg and force carbonate to 2.5 volumes.
Belgian Dubbel with Roasted Figs, Extract with Grains
(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.071 FG = 1.017
IBU = 21 SRM = 27 ABV = 7%
Ingredients
3.6 lbs. (1.6 kg) Pilsner liquid malt extract
3.25 lbs. (1.5 kg) Munich liquid malt extract
9 oz. (255 g) CaraMunich® Type II malt
4 oz. (113 g) Special B malt
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) D-90 candi syrup (10 min.)
8 oz. (227 g) D-180 candi syrup (10 min.)
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) roasted figs (0 min.)
6.2 AAU Styrian Golding hops (60 min.) (1.15 oz./33 g at 5.4% alpha acids)
1 oz. (28 g) Styrian Golding hops (1 min.)
Wyeast 1762 (Belgian Abbey II), White Labs WLP540(Abbey IV), or SafAle T-58 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Prepare the roasted figs. Select fresh, ripe, plump figs (Black Mission figs, preferably). Wash and dry them, cut the stem and top off, then slice in half lengthwise. Roast cut side up in a 325 °F (163 °C) oven for 2–2.5 hours, checking to make sure they don’t burn or get too dry. The goal is to get the figs very soft and the sugars deeply caramelized. Run the figs under a broiler briefly if necessary to get final caramelization. Let cool and then mash the figs into a paste and reserve for later.
Use 6 gallons (23 L) of water in the brew kettle; heat to 158 °F (70 °C). Place the malts in a mesh bag, and steep in the hot water for 30 minutes. Remove the mesh bag, then turn the heat off.
Add the liquid malt extracts and stir thoroughly to dissolve the extract completely. You do not want to feel liquid extract at the bottom of the kettle when stirring with your spoon. Turn the heat back on and bring to a boil. Boil the wort for 60 minutes, adding the hops at the times indicated in the recipe. Add the candi syrups with 10 minutes remaining in the boil. Put the fig paste in a mesh bag and add at knockout. Steep for 15 minutes, then pull the bag and chill to 66 °F (19 °C).
Oxygenate, then pitch the yeast. Ferment at 66 °F (19 °C) until fermentation is complete. Prime and bottle condition, or keg and force carbonate to 2.5 volumes.
Blackberry Baltic Porter, All-Grain
Based on an idea from Curt Stock, this beer is created by blending a sweet blackberry mead with a Baltic porter. This version uses a canned fruit wine base for the fruit. The mead and beer are fermented and aged separately, then blended to taste. A fruit wine can be used instead of the mead, but it should be similar in sweetness to the base beer in order to keep the balance consistent.
– Recipe courtesy of Gordon Strong, Beavercreek, Ohio
Blackberry Mead
96 oz. (2.8 L) blackberry fruit wine base
12 lbs. (5.4 kg) light-colored and flavored honey
Lalvin 71B wine yeast
Combine fruit and honey, adding enough water to make 3 gallons (11.4) volume. Pitch yeast and ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) until complete. Backsweeten if necessary to be subjectively sweet, perhaps FG 1.032. Use this mead to add blackberry character to beer. Conduct a test with a small amount using 20% mead and 80% beer, then adjust to taste. Scale up for the full batch.
Baltic Porter
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.083 FG = 1.024
IBU = 30 SRM = 54 ABV = 7.8%*
* All numbers prior to blending
Ingredients
7.25 lbs. (3.3 kg) pale ale malt
3.5 lbs. (1.6 kg) dark Munich malt
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) brown malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) wheat malt
1.75 lbs. (0.8 kg) CaraMunich® Type II
1.25 lbs. (0.6 kg) crystal malt (90 °L)
8 oz. (227 g) Special B malt
12 oz. (567 g) chocolate malt
6 oz. (170 g) Carafa® Special Type III malt
9 AAU Fuggle hops (60 min.) (2 oz./57 g at 4.5% alpha acids)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Hallertauer hops (10 min.)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Hallertauer hops (2 min.)
Wyeast 2112 (California Lager), White Labs WLP810 (San Francisco Lager), or Mangrove Jack’s M54 (Californian Lager) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
This recipe uses a single-infusion mash. Mash in the malt at 151 °F (66 °C) in 17 qts. (16 L) of water. Hold at this temperature for 60 minutes. Raise mash temperature to 170 °F (77 °C), hold for 5 minutes then recirculate. Run off wort and sparge with water hot enough to keep the grain bed around 170 °F (77 °C). Collect 6.5 gallons (25 L) of wort. (Check that final runnings do not drop below SG 1.010, even if this means collecting slightly less wort.) Boil wort for 60 minutes, adding hops at times indicated.
If using liquid yeast, build a 2-qt./2-L yeast starter a day before pitching. Aerate wort and pitch yeast. Ferment at 62 °F (17 °C). Lager at 34 °F (1 °C) for 12 weeks. Prime and bottle condition, or keg and force carbonate.
Baltic Porter, Extract with Grains
(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.083 FG = 1.024
IBU = 30 SRM = 54 ABV = 7.8%*
* All numbers prior to blending
Ingredients
6.6 lbs. (3 kg) light liquid malt extract
11 oz. (312 g) light dried malt extract
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) brown malt
1.75 lbs. (0.8 kg) CaraMunich® Type II
1.25 lbs. (0.6 kg) crystal malt (90 °L)
8 oz. (227 g) Special B malt
12 oz. (567 g) chocolate malt
6 oz. (170 g) Carafa® Special Type III malt
9 AAU Fuggle hops (60 min.) (2 oz./57 g at 4.5% alpha acids)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Hallertauer hops (10 min.)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Hallertauer hops (2 min.)
Wyeast 2112 (California Lager), White Labs WLP810 (San Francisco Lager), or Mangrove Jack’s M54 (Californian Lager) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Steep grains in 3 gallons (11.4 L) of 158 °F (70 °C) water for 30 minutes. Remove grain, add dried malt extract and enough water to make at least 3 gallons (11 L) of wort.
Boil wort for 60 minutes, adding hops at times indicated. Keep some boiling water handy and do not let boil volume dip below 3 gallons (11 L). With 15 minutes remaining in the boil, turn off the heat and add liquid malt extract, carefully stirring it until dissolved. Continue boiling for last 15 minutes. Chill wort, transfer to fermenter and top up to 5 gallons (19 L).
If using liquid yeast build a 2-qt./2-L yeast starter a day before pitching. Aerate wort and pitch yeast. Ferment at 62 °F (17 °C). Lager at 34 °F (1 °C) for 12 weeks. Prime and bottle condition, or keg and force carbonate.
