Gilligan’s Gueuze (Blended Lambic)
Gilligan’s Gueuze
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.003
IBU = 0 SRM = 4 ABV = 5%
Ingredients
6 lbs. 14 oz. (3.1 kg) Dingemans Pilsen malt
3 lbs. 11 oz. (1.7 kg) unmalted wheat
3 oz. (84 g) aged (debittered) hops
Wyeast 3278 (Lambic Blend) blend of yeasts and bacteria
0.75 cups corn sugar (for priming)
Step by Step
Heat 2.7 gallons (10 L) of water to 124 °F (51 °C) in your kettle. Bring 5 gallons (19 L) of water to a boil in your hot liquor tank. Mash grains in to 113 °F (45 °C) and let rest for 10 minutes. You will step through the following steps: 131 °F (55 °C) for 15 minutes; 149 °F (65 °C) for 45 minutes; 162 °F (72 °C) for 15 minutes; mash out to 170 °F (76 °C). For each step, add about 85 fl. oz. (2.5 L) of boiling water, then use direct heat to hit target temperature. (By the end of your mash, it will be very thin.)
Cool water in hot liquor tank to 200 °F (95 °C) and use this for your sparge water. Collect about 5 gallons (19 L) of wort, add 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water and boil for 2 hours, adding hops with 90 minutes left in boil. Ferment beer at 70 °F (21 °C) in a plastic bucket for one week. Let beer condition at 70–80 °F (21–27 °C) for 3 months, then hold at “room temperature.” Do not rack to secondary. Do this once a year for three years, then blend beers after the most recent has been warm conditioned for three months.
Written by BYO Staff
A gueuze is a beer made from blending “old” lambics, up to three years old, with a “new” lambic that has just finished its main fermentation. The traditional mash program for a lambic is a turbid mash, involving both infusions and decoctions to step the mash through a variety of temperatures. The mash in the all-grain version is a simplified version of this.
