Saison Ale

Saison Ale

(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.060 (14.8 °P)  FG = 1.008 (2.0 °P)
IBU = 27 SRM = 5 ABV = 6.9%

Ingredients
9.37 lb. (4.25 kg) Best Malz continental Pilsner malt (2 °L)
0.88 lb. (400 g) cane or beet sugar (0 °L)
0.66 lb. (300 g) Best Malz Munich malt (8 °L)
0.66 lb. (300 g) Great Western wheat malt (2 °L)
0.66 lb. (300 g) Malteries Franco-Belges CaraMunich malt (60 °L)
5.64 AAU Hallertau hops (1.41 oz./40 g at 4% alpha acids) (60 min.)
3.36 AAU Hallertau hops (0.84 oz./24 g at 4% alpha acids) (0 min.)
White Labs WLP565 (Saison Ale) or Wyeast 3724 (Belgian Saison) yeast
1 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by Step
Belgian Pilsner malt would be the natural choice for the base malt, but you can substitute any high quality malt of a similar flavor and color from a different supplier. I use the cheapest grocery store table sugar I can find. You can spend money on Belgian candi sugar, but I do not feel that the cost is worth it.

Mill the grains and dough-in targeting a mash of around 1.5 quarts of water to 1 pound of grain (a liquor-to-grist ratio of about 3:1 by weight) and a temperature of 149 °F (65 °C). Hold the mash at 149 °F (65 °C) until enzymatic conversion is complete. With the low mash temperature, you may need to lengthen the rest time to 90 minutes or more to get full conversion. Infuse the mash with near boiling water while stirring or with a recirculating mash system raise the temperature to mash out at 168 °F (76 °C). Sparge slowly with 170 °F (77 °C) water, collecting wort until the pre-boil kettle volume is around 6.5 gallons (24.4 L) and the gravity is 1.047 (11.6 °P).

The total wort boil time is 90 minutes, which helps reduce the S-Methyl Methionine (SMM) present in the lightly kilned Pilsner malt and results in less Dimethyl Sulfide (DMS) in the finished beer. Add the bittering hops with 60 minutes left in the boil. Add the sugar and Irish moss or other kettle finings with 15 minutes left in the boil. Add the last hop addition just before turning off the burner. Chill the wort rapidly to 68 °F (20 °C), let the break material settle, rack to the fermenter, pitch the yeast and aerate thoroughly.

You will need two packages of liquid yeast or for better results you can make a 2-L starter from one package. Pitch yeast at 68 °F (20 °C), aerate or oxygenate, and let the temperature rise slowly to 82 °F (28 °C) over the course of one week. Ferment until the yeast drops clear. With healthy yeast, fermentation should be complete in a week, but do not rush it. It is important for the beer to attenuate fully. When finished, carbonate the beer to approximately 3 volumes and serve at 45 to 50 °F (7 to 10 °C).

If you have trouble getting enough attenuation, you can hold off on adding the sugar to the boil. Instead, after the fermentation looks like it has started to slow, mix the sugar with just enough boiling water to make a syrup, then add that to the fermentation. This should encourage the yeast to consume the longer sugars before you add a substantial amount of simple sugar.

Saison Ale

(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.060 (14.8 °P)  FG = 1.008 (2.0 °P)
IBU = 27 SRM = 5 ABV = 6.9%

Ingredients
6.6 lb. (3 kg) Pilsner liquid malt extract (LME) (2 °L)
0.88 lb. (400 g) cane or beet sugar (0 °L)
0.66 lb. (300 g) Best Malz Munich malt (8 °L)
0.66 lb. (300 g) Great Western wheat malt (2 °L)
0.66 lb. (300 g) Malteries Franco-Belges Caramunich malt (60 °L)
5.64 AAU Hallertau hops (1.41 oz./40 g at 4% alpha acids) (60 min.)
3.36 AAU Hallertau hops (0.84 oz./24 g at 4% alpha acids) (0 min.)
White Labs WLP565 (Saison Ale) or Wyeast 3724 (Belgian Saison) yeast
1 cup corn sugar (if priming)

Step by Step
Mill or coarsely crack the specialty malt and place loosely in a grain bag. Avoid packing the grains too tightly in the bag, using more bags if needed. Steep the bag in about 3⁄4 gallon (~3 liters) of water at roughly 155 °F (68 °C) for about 30 minutes. Lift the grain bag out of the steeping liquid and rinse with warm water. Allow the bags to drip into the kettle for a few minutes while you add the malt extract. Do not squeeze the bags. Add enough water to the steeping liquor and malt extract to make a pre-boil volume of 5.9 gallons (22.3 liters) and a gravity of 1.051 (12.6 °P). Stir thoroughly to help dissolve the extract and bring to a boil.

Once the wort is boiling, add the bittering hops. The total wort boil time is 60 minutes after adding the bittering hops. Add the sugar and Irish moss or other kettle finings with 15 minutes left in the boil. Add the last hop addition just before turning off the burner. Chill the wort rapidly to 68 °F (20 °C), let the break material settle, rack to the fermenter, pitch the yeast and aerate thoroughly.

Follow the remaining fermentation and packaging instructions for the all-grain version.