Belgian IPA

[Brew Cat]

I have taken 3 samples, even with some quality time in the freezer for a few minutes, I’ve still got yeast in suspension, but I did get a little spice on the palate . I’m fixin’ to check on things in a few minutes, already dropped the hammer and moving into cold crash.
- I’m thinking - already at 1.009 and that’s a low as I really want it, put the yeast to sleep. T/F to a different / clean fermenter for dry hop at ‘cooler than room temp, but not quite lager temps.
That’s what I’m thinking anyway.

I’ve not been to the zoom yet, but I did grab the invite, and if free in the PM I’ll try and jump on.

Cascade and Mosaic... hmm. Last night I was looking hard at galaxy, but I’ll take a fresh look at inventory, got to cram in some yard work.

well you only brewed this Wednesday and in 3 days your crashing? If it were me I would add some dry hops now to the fermenter and give it a couple days. As far as tasting a sample out of the fermenter at 3 days and judging is bold IMO

 

[Dave Y]

Well, my thought was it’s at FG and I don’t want it going any drier. it’s already 1.008 now so I don’t want it fermenting down any more than where it’s at. The only reason it took 2 full days to finish is I lowered the temp after about a day and a few hours from 88 down to 77F. If I’d let it go at 88, I wouldn’t be surprised if it finished overnight at about 1.005 or thereabouts.
If I were to just hop it now, it would keep fermenting away. I’m not sure how low the French saison strain will ferment down to.

This is a pretty fast fermenting yeast, it was giving Voss Kveik a run for its money. I’ve had Voss finish in 32 hours pitch to finished.

 

[Brew Cat]

well finished and done are not the same. You control FG with yeast selection grist and mash temp. You package earl I guess if you keep it cold and finish it fast

 

[Zambi]

Yep. Admittedly I have been drinking saison the whole evening...
They finish low low low...
Around 1.000
Since you are not bottling you should be ok.
But still..
Saisons are dry. But don't taste dry. Not like a brut champagne
And they are very moorish

 

[Brew Cat]

Yep. Admittedly I have been drinking saison the whole evening...
They finish low low low...
Around 1.000
Since you are not bottling you should be ok.
But still..
Saisons are dry. But don't taste dry. Not like a brut champagne
And they are very moorish

My point exactly its already at .008 so a couple.00pts is fly poop. Yeast is doing other things after it eats the simple sugars like off flavors.
By the way it will ferment at keg temperature all be it slowly.
Also if you wanted less dry why did you put honey in the recipe

 

[Dave Y]

It’s where I want it now, so I’ll ride it out hopefully where it’s at now, I wanted right around 1.009-1.010 where I usually shoot for about 1.011-1.013 give or take.

I’m thinking this for the dry hops

https://beermaverick.com/hop/cascade/
https://beermaverick.com/hop/boadicea/
https://beermaverick.com/hop/zappa/

I’ve used all 3. Cascade, I have the most use from and I think this will be a good match. Boadicea I’ve usually used in darker expressions but I’ve used in dry hopping previously, I get some herbal notes from it. I think these 2 will play well with the yeast. Zappa I’ve used previously in NEIPAs - sparingly. Neomexicanus hops can have some not subtle characteristics but since the beer has good malt and bitterness it should work with other hops along side.
I’m thinking 3 oz / 2 oz / 1 oz respectively.

 

[Brew Cat]

It’s where I want it now, so I’ll ride it out hopefully where it’s at now, I wanted right around 1.009-1.010 where I usually shoot for about 1.011-1.013 give or take.

I’m thinking this for the dry hops

https://beermaverick.com/hop/cascade/
https://beermaverick.com/hop/boadicea/
https://beermaverick.com/hop/zappa/

I’ve used all 3. Cascade, I have the most use from and I think this will be a good match. Boadicea I’ve usually used in darker expressions but I’ve used in dry hopping previously, I get some herbal notes from it. I think these 2 will play well with the yeast. Zappa I’ve used previously in NEIPAs - sparingly. Neomexicanus hops can have some not subtle characteristics but since the beer has good malt and bitterness it should work with other hops along side.
I’m thinking 3 oz / 2 oz / 1 oz respectivelt

That's not how it works, a beer that is at terminal gravity of .010 is not the same as a beer you try to stop at .010. You are stopping or trying to stop a beer that still has fermentables present. They will taste different. You have to design a beer that finishes where you want it. Your pretty close to terminal so as @Zambi said it won't taste any dryer letting it finish. I'm more concerned with the off flavors like diacetyl

Read this
https://brewingscience.com/diacetyl-understanding-its-role-as-an-off-flavor-in-beer/

 

[Zambi]

Not on topic, but not off topic either
I brewed my saison
2 weeks in fermenter
Now 2 weeks in keg.
Up till now the taste was leaning towards a blond.
Today a marked difference and it is getting drier..
I've noticed that with earlier saisons as well. After about 3-4 weeks in the keg, they have achieved their "final" taste

 

[Craigerrr]

Not on topic, but not off topic either
I brewed my saison
2 weeks in fermenter
Now 2 weeks in keg.
Up till now the taste was leaning towards a blond.
Today a marked difference and it is getting drier..
I've noticed that with earlier saisons as well. After about 3-4 weeks in the keg, they have achieved their "final" taste

I haven't brewed a saison, closest to that was the Belgian of yours that I brewed (which I loved). It sounds like saison is a style that would benefit with some bulk aging in a keg? Maybe in a cold cellar for a month otlr two?

 

[Zambi]

I haven't brewed a saison, closest to that was the Belgian of yours that I brewed (which I loved). It sounds like saison is a style that would benefit with some bulk aging in a keg? Maybe in a cold cellar for a month otlr two?

I dont know if this is the same for everyone...
My solution would be to brew more often.
Unfortunately I like the beer very much in the first 2 weeks as well

 

[Dave Y]

I was kegging my Vienna lager and thought, I wonder how the BIIPA turned out?

The beer finished at 1.007. Then kept going, cold temperatures be damned, down to 1.005. So the French Saison yeast is not to be trifled with. My target was 6.5%ABV, I hit 6.7.

Here are my thoughts
There’s a bit of a grainy character in the taste. Not grainy as in a coarse or harsh taste, but somewhat malty(?) The nose is super subtle, I get just a hint of orange and when I say hint, I mean barely detectable.
The bitterness is spot on for this beer, exactly where I wanted it. I need to carbonate more fully to be sure, but I do like it.

The yeast aroma I think has been overwhelmed. I thought I was conservative with the dry hops, maybe not enough?
Flavor wise, I get the rye, there’s a bit of a grainy, spicy like finish. Not peppery or ‘hot’ mind you, just something in the background that makes you think ‘what is that?'

I passed it by my wife, who is... well... a Beer-o-phobe. :-/ That is to say, she does not drink beer, does not like beer but she is exceptional at finding beer pubs and breweries around the world. Anyway, the first thing she said was ‘grassy’, so I tried to press her for a description and she mentioned:

“it tastes kind of like those beer grain pretzels you made”.

I am thinking that is one of 2 things. 1) likely the rye shining through. 2) The Boadicea hops, which do have a bit of a grassy contribution - but these were dry hops... Mind you, I like it, but then I like brewing with rye. I may need to pass it by some neighbors for the neighbor beer test.

Mouthfeel is great, as I kind of expected. Once fully carb’d, the head retention on this will be awesome. The balance is good too. The bitterness isn’t over the top; ok hop heads are going to scoff at this one, at only 55 IBU, but it’s not hard to drink at all, even at 6.7%

The last thing I can offer is it has that ‘warm’ feeling like drinking a double IPA, but it’s nowhere near as heavy on the palette.
So all in all, I don’t think this will be on tap too long ;-)

The only ‘miss’ here for me is I wanted more of the funk from the yeast. You know... 1970’s funk, which was BAD! ( aka, good in today’s vernacular ).

 

[Brew Cat]

trying to control your yeast is a fools game. When I first started brewing everything I made would end up dry. What I've learned since is mash high and yeast selection. 152 deg would be fine for an IPA but with French Saison yeast those fermentables are right in their wheelhouse, then adding honey. Not surprised it ended dry. Funky is not a descriptor I would suspect in an IPA or a Saison. Sounds like you made a beer that you enjoy so it's all good

 

[Dave Y]

I’ll definitely use this yeast again. I -may- mash a little higher, but I was thinking it would hit 1.008-1.010, and just like a lot of my lager yeasts done with starter cultures, the temp range on the yeast doc is merely a suggestion. Flavor wise, I hate to mess with it.

This was a fun project, and I’ll have a week or 2 to consider the next one.

 

[Dave Y]

Finally on tap!

Now that it’s cleared, the taste is so much improved. I right like it. Passed it by the non-beer-drinking wife, and
1) she did not make beer face
2) immediately picked out the honey.

I’m eager to pass by some beer enthusiasts to see what they think.

The mash bill & hops say what needs saying; your WCIPA enthusiast isn’t going to gravitate to this, but it’s an interesting take. I get a much more orange and slightly sweet aroma, which I pick up in the palate intro. There’s a hint of black peppery spice, and the rye is very detectable on the finish. It’s an earthy, malty character, slight spice on the finish.

At 6.8% ABV, I’m really close to my 6.5% target. There’s not the ‘warmth’ of an 8%+ DIPA, so still drinkable in pints and with the restrained hopping, I’m hoping to make some converts among the neighbors. Although this beer finished under 1.010, it doesn’t drink like it’s thin.

Sláinte!

 

[Minbari]

Finally on tap!
View attachment 32048

Now that it’s cleared, the taste is so much improved. I right like it. Passed it by the non-beer-drinking wife, and
1) she did not make beer face
2) immediately picked out the honey.

I’m eager to pass by some beer enthusiasts to see what they think.

The mash bill & hops say what needs saying; your WCIPA enthusiast isn’t going to gravitate to this, but it’s an interesting take. I get a much more orange and slightly sweet aroma, which I pick up in the palate intro. There’s a hint of black peppery spice, and the rye is very detectable on the finish. It’s an earthy, malty character, slight spice on the finish.

At 6.8% ABV, I’m really close to my 6.5% target. There’s not the ‘warmth’ of an 8%+ DIPA, so still drinkable in pints and with the restrained hopping, I’m hoping to make some converts among the neighbors. Although this beer finished under 1.010, it doesn’t drink like it’s thin.

View attachment 32050
Sláinte!

It's looks good. I love tasting uncommon beer styles

 

[Craigerrr]

Finally on tap!
View attachment 32048

Now that it’s cleared, the taste is so much improved. I right like it. Passed it by the non-beer-drinking wife, and
1) she did not make beer face
2) immediately picked out the honey.

I’m eager to pass by some beer enthusiasts to see what they think.

The mash bill & hops say what needs saying; your WCIPA enthusiast isn’t going to gravitate to this, but it’s an interesting take. I get a much more orange and slightly sweet aroma, which I pick up in the palate intro. There’s a hint of black peppery spice, and the rye is very detectable on the finish. It’s an earthy, malty character, slight spice on the finish.

At 6.8% ABV, I’m really close to my 6.5% target. There’s not the ‘warmth’ of an 8%+ DIPA, so still drinkable in pints and with the restrained hopping, I’m hoping to make some converts among the neighbors. Although this beer finished under 1.010, it doesn’t drink like it’s thin.

View attachment 32050
Sláinte!

I have wanted to brew a beer like this for a while now, think I need to stop thinking and start brewing!