20250709 Belgian Saison 4% ish

Recipe start, and water prep 0700

I wanted a traditional farmhouse saison, so no water adjustments, no salts, no protofloc, and I'm going to leave overnight to cool with a muslin bag over the top in my lounge (indoors).

Aim is to mash as low as possible so it will be dry when fermented!

I have a wlp566 saison yeast but it doesn't provide enough saison character for my liking , so I grew the wlp566 with the dreggs of 8 cantillion bottles (from a tasting a few weeks before), sadly it turned gloopy (viscous) so I couldn't use this on the day,

Instead I had drunk 3 bottles of home brewed beer the night before, a plum lambic, a bretted beer, an imperial brown stout, so I added this to a jar of 2 year old wet wlp566 (fingers crossed this is going to work!)

VOLUMES
tot water = 33
MashIn vol = 4.63x2.75=12.7l, SpargeWater = 33-12.7 = 20.3
losses =33 -4.63x0.85 l (malt) +1 (mash tun) =4,9
post mash collection = 33-4.9=28, = preboil = 28
post boil =28 /1.1 = 25,3
fv vol =25.3-1l (hot break etc), FV vol = 24.2 - 0l for growing yst
racking FV vol =24.2-1 =23.2l

NO CaCl added , NO AMS, Strike temp 75 cels, grain temp 22.8

MASH IN
0823 somash 72.4 cels (12.7vol), ph 5.5-5.75 (20 mins into mash) ACTUAL 70 cels
0923 eomash, 62.7 c temp (lost 10 cels over the hour)

eorecirc 0925-0928, (not very clear!!! tastes v good, again caramel notes). collection start 0928, end 1023

first runnings 1.084, 20 cels, ph 5-5.5 and lrunnings 1.015, tastes ok
(heavy sugars drop to bottom), hwe = 305x3= 915, minus moisture 4% 878 , vol 7.5 so eff (sg 78x7.5l)/878 = ??%, ph 5.5

PREBOIL
BOIL (Ing from 0932), sg 1.038 , wort 28l collected (5l LOST), tastes OK nowt special

1025 BOIL start
1055 add 5g of Mosaic
1125 END of boil, sg 1.044, 25l, pH 4.5-5, ADDED 20 leaves of homegrown moroccan mint, 3 small garden cherries, half an orange that's been sitting in the fridge for a week.
Wort tastes great, a nice sweetness, a slight hint of mint (needs double)

COOL OVERNIGHT SO TRANSFER AROUND 80-90 CELS, PITCH YEAST WHEN 30 CELS ACHIEVED, COVER WITH A MUSLIN BAG
REST ie stir/ sit 1130 - 1145

transfer start 1145 end l200, 23l +2l with hot break

vol = 25-2l to grow yeast = 23l to FV
Finished clean up 1415

SAISON 9-7-2025, og 1.044, 23l, 80 cels, ph 4.5-5.5 , left the lid of covered with a nylon bag till 10-7-2025, 0500 when I wanted to pitch the following yeast
Saison yeast wlp566 4-2023
Bottle dreggs from a plum Lambic, Bretted ale (6.6%abv), Imperial Stout aged in Rye Whisky barrel, Wee Heavy
LEFT UNCOVERED FOR 24 HOURS TO HELP THE YEAST GROW AEROBICALLY
11-7-2026 0500 put lid on, sg 1.040, abv 0.5% , tastes weird, and smells weird too

12-07-2025 sg 1.028 at 0700, 26cels, 2.1% abv
13-07-2025 sg 1.018 at 1000, 26cels, 3.4% abv
14-07-2025, sg 1.010 at 0900, 26cels, 4.4% abv, put in fridge
15-07-2025 sg 1.010 at 1300, 26cels, 4.4% abv


racked 15l into bottle, 8l into 2gl barrel!

21-7-2025 Had an oxidised / black pepper flavour, no carbonation in the keg (forgot to tighten the out valve),

Bottle was lowly carbed,but more than the keg version which no carb

Put honey and 100g sugar (5g/l)

23-7-2025 still no carb in the keg, added top pressure, tasted like a honey beer! PANICKED added 4g/l of white ganulated sugar

Will chill on 24-7-25, best on 25-7 super catbed pouring only froth

Served on 26-7-25, tastes good, but overly sweet, keg finished same day as it was for a party as well as 10l of ginger beer, and 10l of a westvleteren clone 11.5% abv!

5-8-2025 sg 1.004, 5.2% abv, bottle tastes orangy, slightly sweet, musty aroma, maybe some sulphur. not funky , not dry, lowly carbed.

SUGGESTED FOR A SPICED SAISON WHICH I HAVE MADE A FEW TIMES
0.1g/l , coriander , =0.1x ?l=? g est, actual 0g at 100 cels
0.83 g/l ginger = 0.83 x ?l = ?g, actual 0g at 100 cels
5g/l Orange peel = 5x ?l= ?g est , actual 0g at 100cels, 0g at 70 cels (total ??g)


(NaCl salt for the malt ie 0.5 tsp /gallon (3.75 tsp)
1gallon = 4.45l, ***6g/tsp
0.5tsp /l = 0.674 x 14.5l= 9.8g )