Can I add something to secondary fermentation? Prairie wheat ale wort kit.

[srmcnaughton]

Hi,
I used a Brew House Prairie Wheat Ale kit and it is currently in the Primary Fermenter.
Is it possible to split it into two at Sencondary (two 5 gallon Carboys), and add a citrus or something else to one?
If possible any suggestions?
Thanks
First brew btw

 

[theveganbrewer]

Of course, a great idea. Allows you to learn what changes do to a base beer.

 

[bleme]

On my first wheat beer, I bottled half from primary and racked half into secondary with the juice from 3 pounds of blueberries. Both versions were good.

 

[bleme]

P.S. If you move to a secondary, it should either have very little head space or you should be adding a sugar (like a fruit juice) to make some more CO2, protecting the beer from oxidation.

 

[srmcnaughton]

ok...
so your saying that 2.5 gallons of beer wont do so great in a 5 gallon carboy...
also how much juice could be added at secondary to 2.5gallons?
is store bought blueberry juice ok?

 

[bleme]

The general guideline is 1 pound of fruit per gallon of beer. You have to adjust that depending on the fruit and personal taste though.

If you are using store bought juice, you need to minimize preservatives. Guesstimating off the top of my head, I'd say 1qt of most should give you a mild fruitiness. If you are after citrus, I'd probably go with the zest from 3 oranges and 1/4 cup of sugar boiled in enough water to dissolve it. I haven't tried that one though so maybe someone who has actually tried it can share their experience.

Also, Wal-Mart carries a 2.5 gallon container that works pretty well.

 

[srmcnaughton]

Thank you for your input!!!