This is my second time designing a recipe from scratch, so I am looking for any advice or suggestions!
The goal is to make a saison with a very pronounced lemon flavor and aroma. I don’t want it to taste like pure lemonade, so I am trying to get notes of lemon from the hops and yeast vs. adding lemon juice or zest. I still want a solid saison, but more lemony than most traditional examples. Spice notes are welcome.
I am making this to resemble a traditional Baltimore treat, it’s basically a lemon cut in half, with a peppermint stick inserted into the center. You suck on the peppermint, and slowly the lemon juice soaks in and you get a small taste over time. Instead of brewing with peppermint, in case some drinkers don’t like it, I will serve it with an optional peppermint stick in the glass, to get a little burst of the flavor as it soaks.
I need to find a good balance that is drinkable, but noticeably lemon.
Lemon Stick Saison
All Grain Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (gal): 5
Total Grain (lbs): 12.20
Total Hops (oz): 3.75
Original Gravity (OG): 1.058
Final Gravity (FG): 1.009
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 6.5%
Colour (SRM): 4.5
Bitterness (IBU): 30.6
Boil Time (Minutes): 60
Grain Bill
----------------
9 lbs Pilsner
1 lb Wheat Malt
1 lb Vienna Malt
7.2 oz Acid Malt*
4 oz Victory Malt
8 oz Belgian Candi Sugar @ Lauter
Hop Bill
----------------
1 oz Styrian Bobek (First Wort)
1 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh @ 60 Min (Boil)
.75 oz Kent Goldings @ 5 Min (Boil)
1 oz Sorachi Ace @ 0 Min (Flameout)
Misc Bill
-Lemon peel (Secondary, only if lemon character is not pronounced from hops and yeast)
-Typical Saison Spices? I don't want it to be too spicy, since I am going for more of a lemon taste, but are there any suggestions of spices that won't take away from the lemon, but add some complexity?
Single step Infusion at 152 for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 78 with Wyeast 3711 French Saison
————————
*I’ve never worked with Acid Malt, but I read an article from FunkWerks that they use small amounts to lower the pH just enough for a slight tartness. I like their saisons and the level of tart, so this sounded solid to me. Thoughts?
Thanks in advance for any advise or changes!
The goal is to make a saison with a very pronounced lemon flavor and aroma. I don’t want it to taste like pure lemonade, so I am trying to get notes of lemon from the hops and yeast vs. adding lemon juice or zest. I still want a solid saison, but more lemony than most traditional examples. Spice notes are welcome.
I am making this to resemble a traditional Baltimore treat, it’s basically a lemon cut in half, with a peppermint stick inserted into the center. You suck on the peppermint, and slowly the lemon juice soaks in and you get a small taste over time. Instead of brewing with peppermint, in case some drinkers don’t like it, I will serve it with an optional peppermint stick in the glass, to get a little burst of the flavor as it soaks.
I need to find a good balance that is drinkable, but noticeably lemon.
Lemon Stick Saison
All Grain Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (gal): 5
Total Grain (lbs): 12.20
Total Hops (oz): 3.75
Original Gravity (OG): 1.058
Final Gravity (FG): 1.009
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 6.5%
Colour (SRM): 4.5
Bitterness (IBU): 30.6
Boil Time (Minutes): 60
Grain Bill
----------------
9 lbs Pilsner
1 lb Wheat Malt
1 lb Vienna Malt
7.2 oz Acid Malt*
4 oz Victory Malt
8 oz Belgian Candi Sugar @ Lauter
Hop Bill
----------------
1 oz Styrian Bobek (First Wort)
1 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh @ 60 Min (Boil)
.75 oz Kent Goldings @ 5 Min (Boil)
1 oz Sorachi Ace @ 0 Min (Flameout)
Misc Bill
-Lemon peel (Secondary, only if lemon character is not pronounced from hops and yeast)
-Typical Saison Spices? I don't want it to be too spicy, since I am going for more of a lemon taste, but are there any suggestions of spices that won't take away from the lemon, but add some complexity?
Single step Infusion at 152 for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 78 with Wyeast 3711 French Saison
————————
*I’ve never worked with Acid Malt, but I read an article from FunkWerks that they use small amounts to lower the pH just enough for a slight tartness. I like their saisons and the level of tart, so this sounded solid to me. Thoughts?
Thanks in advance for any advise or changes!
Last edited: