How to add fresh Apricots to Secondary?

[zman]

I have been doing some research and have not found too much info on adding fresh Apricots to the Secondary. I do not have a food processor so I am looking into alternatives.
I thought about just spraying them with Star San Solution, FIT fruit and vegetable wash, blanching them for 30 seconds or so, or just washing them off cutting them up and tossing them in. Is it also necessary to peel them before adding? I am adding them to a Wheat and doing #1 per gallon.

Thanks,

Steve

 

[TipsyDragon]

pealing the fruit is not a bad idea. i would chop/crush them as much as posable then stick them in the freezer for a day or so. then take them out and let them thaw. this will break apart the cells giving the yeast easier access to the juices and sugars in the fruit. if your worried about infection i would pasteurize the fruit. all you should need to do is the blanching. you may want to think about adding pectic enzyme to prevent pectic haze.

 

[zman]

It is a wheat so I am not too concerned about haze. So you think Blanch them freeze them, thaw them out tomorrow and add them then?

 

[TipsyDragon]

i would do the blanching last. to presurve the flavor and aroma of the fruit i would add them to the secondary after primary fermentation dies down. keep in mind that when you add the fruit fermentation will kick up again because of the fructose in the fruit.

also i would get a second opinion form others on this site.

 

[broadbill]

why not use extract?

 

[frazier]

Charlie P. has a recipe in one of his books - called "The Horse You Rode In On" IIRC. He recommends blanching first, peeling (the blanching lets the skins just slip off), pitting and coarse chopping. Add to the secondary. If it develops a surface scum, don't worry and siphon from below when ready to bottle.

All according to Charlie. Never tried it myself. I've never gotten the flavors I want from fresh fruit, but YMMV.

 

[TipsyDragon]

why not use extract?

you can use extracts. but they don't provide the same flavor as the real thing and can taste artificial. also their strength can be hit or miss. some are stronger than others.

 

[jalgayer]

[1] I would stay away from extracts. They add an unnatural flavor. Its just not right and you deserve better. Get organic - others will have herbicides etc.

[2] If you are not worried about the pectin haze I would peel the apricots and lightly mash with a fork. Then steep in 180F water for 10 minutes or so. Then cool.

[3] Then, put into a high quality freezer bag and freeze to rupture the cell membranes. And when its time to add to secondary, defrost and add. You will have another fermentation.

Alternative would be to get apricots that are frozen or apricot puree with no preservatives added.

 

[broadbill]

you can use extracts. but they don't provide the same flavor as the real thing and can taste artificial. also their strength can be hit or miss. some are stronger than others.

The big advantage of extracts versus adding fruit directly is that you can first add the extract to a small sample of beer "to taste" and then calculate how much to add to the rest of the batch. Sure, some are stronger than others, you just add less. I'm guess the differences in flavor profiles will extract came from just adding too much of it. Just a thought.

 

[zman]

I just went with blanching #6 of apricots and tossed em in. Thanks for all the advice.

 

[Bhen]

I'm interested in how this turned out? How was strong was the apricot presence?

 

[theferalkid]

Yeah, I second that!! I have a biere de garde in my primary and I'm looking to add some apricots into the secondary. I'm thinking of following this advice! Zman, how did your beer turn out? I hope you kept notes!! Cheers!!

 

[slim2043]

Not sure how his turned out but I made an apricot blonde ale and added a can of puree to primary after 3 days. Came out nice and tart and refreshing. Need to use blow off because once you add the fruit, the yeast basically think its woodstock all over again.

I have rebrewed this beer Sunday. This time I made my own puree and again planning on adding it to the primary after 2 days of fermentation (today ). Used 2.5 lbs of apricots (12 apricots) and blanched them then removed the skins and pits and then finally cooked them down with sugar and honey for about 20 minutes until the pan held mostly liquid with some small chunks (considering they will have to fit through the funnel and carboy openings. I now have two mason jars of puree (about 20-24 oz) ready to go.

I may also add apricot to the secondary to bring out more sweetness and apricot flavor but we'll see when we get there. Will keep you posted

 

[PDX_T]

commercially, fruit is added to primary after 2-3 days, at full krausen, and it's better if you purchase aseptically packaged fruit or can it first. Blanching for 30 seconds isn't nearly long enough to sterilize. at least 15 minutes in a canning jar at boiling.

 

[slim2043]

Thanks for the advice. Do you think cooking the fruit down does anything to prevent infection?

 

[PDX_T]

I think that cooking it down is probably adequate to prevent infection.

 

[zman]

I remember it being more tart than I was hoping. It was a good beer but I wanted it to be more mellow. I am planning on making an apricot or peach lambic pretty soon

 

[zman]

commercially, fruit is added to primary after 2-3 days, at full krausen, and it's better if you purchase aseptically packaged fruit or can it first. Blanching for 30 seconds isn't nearly long enough to sterilize. at least 15 minutes in a canning jar at boiling.

I have foolowd the blanching /cooling peeling process and never got an infected fruit beer to date. YMMV