Big Belgian Help

[Belgian Inspired]

Brewing a big Quad next weekend and I am looking for all the help and experienced tips I can get. This is my just my 5th batch. It's extract with some specialty grains steped. Can You Help a noob. I have my pitch rate figured out thanks to Jamil, But anything else will help. Using White Labs Trappist Ale Yeast WL500. What temp should I pitch at? What temp should I ferment at? When what and how do I do my sugar additions durring fermemtation? Any tips will help....I have poured through the forums but I want to make sure I get a sucessful batch to share at christmas.

[brewinhard]

With a strong ABV% belgian you definitely want to keep the temperature under control to avoid fusel alcohol production which can taste like nail polish and boozy alcohols in the finished product (yuck!). I would pitch around 65 degrees if possible and be sure to aerate your chilled wort well. Try to keep the temps around 68 degrees for the first 2-3 days to control ester production (ie fruitiness) and fusel alcohols. After this time period, you could slowly let the fermentation ramp up a few degrees into the low 70's to be sure the beer will attenuate enough and finish out where it should be.

what does your recipe look like? If you are using cane sugar (or any simple sugars for that matter) I would not add them all to the boil at once. I would add a little in the boil (maybe up to a pound), then around day 5 or 6 when the fermentation just starts to slow down, boil up another pound or so in a small amount of water, cool, then carefully add to the fermenter. If you have more sugar still to add, then 2 days later repeat the process with the remaining sugar. This process should help your quad to attenuate well and give your yeast a good shot at drying this beer out. Good luck and keep brewing!

-Brewinhard

[Petedadink]

A big thing on getting a big Belgian to finish is not only temp but keeping it steady. Slowly raising over 7 to 10 days is best. Once it gets to 70 75 deg you dont want it to dip back to 68 . The yeast will stall and drop out of solution.
Of course just like any big beer, they do well with age.

[Belgian Inspired]

Thanks gentleman....brewing tomorrow!

[crashlann]

Good luck, maybe when you post your results also post the recipe? I just brewed a Tripel, but would love to do more Belgian beers.

[Belgian Inspired]

Will do. I started too big but thanks to the BN I think I can get my recipies dialed in quick. My issue has been under attenuation due to under pitching. Not to mention silly shit like my temp probe reading ambient air and not my frementor. My beers have been good but not great. I will post recipes once I sober up and get back on here.

Tomorow is brewday and I can't wait. So the Quad tomorrow and then I am going to try and order a few kits from AHB and see if I can brew on a recipe I didn;t make up

[Belgian Inspired]

here she be...

PREP

Yeast starter 12-18hrs in advance
3 tubes WL500
1,810 ML water to 6.46oz DME, 1 capsule Servomyces & 1/4tsp nutrient
Place ingredients in sterile metal bowl with whisk, heat water to boil and pour over
DME, mix until incorporated and pour into pot for 10 minute boil
Ice bath to 64º and add yeast, cover flask with foil and stir until incorporated
Stir periodically to aerate
Store in fridge @ 64º until pitching to wort.

BREWING
Add 1tbsp PH stabilizer to 3 gallons water and heat to 158º
Add grain bag and steep at 158º for 60 minutes
GRAINS
4 ozs. Caramel 10L (Briess) 1/2 lb.
4 ozs. Biscuit Malt (Castle) 1/2 lb.
4 ozs. Aromatic (Castle) 1/2 lb.
4 ozs. Carapils (Briess) 1/2 lb.
4 ozs. Flaked Wheat 1/2 lb.
1 lb. Pale Ale (Castle) 5 lb.
8 ozs. Pils (Castle) 1 lb.
4 ozs.
Chocolate Malt (Briess)




Sparge grain bag with 165º water, remove and bring to boil
At boil remove from heat and mix in:
Briess Gold Unhopped Liquid Malt Extract 3.3 lb.
Bring to boil.

90 minute: Styrian Goldings Pellet Hops 1.25 oz.
Hallertau Pellet Hops .25 oz.
60 minute Styrian Goldings Pellet Hops 25 oz.
15 minutes: Challenger Pellet Hops .5 oz Hallertau Pellet Hops .25 oz
Styrian Goldings Pellet Hops .25 oz.
10 Min: 1 Whifloc Tab
1 capsule Servomyces
1/4 tsp Wyeast nutrient
5 Minutes: Maltodextrine- 8 oz.

Flameout: Briess Gold Unhopped Liquid Malt Extract 6 lb.

Primary: Start AT 64º, increase 1º per day unitl 70º after high kraussen
(Dissolve all additions in minimum water, boil, ice to match temp & pitch)

Day 2 - dissolve 1/4 tsp yeast nutrient & dissolve Dark Belgian Candi Syrup - 1 lb.
Day 3 - dissolve Dark Belgian Candi Syrup - 1 lb.
Day 4 - dissolve powder 1 cap Servomyces & dissolve Dark Belgian Candi Syrup - 1 lb.

[AaronWesternNY]

Congrats on taking on a Belgian such as this so early on in your brewing tenure. If I were you I would add the extract to boil at least 10-15 min just to make sure there is nothing strange in your LME or DME. You don't know who made it or how they made it. Just boil it for a while! Also don't dump it straight into the pot on the fire. Turn off the burner dump it in and stir- this will prevent scorching, then turn the flame on again.

Late candi sugar 1 lb additions- wait for the previous one to work itself out- till the bubbles slow after a couple days. You don't want the yeast to be overwhelmed with too much sugar. Your 3 different 1lb additions 1 day apart will probably cause the yeast to quit working. Those yeast have done so much work eating up the wort they need small sugar additions. I would put in 12 additions of .25 lbs of sugar 2-3 days apart- whenever fermentation slows. Don't forget to boil it first. Don't forget to account for all these water-candi sugar additions in your fermenter. You don't want to rush this big beer.

You may also want to throw in a champaign yeast at the end to eat up any leftover sugars the beer yeast don't digest. FOR SURE use champaign yeast at bottling! You probably won't even be able to taste the champaign yeast. Let the yeast eat the sugar- you don't want bottle bombs from over carbonation.

Another thing to consider for your next batch- find someone who knows about all grain, ask them if they will teach you. After all the steeping in this batch you are more than half way there.