I'm having a cinco de mayo party so I thought a quaffable fruit hef would be good. I'm thinking of taking b3's american wheat extract kit and racking onto some sort of fruit in the secondary. Probably black or blueberry.. I was wondering whether it would be better to get fresh fruit, muddle then put in a grain bag, or if fruit extract is the way to go?

For me it depends on the fruit that you are trying to use. Something like raspberries are very flavorful and easy to transfer, so real fruit is the way to go. As for blackberries or blueberries, blueberries flavor is hard to transfer and I would use a extract for that. Blackberries are middle of the road and I think you could get away with real fruit, but would have to use more of it to get a pronounced flavor out of them.

just my 2 cents on it.

Thanks, I think I'll see what looks best at the farmers market on brew day and decide from there. How long do you usually keep fruit in the secondary?


Kegerator: citra/Simcoe session pale
Primary: blind pig clone

The Oregon fruit purees are an excellent source of fruit. Keep in mind that adding fruit is going to add more fermentables, so in terms of timing, you want to go at least as long as there is active fermentation.

So rack to secondary on day 7-8, then sample at day 14-15 or so when it's fully fermented?

I just wait until I see the bubbles in the airlock start to slow to 1 bubble about every 3 seconds, then I add fruit.

I usually leave the beer on the fruit for about 3-4 weeks. This gives beer more time to absorb the fruit flavors and aromas. Start tasting around week 3 and go from there. Always use more fruit than you think you need to. I average about 2#/gallon of most fruits and always wish I had used more. If you go puree, you can use 2 cans or so (although that gets pricey after a bit). PM me if you are interested for some tips on adding fruit to the secondary.

Question of my own along these lines...

Do you up your hops to account for the extra sugar from the fruit in your planning, or do you just kind of play it by ear? Just curious, as when I add the fruit to my Beersmith calcs it pops the SG up quite a bit...