Beer Forum

So I want to brew a saison but with a west coast, american twist to it. Like subbing out the Noble hops and adding American hops to it. Can anyone that has played with idea give me some pointers? Right now I'm looking at a base recipe of Pilsner malt, a bit of munich and simple sugar to keep things linear. I am looking at hitting an OG of 1.065-1.070ish. Everything is still evolving so I am not committed to the base recipe much, as I want to cater the flavors around the hops. I am thinking at hitting it with just a bit bittering and a late hopping regiment and DH with about 2 doses of 1/2lb. of Citra leaf hops for 8 days. I think the fruity esters of a saison can go well with some American C hops with stone fruit characters.

My buddy just a brewed a lemon pepper saison with Citra. It turned out awesome!! They dinged him in competition, but its a really tasty beer. I'm thinking about doing an American Farmhouse next, mainly because I already have a sack of domestic 2-Row I need to work down. I'm thinking about some of the less aggressive american hops so the yeast character will still really come through.

Clark in the Dark wrote:My buddy just a brewed a lemon pepper saison with Citra. It turned out awesome!! They dinged him in competition, but its a really tasty beer. I'm thinking about doing an American Farmhouse next, mainly because I already have a sack of domestic 2-Row I need to work down. I'm thinking about some of the less aggressive american hops so the yeast character will still really come through.

Interesting with the lemon pepper. I will be adding Rye to the base bill, I love rye but I am not sure if it will be too much. I want to add maybe about 8-10%, is that over the top? I don't want it to be a text book saison. I'm also thinking of using Simcoe & Amarillo in the boil & WP with the DH being Citra.

I would avoid piney or citrus hops. They really clash with characterful yeasts. I would lean tropical. Maybe some Amarillo, a touch of Simcoe or Citra would work, as would a little Centennial. Keep your IBUs at a moderate level. Don't ruin it with IPA level bitterness.

dannypo wrote:I would avoid piney or citrus hops. They really clash with characterful yeasts. I would lean tropical. Maybe some Amarillo, a touch of Simcoe or Citra would work, as would a little Centennial. Keep your IBUs at a moderate level. Don't ruin it with IPA level bitterness.

That's exactly my intention, not to ruin it with IPA bitterness. I want a mild bitterness level and the hop flavors to blend and play with the saison character. That's why I am DH with Citra for that tropical nose and Amarillo to get that tangerine like nose. So maybe bitter with Centennial and use Simcoe & Amarillo in boil & WP. Has anyone thought of using a bit of Honey malt in the base?

That new Belma hop might be perfect for this

BDawg wrote:That new Belma hop might be perfect for this

Belma? Where can I get that hop? I'm looking around right now. I think I'm brewing Friday.

BDawg wrote:That new Belma hop might be perfect for this

Just found it. Sold out until Fall 2013