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Christmas Beer - Cranberry IPA?

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  • 21-11-2011 1:54pm
    #1
    leggit
    Registered Users Posts: 936 ✭✭✭


    So I started a new brew (2nd one ever) on Saturday with the Christmas period in mind. It's a 23 litre Coopers IPA with 1kg brew enhancer 1 (didn't have 2 which is what I wanted) and 500g light spray malt. Started with a gravity of 1.045

    Now, I was going to dry hop in 2 weeks but I'm also playing around with the idea of adding cranberries (around 2kg) to the fermenter it being christmas and all! Buy frozen ones, pasteurise and throw in the bucket.

    What do you think? Good or Bad idea?
    What hops do you think would be best?


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    #2
    Martyn1989
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,561 ✭✭✭Martyn1989


    I'd love to try it, if I was doing it Id probably boil them for a few minutes in a muslin bag, lightly crush them, let them cool and chuck em in.

    2kg is alot, might over power your beer completely, maybe half it and give it a go?

    American hops, something like cascade or citra would probably work well with the cranberry


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    #3
    leggit
    Registered Users Posts: 936 ✭✭✭leggit


    Martyn1989 wrote: »
    I'd love to try it, if I was doing it Id probably boil them for a few minutes in a muslin bag, lightly crush them, let them cool and chuck em in.

    2kg is alot, might over power your beer completely, maybe half it and give it a go?

    American hops, something like cascade or citra would probably work well with the cranberry

    I thought cascade would be good alright.

    I was reading up on adding fruit to beer and saw that a lot of people were recommending at least 5lbs for a 23lt batch? In some cases they were saying 10lbs!

    Apparently you need a lot of fruit to get the flavour so that's why I was going with the 2kg.

    Plan was to freeze them (or buy already frozen ones) and then throw them in a 70C oven for 15-20 minutes and then throw them in? Boiling them is a no-no also according to others


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    #4
    Martyn1989
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,561 ✭✭✭Martyn1989


    leggit wrote: »
    I thought cascade would be good alright.

    I was reading up on adding fruit to beer and saw that a lot of people were recommending at least 5lbs for a 23lt batch? In some cases they were saying 10lbs!

    Apparently you need a lot of fruit to get the flavour so that's why I was going with the 2kg.

    Plan was to freeze them (or buy already frozen ones) and then throw them in a 70C oven for 15-20 minutes and then throw them in? Boiling them is a no-no also according to others

    I was only speculating, I wouldn't be sure, the oven would certainly dry them out alot and whether that would affect the flavour positively or negatively I don't know. Then again people use dry orange skins in beers all the time to good results.

    The only reason I would boil them to make sure they where clean, but I have heard that diminishes the flavour you'll get from the brew, but I doubt it would kill it completly maybe do a small boil with some of your cascade hops for 20mins (for flavour and aroma) and add the cranberrys just before the end? The end of the boil is when people seem to add things like raisins, honey etc

    The homebrew company sell these elderberries dried http://www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=100_140&products_id=678 maybe buying some dried cranberries is the way to go?


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