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Herbal beer (no it doesn't have a name)
My grain getter has been supplying with me lots of herbs. After reading The Homebrewers Garden (very good good!), I decided to give a shot at making an all herbal beer - NO HOPS!
Some of the herbs she gave me went bad before I could use them, so I switched to others. I didn't get exactly what I wanted, BUT I am very pleased with the results. It is very refreshing, herbal obviously, medicinal (as in healing, not Robitussen), super easy to drink.
10 gallons all grain, adapt as necessary.
18# 2 row, 2# wheat, 1# dextine
2 oz lavendar @ 15 minutes, 1 oz basil @ 15 minutes
OG = 1.046, a little low, but not bad. I mashed in at 147F because I wanted a lighter bodied beer. I used both Wyeast 1056 and 1318, but I am happier with the 1056. Both were 4.7% ABV.
When I first kegged, the basil was VERY potent... drinkable, but potent. After aging roughly 2 weeks, the basil really toned down, and several weeks later, it is smoothing out excellent. I think I could sell this!
As my first homebrew store owner once told me, good recipes don't have to be complex. No... they don't.
sounds interesting I don't know if i'd go without hops at all, but Lavender could be interesting. 1.046? That is kinda low for that much grain. what was your preboil volume, and gravity?
The OG seemed fine to me. I get about 5 points of gravity each pound, and I just doubled a 5 gallon recipe, so that should be 1.045, and 2# of wheat doesn't give me much gravity. In fairness, I did not check the gravity at the correct temperature, and the last time I did a double check, I was wrong, so in actuality, the gravity was probably a few points higher.
I would have to look at my brew logs to know the preboil volume. Probably around 14 gallons. I have never bothered checking my preboil gravity. Never cared to, but I think I will start.
As for not using hops, I did that for a reason. I wanted to know what the herbs tasted like without having ANY hops interfere. I might use hops in the future, but the herbs did a fine job on their own. This is what I was talking about by experimenting.
When using the basil, did you use basil leaves, fresh or dried, or ground spice? and how much? I might try this. I thought of trying it a while back but couldn't figure out how much to add. Did you like the basil or lavender better? what other spices were you thinking of using?
thanx
DC
Lavender were branches and I just broke them and chucked them into the boil. The basil was originally branches, but what she gave me went bad, so I had ground basil I bought from the grocery store a few months ago and I used that.
As for herbs in general, I would always dry them completely first. I don't grind them... I just chuck the whole branch in the boil. Doesn't matter to me.
Before I used any herbs or spices, I consulted The Homebrewers Garden, and narrowed the final section to about 4 herbs. One that I wanted I didn't have, the sage sounded good, but it had gone bad, and basil seemed a little intense, but the flavor sounded good. I just used it sparingly.
I don't have my book in front of me, but there were several herbs that sounded really good. I went by the amount suggested. Most were pretty much the same as hops. The basil was only 1 oz because it was already pretty strong, and I didn't want a basil beer.
Basil is considered more for bittering. The lavender smelled nicer. All said and done though, I am quite happy with the herbs I picked.
In the future it will depend on what herbs I have. My plan is to make another herbal beer sometime in before next spring.
Sorry that's the best I can answer your questions. This is my first herbal. I was skeptical after reading herbal beers are medicinal, but I was thinking cough syrup. Oh no no... they taste very healing to me. I will definitely not hesitate to make another.
If you don't have The Homebrewers Garden, I recommend it. I do have Sacred and Healing Beers, along with many others I just received, Wild Brews, Brew Like A Monk, but have not read any of them yet.
Any other questions about it, just ask.
It's nice to see someone making alternative beers. Two of the best things I have made (I base this on the demand of friends and family) were yarrow ale and ginger ale. Both were based on brown sugar (the yarrow had a bit of light DME) and the herb/spice. I recently made 5 gallons of ginger ale for about 12 bucks. Not a bad deal....
I don't suppose anyone has tried to use cilantro in a beer? it's my favorite herb and I was thinking of adding it to a pale ale.
Not cilantro. Too spicy and I don't like to even eat it. The strangest (and disgusting) beers I recall having were from McMenamins breweries here in town. Anyway, one was black pepper and the other was green bell pepper beer. I asked if they were even remotely popular. He said no.
I experiment because I get bored easily. Widmer Bros is the only brewery I know who always has something new on tap. If I go there once a month I find at least 2 new beers, sometimes up to 5.
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