Flavor Additives

[Prodigital101]

I have a neighbor who wants to start brewing, however for his first brew he wants a "berry wheat" like what he had from Pyramid years ago... I now have a few batches under my belt and have been happy with my work so I would like to get him started and let him use my "bathroom brewry" for this experiment.

What is the best way to introduce the berry flavoring? Since I am "kit brewing" I was thinking a Ironmaster Wheat and a flavor extract like rasberry. When is the berry additive brought into the mix? Primary, Secondary???......

thanks in advance!!!

[wortchillergoal]

The last time I did a raspberry ale that many people liked I did it this way. I mulled the berries a little and added some water to the pot. I brought to a boil and then simmered for 10 minutes. I put that mess into my fermenter and dumped the wort on top of it when it was done with it's boil.

Another time I used an extract and added it at bottling. I don't think it was as good as the above method.

[Prodigital101]

I was considdering using the flavor extract to keep the fermentation easy, but I guess if it went in the primary, the fermentable sugars would be used up by the yeast...correct?

I may look into fresh or frozen berries then...thanks for the advice!

[danno]

if you use fresh berries, you may want to freeze them a little while first. the freezing process breaks down the cell walls and you'll get more flavor out of them... (then I'd simmer them at 170ºf for a little while to kill any nasties. boiling can cause haze from the pectins...)

another option is a can of Oregon Fruit Puree. my grocery stores carry the smaller cans, and most homebrew stores carry the 3lb size...

IMO, just stay away from the 2oz extract bottles, they don't taste that great...

[ray m]

Originally posted by danno:
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IMO, just stay away from the 2oz extract bottles, they don't taste that great...
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And they give you heartburn like you wouldn't believe (at least it does me)!!!!!

[eberei]

I have used both "real" cranberries and the extract. I perfer the "real" version; I believe it give a deeper flavor. I freeze them first then grate them up (keep as much or your skin out of it as possible), put them into a grain bag and add them to the boil at the last ten minutes. Don't leave them in too long because of the acidity flavor that developes not to mention the cloudiness. Pull them out when you cool down.