Brewing Westmalle Tripel - Recipe Help

Here is what I did for my attempt. I did a 10 gallon split batch with different pitching rates for WY3787.

Pilsner malt and cane sugar to an OG 1.080. Cane sugar was 18.5% of fermentables so for me it was 25# malt 3.5# sugar. My water was typical malty water with high chloride around 100 ppm and calcium over 50 ppm.

Mash 90 minutes at 150F, sparge and 90 minute boil, yeast nutrient.

My pitching rates were 450K cells/ml/plato and 750 cells/ml/plato. I think the 450 came closer to Westmalle. The next morning I gave it more O2, which meant dumping it from my bucket to my kettle and back to the bucket. The 450K rate was a little slower to start but both finished out at 1.010.

Hold at 65F 48 hours (in a swamp cooler) then allowed to rise. 72F by 72 hours and 80F by 96 hours where it stayed for the duration of 10 days. Lagered them a few weeks, added fresh yeast at bottling.

I only carbed to 3.0 volumes because I got cold feet about sending them out for the exchange. I should have carbed 3.5 or so. It also did not finish as low as I wanted, it was not as dry. I would up the sugar to 22% of fermentables next time, otherwise carbonation and FG aside it was very close.

Good luck!

edit: oh yea, hops. Sazz 3.5%aa 4.5oz at 60 min for 21.4IBU and 6 oz at 15 min for 14 IBU for a total of 36? IBU.

 

OP - NiceFly has a good run down on ingredients, it is Pils malt and sugar (20%). If you can find a copy of Brew Like a Monk, the mash temps and fermentation procedures are talked over there.

 

I would avoid crystal malt in a Tripel, they are not part of the style. All the sweetness you get in that beer is from the alcohol and the esters. Also, don't waste money on clear candi sugar, it gives no different a flavor profile than table sugar... which you can buy at the grocery store for less than 1/4 the price.

 

True caramelization doesn't really happen in the boil. Maillard reactions do, producing melanoidins (brown compounds that add color and flavor). It's interesting that you're concerned about limiting caramelization, yet you used 1.25 pounds of C-10. As jbakajust1 said, crystal malts are not really appropriate to the style. I hope it works out the way you want.

 

Maillard reactions do not take place in the boil. Temp, pH, and water content of a boiling wort are no where near what is needed for Maillard reactions.

 

There are lots of internet references to the contrary (i.e. in support of Maillard reactions in the boil, and relatively few claiming the opposite), but they are a dime a dozen. But here's one credentialed reference not written by someone on a forum or in a magazine...
http://books.google.com/books?id=mnh6aoI8iF8C&pg=PA457&lpg=PA457&dq=maillard reaction wort boil&source=bl&ots=EVSms2Bjrm&sig=NXjIqbPFQi3e1GXlKd4RQRyzrkU&hl=en&sa=X&ei=oQV9UojJEpK14AOsxICwBg&ved=0CGgQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=maillard reaction wort boil&f=false
See page 457 (near the bottom) and following.

 

just a nit pick....

I agree with you that I think maillard rx in boil are minimial, but at boil temps maillard rx are possible, pH is probably the big reason why they dont really happen, a slighly acidic pH will inhibit maillard rx, its at basic pH that the rx are really going gangbusters

 

I doubt that it was really stalled, unless the remaining sugars were all simple sugars (which is unlikely). Champagne yeast can't eat Maltotriose. And it's bad at eating Maltose. IOW, I suspect your gravity would have been at 1.013 after another 6 days either way.

Then give it some more time for the yeast to clean up their byproducts, then bottle or keg.

 

3787 is a strange strain. It seems like it goes like hell in the beginning but takes its sweet time toward the end of fermentation.

I agree with Vikeman the Champagne yeast did nothing for your cause.

If you can I would cold condition the beer for a few weeks then bottle.

 

As close to freezing as you can. I usually put it in my kegorator, around 42F.