Braggot Yeast Question

A different approach is to make a mead and make a beer and blend them to your liking. It gives you some flexibility that the single batch approach lacks.

 

I've brewed dozens and won a bunch of medals with them, but take my advice with a grain of salt, as I've never had the beer that you've mentioned.

This is not going to get you into braggot territory. You need more honey. You don't have to go 50/50, but at least get to 60/40.

Personally, for your first attempt at the style, I'd recommend using all base malt and picking a more characterful honey. If you can get your hands on some dark local wildflower honey or knotweed honey, that might be a good idea.

Lots of people use wine strains or neutral ale strains, like Chico, but if you're looking for some Belgian influence, just use WLP099 - Super High Gravity.

I wouldn't add the honey at flame out, as that's a LOT of sugar for your yeast to get used to. To avoid osmotic shock, add the honey directly to your fermenter at high krausen. That way your yeast will be able to handle the big sugar addition better.

 

I'm fermenting a braggot right now with WLP 545 with good results so far. SG 1.14 and has 10lbs of honey. Should finish nearly dry.

 

Care to post a recipe and technique?

 

You can if you want, but "normal" mash temperatures (148F-160F) aren't going to give you that much of a difference in fermentability.

 

While not scientific, brulosophy had a great write up on mash temps.

 

Not to hijack, but there's not too much info about brewing braggots out there.

This was a clean out the brew room brew. I had all the ingredients sitting around already. The honey was something I bought on sale and always wanted to use in a braggot, even though this is my first time ever making one. I used 545(one of the few White Labs yeasts I use) because it always finishes low. I wanted to use equal amounts of grains and honey, before I though enough about it to realise I should have just used gravity points! It's doing great, and smelling great, and the sample I tastes was great. It'll be done and ready for the Superbowl, hopefully.

2 days before brewday- make a big starter

7lbs pale 2-row
1lb wheat DME
2lbs D-240
10lbs raw, unfiltered wildflower honey
0.5oz old Centennial hops

Brewday- mash grains in @155F for 1 hour, total volume going to kettle was 5.5g.

Add DME and hops to kettle, boil for 10 mins. Just long enough to get the hot break to go away and to sanitize the wort. Cool to 80F(about as cold as I can chill in my location) and pitch starter. Place into guest bathroom bathtub, 68F ambient.

2 days later add 2lbs D-240
2 days later add 4lbs honey
2 days later add 4lbs honey
2 days later gravity sample was 1.01, added last 2lbs honey.

So far, so good.

 

No there certainly isn't. Thanks for posting!

 

I'm not sure. I've never had a commercial braggot. I have had a lot of mead though. I for sure like the dry ones a lot more. The sweet ones can be cloying. If there was a braggot out there that finished around 1.02, I'd probably not like it. I can't stand the big barleywines and stouts that finish high. Di-uh-beetus!

 

There aren't a lot out there. Especially in the true sense of the word, as some beers that are labeled "braggot" only get a small percentage of their fermentables from honey.

1.020 isn't that high at all, IMO.

 

@epk 1.144 actually.

 

Just checked it, 1.008. Going to give it another week and then hopefully get it in bottles by the New Year.