Because I go out there on a limb sometimes with y'all. I wanted to check in and see what you guys thought of this month's BA BYOB column with the "Bratty Brat" beer recipe.The idea was to make a wheaty beer that had the smell and some of the flavors of bratwurst. (All of this inspired by everyone's favorite Buffalo Wild Wings Ad) For those of you without the mag handy here's the recipe: For 5.5 Gallons at 1.057 O.G., 13.8 IBUs, 4.0 SRM, 5.9% ABV Malt/Grain/Sugar 6 lbs Pilsner Malt 5 lbs Wheat Malt 1 lbs Rye Malt Mash Protein Rest: 124F 20 minutes Saccharification Rest: 150F 60 minutes (Raise via decoction) Hops 0.25 oz Magnum 14% 60 minutes Spices (5 minutes in boil) 1/8 tsp Allspice, lightly crushed 1/8 tsp Black Pepper, lightly crushed 1/8 tsp Caraway Seed, lightly crushed 1/8 tsp Celery Seed, lightly crushed 1/8 tsp Clove, powdered 1/8 tsp Ginger, powdered 1/8 tsp Nutmeg, grated Boil Notes: Take the first quart of runnings and reduce to a cup, allow it to get scary dark to add a bit of smokey complexity to the beer. Yeast: Wyeast 1010 American Wheat (for a neutral profile) WLP380 Hefeweizen IV (for a mild German Hefe profile) WLP410 Belgian Wit II (for a spicier finish)
I've had Beer Bratwurst, but never Bratwurst Beer. My imperfect solution: Belch the brat and chase with Beer. Good luck.
It is with utmost respect that I will have to say 'yuck.' I think I must have a psychological aversion to beers that are reminiscent of meat. Interesting recipe though. How did it taste?
Why not just fire up the grill, grill a nice brat, chop it up and cover with some vodka and make a brat extract to add to a beer?
Haven't done it yet. (Put that warning in the article) But it will be done for festival season. As for why not actually use a brat? Cause I don't really cotton to the idea of mixing meat and beer. The whole idea is to make a beer that gives you a hint of the experience and would pair wonderfully with brats, but not actually using them. Plus, fat. Plus, ugh. Had I really wanted to suggest pushing "meat, meat" there'd be a portion of smoke malt in there as well, but I figured that would distract from the low linger spiciness that perfumes the beer.
As someone who loves the occasional spiced beer, this one sounds pretty good. I have made brats from scratch a few times and usually the nutmeg comes through along with some of the clove, allspice and ginger. All of which are spices that I have used in beers before, so I don't think that this is an especially crazy idea. It sounds like you should reach the goal of "a hint of the experience and would pair wonderfully with brats." Plus, that commercial cracks me up. Glad to see people are having fun with it.
Titletown Brewing in Green Bay had one on tap last year. Theirs did use a bit of smoked malt. It was interesting, and not in a bad way. You might be try emailing them and seeing if they have any advice.
I don't think this idea is THAT crazy. Have you tried Brooklyn's Weisse? It is very spice heavy in the aromatics and has a distinctive smokiness to it, that I'm fairly sure just comes from the yeast and not any crazy additions. To my palate, it tastes/smells VERY reminiscent of sausage. Going one step further, there is no denying that Rauchbier tastes like smoked meat, and people think that is delicious.
I loves me some rauchbier! (Which reminds me, I don't think I've talked about making a rauchbier before. Huh.) I just didn't want the smokiness as an additional layer against the spices in this beer.
A small amount of rauch malt (5%) or dry hogging (bacon soaked in secondary) might give you enough smoked meat nuance without going overboard.
Seems to me you did talk about smoking malts in a Zymurgy issue, which I consulted when I made my first smoked beer. But the recipe above with all the spices... I'm pretty sure I'd rather have a real bratwurst (on my plate) and good pilsner (in a glass).
if it works, you're a genius. i think this is a recipe for failure. of course my opinion is admittedly not worth much. also, it is a fact celery seed will ruin any recipe if not used with caution. a pinch can work wonders. a 1/4 teaspoon and its fubar. good luck Drew
