Hey all, I just put an extract rye pale ale in the fermenter. What are your thoughts on adding a bit of grapefruit rinds into it? Should I add it when I add some cascade hops 1 week in or add it sooner? Or not at all, since the taste might clash.
My thought process with stuff like this, if I'm not sure the ingredient is going to play well but I'm curious to find out is to rack a gallon off before bottling and add to that. That way if it's not as expected I only have 1 gallon of it as opposed to 5 or 10.
Not sure it would pair well with rye. Citrus and rye just don't appeal to me, but I like Mullen's suggestion to rack off part of the batch to try. If it works out, you can brew a whole batch next time. If not, you have 1 gallon that isn't great. Also, I would try to use a tincture. I am currently doing this with a citrus session IPA I brewed. I zested a red and white grapefruit and put in a mason jar. Topped it with about 1 1/2 cups of vodka and put in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. I am not putting any of it into the fermenter. Instead, at bottling, I am going to dose the tincture into the IPA until I get a good balance. Then bottle.
I could see rye and grapefruit getting along just fine together. Caraway and grapefruit, now, that's another story.
I like this idea. I have done a couple of tinctures for small tastings of ideas and it's a great idea. Worked for vanilla beans too. As for rye and grapefruit... do tell how it turns out
Sure, do it. They happen to play quite nicely together, and just treat them like you would a dry hop addition. Just make sure you remove the white pith and either blast it with sani, or do a soak in vodka before lobbing them in.
