I just brewed the NB Raspberry Wheat Extract kit. I will be adding a 49 oz can of the Vintners Raspberry puree to the secondary. My question is should I add the raspberry extract at bottling or should I eliminate it? I I add it, how much should I use? I’m looking for some recommendations.
Most recepies I have seen seem to call for either fresh, puree, or extract. I have only ever used extract about 3 to 4 oz depending on your taste. 3 usually does it for me as it produces just a slight hint of the raspberry. If you use the puree, I would taste your brew before bottling. If you feel you need more, add a bit of the extract with your priming sugar. Remember also that the raspberry flavor will develope more with conditioning.
Enjoy!
My first couple batches of raspberry wheat came from a kit that used a can of raspberry pie filling in the secondary and a small bottle of raspberry extract just before bottling. Came out really well, with the extract giving a boost to the aroma, while the canned fruit overwhelmed the artificial taste of the extract. It actually took me several tries before I was able to get that same level of balance using fresh fruit.
I made a raspberry wheat similar to this a year ago, and added the can of Vintner’s raspberry puree into the secondary. The puree is sterilized so you can add it directly into the secondary.
I didn’t love the flavor of the puree, it tasted like raw fruit. I’m going to try another variation of it this year with the NB Bavarian Hefeweizen kit and the small bottle of raspberry flavoring instead of the can of fruit. I made a batch back about in 1996 that seemed to taste really good, with a rounder raspberry flavor. That might just be my memory.
I generally get the plain wheat recipe, then go to the grocery and buy 3 of the 12-oz frozen bags of raspberries (or black cherries) for a 5-gallon batch. I put two in the boil the last 5 minutes or so, and the third in the primary at the beginning. It gives that hint of aroma and flavor that I like but the beer comes through.
I haven’t made the NB Raspberry Wheat but I have made a raspberry mead. The mead took two of the cans you have in secondary. I added the puree first and poured the mead on top to mix it a bit. By the time I bottled, the puree had almost completely dissolved.
I wouldn’t suggest adding any of the left over puree. It’s not going to be a great consistency and isn’t going to add anything to your beer. It will just be raspberry beer + puree instead of just raspberry beer (if that makes sense).
Third batch of Raspberry wheat is in primary. I’ve added flavoring to the bottling bucket, When using actual fruit I put that in the secondary.
1st batch: Raspberry flavoring at bottling. Whisper of Raspberry not sweet, not tart, very nice but, subtle.
2nd batch: 3lbs. of home grown red Raspberries in secondary. ( cooked in sauce pan at 150 degrees f. for 15 minutes to break them down ,but not boiled) Raspberry flavor present, tart, not sour. The color was remarkable with a red tint to the body and the head. Aroma was subtle berry. Very nice. The women really enjoyed this.
Current batch: 4 lbs Red Raspberries, 2 lbs, Black Raspberries: I’m hoping the mellowness of the black will temper the tartness of the Red. Half the fun is in the journey.
Ps I zip tie a sanitized grain bag to the end of the syphon hose and put this in the keg to catch the pulp and seeds when I rack. I tried it in the tip of the syphon and that really stunk.
I just got done watching the latest Brewing TV episode, and they brewmaster at Dry Dock mentioned that he liked to use both fruit and flavoring in his Apricot beer, because fruit ended up dry and thin, but flavoring tasted fake. He thought that putting both in helped balance the fruit and the flavor.
The batch I made a year ago with the can of raspberry puree was just that - thin with a dry raspberry flavoring. I’ll see what happens with just the flavoring this time.
