Membership questions? Log in issues? Email info@brewersassociation.org

Author Topic: Looking for a way to get the most out of pumpkin  (Read 2784 times)

Offline reverseapachemaster

  • Official Poobah of No Life. (I Got Ban Hammered by Drew)
  • *********
  • Posts: 3778
    • Brain Sparging on Brewing
Re: Looking for a way to get the most out of pumpkin
« Reply #15 on: March 01, 2014, 08:32:45 am »
I think mashing is the most common way it's done. I can only think of three beers where I really ever felt like I tasted pumpkin and not just spices. Two were saisons (Trinity Brewing and Freetail Brewing) and one imperial stout (St. Arnold's Pumpkinator). I am not sure about the saisons but I am almost positive St. Arnold's adds pumpkin in the mash rather than the kettle. The last info I saw said they use Libby's canned pumpkin just like you would in a pie. It's a big beer but they use about twelve ounces of pumpkin per gallon.
Heck yeah I blog about homebrewing: Brain Sparging on Brewing

Offline morticaixavier

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 7781
  • Underhill VT
    • The Best Artist in the WORLD!!!!!
Re: Looking for a way to get the most out of pumpkin
« Reply #16 on: March 01, 2014, 01:51:29 pm »
I read thinking about this last night as I made butternut squash gnocchi. I'm gong to make a pumpkin beer this summer with american farmhouse blend and maybe some dregs and add pumpkin in secondary with dregs. Pumpkin sour
"Creativity is the residue of wasted time"
-A Einstein

"errors are [...] the portals of discovery"
- J Joyce

Offline Tim Thomssen

  • Cellarman
  • **
  • Posts: 39
Re: Looking for a way to get the most out of pumpkin
« Reply #17 on: March 01, 2014, 09:34:46 pm »
I'm not sure why conventional wisdom seems to be to add pumpkin to the mash?  Sounds like a real mess to me but I've never tried it so what do I know.  I have made a few good pumpkin beers by roasting the canned pumpkin stuff from the grocery store @350 for an hour then adding it to the last 15 minutes of the boil in a mesh bag.  I get some nice color and flavor contribution this way.  Classic pie spices are added to taste at packaging and a light touch is usually appreciated.  I would recommend giving this approach a try.

Offline el_capitan

  • Brewer
  • ****
  • Posts: 491
Re: Looking for a way to get the most out of pumpkin
« Reply #18 on: March 02, 2014, 07:25:56 am »
I had a butternut squash beer the other night that had some discernible squash flavor, that sweet-like nutty thing. but it's mild.

I'd like to try that, if you'll share your recipe.  We grow a ton of squash too.  One variety that is really nice (productive and much like butternut) is Jumbo Pink Banana.  I originally ordered it as kind of a dirty joke on my wife.   ;) But they've been really great.  The flavor intensifies as they age and lose some water.  We usually eat the butternut first and age the JPBs.  By the time the butternut are gone the JPBs are excellent.  We're just now cracking into the stash of JPBs.  They're pretty amazing - some are almost the size of my upper leg.  Like a giant football. 

Offline morticaixavier

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 7781
  • Underhill VT
    • The Best Artist in the WORLD!!!!!
Re: Looking for a way to get the most out of pumpkin
« Reply #19 on: March 02, 2014, 09:10:23 am »
I had a butternut squash beer the other night that had some discernible squash flavor, that sweet-like nutty thing. but it's mild.

I'd like to try that, if you'll share your recipe.  We grow a ton of squash too.  One variety that is really nice (productive and much like butternut) is Jumbo Pink Banana.  I originally ordered it as kind of a dirty joke on my wife.   ;) But they've been really great.  The flavor intensifies as they age and lose some water.  We usually eat the butternut first and age the JPBs.  By the time the butternut are gone the JPBs are excellent.  We're just now cracking into the stash of JPBs.  They're pretty amazing - some are almost the size of my upper leg.  Like a giant football.

It was brewed by a club member, I'll see if I can get the recipe.
"Creativity is the residue of wasted time"
-A Einstein

"errors are [...] the portals of discovery"
- J Joyce