I'm going to take a shot at a braggot today, something I've never tried before. It's not my own recipe, it's from Extreme Brewing by Sam Calagione. Cranberry harvesting season recently finished here in southcoast MA so I really wanted to try and incorporate them into *something* but the idea of a cranberry beer sounded hideous. A braggot, though.... now that's an idea! The question I have regards pitching rates, as the recipe calls for champagne yeast. I intend to use Pasteur Champagne from Red Star, I bought 4, 5g packets just in case. Here is the recipe;
Cranberry Braggot
3 gallon boil (odd) for 1 hour
OG 1.082
FG target 1.010
ABV target 8.5%
IBU 6.8 (accordning to beersmith, does not take into account contribution from cranberries)
6.6lbs light LME
1oz Hallertau 3%AA (60 mins)
2 lbs dried, boiled, pureed cranberries (10 mins)
1 tsp irish moss (10 mins)
5 tsp yeast nutrient (10 mins) -This seems like a lot, especially since I'm using the wyeast brand which has a lower dosage than standard yeast nutrient at 1/2 tsp for 5 gallons of beer.
6lbs local wildflower honey (flameout)
1tsp pectic enzyme (at pitch)
? packets Red Star Pasteur Champagne
So, how many packets to pitch? How much yeast nutrient to use? Are there any other recomendations or comments about the recipe? Thanks!