# Chimay Bleu Recipe Kit.



## Spork (12/5/11)

Hi again.
Currently fermenting the Boags Wizard Smith's ale clone recipe from the Brewcraft kit. Some people suggested changes to the method in the recipe that came with that kit and I followed the advice and I think it's going to turn out a nice enough 1st brew.
Today my Chimay Bleu kit arrived, and after reading the "instructions" I'd like some advice on a few things:
In the ingredients list it says "250 grams Brewcraft Brewing Honey", but in the box there is 500g Capilano honey. I take it I jsut brew with 250g of this, and have the rest on crumpets?
The recipe says "optional - 400g of soft brown sugar, but they sent me 500g of Belgian candi sugar, clear. I take it I use 400g of this. I'd like to use the remainder for bottling, but it's all different size crystals, so no use for that. Sure I'll think of something.

Step 1 bothers me a bit, as I thought the process was: heat water, steep grain/s, remove grain/s, boil water, add hops, keep boiling until hopping done, remove hops, add other stuff, dilute, cool, yeast, wait, bottle, drink. My understanding was that there could be greeblies on/in the grain that need to be killed by boiling after the steeping is done, but that boiling the grain itself would yield undesirable tannins etc.

The recipe says: Bring 3 litres of water to the boil and add dry malt and hops and simmer for 35 minutes. Take off heat and add crushed black grain and stand for 20 mins, strain into brew.

Would this be better: Heat 3 litres of water to 68c, add black grain, steep for 20 minutes, remove and strain into mix. Bring liquid to boil and add hops and simmer for 35 minutes (taste after 20-25 to check bitterness?) then add other ingredients, water, yeast...

Also, the recipe gives the option of making a 21 litre brew, or: "If you want the beer to truly replicate the rich 9% Chimay Bleu then cut the final volume to 15 litres." Well, I bought a Chimay Bleu* clone* kit - of course I want it to taste (and kick!) like a Belgian Tripel! Has anyone else made this kit? What volume and strength did you make? Did you follow the recipe exactly or do it the way I'm considering, or do something else? What did it turn out like?


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## Pistol (12/5/11)

G'day mate, yeah I did this kit a couple of months ago.

I did it the way your thinking, steep the grain, I then used it to make up 10L which I used for the boil, think I added 1 of the cans of LDME and then added the hops.

It's bloody fraud though, as I use Ians spreadsheet and it came out at about %7 and I only made 15L or maybe even 14L can't remember without looking at my notes.

Only tried a couple so far and it isn't a bad drop for an extract.


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## barls (12/5/11)

if you want a serious belgian in a can check out the brewferm range, much better and more flavoursome.


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## mwd (12/5/11)

Excellent see you got the grain steeping sorted can never trust the Brewcraft instructions.

If you are looking for a higher alcohol level use all the honey and all the candi sugar. They are both just about fully fermentable so will thin out the final product somewhat.

Brewcraft Brewing honey WTF ??? Honey is honey in all kinds of flavours but as it ferments out you tend to lose the taste unless you use a really strong flavoured one.


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## manticle (12/5/11)

Not convinced honey of any kind has any place in a chimay bleu homage.

What yeast is with the kit? That's where much of the flavour hit from belgian beers (including chimay) comes from.

Surely if you cut the volume back to 15 you get a completely different bitterness?

Someone should have a word to brewcraft.


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## Spork (12/5/11)

Pistol, cheers mate.

barls - thanks for that, will look at them.

Tropical brews - hmm, will look at that idea.

manticle - the yeast is Safbrew T-58
Hadn't considered the bitterness, but I guess you are right, as the more concentrated "sweetness" will be fermented away, but the bitterness will remain with a smaller batch size.
Might have a muck around with the kit extract brew designer or brewmate and see what comes up with some different options.
I guess reducing the amount of hops and keeping the same boil time would be better than using all the hops for a shorter time if I wanted to reduce the bitterness?


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## manticle (12/5/11)

Gravity of the boil will affect bitterness too. For chimay bleu, something around 35 IBU is right according to Stan Hieronymous.

t-58 is a yeast I've never used but is used with success by many aiming for a belgian type beer.

Wyeast 1214 is supposed to be the chimay strain. If this one comes out OK with the t-58 then try it again with 1214.

I think with your interpretation of steeping as opposed to the one provided with the instructions, you should push out a good brew. Don't expect a chimay replica - just look for a good beer you are happy with and tweak anything that needs it next time.


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## Spork (20/5/11)

Well, I did this brew today, and forgot all about reducing the hops to compensate for the smaller batch size. Steeped the grains in a 2.5litre willow insulated jug, inside a 15 litre stockpot (see below) and pretty pleased with the results. Started @ 67c (with grain added) and finished @ 65c.
I put the "recipe" as I made it into beersmith and it says 41.5 IBU, so not too bad I hope.
OG was 1.080, with 480g honey and 500g candi sugar. At least if it doesn't taste good I probably wont notice after the 2nd one...

On other fronts, I broke my hydrometer last night. - so I went to Kmart and bought a Cooper's kit today.  Placcy hydrometer FTW. Now I have a 2nd FV all I need is another STC 1000, and another brewing 'fridge / freezer...

While I was ther I picked up a 15 litre stockpot for $15 too, in preparation for a stovetop 9 litre BIAB.

Bottled my "Wizards' Miff" today, into 750ml PET bottles with 2 x Cooper's Carbonation drops in each.

My Bottle rinser, tree and capper arrived today too.  Working on emptying a Coopers sparkling ale longneck as I type.

Hmm, now, what to make with the can of Coopers larger and 1kg of "brew enhancer #1" that came with the kit..


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## waggastew (20/5/11)

Spork said:


> Hmm, now, what to make with the can of Coopers larger and 1kg of "brew enhancer #1" that came with the kit..



Toucan - Lager + BE1 + another hopped can of goo (stout/dark ale). Fit a blow-off tube, give it a good couple of months in the bottle. Maybe even keep it for next winter?


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## Spork (21/5/11)

Thanks waggastew, that sounds like a good plan.
I've tried some nice "chocolate stouts". Does the chocolate aroma come from grains, or can you just add some cocoa powder to the brew?

Fermentation on the "Chimay clone" is well underway. Nice thick krausen, freezer smelled strongly of booze when I opened the lid, and gravity has dropped to 1.065 already! Fermenting @ 17.5c.
Ordered 2nd STC 1000 yesterday, and looking at a couple of 'fridges / freezers on Gumtree today...


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## TmC (21/5/11)

Spork said:


> Thanks waggastew, that sounds like a good plan.
> I've tried some nice "chocolate stouts". Does the chocolate aroma come from grains, or can you just add some cocoa powder to the brew?
> 
> Fermentation on the "Chimay clone" is well underway. Nice thick krausen, freezer smelled strongly of booze when I opened the lid, and gravity has dropped to 1.065 already! Fermenting @ 17.5c.
> Ordered 2nd STC 1000 yesterday, and looking at a couple of 'fridges / freezers on Gumtree today...



From what i can gather, the chocolate aroma comes from the grains. It sounds like its going to be a nice heavy brew with those gravity readings. My winter brew only started at 1.060!


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## Spork (22/5/11)

My first effort - the "Wizzard's Miff" looks and tastes good when I bottled it, and the PET bottles are getting firm, indicating to me that conditioning is happening. Considering it was my first attempt, I didn't have a temperature controlled fermentation (just a blanket, a heat belt, and a cool - cold room) and that all ingredients were past their best (and past their use by dates) I'm pretty pleased and look forward to tasting it when it's properly done.
No so confident with my "Chimay blue clone" though.

This is what I did: 
Begun: 20.5.2011
From Brewcraft kit. Chimay Blue clone.

Grains: 50g crushed black grain. Steeped in 2.5 litres water for 20 mins:
Start @ 67c. Finish at 65c. Bag removed and strained into wort.

Wort brought to boil, and a little water added, to maintain starting boil @ approx. 3 litres.

Hops: (Pellets). 40g Hallertau and 25g Goldings. Boiled for 35 mins, then strained.

Added to boil at flame out 1kg Light Dry Malt and 500g Light Candi Crystal. Dissolved in pot then poured into FV.

Added 1.5kg Black Rock Light Liquid Malt and 480g honey.

Water added to 15 litres total.

OG = 1.080

Yeast: safbrew T-58 @ 25c with FV in freezer and cooling (to 18c)

21.5.2011 dense krausen, freezer smells boozey. SG has dropped to 1.065. 

Now I'm not sure that using 480g of honey, instead of 250, was a good idea. Mistake #1?

My 2nd mistake was to put the lid on my pot while boiling the hops, have read today that all the boiling should be done lidless. I didn't leave the lid on throughout, I kepy removing it to stir, then replacing to build the heat back up. Did notice a ring of green pungent scum on the pot. As the lid was "on and off" allowing steam to vent I'm hoping this wasn't enough to ruin things.

My 3rd error(?) was with the yeast. (perhaps). I pitched approx 1/2 of the packet dry, then thought I'd try making a "starter" with the remainder. Sanitised a small jug and dissolved 1/2 a teaspoon of raw sugar in it. Cooled this to 25c and poured it into a sanitised stubby and added the remaining yeast, govered with glad wrap, and shook, 4-5 times. (each 10 mins or so) After about an hour this was beginning to foam, so convinced that my yeastie beasties were alive I poured this into the FV.

Having said all that, by the next morning a dense krausen had formed and SG had dropped, so fermentation definatley underway, but: The smell is strong! Boozey strong. Perhaps thats just because I haven't brewed inside a small space (chest freezer) before? I know Chimay is a "big beer", but iit doesn't smell like what I am making. I won't panic though, I fully expect this one to take a long time (4 weeks) in the FV, and then need to be bottle conditioned for several months. Hope to have 1-2 for christmas, and the rest next winter.

The morning after I started this brew I 1/2 filled a (clear, sanitised) stubbie so that I could "force ferment" a sample to see what my FG would be
The thing that has me most worried is the appearance. Baby shit brown. Totally opaque. If you were diving in this stuff visibility would be 0. It's nothing like the dark, rich, luscious Chimay colour. It's more like liquid peanut butter. I'm hoping a lot of the appearance is due to the honey, which I hope will eventually ferment out, but I don't think there will be much colour left if / when that happens.

Oh well, win some loose some. Who knows, in 12 months time this stuff could be great! - or not. Ugly duckling - or dead duck? Only time will tell...


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## brett mccluskey (22/5/11)

I tried this one and a couple of other of their 'clone' kits a couple of years ago a 'demo' day in Shepparton,at the local winery/hbs there.It was brewed by the guys behind the brewcraft stand ,and to my taste buds it wasn't a bad extract beer, but a long,long way from Chimay .Very lacking in the Belgian yeast character. and i wouldn't have called it anything like ANY Belgian beer. They're LCPA was much the same,except in the hops department (lacking greatly) I wondered how they could get away with using the names on the kits at all <_<


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## fcmcg (23/5/11)

Spork said:


> Spork...
> Don't want to rain on your parade , but your yeast may have been alive , but they probably weren't that healthy...
> I'm reading a book called yeast...its about yeast for brewing...
> The book says yeast grown exclusively on simple sugars ( like raw sugar ) makes the yeast stop making an enzyme that enables it to break down maltose.Wort is mainly maltose.The end result is the yeast isn't able to fully ferment out the beer...so your fg will be higher , i would imagine , than you thought it was gonna be.
> ...


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## Spork (27/5/11)

Thanks Fergthebrewer. I read about not using plain sugar - after I'd already done it. Live and learn eh. I take it that rehydrating yeast just means adding to cooled boiled water with no sugar of any kind added? Your "Yarra river" brew sounds a bit like what I've made, you have given me hope. Cheers. 

Well, it's been brewing for a week now. I tested my sample stubby that has been kept warm and aerated, and I thinermenting, as it no longer bubbled, didn't even froth up when shaken, and yeast had settled on the bottom. It still looked like the Yarra river though...
FG 1.016. Considering the high (1.080) OG and the sheer volume of goo that was in this recipe I guess thats probably about right. Won't bottle for at least another week or 3 though, if it hasn't cleared after 4 weeks in primary I'll try some finings I suppose rather than use it as lawn food.


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## felten (27/5/11)

The rehydration instructions are usually strain/manufacturer specific, if you google the name of the yeast you should get a link to a PDF from the manufacturer with the instructions.


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## Spork (29/5/11)

Thanks felten.

Update on this one:
29.5.2011 SG from main batch 1.018. Looks like the Yarra River. Tastes like the Yarra River. 

Been below 0 last 2 nights and fermenter got down to about 15.4c. Struggling to maintain temps above 16.5c.

Might have to bring it inside and just use heat belt to see if I can get those yeasties working again, although this yeast is supposed to work @ 15-24c. I don't think it has been below 15. Perhaps it needs a stir, but not keen on aerating (oxidising?) at this stage. Or do I just leave it and wait for it to finish and clear? 
I don't have my 2nd temp.controller yet, but I'd like to get another brew on and don't want this one taking up the only temperature controlled space I have for too long. Is temperature control so vital after 10 days? From what I've read it seems to be most important during the first 4 days when most fermentation occurs. If I brought this brew inside and covered it with a blanket and ran the heat belt would it affect it much if it did get a bit warmer than 20c?
Any other suggestions?
Cheers.


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## gas_turbine (1/6/11)

hey, I tried the same recipie for Chimay bleu.

There might be a problem with the brew since the activity in the airlock stopped after 3 days...
it's been in the primary fermenter for 7 days at 20-22 degrees.

Today I took a sample, it also looks like the Yarra river...and the gravity is 1.018

I've racked part of it in a glass carboy, to see if the colour improves at all. And then it started to bubble a bit.

I don't have high hopes for this brew. :-(

Cheers,

Mikko


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## Spork (1/6/11)

Thats just what mine looks like.
My lizard warmer arrived yesterday, so raised temp to 20c and gave the FV a bit of a swirl. Doesn't look like it's started fermenting again though. SG still on 1.018 (tested today).
Been in primary for 12 days now. I don't know what to do next.
Plan giving it a few more days in primary @ 20c. If it doesn't do anything then I have to choose between: waiting another week or 2, racking to secondary, crash chilling, or racking and CC'ing.
Let me know what the carboy sample does OK?
Did you "splash" it in a bit, or pour off carefully to avoid aeration (and oxidising) the beer? To my (still very limited) knowledge of brewing it seems you may have aerated it somewhat to get the yeasties going again.


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## gas_turbine (1/6/11)

Spork said:


> Thats just what mine looks like.
> My lizard warmer arrived yesterday, so raised temp to 20c and gave the FV a bit of a swirl. Doesn't look like it's started fermenting again though. SG still on 1.018 (tested today).
> Been in primary for 12 days now. I don't know what to do next.
> Plan giving it a few more days in primary @ 20c. If it doesn't do anything then I have to choose between: waiting another week or 2, racking to secondary, crash chilling, or racking and CC'ing.
> ...


I'll let you know how it goes, I just siphoned it to the carboy. trying to be careful not to aerate it. but I still got a few bubbles at the start of the siphon.
Hopefully it clears out, but even then it wont look anything like a chimay bleu.
I got sucked in by liquercraft, thinking I could actually get close'ish to a chimay with a simple recipe, and simple tool, with less than enough knowledge. And I must have then done something to stuff it. :-(

I'd say better luck with the next brew.

cheers.


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## gas_turbine (2/6/11)

just a update for Spork, the "chimay" is slowly clearing in the demijohn. so if you have one handy i'd say go for it.

I got very limited experience in brewing so, could anyone tell me how long I should leave it in the secondary?

cheers


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## Spork (2/6/11)

Thanks mate.
Wiring up my 2nd STC100 now, then I will rack to secondary and see what happens.


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## gas_turbine (18/6/11)

The Chimay might be ok, it has pretty much cleared. 
But unfortunately it is too light in color...And I'm not really expecting it to be tasting like a real Belgian ale, but hopefully it will be ok for a first attempt.
It has been in a demijohn since 01.05.

But how long should I keep it there? 
And is it necessary to add more yeast before bottling?

Cheers,


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## gas_turbine (4/3/12)

gas_turbine said:


> The Chimay might be ok, it has pretty much cleared.
> But unfortunately it is too light in color...And I'm not really expecting it to be tasting like a real Belgian ale, but hopefully it will be ok for a first attempt.
> It has been in a demijohn since 01.05.
> 
> ...




Update on the chimay "clone" 
well now about 8 months later it can be said it is good for a first attempt...
Not quite a chimay bleu when I tasted them side by side, but there sure is some of the characteristics of a Belgian ale.

I would say it's a good effort for a ready made extract recipe.

I just got hold of 12 bottles on Westvleteren 12 in 2 gift packs with 2 Trappist glasses.
would be nice to brew something as good...but I don't think i ever will even try. 

cheers to all


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## MartsHomeBrew (28/10/12)

gas_turbine said:


> Update on the chimay "clone"
> well now about 8 months later it can be said it is good for a first attempt...
> Not quite a chimay bleu when I tasted them side by side, but there sure is some of the characteristics of a Belgian ale.
> 
> ...



I was thinking about making this Chimay recipe with ingredients i already have but not sure i will now. I made the brewcraft Leffe Blonde clone for i think my 3rd brew and i have to say it is a pretty good clone, tasting it after a few weeks of being bottled. Hopefully it improves further, but it sounds like a much better bet than the Chimay clone if this thread is anything to go by. Then again i will not know unless i try and this final comment is more encouraging. 

One thing i am not certain of is the reference to crushed black grain. I have some crushed crystal malt, and some crushed chocolate malt grain. I am assuming that black grain amd chocolate grain are different. Could someone pls clarify this for me as i have tried without success.

Also, if different, could i get away with using my chocolate grain in place of the black grain mentioned in the recipe? It was bought at Grain & Grape, and i have all the other ingredients, just not the Brewcraft receipe which has in any case been revealed in this thread, and like i heard before could be sketchy and needing improvement. (Even the guy in one of their shops told me this)


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## bradsbrew (28/10/12)

Black and chocolate are way different.

Black gives an "ashy" flavour.

http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=3897

Cheers


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## Nick JD (28/10/12)

Chimay's beers are all about Wyeast 1214. 

Honestly, 2 cans of Canadian Blonde and a smack pack of 1214 and you'll be tasting Chimay white.


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## MartsHomeBrew (28/10/12)

Hi Brad & Nick
It could be time for an experiment in that case. They are usually fun, just need to find the right recipe for what I have. Or perhaps move to another idea altogether which is proven successful. I have a small selection of hops, dry crushed grains & yeasts, liquid malts, candi sugars and cans of Tooheys Lager & Draught extract tins. 
I will seek out Wyeast post haste, have seen it discussed before, and these kinds of Belgian Beers are my favorites. Having sorted a reasonable Leffe Blonde, really want to expand the brood, considering there are thousands out there. Has anyone read the book "Brew Like a Monk", and is it worth getting. I heard it was average at best...


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