Cherries in beer..?

[pat_00]

So, my friend has a little Cherry orchard and I want to see if I can make some beer with his awesome cherries.

But, I don't want to make a heavier beer like a lambic or kriek.

Has anybody out there brewed with cherries? I'm thinking along the lines of a cherry wheat beer?

 

[mje1980]

Do it mate. If you like vodka get a big glass jar. Empty a bottle then add 1g for every ml. Leave for a year and strain. Yum !. Eat the cherries if you like to get very drunk. . I have a Berliner weisse on some cherries now.

 

[menoetes]

Cherries could go well in a wheat or a blonde IMHO. You could try pasteurizing a kilo or two of them and adding them to a secondary vessel before racking your beer onto them. It could make for a great seasonal brew

You're lucky to have such easy access to them - I've beer eyeing off the preserved cherries in the supermarket for a while now and thinking about popping them into a blonde ale...

 

[GrumpyPaul]

I've done cherries in a porter.

I did 1.5kg in a 23 litre batch - it wasnt enough.

 

[Mr. No-Tip]

You're lucky to have such easy access to them - I've beer eyeing off the preserved cherries in the supermarket for a while now and thinking about popping them into a blonde ale...

Be careful if bottling. I did a side by side cherry choc schwarz with fresh cherries in one and jarred Morelos in another. The liquid in the jars was about 1.024 OG IIRC.

Both beers seemed well and truly finished, but the jar ones did over ferment and became (non infection) gushers over time, despite stable gravs at bottling.

 

[Mr. No-Tip]

I've done cherries in a porter.

I did 1.5kg in a 23 litre batch - it wasnt enough.

I did 2k/15l for my cherry choc Schwarz and 6k/20l for my kreik.

 

[yum beer]

You'll need about 2-3 kilos in a wheat.
I usually do one for xmas, not this year though. I'm helping a mate this weekend to do a Choc Cherry Stout. Will probably use about 5 kilo's of seconds.(joy of living in the cherry capital)

My method is to boil the cherries in a couple of litres of water(left from your wort) for about 20 minutes, give a light mush with a masher to split the cherries and get the juice flowing.
Add this to secondary with fermented wort around day 5, le sit another 5-7 days then bottle.
Will give a nice cherry flavour that does not overpower the beer.
More cherries more flavour.

Or make up a priming solution with cherry liquid...could be interestingto get the volumes right for carbonation.

 

[Mr. No-Tip]

You'll need about 2-3 kilos in a wheat.
I usually do one for xmas, not this year though. I'm helping a mate this weekend to do a Choc Cherry Stout. Will probably use about 5 kilo's of seconds.(joy of living in the cherry capital)

My method is to boil the cherries in a couple of litres of water(left from your wort) for about 20 minutes, give a light mush with a masher to split the cherries and get the juice flowing.
Add this to secondary with fermented wort around day 5, le sit another 5-7 days then bottle.
Will give a nice cherry flavour that does not overpower the beer.
More cherries more flavour.

Or make up a priming solution with cherry liquid...could be interestingto get the volumes right for carbonation.

Cherry capital eh? What's the sour morello availability like?

 

[pat_00]

Thanks for the tips. Cherry Hefeweizen is what I'm thinking, more of a clovey yeast though. I reckon the banana flavours from some strains could compete with the cherry.