Honey Apple Lager

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kman

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ok, so i have a wacky idea. I have alot of non beer drinking friends, so i want to make up something alittle different. I already brew up K&k beers and oztop ciders and such, but i wanted something alittle different.


so heres what im thinking, making a honey apple lager, using

Coopers lager kit
500g of granny smith apples (pealed cored and diced)
1 kg of Honey
and Saflager S23 yeast.


ive never made anything like this before, so any advice would be great. Is it worth doing? cost is not a problem as i can get the honey and apples for nothing, but are the quantites about right?

anyone done a brew like this?
 
haven't tried thing at all, however, going along those lines what about using a wheat beer yeast.

people have been putting all kinds of things into wheat beer, strawberries, lemons, limes etc so maybe apples could go well. might give it a nice tart finish, and on a hot day be very tasty
 
cheers, what temp is best for wheat yeast?
 
i'm sure i'll be corrected, but it should be around the same temps as ales, say in the 18-20ish range
 
Get rid of the Coopers Lager can

Use the canadian blonde - it is much lighter and will allow more flavour from the fruit and honey to come thru. Used this as the base for my Merry Beery logan berry lager.
Or use a Morgans Golden wheat.
Also, replace 6 ltrs of water with 6 ltrs of apple juice instead.

Alternatively, up the honey and make an apple metheglin mead instead.
Can make it sparkling....
 
ok, i think ill go with a canadian blonde kit instead, and your saying keep the 1kg of honey and the 1/2kg of apples and add 6L of apple juice aswell?

i that right? how alcoholic should i expect this stuff to be? and how long should i ferment it in primary and is there any need for secondary? Also what yeast and what temps?

sorry about all the questions
 
Yes to keeping the honey and apples.
S23 - ferment around 18 degrees for S23.

Primary for at least 14 days - diacetyl rest for 3 days ( back to room temp)

Rack to secondary for 4 weeks.
This is where you get to play...

Now i know that Jayse will not like this but....

When i made my Merry Beery - there was not enough fruit flavour.
So i blanched some more berries and through the pulp into the secondary.
Fermentation started agian for 10 days.- racked to tertiary.
Waited a week...still not enough fruit flavour - run out of fruit.
Down to the locol Supermarket - 2 jars of 95% 4 berry fruit spread.
In it went - fermentation again for another 10 days.
Racked again and just a little cascade.
Cold conditioned for 4 weeks. Then Bottle.

Good reports from the guys at the Anzac Brew Day...

So, once racked - you can add more fruit or honey etc..
It is your call - your beer.
I mean you can buy 100% apple pulp/spread/sauce etc...and add this if you need to.

Alcohol % no idea - 1 bottle of the merry beery left - now 18months old.
will drink in summer.
 
I might be way off and sound pretty stupid saying this but what your brewing sounds to me like a beer flavoured cider rather than an apple flavoured beer. Don't get me wrong I like the idea (reminds me of snake bites in London). But what about using something like WLP775 English Cider Yeast? I love this yeast in my dry ciders. What do you reckon GMK, good or bad idea?
 
Depends if he wants to walk on the cider side or the beer side.

With the cider yeast - i would forget the can alltogether and just make the cider.
With the other yeast and can i think it will be an AHBEER.... :lol:

But...part of home brewing is experimentation so...
 
Kman,

You've also got to think about what type of apple flavour you want, Granny Smiths impart a very tart sour apple flavour, whereas Red Delicious impart a sweet apple flavour. Just something to think about. You could also throw in some Birds Eye chillies just to give it a bit of heat and a subdued capiscum flavour......
 
How about you throw in a beer yeast and a cider yeast and let 'em duke it out?
 

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