Adding fruit to wheat beer...What? When? How?

[IndianaPaleAle]

So I`ve got and American Wheat in primary and I`m getting ready to rack to secondsary tomorrow. But I am thinking about flavoring it with some fruit/spice/flavor-of-some-sort.

1) When should I add the fruit and whatnot? Before I rack do secondary? After I rack to sec.? Or even just before bottling?

2) How should I add the fruit? Just throw it in? Boil it first? Use mesh bag?

3) Anyone have any suggestions on what to add? I like just about any flavor and I was thinking about doing something different...like strawberry rhubarb maybe. Any other ideas?

[BrewerBC]

Check out May/June 2010 of Zymurgy. Great article on fruit and wheat beer.

[Dirk McLargeHuge]

So I`ve got and American Wheat in primary and I`m getting ready to rack to secondsary tomorrow. But I am thinking about flavoring it with some fruit/spice/flavor-of-some-sort.

1) When should I add the fruit and whatnot? Before I rack do secondary? After I rack to sec.? Or even just before bottling?

2) How should I add the fruit? Just throw it in? Boil it first? Use mesh bag?

3) Anyone have any suggestions on what to add? I like just about any flavor and I was thinking about doing something different...like strawberry rhubarb maybe. Any other ideas?

I have seen recipes that add the fruit in primary. Problem is, the yeast will eat the sugar leaving only a hint of the flavor. If you want something restrained and subtle, add the fruit at 10 minutes in the boil to sterilize it.

If you want a bigger fruit kick, put the fruit in your secondary fermentation vessel and rack the beer on top of it. Let it sit as long as you can stand it. Maybe a couple of weeks. I have a plastic bucket with a spigot, so I would put the fruit in a bag so it won't clog.

I haven't tried strawberry, but everything I've read says the flavor is too delicate. Use Strawberry extract at kegging time, instead. Peaches and apricots would taste good. Oh, I would use frozen fruit from the supermarket, or fruit puree from the LHBS. A brew pub here in texas uses the red fruit off of prickly pear to make a beer.

If you get a chance, there have been a couple of fruit beer shows on the session, and JZ's show on fruit beer is good, too.

[brewinhard]

Go pick some fresh fruit, wash it, and freeze it for 48 hrs. Let the fruit defrost, and with a sanitized masher, mash it up well. Using a funnel (sanitized- i cut off a plastic water bottle in half, fits right in carboy), transfer the mashed fruit to the carboy. Purge carboy with C02 if possible. Rack beer on top of fruit (dont be afraid to pick up some yeast as well during racking) and purge headspace with C02 again to minimize oxidation before fermentation begins again. Let beer sit on fruit for at least 1 mos ( but 3 mos is better). For a big fruit flavor/aroma, I use 2#/gallon of fruit. Don't be afraid to blend 2 fruits either to get the characteristics you are looking for.

[Crinkle]

I've added fruit at the end of a boil before, but I like to add it in the secondary instead. It's less hassel and works well. I let it set on the fruit for 1 to 2 weeks, depending on how strong the fruit is and how hot it is. Last one I did was a cranberry wheat, used 1 1/2 pound of craisins let it sit for 9 days (1 would use probably 3/4 to 1 pound if I do it again.) I've also used frozen peaches, and dried apricots before. Mashing the fruit really isn't necissary, just more work. I do agree that if you use fresh it's best to freeze them for a day or two first. I find the combination of frozen and dried fruits have given me the best results.

Crinkle

[Dirk McLargeHuge]

I find the combination of frozen and dried fruits have given me the best results.

I like using the frozen fruit because the ice crystals formed during the freezing process slices through the fruit cell walls releasing more juice. I wonder if drying fruit does the same thing.

[brewinhard]

I like using the frozen fruit because the ice crystals formed during the freezing process slices through the fruit cell walls releasing more juice. I wonder if drying fruit does the same thing.[/quote]

That is why I mash the fruit further, to rupture more cell walls and make accessible the fructose to the hungry yeast. I feel better knowing that there is more surface area for the beer to blend with.

[BlueLoon]

Lots of good advice so far. I make a raspberry wheat and add about 4 bags of frozen raspberries at about 10 min. Then rack off as soon as the color is gone and into secondary. I then top up with some 100% fruit juice that compliments the flavor, like a tart cherry or raspberry mix (hard to find straight rasp.) to give it more of a berry aroma. Everyone loves it and only about 1 out of 10 pickup on cherry vs raspberry. I'd be careful with really tart fruit as the yeast do eat the sugar and it brings the tartness out.