Saison, need tips and advice and junk

[ScottyB-Brewing]

I am currently 2nd place in a homebrewer of the year competition, there are 4 comps throughout the year and whoever totals the most points wins Worthog of the Year (Homebrew club is the San Joaquin Valley Worthogs).

While I am currently 2nd place, the guy in 1st place has an 8 point lead on me so I really need to knock it out of the park with the 4th and final comp, the Saison 16C. All the comps are judged to style per BJCP guidelines and junk.

Ok so now that I got that crap out of the way, I need some advice for making a kick ass Saison, if there is such a thing, it snot a style I care for. I brewed a total sage spice bomb a month ago, it was undrinkable, and I currently have my 2nd attempt at a Saison in the carboy but I fear yet again I may have overspiced it with ginger root (0.3 oz in a 5 gallon brew).

Any tips or suggestions on how to subtly spice a Saison would be greatly appreciated. Also my gravity seems to be higher than I expected it to be, I never used any wheat before trying to do Saisons, maybe that has something to do with it, dunno, but the one in the carboy as of the last gravity reading is a 7.2% ABV and the style isn't supposed to be any higher than 7%.

Here's the specs for my latest attempt at a Saison:

5 lbs Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (2.0 SRM) 34.5 %
5 lbs White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM) 34.5 %
4 lbs Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) 27.6 %
8.0 oz Wheat, Flaked (1.6 SRM) 3.4 %
1.00 oz Saaz [3.20 %] - Boil 55.0 min 10.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Tettnang [5.40 %] - Boil 30.0 min 13.7 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins)
1.00 oz Hallertauer [4.60 %] - Boil 5.0 min 3.0 IBUs
1.00 oz Northern Brewer [10.90 %] - Boil 5.0 min 7.2 IBUs
1.00 oz Orange Peel, Bitter (Boil 5.0 mins)
0.30 oz Ginger Root (Boil 0.0 mins)
7.00 Items Peppercorns (Boil 0.0 mins)
1.0 pkg Saison II Ale (White Labs #WLP566)

OG: 1.065
Gravity as of 2 days ago: 1.010

Any help you folks can give would be greatly appreciated, I might even make a sexy video for ya, you folks like zit covered hairy man boobs?

[maxwell]

I haven't brewed a saison that could even approach the best commercial examples from the likes of Dupont or de Glazen Toren, but my first impression is that your recipe is a bit too complicated. I would start off using only Belgian pils or maybe pils+wheat with a single hop and no spices and go from there. You can bring out the spice notes through yeast selection and fermentation temperature schedule. Nathan was on the beersmith podcast a while back and you might find some of that info useful.

[Afterlab]

Cut back on the variety of flavor intensive ingredients. Having 4 different hops, 3 different spices and an assertive Saison yeast is going to be a mess for the human palate to decipher which flavors and aromas should be in the forefront. A saison should be an easy drinking beer and not a thanksgiving feast of spice and hop flavors. For the hops use Tettnang at 60 min and some type of Goldings at the 15 min and flameout additions. Toss the Northern Brewer, Saaz and Hallertauer. For the malt, cut your Vienna in half and up your Pilsner malt with that. In my experience Vienna malt can leave a decent amount of body, which is the last thing one really wants in a saison. If you're looking for a small increase in malt flavor on top of the Pils, Wheat and Vienna, maybe add 5% of Melanoiden, Aromatic or Munich. I'm not much for spices, but if you must, stick to one and don't boil bitter orange peel, it tastes terrible. You will get a much better flavor from steeping freshly zested oranges at temps well below boiling. I'm not really sure why they even sell bitter orange peel, if I wanted more bitterness I would just up the ibus....

[dannypo]

My biggest point of advice would be to not put spices in it. A true saison gets its spice notes from the yeast.

[Ozwald]

My biggest point of advice would be to not put spices in it. A true saison gets its spice notes from the yeast.

Agreed. Your recipe idea is a mess. Tame down the grain bill. Tame down the hops. Eliminate the spices. Try 70-80% Pilsner with a little wheat & just the slightest touch of something to add color, such as a CaraMunich. Leave room for 10% sugar. 1 hop variety, 1 addition at 60. Tett may work, but I'd go for a non-German, generic Hallertau. 25-30 IBUs. Lastly, pitch on the warm side (68ish) & hold it for a couple days. After that, ramp it up. Don't be scared to go up to 80. You want a bone dry beer with emphasis on the yeast. Keep it simple. The yeast is your showcase.

[PorkSlapper]

I make a really nice light Saison for summer based off of Northern brewers Petite Saison d'Eye recipe. Give it a look, very simple and very good. http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/petite-saison-d-ete-all-grain-kit.html
-PorkSlapper

[ScottyB-Brewing]

Thanks folks I really appreciate the tips. I think Im trying too hard, I've only been brewing for a year and a half and I'd be so jazzed if I could win this competition.

I'll take your advice and simplify the recipe and let the yeast provide the spicy flavors.

So who wants a sexy video of me and muh man boobs?

[brewinhard]

Thanks folks I really appreciate the tips. I think Im trying too hard, I've only been brewing for a year and a half and I'd be so jazzed if I could win this competition.

I'll take your advice and simplify the recipe and let the yeast provide the spicy flavors.

So who wants a sexy video of me and muh man boobs?

If you are squirting saison out of each of them, then I am IN!