Belgian Kriek - Cherry Concentrate

[Fingar]

Hi Folks,

I am attempting Greg Hughes' Cherry Lambic but without the 6kg of cherries... bally expensive they are too! Am I correct in assuming that a Cherry Lambic is known as a Kriek? Anyhow, I fancied doing something different and I am too tight to spend all that money on a load of cherries and have read a number of inconclusive posts on this forum about using cherry concentrate. Has anyone used this approach before?

I have also thought about using frozen raspberries - Aldi's finest - as they are hugely cheaper. I believe that this is a Framboise or Framboise-ish!

Cheers... Fingar

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

You can get cherry concentrate, but avoid anything with sulphites etc. They aren't cheap either and for best effect, batch prime with them, but do check how many gravity points you are adding.

[Fingar]

Hi SumofAllBeers.

It was your post from here viewtopic.php?f=2&t=74426&p=776555&hili ... te#p776555 that got me thinking about this. How did you use as a substitute for 6kg of cherries.

Cheers... Fingar

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

Will dig up the link. Got some kind of health food cherry concentrate. 500ml in 20L gave a noticeable cherry flavour. Would probably need 1L if it to get into proper kriek territory. At 15 quid a bottle, I won't try that again.

[McMullan]

I use Funkin fruit purees occasionally for stouts/porters. Check out this. It might be what you’re after. I haven’t experienced any contamination issues using these either.

[Fingar]

Thanks for the suggestion McMullan. How much of the Funkin Cherry would you recommend in a 23L batch? At £9 a go, this is going to be a pricey brew, add in the fact that I am using Wyeast 3278 (Belgian Lambic) a yeast which it appears I can only use once as it is not advised to propogate (correct me if I am wrong)... maybe not the wisest choice of beer, especially as I have never knowingly drunk a Cherry Lambic / Kriek.

[Secla]

you can get frozen morello cherrys from asda, still works out at about 34 quid for 6kg though

[McMullan]

I use 1 pack (1kg) of raspberry puree in a 20L batch of stout and it's very noticeable, aroma and flavour and colour wise. What I like is there is no prep, just pour it in In terms of cost, yes, a cherry lambic ain't the cheapest to brew, but savour it over time. Enjoy how it evolves

[McMullan]

Incidentally, MaltMiller supplies aged hops.

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

The last time this came up for discussion somewhere, I think fruit purée was the way to go - if you get it from trade suppliers.

When you are dealing with solid fruit, pectin is a problem, but the appeal of purée is that it is sterile and you don't need to pasteurise.

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

So who knows some really cheap purée sources? The 1kg of funk in cherries above is par for the course really

[McMullan]

Occasionally, there are good offers on Amazon. Cheapest is direct from Funkin Cocktails, but to get the best deal, including free P&P, you have to spend over £50. The Shelf life is at least 12 months at room temperature, much longer if stored in a fridge, IME.

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

£42 for 5kg of morello purée . That's almost doable.

[WalesAles]

Fingar,
What about this..............?

http://www.healthysupplies.co.uk/freeze ... GwodEUwB0g

WA

[Fingar]

Thanks for the replies folks. So I have a number of choices:

- SumofAllBeers: 1kg of Cherry Puree at £9 ex delivery
- WalesAles: 100g of freeze dried cherries at £6.79 ex delivery. How much would be required in this 23L brew?
- Secla: Asbo's frozen cherries at £34 for 6kg
- SumofAllBeers: 5kg of frozen Morello Cherries at £42. Computer says no to this one!

Sounding a bit like someone from X-Factor, 'the flavour that is going through to the next round is... Cherry Puree!'

So my plan is to brew this in the next week or so, leave in the primary for a few weeks, bottle and condition in the shed over the winter and spring, maybe even try a commercially available bottle in the pub - I have never drank a Lambic / Kriek - and then enjoy over the long, Yorkshire summer!

Thanks for all of your help... I'll let you know how I get on sometime in the summer.

Cheers... Fingar.