Spelt Beer

[MAF]

Based on a Wit style beer, but with a few tweaks. Plan to ferment in the lower end of the temp range to give a nice clean ferment.

Recipe: Spelt Beer
--------------------------
Batch Size: 20.00 L
Boil Size: 23.00 L
Estimated OG: 1.047 SG
Estimated Color: 6.6 EBC
Estimated IBU: 19.9 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 30 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
2.00 kg Spelt Malt, Ger (4.0 EBC) Grain 50.00 %
1.50 kg Pilsner Malt (2.5 EBC) Grain 37.50 %
0.50 kg Vienna Malt (7.0 EBC) Grain 12.50 %
15.00 gm Magnum [12.60 %] (30 min) Hops 16.1 IBU
15.00 gm Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00 %] (15 min)Hops 3.3 IBU
15.00 gm Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00 %] (2 min) Hops 0.6 IBU
15.00 gm Coriander Seed (Boil 5.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs Kolsch Yeast (Wyeast Labs #2565) Yeast-Ale

[6470zzy]

I am interested to see someone using Spelt as a base malt. I am also curious to know why you chose to use a Kolsch yeast if you were going after a Wit style?

Cheers

[lancsSteve]

Where did you get malted spelt from? I have raw spelt (from malt Miller) to use but will need a cereal mash for a saison I'm planning but would love to use malted spelt however have never found a supplier... FarmBrew was also after some I know after prev. ordering from Germany!

[MAF]

I am interested to see someone using Spelt as a base malt. I am also curious to know why you chose to use a Kolsch yeast if you were going after a Wit style?

Cheers

Not necessarily goin for a Wit style, it just looks closest to what I've come up with. I chose the Kolsch yeast for a couple of reasons:
1. I am culturing it from a previous brew (recessionary times )
2. I was originally going to use it in a Biere de Garde style, maybe this recipe is somewhere between Wit and BdG (?)
3. I plan to ferment at cooler temperatures, which will (hopefully) give a nice clean ferment. I really want the Spelt flavour to be to the fore in this one, so no fruity esters would be preferable

Where did you get malted spelt from? I have raw spelt (from malt Miller) to use but will need a cereal mash for a saison I'm planning but would love to use malted spelt however have never found a supplier... FarmBrew was also after some I know after prev. ordering from Germany!

Was going to use Flaked Spelt from local health food shop, but as you say that would need a cereal mash, so that put me off (for now...). I got the Spelt Malt from Candirect in Germany, was ordering a few other bits from them and got tempted by the Spelt and some Carafa II. I got crushed Spelt Malt, but they also do whole. See http://www.novanorm.net/ec-shop/index.html

[6470zzy]

Where did you get malted spelt from? I have raw spelt (from malt Miller) to use but will need a cereal mash for a saison I'm planning but would love to use malted spelt however have never found a supplier... FarmBrew was also after some I know after prev. ordering from Germany!

Weyermann also makes malted Spelt

Cheers

[lancsSteve]

Seen it from weyermann - it's getting it in this country that's still a challenge! Hopefully Rob @ Malt Miller will add it to his next Weyermann's delivery, meanwhile I'm planning a wit and a saison using unmalted wheat / unmalted spelt respectively and doing a cereal mash as detailed in Randy Mosher's Radical Brewing.

MAF: Your beer looks a lo like a Saison/Biere de Garde/Farmhouse Ale to me which seems to be a modern division between what was only ever a continuum over beers from lambic-style sour through wits to BDG and used whichever yeast someone else had to hand. Nice to see ideas not constrained by modern notions of style and appropriateness - hope it's a good one! (I'd be tempted to split the wort though and maybe ferment half with kolsch and half with a dry wit yeast or liquid if you can afford/get it and get two styles for one mash and boil!)

[MAF]

I was originally going to split it and use saison and kolsch yeast, but abandoned that idea as I can only temp control 1 FV at a time. But your suggestion of using a dry wit yeast has got me thinking again!
I like to plan my brews with the intention of learning about the ingredients - what they taste like and how the tastes combine with other ingredients. ‘Modern notions of style and appropriateness’ aren’t something I worry too much about. At the end of the day, this beer is for me (and a few friends), and not for a beer judge

[lancsSteve]

I like to plan my brews with the intention of learning about the ingredients - what they taste like and how the tastes combine with other ingredie

Which kolsch yeast will help with but a smal;l split and dry witbier yeast (brewferm one is pretty good) in a small FV or demijohn would give a nice comparison. I'm starting to think of taking small sections into demijohns and fermenting out with US-05 or Nottingham so I can learn just this and essentially take out the yeast as a component of flavour...

[Barley Water]

You might want to look into the characteristics of flaked spelt. I don't know the answer because I have never used it but frequently flaked grains don't need a ceral mash because the starches are gelatinized as part of the "flaking" process (I know it generates heat which is what gets the job done). As an example, you don't need to ceral mash flaked corn or oats (and I know for a fact that corn grits for instance require a vigorous ceral mash, I do it quite a bit). I didn't know that product was available, if I ever see any, I will throw some into the next Saison I do. My though on that style is that damn near anything goes and you can bet that those Belgian farmers threw in whatever grains were handy back in the day. Of course, that is coming from the guy who wants to Brett the stuff and let it ferment really hot so take that for what it's worth.

[Rookie]

You might want to look into the characteristics of flaked spelt. I don't know the answer because I have never used it but frequently flaked grains don't need a ceral mash because the starches are gelatinized as part of the "flaking" process (I know it generates heat which is what gets the job done). As an example, you don't need to ceral mash flaked corn or oats (and I know for a fact that corn grits for instance require a vigorous ceral mash, I do it quite a bit). I didn't know that product was available, if I ever see any, I will throw some into the next Saison I do. My though on that style is that damn near anything goes and you can bet that those Belgian farmers threw in whatever grains were handy back in the day. Of course, that is coming from the guy who wants to Brett the stuff and let it ferment really hot so take that for what it's worth.

My first thought was the flakes as I've seen spelt flakes in the bulk section at the local grocery, but I've never seen spalt malt.

[lancsSteve]

Flaked shouldn't need cereal mash, my local health rood shop only has flour or whole grain. Got some of the crushed whole spelt from malt miller to do in next Saison (with fantome yeast) in cereal mash, also gotcrushed awhile wheat to do a wit again with cereal mash

[WishboneBrewery]

@ LancsSteve:
How are mash efficiencies with 50% flaked adjuncts?
I'm thinking of dropping from my usual 80 to 70% for a Wit.

[lancsSteve]

I've only done 50% torrefied wheat (not flaked) - efficiences weren't much lower - my recipe still show 75% but no notes and I think my volumes were out...

[WishboneBrewery]

I'll aim low just in case, I can always liquor-back and if I get too much volume I could split it between two yeasts.

[dave-o]

IME efficiences drop 5-10% with a lot of unmalted grain (50% or so)