Fir or Spruce Tip Ale
User Reviews
5
Fir or Spruce Tip Ale
Description
This Fir or Spruce Tip Ale combines a malt backbone from dry light malt extract, wheat malt extract, and liquid Munich malt extract, supported by pale crystal malt for color and complexity. The use of fresh or spruce tips adds a piney, resinous character unique to certain seasonal homebrews. Northern Brewer and Saaz hops contribute bittering and aroma through staged additions during a one-hour boil. Scottish Ale yeast ferments the wort to create a balanced ale.
The brewing method starts with steeping crystal malt in water heated to around 150-155°F to extract color and flavor, then rinsing it before starting the boil. Malt extracts are incorporated as the wort reaches boiling, ensuring no lumps remain. Hops and fir tips are added at specific times—60 and 30 minutes into the boil—with a Whirlfloc tablet added near the end to clarify the beer. After boiling, a “knockout” step adds final hop and fir tip additions before cooling and fermentation.
This ale’s flavor typically features malt sweetness balanced by moderate hop bitterness and distinctive pine and herbal notes from the fir tips. It suits those interested in seasonal or craft-inspired ales with a natural forest aroma. The choice of Scottish Ale yeast supports malt complexity without dominating fermentation character.
Brewers should avoid Belgian yeast strains, as they may overpower the delicate fir tip flavors. Adaptations with other subdued ale yeasts are possible but may alter profile. This recipe requires standard homebrewing equipment and attention to timing for optimal flavor extraction.
Ingredients
- 40 ounces dry light malt extract (50%)
- 12 ounces wheat malt extract 15%, dry
- 1 cup Munich malt extract about 1 pound (20%, liquid
- 12 ounces pale crystal malt cracked (15%)
- 20 grams Northern Brewer hops added at 60 minutes to go in the boil
- 10 grams Saaz hops added at 30 minutes to go
- 35 grams fir tips added at 30 minutes to go, fresh or spruce tips
- 1 Whirlfloc tablet added at 10 minutes to go (helps clarify beer
- 15 grams Northern Brewer hops added at knockout
- 85 grams fir tips added at knockout, fresh or spruce tips
- Scottish Ale yeast White Labs brand
Instructions
- Steep the crystal malt. Put the crystal malt into a grain bag or tie it up loosely in cheesecloth and cover it with 2 quarts of water. Bring this to 150°F to 155°F over medium heat and hold it at this temperature for 1 hour. Remove the bag and set it over the pot in a strainer. Pour 2 quarts of water heated to 170°F over it to rinse the grain. Let the bag drain for 10 minutes, then remove. Discard the grain or feed it to animals.
- Start the boil. Add 3 more gallons of water to the pot and bring this to a boil. As the water heats up, stir in all three extracts, making sure there are no lumps. When you reach a boil, add the hops and set the timer for 1 hour. Add your first hops.
- Add fir tips and hops. With 30 minutes to go, add more hops and your first addition of spruce or fir tips.
- Whirlfloc and chiller. If you are using it, add the Whirlfloc to the boil along with the wort chiller, if you have one. This allows it to sanitize.
- Knockout. Turn off the heat and add the final addition of hops and spruce or fir tips.
- Crash chill the wort. Use your wort chiller to chill the wort back to 75°F or cooler, depending on how warm your tap water is. Or, put the pot in a cooler with lots of ice water in it. Use a clean metal spoon to create a whirlpool in the wort, which will help it chill faster. Hopefully you will see gnarly bits in the wort that look like egg drop soup, or separating miso in soup: That's cold crash trub, and seeing it means you will have a clearer beer.
- Move the wort to the fermentor. Add the Scottish ale yeast to the fermentor; I use a glass carboy. Pour the contents of the pot through a sanitized strainer into the fermentor. If the strainer gets all gunked up with trub, remove it before continuing. Put a sanitized airlock on the fermentor and put the beer in a place where it can ferment cool, ideally 66°F to 69°F. Leave it there for 1 week to 10 days.
- Rack the beer to a secondary. If there is a lot of gunk in the fermentor, rack the beer from the primary fermentor to a sanitized secondary fermentor -- this one needs to be a glass carboy. I do this only if there is a lot of crud in the fermentor. Either way, let the beer finish fermenting for 1 more week.
- Bottle or keg the beer. If you are bottling, you want to add enough priming sugar to the batch to get about 2.4 volumes of CO2, about 2 1/2 ounces or 72 grams for 3 gallons. Bottle condition 2 weeks before opening the first bottle. This beer ages well.
Notes
- Scottish ale yeast is preferred for its mild fermentation profile, but any subdued ale yeast can be used for similar results.
- Belgian yeasts should be avoided as they can overpower the delicate fir tip flavors in this ale.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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