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John's Belgian Disaster
Belgian Dubbel • All Grain • 5 gal
Instead of using dark candi sugar (which apparently is a mortal sin in a Dubbel according to my online homebrew chums) I decided to see what would happen if the color was adjusted with Munich malt instead of that God-awful, caramel-tasting dark candi sugar. This recipe is based on my very knowledgeable, local, homebrew shop owner, John. Therefore, John shared with me a recipe for a Belgian Disaster.
October 24, 2004 pm 08:00pm
0.0/5.0 0 ratings
Ingredients (All Grain, 5 gal)
- 11 lbs
Belgian Pils
Belgian Pils
Pilsner style malted barley grain.
- .5 lbs
Crystal Malt 60°L
Crystal Malt 60°L
Sweet caramel flavor, deep golden to red color. For dark amber and brown ales.
- .5 lbs
Belgian Special B
Belgian Special B
- .25 lbs
Belgian Aromatic
Belgian Aromatic
Imparts a big malt aroma. Use in brown ales, Belgian dubbels and tripels.
- .25 lbs
German Dark Munich
German Dark Munich
Enhances body and aroma. Stout, schwarzbier, brown ale, dark and amber ales.
- 1.00 lbs
Candi Sugar Clear
Candi Sugar Clear
Smooth taste, good head retention, sweet aroma and high gravity without being apparent. Use in Belgian and holiday ales. Use clear for tripels, amber for dubbels, and dark is used in brown beer and strong golden ales.
- .5 oz
East Kent Goldings - 5.9 AA% whole; boiled 90 min
East Kent Goldings
Mild, slightly flowery.
- .5 oz
Hallertau - 3.5 AA% whole; boiled 90 min
Hallertau
Good for all around bittering and finishing stock ales, Belgian ales, and continental style lagers. Aroma is mild, pleasant and flowery.
- .5 oz
Saaz - 5.0 AA% whole; boiled 15 min
Saaz
Used for finishing pilseners, continental lagers, and wheats. The aroma is spicy and pleasant with fragrant overtones.
-
White Labs WLP500 Trappist Ale
White Labs WLP500 Trappist Ale
From one of the six Trappist breweries remaining in the world, this yeast produces the distinctive fruitiness and plum characteristics. Excellent yeast for high gravity beers, Belgian ales, dubbels and trippels.
Style (BJCP)
Category: 18 - Belgian Strong Ale
Subcategory: B - Belgian Dubbel
| Range for this Style | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Original Gravity: | 1.071 | 1.062 - 1.075 |  |
| Terminal Gravity: | 1.017 | 1.008 - 1.018 | |
| Color: | 17.6 SRM | 10 - 17 | |
| Alcohol: | 7.1% ABV | 6% - 7.6% | |
| Bitterness: | 23.6 IBU | 15 - 25 | |
Discussion
Update
2004-12-19 11:54am
I took this beer to my beer club meeting and while people said it was nice; it just ain't going anywhere in competition. Some suggested using a different yeast strain since the result came out quite fruity. I will enter it in competition and update you on the results. However, I hope you enjoy the recipe and make any necessary adjustments that you feel are appropriate!
Award Update
2005-03-13 1:06pm
This recipe took first place in Belgian Strong category at the 2005 Big Bend Brewoff in Tallahassee, FL. I'll post the comments when I receive my scores.
Judge Comments
2005-04-24 12:36pm
From a BJCP Certified Judge: Aroma: Nice, rich, raisiny aroma. Moderately yeasty, some banana esters. Appearance: Nice mahogahny color, moderate haze, moderate head retention. Flavor: Moderate malt character, lots of banana esters, not nearly as rich and complex as the aroma. Lots and lots of esters dominate the flavor profile, lacking complexity. Mouthfeel: Moderate body, good CO2. Smooth but dry. Overall Impression: A nice beer. Aroma was initially wonderful but quickly fell into overwhelming banana esters. Flavor didn't show the depth or complexity expected for this style. Overall well done. From a BJCP Master Judge: Aroma: Yeasty aromas of banana esters, caramel malt aroma, light phenols, raisiny. Appearance: Deep brown, slight haze (ok), fine off white head, low retention. Flavor: Starts with toasty, raisiny malt flavor of special B. Dark candi sugar evident. Finish slightly dry from hop bitterness and light body. Mouthfeel: Light medium body, moderate carbonation. Overall Impression: Well done, very drinkable. Nice rasin and dark fruit character. Could have a little more maltiness which would enhance body and mouthfeel.
compliments/recomendations
2010-12-01 2:14pm
First of all it sounds like a tasty beer. Congrats on judges comments. It would appear that your homebrew shop owner and internet brewing buddies were incorrect in their 'dark candi sugar being a sin' thing based on the fact that the BJCP master judge complimented you on the noticable dark candi sugar character. your homebrew shop owner did, however, steer you in a good alternate direction based on the positive comments you recieved. I dont agree with your use of caramel 60. You did well with it but I believe that if you're brewing a belgian beer you should use a belgian(continental) ingredients. Pils, Caramunich, Caravienne, Special B, Candi Sugars of all colors(though subbing corn/table sugar for clear candi sugar is fine). Belgian brewers are using Dark candi sugar, FYI, and beet sugar(cheaper than clear candi). Dark candi sugar isn't 'caramel' its dark fruit(currant,raisin) and is beautiful in a Dubbel and/or Dark Strong. Also, try using WLP530 for less fruitiness and maybe even do a double yeast pitch of 530/550 to get more spiciness from WLP550. I actually recommend spliting the batch and fermenting each yeast separately so you can taste the difference and then blend back at the end incase you only want 30/70 or even 90/10 of one yeast over the other. Congrats on the success but I bet you can do a little better with some tweeking and more authentic ingredients.
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