Chipi’s Wit

Brewed this beer about three weeks ago and is currently in the keg.  I’m pretty grateful to my fiance for letting me indulge into homebrewing and to get her more involved we brewed one her favorite styles together – a Belgian Wit.

• 5 lbs Belgian Pilsner
• 4 lbs Wheat malt
• 1 oz French strisselspalt
• Wyeast 3944 activator pack – no starter

Mashed low for a thin body, about 150°F and used the hops at 60 minutes.  At 5 minutes we added 2 tsp of crushed coriander and 1 tbs of fresh zested orange.

OG: 1.053

FG: 1.011

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1/19/09:

First Tasting

Appearance:

Pours a straw hay color with noticeable haze coming from the wheat.  Big pillowy white head that slowly recedes to a thin lace. Great color and appearance from the brew, some yeast still in suspension, though not as strong as a bavarian yeast strain.

Smell:

Coriander is the most prevalent of the aromas but is quickly followed by a spicy yeast character. Some citrus and earthy hops, hard to tell if the orange is in the nose. Slight belgian sweet malts rounds out the back.

Taste and Mouthfeel:

Quick orange snap in the front end and coriander is present throughout the beer. Amazing that coriander is so pronounced, less amount of the spice should be used next time around.  Phenolic esters from the yeast tickles the sides of the tongue with a spicy and earthy character with some mild bitterness from the hops. Some hay and farmhouse as well. Sweet belgian malts and graininess follows on the backend. No diacetyl present. The mouthfeel is the only downside as it is water-thin and the finish is dry.

Overall:

Other than the thin mouthfeel, this beer is fantastic! Though my fiance and I don’t mind drinking this in January, this is the best beer on a hot summers day.