Maple Syrup

[juliobrewer]

Hi there,

I was just wondering if anyone out there has had experience brewing with Maple syrup? I was thinking of brewing a seasonal in the next few weeks with some and would like to hear from other brewers experiences with it. I realize it's a expensive ingredient so I would like know how to get maximium bang for your buck!

Cheers!

Dave.

[kugeman]

Dave,
I brewed a Maple Brown Ale last fall (and plan on brewing it again). I added 2.25 gallons of Extra Dark syrup directly to the serving tank and filtered 7bbl of the beer in on top of it. I got a great maple aroma and a noticeable maple flavor & sweetness in the beer. I did some experiments to find the right concentration for the flavor and aroma I wanted and found that 2 gallons in 7 bbl of beer was a very faint aroma and slightly detectable flavor whereas 2.5 gallons was noticeably sweet (a little too much for me).

If you have a local maple sugar farm you'll be able to get the more flavorful syrup (Extra Dark). I don't think you can get it commercially....

hope that helps.

[juliobrewer]

Hutch,

Thanks for the info. I don't know about getting Extra Dark but the supplier i'm cutting a deal with does carry a darker grade syrup which i'm getting sample of in a few days which might be close to what you were using. The stuff i've tried already is imported from Quebec and tastes supurb so am looking forward to giving it a whirl! Adding the syrup to the serving tank is a good idea. I did a similar procedure with a honey ale a while back which gave good results so that should be the way to go. I'll run some tests to get the ratio right first.

Thanks again and will let you know how it turns out.

.

[zbrew2k]

You can also get spray dried Maple Sugar that will give you more taste than syrup. You lose a lot of aroma in the boil, and you lose more in fermentation. I agree that you need to use the darker grades. Using Grade A light is a waste for brewing. Great for breakfast though! I used 150 gallons per 120 bbl batch in the kettle. It was a very faint aroma and flavor.

If you like the maple aroma, you can get a natural extract from McCormick spices that can give a boost, but probably best to avoid that. Stay away from the extracts with diacetyl in them...the are the base of Mrs. Butterworths and the like....

Real maple syrup has a subtle aroma and flavor anyway. So probably best to stay with that.

It might be a good addition to a pumpkin ale?

Good luck and echo the "let us know"

[juliobrewer]

I've got the darker grade syrup on order now so will hopefully be brewing with that in a few weeks.

Not so sure about a pumpkin ale but I do have some lightly roasted hemp seeds kicking around which might "funk" it up abit.. Will do some taste testing first before I decide what route to take. Thanks all for the info and as I said before i'll post the results once it's on tap.

Cheers!

[tlenahan]

The best grade of maple syrup for brewing is the darker B or C grades. This isopposite from how the rating system is set up. Grade A(grocery store pancake style) is very light with faint maple aroma and flavor. The lower grades are darker and have greater maple flavor and aroma.

Adding them during fermentation will lead to very little flavor and aroma to the beer. Maple syrup is mostly glucose. Adding them post fermentation after filtation will give you the flavor and aroma. The problem is that unless you are very sterile with your operation you can get microbiological break down. So the key is to use as little as possible normally with a dark beer to impart subtle maple flavor and aroma, and of course be very sterile in your operation. When done right it smooths the dark roasted malt flavor and you get a hint of maple. Another factor is to brew your beer dry because the maple syrup is primariliy glucose.

The usage rate depends upon the base beer and the flavor and aroma impact you want. I would start at 5 oz per bbl and increase in 5 oz increments until you have the right flavor. Maple syrup is very expensive, about $20-30 per gal, so less is better.

Do not use extracts because they give you a chemical taste and maple aroma can be overpowering.

[MIbrewDog]

Hello everyone,

I have been following this thread ever since I decided to make a maple porter for Spring. I was able to source a local supplier for a dark grade of maple syrup and decided to add it to the beer right before transferring in order to preserve the syrup's qualities. I am curious what others think of my options for mixing the two together.

Option 1: Dump the maple syrup into the serving tank before the transfer begins.

Option 2: Add all the maple syrup (3.25 gallons) to the transfer line before the transfer begins.

Option 3: Add the maple syrup to the beer during transfer via a tee and a soda keg.

I am a bit concerned about getting a thorough mix because I would like to start serving the beer as soon as possible. Any comments or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Dave

[tlenahan]

Dave,

There are several ways to add the syrup. I would say add it during a transfer just before filtration. I have added it just before in line carbonation so you get rousing in your finish tank. Do not just add it to the finish tank and begin filling. Maple Syrup is at 66 Brix so it does need mixing with the beer.

Tim

[MIbrewDog]

Tim,

Thanks for the reply. I have run some tests with the beer and feel I have a good ratio that will impart the subtle character I am aiming for. Option 3 is definitely the way to go. Plus, I have some carbonating to do, so that ought to help mix the beer even further. Again, thanks.

Dave