Re: [CH] Chile beer redux
Rich McCormack (macknet@cts.com)
Sun, 01 Mar 1998 08:20:48 -0800
Jonathan T. Smillie wrote:
>
> Friends, Chile-Heads, etcetera:
>
> I'm bringing up what I hope is a new twist on a question
> I know the list has seen already: basically, the adding of
> chiles or chile derivatives to home-brewed beer.
> [...]
> Any advice/ideas/warnings?
I offered my input a month or so ago on this subject via private email,
but I can't remember if I posted to the C-H list as well. Just in case,
and once more, my opinion...
Adding fresh chiles at bottling is not only a waste of good beer and,
more importantly, good chiles but also a possible source of bacterial
infection at bottling time...definetly something to avoid.
To me, flavor comes first and heat comes second in importance. I
occasionally brew up a couple of gallons of my "Chipotle Chile Ale"
that calls for adding coarsely crushed dried chipotle chiles during
the boil along with the hops...adds a nice smokey flavor and moderate
chile heat. The amount to add is a matter of individual taste...one
or two chiles per gallon of wort works well for me.
I've never tried 'em myself, but dried habaneros might work as well
and should give a nice fruity flavor. The only problem for me would be
the ratio of flavor to heat...I think habs are a little too high on the
heat scale to fit within my "flavor first--heat second" criteria.
Anchos might be another possibility and would probably work better within
my "flavor relative to heat" taste requirements than habaneros or other
high heat chiles. And, I suppose fresh chiles instead of dried could be
added during the boil, I've just never tried it.
Hope that helps...
--
Rich McCormack (Poway, CA) macknet@cts.com
Who is Rich McCormack? Find out at:
http://www.free.cts.com/crash/m/macknet/