Striking Gold Belgian Strong Ale - All Grain

Big Brew 2007

By Bob Kauffman

Batch Size: 5 gallons (19L)
Anticipated OG: 1.077
Anticipated SRM: 4.4
Color Formula Used: Morey
Anticipated IBU: 31.0
Hop IBU Formula Used: Daniels
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70 %
Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Note: This recipe is wide open to experimentation. Try using different sugars (such as candi sugar, corn sugar, cane sugar, jaggery, piloncillo, and demerara); different yeasts or blends of yeasts; or different fermentation temperatures. Have fun brewing it, and then compare yours with others at the AHA National Homebrewers Conference. Bob also strongly recommends reading Brew Like a Monk, by Stan Hieronymus.

[Jaggery is a semi-refined solid or "concrete" sugar made from palm sap (and/or sugar cane), primarily in India. It has a soft texture and a rich creamy flavor, and has a history in British brewing starting in the mid 19th century. Jaggery is also sometimes labeled "gur," and may be found in most Indian and Pakistani grocery stores, or ordered from mail order suppliers. Other semi-refined sugars--Latin, Thai or Philipino--may be substituted with similar results.]

[Piloncillo is made from pure, unrefined sugar that is pressed into a cone shape. It tastes very similar to brown sugar with a molasses flavor (even though it does not contain molasses).]

[Demarara is from the island of Mauritius off the coast of Africa. This is an all-natural, unrefined brown sugar that offers rich taste with caramel flavor notes.]

For 5 gallons using a 6-gallon or greater boil.

9.50 lb (4.3 kg) Pilsner Malt
14 oz (0.87 kg) Wheat Malt
7 oz (0.19 kg) Cara-Pils Dextrine Malt
3 oz (85 g) Aromatic Malt
1.33 lb (0.3 kg) Cane Sugar (10 min.)
0.67 lb (0.3 kg) Jaggery Sugar (30 min.)
1.75 oz (50 g) Kent Goldings pellet hops, 4.75% alpha acid (60 min.)
1.00 oz (28 g) Czech Saaz pellet hops, 3.50% alpha acid (5 min.)
Blend of Wyeast 3787 Trappist High Gravity & Wyeast 1214 Belgian Ale Yeast; or a blend of White Labs WLP570 Belgian Golden Ale & White Labs WLP500 Trappist Ale Yeast

Use a step mash with 30-minute steps at 142F (61C), 152F (67C), and 160F (71C). Mash out at 172F (78C) and sparge with 170F (77C) water. Collect enough wort (a little under 6 gallons or 22.7 L) to end up with 5 gallons (19 L) after a 60-minute boil. Bring to a boil and add hops and sugar according to the recipe. After a 60-minute boil, chill to 68F (20C), rack to fermenter, pitch yeast and aerate well. Pitch two packages of yeast, one of each kind, or a ½ gallon starter of the blended yeast. Ferment at 73-75F (23-24C) for two weeks, then rack to secondary and ferment another two-to-four weeks before bottling or kegging.