Day 75 American Wheat with Citrus & Citra…Final Racking

Racking from secondary to another bucket to settle for a couple of days before bottling.

Today, I decided to rack the American “Breadbasket” Wheat with Citrus & Citra an additional racking. I wanted to get it off of the lees and let it settle for a day or two before I bottle it. Being a wheat beer, it’s not expected to be crystal clear; however, when I bottle it, I don’t want to have to worry about the sludge and the citrus peels and zest.

Drained

Dried (formerly) sweet orange peel and fresh lemon zest floating in secondary.

The aroma is floral and citrusy and has a little spice to it. The flavor is nice…good bitterness, lots of citrus and maybe a little clove? Whatever. It’s going to be really good when it has been bottle conditioned! I did a hydrometer check and the reading is 1.010 at 72F. Fermentation should be done. I haven’t seen any bubbles at all lately. I should be bottling this in two days.

Racked American Wheat with Citra and Citrus

Tomorrow is the monthly Big Brew at the Atlantic Brew Shop/Raleigh Brewery! This month, the special is a blonde ale. I’m thinking about making it a Strawberry Blond. I’ve done some research and I’ve read a lot of good experiences and a lot of bad. We will see. I need to go to a grocery store and see what is available.

Day 72 Moving American Wheat to Secondary

Nine days after brewing and my citrus infused American Wheat is ready to be transferred to secondary with some additional citrus.

Opening after 9 days in primary

In addition to 1/2 oz of dried sweet orange peel at 2 mins. left in the boil, I’m going to add another 1/2 oz in secondary along with the zest from a large lemon that has been soaking in the refrigerator, in about 1/3 c. white Bacardi rum, for the last 9 days. The rum will also go in.

Racking onto the dried peel, lemon zest and rum.

Dried sweet orange peel and zest from one lemon soaked in 1/3 c. bacardi white run.

I checked the gravity and the FG is 1.010 at 65 F, so the ABV should be about 4.46%. The sample flavor is nice…I’m looking forward to this one!

Nice color!

Final Gravity is 1.010 and 4.46% ABV.

The Cascade hops give a nice bite, but not overpowering. The Citra hops and orange are reinforcing each other in the aroma and flavor. A couple of weeks in secondary and another couple in the bottle and I’m hoping it’s all going to come together nicely for an awesome brew!

Nice color. A little bitter. A good amount of citrus in the aroma and flavor…and more on the way!

Racking…currently, just under 5 gallons.