need chili beer advice

[Richard Seyler]

Hey folks--
This weekend I plan to make a batch of California common. I want
to split the batch and use part to make a chili beer. I plan to
bottle--if I can remember how--it with a jap or sorreno in each
bottle. The question is: Do most folks with experience making
chili beers add other chili spices to the ferment? or just the
heat in the bottle? If other spices are added, any guidelines?
THANKS for any suggestions! --Tad

[Daniel Fernandez]

In article <40g54t$h...@emory.mathcs.emory.edu>
TAD said to ALL
T>Hey folks--
T>This weekend I plan to make a batch of California common. I want
T>to split the batch and use part to make a chili beer. I plan to
T>bottle--if I can remember how--it with a jap or sorreno in each
T>bottle. The question is: Do most folks with experience making
T>chili beers add other chili spices to the ferment? or just the
T>heat in the bottle? If other spices are added, any guidelines?
T>THANKS for any suggestions! --Tad

All kinds of ways to get the hot stuff into your homebrew. Dried chilis
in secondary like dry hops, chilis in the brewpot, fresh chilis
(jalapenos and/or serranos) in the bottle.

My two favorites are (1.) smoked dried Chipotles in secondary with the
dry hops, and (2.) blanched (dunk in boiling water 1 min then directly
to iced water then rindsed) little jalapenos in the bottle.

Chilis in secondary (not in the bottle) has a stable flavor and heat
that may actually mellow with some bottle conditioning. Chilis in the
bottle get hotter, and HOTTER, and *HOTTER*.

Have fun!

-- Daniel Fernandez
daniel.f...@solar.org

[Kurt Schenk]

I have used serrano peppers alone. They are hot enough without the use of
spices. Before I put them in each bottle, I use a sterile sewing needle
to poke a small hole in each pepper to allow some of the pepper oils to
seep into the beer. This will flatten the head a bit, but makes for
excellent hot but flavorful beer.

--Kurt