After a hard graduate school exam on Monday (sob…), I am getting back to brewing operations. Last night, I (finally) kegged a session-strength oatmeal stout, coming in at 2.9% ABV. I am anxious to see how this one comes out. Hydrometer tube sample showed a promising start. I might bring this one to the Zealots meeting this weekend depending on successful keg tastings!
While cleaning the keg, I enjoyed a beer I recently brewed. A session-strength American amber ale (of sorts), it’s the lowest ABV beer I have ever brewed. At 2.0% ABV (anyone notice a theme), this one is quite tasty, although I don’t think an educated palate would mistake this as the real thing. It’s not water-y by any means, but it’s missing some of the more intense flavors you normal achieve in an amber. That aside, it’s great to drink by the half liter, and I think the color is just great.
This week, I hope to get started on the Passion Fruit American Wheat, similar to Wailua Ale by Kona Brewing Co. It’s one of my favorite beers of all time, and even better on the Big Island of Hawaii. I am planning a simple grist, 50/50 wheat/pale malt combo, a bit of bittering hops, and good ol’ US-05. Then, after primary fermentation, I’ll add some passion fruit juice (of yet TBD) to the secondary, saving the yeast, and kegging soon after. It has been surprisingly cold in Texas (definitely for March standards), so I hope this ale will bring in the warm, Big Island type weather.
Brewing something interesting this week, or have used passion fruit in a beer before? Leave some advice in the comment section below. Cheers, and happy brewing!
The Apartment Homebrewer 
If you’d be so kind as to post the recipe and some details on the passion fruit, I’d love to give that a try!
Definitely! Look for a brew day post soon (< a week). I'm brewing this one over the weekend, and fill you in with the details. Thanks for your interest!
Additionally, you can check out my apricot wheat post for some of my fruit beer philosophy. Cheers!
You can check out the passion fruit wheat recipe linked here https://theapthomebrewer.com/2014/03/15/passion-fruit-wheat-brew-day/
Cheers!