Lime zest

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Shepton

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Has anyone experience of adding lime zest to their brew?
I am interested in giving a hint of lime aroma to an IPA - not a dominant taste of lime just a subtle hint at the front. I am unsure of adding at the end of the boil - which would be safe but may destroy the volatile aroma or adding at the dry hop stage which would maintain the cirtrus 'nose' but risk introducing unwanted bacteria into the brew. i am thinking of adding the zest of just 2 limes to a 5gal brew. I have looked around various forums at many different recipes but its the contamination problem that really interests me. I'd be interested to hear about any experiences on this.
 
Watch crewe wolf on YouTube, he has had great results


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Has anyone experience of adding lime zest to their brew?
I am interested in giving a hint of lime aroma to an IPA - not a dominant taste of lime just a subtle hint at the front. I am unsure of adding at the end of the boil - which would be safe but may destroy the volatile aroma or adding at the dry hop stage which would maintain the cirtrus 'nose' but risk introducing unwanted bacteria into the brew. i am thinking of adding the zest of just 2 limes to a 5gal brew. I have looked around various forums at many different recipes but its the contamination problem that really interests me. I'd be interested to hear about any experiences on this.

Id start with the zest of at least 4 limes and add at dry hop stage.

Wash the limes to remove any waxing.
With a sharp knife, cut of the skin leaving any white (pith) behind.
Squeeze the juice over the skins and leave on a window sill for 48hrs. The juice will evaporate and the ph of the juice will kill any bacteria on the skins.
 
I've grated the skins off of 6 limes and chucked them in at the 15 mins before.

End result? Bit of lime zestiness in the finished beer.
 
Firstly. Potato peelers are great for taking the zest off citrus fruits whilst leaving the pith.

Secondly, adding citrus zest in the last ten minutes of the boil works for me. As does soaking in a bit of vodka and adding to the fv.

Thirdly. Wai-iti or Wakatu hops add a very good lime zest character, for an alternative approach. I recently did a Chocolate Lime American Brown ale with a 70/30% Wai-Iti/Citra hop bill.

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Thanks for the advice. I think I will try soaking zest in vodka and adding at the dry hop stage. I'll split off 2 litres from my next brew so I can compare with & without - and report back
 

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