French blonde beer - update

[thehorse]

So, over on Recipes I asked whether anyone had tried cloning Lancelot's Duchesse Anne Triple Hop. To my tastebuds it's a refreshing US-hopped take on a French blonde, with most of the flavour coming from a Belgianny yeast and those citrussy IPA hops. Leffe Royale IPA is also similar.

So here's the recipe I went with - and below, how it turned out:

1.5kg pale LME
500g wheat DME
250g pale malt
125g malted oats
125g flaked wheat

20g Northern Brewer - 60mins
19g Cascade - 15mins
10g roasted coriander - 10mins
10g Cascade - 5mins
10g orange peel - 5mins

So, it's cleared and carbed nicely but first impressions are that it's too bitter. I knew the Europeans didn't use many hops but that felt wrong. Now, I would leave out those Northern Brewer hops and not bother bittering it at all. One the plus side, I can definitely detect the orange peel and the yeast is not overpowering. It may mellow after a while in the cupboard but is not quite the refreshing easy summer drinker I was aiming at.

 

[Duxuk]

Alternatively you could leave the bittering as is and move the Cascade additions to 5 min and flameout. 15 minute hops add some bittering especially if you don't get it cooling quickly.

 

[thehorse]

That's brilliant advice - thank you. It is mellowing a bit in the bottle (or I'm getting used to it). Just not quite as refreshing as those summer ales in France.