Mugwort stout

[Cestrian]

I am planning on making a brew with mugwort today. I have grown this plant from seed and it is about 3 foot tall. It looks like it is about to flower so I guess I better get a brew on. Really struggled to find any recipes online, so no idea how much to use. If anyone has any experience with this please let me know.

 

[Cestrian]

 

[dmtaylor]

I have used dried mugwort several times. Based on much research, I've used 200 to 750 mg/L (0.2 to 0.75 g/L), added with 30 minutes remaining in the boil. Based on experience, on future batches I would aim for the lower end, perhaps 250-500 mg/L, as it will definitely be noticeable at that level without being too overpowering.

Those amounts above are for the dried herb. If used fresh, you should be able to use 3 to 4 times as much, since most of it is water weight.

With any herb, be careful, because in every case... a little goes a long way. You will absolutely be able to easily grow hundreds or thousands of times as much as you'll need for any batch.

 

[Cestrian]

That’s great! Thanks Dave! Did you also use hops at the start of the boil or just bitter with mugwort?

 

[Cestrian]

And are the Litres finished or pre boil. I’m assuming finished. So for a 23L batch I should be using 5-17g of dried or 20-70g of fresh.

 

[Cestrian]

Decided to aim for the bottom of the range

 

[Cestrian]

 

[Cestrian]

The recipe

2kg lager malt
2kg vienna
1kg munich
300g special b
320g carafa1
250g caramunich 1

22g mugwort

 

[Jim Brewster]

I've used dried mugwort in the mash then added hops as usual, seemed to work fine.
Reason I didn't use them alone is I'm not that keen on the taste of mugwort tea

 

[Cestrian]

I've used dried mugwort in the mash then added hops as usual, seemed to work fine.
Reason I didn't use them alone is I'm not that keen on the taste of mugwort tea

I was tempted to throw some hops in too, but decided against it. ill let you know how it turns out.

 

[user 47630]

The recipe

2kg lager malt
2kg vienna
1kg munich
300g special b
320g carafa1
250g caramunich 1

22g mugwort

If you are interested in old beer and ale recipes, many with no hops but with other bittering herbs such as Mugwort, I recommend 'Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers' by Stephen Harrod Buhner. A fascinating read with lots of ancient and modern recipes. I have just started brewing beers (and ales) and my second brew is Wormwood and Nettle, Wormwood is another Artemisia, like Mugwort, but seriously bitter. I enjoy beers with Hops but they have Phytoestrogens and are soporific, and although fine in moderation (lol) I prefer my beverages to be more enlivening with no risk of brewers droop or man boobs. I used 15g of Wormwood for 20L so 22g of fresh Mugwort seems quite low for bittering,I look forward to hearing how your brew turns out.

 

[dmtaylor]

Looks good! I find this interesting, using fresh rather than dried. I wonder how this will turn out, because I wonder if the fresh stuff might add any green-grassy flavors, or just the good fresh essences of the herb.

To answer your previous questions: I have not hopped my gruit ales (mugwort plus other things like sweet gale and yarrow). And the volume I specified was the post-boil volume, so you assumed correctly. (My phone was not connecting properly yesterday so I was not able to view this thread to followup sooner!)

I hope you end up with a delicious result! Please report back when it is finished, I am very interested to hear the results.

 

[dmtaylor]

I used 15g of Wormwood for 20L

OMG, do NOT try this at home. I know many people who have, and the result is undrinkable for most people. Wormwood does not belong in beer, or in any other food or beverage for that matter, in any amount.

 

[user 47630]

OMG, do NOT try this at home. I know many people who have, and the result is undrinkable for most people. Wormwood does not belong in beer, or in any other food or beverage for that matter, in any amount.

I am looking forward to using Bog Myrtle and Yarrow ASAP, just need the local yarrow to get a bit bigger and the Wormwood tastes fine, almost citrussy with a very different quality of bitterness to hops. There is a long history of WW being used in ales from the Middle Ages on, Shakespeare and Dickens mention it under the name Purl, you just need to have a light hand.

 

[Cestrian]

Looks good! I find this interesting, using fresh rather than dried. I wonder how this will turn out, because I wonder if the fresh stuff might add any green-grassy flavors, or just the good fresh essences of the herb.

To answer your previous questions: I have not hopped my gruit ales (mugwort plus other things like sweet gale and yarrow). And the volume I specified was the post-boil volume, so you assumed correctly. (My phone was not connecting properly yesterday so I was not able to view this thread to followup sooner!)

I hope you end up with a delicious result! Please report back when it is finished, I am very interested to hear the results.

Fingers crossed. I’ll report back in a couple of weeks.

 

[Cestrian]

I’ve not looked into gruit ales much realily. What do yarrow, bog myrtle and sweet gale bring to the brew? Are they for bittering at the start of the boil too or are some of them for late additions?

 

[dmtaylor]

I’ve not looked into gruit ales much realily. What do yarrow, bog myrtle and sweet gale bring to the brew? Are they for bittering at the start of the boil too or are some of them for late additions?

Herbs may be boiled for 30 minutes for their bitterness and will add plenty of flavor as well boiled for this amount of time, but of course you can add at flameout or “dry herb” with them also, if you want a fresher herbal character with minimal bitterness. None of these are anywhere near as bitter as hops, or wormwood(!).

Yarrow is mildly floral, mildly bitter, and mildly tart. Use it in smaller amounts than regular hops, approximately 1/5 to 1/4 as much as you would use hops (amount assumes it is dried).

Bog myrtle = sweet gale, these are two names for the same thing. I really enjoy the herbal character from this, I would describe it along the lines of “Halls cough drops” with menthol and eucalyptus. It is somewhat minty and just a unique flavorful herb. This herb is not particularly bitter or tart, but just pleasant... perhaps a slight bitterness. You can safely use this one in about the same amounts as hops, in a range of perhaps 50%-100% as the amount of hops you would use for a regular batch of beer, I usually go with 100%, or something like 30-60 grams (dried) for 19-23 L is just fine. Again, I will usually just boil this for 30 minutes, though you could boil more or less or add at flameout or "dry herb" with it, in the same manner as hops really.

 

[An Ankoù]

OMG, do NOT try this at home. I know many people who have, and the result is undrinkable for most people. Wormwood does not belong in beer, or in any other food or beverage for that matter, in any amount.

Really? Not even in absinthe?
Or vermouth, for that matter.

 

[dmtaylor]

Really? Not even in absinthe?
Or vermouth, for that matter.

I guess it can be used by those who know what they are doing.

Most homebrewers do not know what they are doing, when it comes to wormwood.

 

[Jim Brewster]

Wormwood is extremely bitter,
Also a very effective appetite stimulant

Mugwort stimulates vivid dreams, quite enjoyable