Med Bag of Chips

Ham, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, and arugula.

Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, and mustard in a whole wheat wrap.

Fit Turkey Wrap

A wheat beer brewed with Louisiana strawberries. Light & crisp (ABV 4.2%)

Heat 4.5 gallons of strike water to achieve a mash temperature of 152°F (67°C). Add the crushed Pilsner malt, wheat malt, flaked wheat, and Carapils. Stir thoroughly to eliminate dough balls and stabilize temperature.

Mash-in

Hold the mash at 152°F (67°C) for 60 minutes. This temperature yields a light-bodied, moderately fermentable wort appropriate for a crisp wheat lager/ale hybrid.

After the mash rests, perform a mash-out by raising temperature to 168°F (76°C) and hold for 10 minutes, then begin lautering and sparging with enough 170°F (77°C) water to collect ~6.5 gallons of pre-boil wort.

Bring the collected wort to a rolling boil. Once boiling, add 0.5 oz Saaz hops and begin a 60-minute boil timer.

With 10 minutes remaining in the boil, add 0.25 oz Hallertauer (or Saaz) hops for light flavor/aroma. Also add 1 tsp yeast nutrient at this time.

Cool the wort quickly after the 60-minute boil to yeast-pitching temperature (around 65°F/18°C for lagering or 68°F/20°C if using ale yeast for a hybrid). Use a wort chiller to shorten time and minimize oxidation.

While the wort is cooling, prepare the strawberries. Hull and quarter fresh strawberries. If sanitation is a concern, lightly puree the strawberries, then add one crushed Campden tablet per 5 lbs fruit (optional) and wait 24 hours before adding to primary to reduce wild yeast/bacteria. Alternatively, pasteurize the fruit by heating to 160°F (71°C) for 10 minutes and cooling quickly before adding.

For primary fermentation addition: Place the 3 lbs hulled, quartered (or lightly pureed) strawberries into a sanitized mesh bag or sanitized food-grade bucket. If you want stronger fruit character, add the optional 16 oz strawberry puree in addition to fresh fruit.

Add the prepared fruit directly to the fermenter within 12–24 hours after pitching yeast (see next section). Adding fruit early encourages fermentation to incorporate strawberry sugars and preserves bright strawberry aromatics when done moderately (do not exceed recommended fruit to avoid over-fermentation or off-flavors).

Aerate the cooled wort well (oxygenate for a lager strain if you plan to ferment cool). Transfer wort to a sanitized fermenter, leaving behind large trub.

Pitch the wheat ale/lager yeast package at the recommended cell count for a 5 gallon batch. Target fermentation temperatures: 52–55°F (11–13°C) for a true lager yeast with diacetyl rest later, or 64–68°F (18–20°C) for a wheat ale yeast for a quicker, fruit-forward result. If lagering, ferment cold for 1–2 weeks, perform a diacetyl rest at 60–65°F (15–18°C) for 48 hours, then slowly lager at 34–40°F (1–4°C) for 2–4 weeks.

Within 12–24 hours after pitching (or after 3–4 days if you prefer a reduced fermentation-driven extraction), add the prepared strawberries to the primary fermenter. If you used Campden tablets, ensure the 24-hour wait before adding yeast or vice versa per chosen sanitation method.

Allow primary fermentation to continue for 7–14 days or until activity subsides and final gravity approaches expected level (~1.010–1.012 for a 4.2% ABV target). Rack off fruit/trub to a secondary fermenter if desired for clarification, or leave in primary if planning to condition and lager.

If racked to secondary, cold-condition the beer for 7–14 days to let particulates drop and strawberry character integrate. For a lager process, continue extended cold conditioning as noted above.

When ready to package, measure final gravity. For bottling, dissolve 3.5 oz (100 g) corn sugar in 1 cup boiling water, cool, and gently mix into the sanitized bottling bucket. Avoid introducing oxygen. Fill and cap bottles; condition at 68°F (20°C) for 10–14 days, then chill before serving.

For kegging, carbonate to ~2.5 volumes CO2 and serve cold. Best served bright, light, and crisp in a pilsner or tulip glass.

Expected flavor: light wheat body, mild noble hop bitterness, bright strawberry aroma and subtle fruit sweetness, finishing crisp and dry at approximately 4.2% ABV.

Pilsner malt (2-row pale can be substituted)

Wheat malt (heavily used for wheat-forward character)

Wheat flaked (for body and haze)

Carapils/Dextrine (for head retention)

Saaz hops (bittering)

Hallertauer or Saaz (flavor/aroma / late addition)

Fresh Louisiana strawberries, hulled and quartered

Strawberry puree (optional to supplement fresh fruit)

Wheat ale yeast (e.g., Wyeast 1010, White Labs WLP400, or any clean wheat strain)

Yeast nutrient

Brewing water (adjusted to moderate sulfate/chloride balance)

Corn sugar (for bottling priming)

Campden tablet (optional, to sanitize fruit)

Strawberry Harvest Lager - Abita Brewing Company, LA

Make Strawberry Harvest Lager - Abita Brewing Company, LA Recipe in just 336h . A wheat beer brewed with Louisiana strawberries. Light & crisp (ABV 4.2%)

Strawberry Harvest Lager - Abita Brewing Company, LA

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