Spiced Honey Beer is a specialty fruit that homebrewers reach for when they want a project worth the extra attention. This version keeps the grain bill built around Pale malt, and leans on Hallertauer Hersbrucker 4.1% to shape the finish.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Spiced Honey Beer |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.044-1.058 |
| Final Gravity | 1.008-1.014 |
| ABV | 4.5-6.0% |
| IBU | 10-25 |
| SRM | 4-12 (varies with the fruit/spice) |
| Difficulty | Intermediate |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Pale malt, at a steady temperature to build the fermentable sugars this style needs. Sparge slowly so you do not lose efficiency. |
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2
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Boil · ~60-90 min Bring the wort to a boil and work through the hop schedule, starting with Hallertauer Hersbrucker 4.1%. This is also where you will add any fining agent for a clearer finished beer. |
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3
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Ferment · 24C (75F) Pitch Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen once the wort has cooled to fermentation temperature and hold it steady. Primary fermentation is the most active week, do not rush it. |
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4
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Condition · 3 weeks at 12C (54F) Rack to secondary (or leave in primary if your recipe calls for it) and let the beer round out at a cool, steady temperature. This step does more for the final flavor than people expect. |
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5
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Package · 1 day, then wait Bottle or keg once gravity has held steady for a few days in a row. Give it time to carbonate and, for bigger styles, additional time to mellow before your first taste. |
That’s the shape of brew day and the weeks after it. For the exact grain bill, hop schedule, and full step-by-step instructions with amounts, use the recipe card below.
What You Will Need
Sourcing your own ingredients locally is always fine, but if you want to skip a homebrew store trip, here is what’s in stock in our shop right now:
- Base and specialty grain: Grains & Adjuncts (e.g. Briess BJ-5U8M-8RRM Chocolate Malt 1 lb., Brown)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Magnum Hop Pellets 1 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. Safbrew T-58 (3 Count 11.5 g Packs))
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. FASTFERMENT Floor Stand for FastFerment 7.9 Gallon Conical Fermenter)
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Mr Beer Homebrewing Carbonation Drops)
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. Monster Brew Home Brewing Supplies Home Brew Ohio Complete Beer Equi)
- Pour it right when it’s ready: a tulip glass shows off the color and holds the aroma better than a straight pint glass
Serve It Right
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A Spiced Honey Beer is best served in a tulip or pint, it fits the body and carbonation of this style better than a straight pint glass. Here is one from our shop: |
Ingredients & Gear for This Batch
Grain / Adjuncts |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter |
Priming Sugar |
Equipment |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Spiced Honey Beer
Equipment
- 1 Mash tun
- 1 Brewing kettle
- 1 Fermenter (e.g. glass carboy or plastic bucket)
- 1 Airlock and stopper
- 1 Immersion Wort Chiller or Counterflow Chiller
- 1 Brewing spoon or paddle
- 1 Brewing thermometer
- 1 Hydrometer or refractometer
- 1 Brewing scale
- 1 Auto-siphon or racking cane
- 1 Tubing and Clamps
- 1 Bottling Bucket or Keg
- 1 Bottles or kegs for packaging
- 1 Bottle capper or kegging system
- 1 Sanitizing solution or cleaner
- 1 Brew-in-a-Bag (BIAB) or Mesh Bag (for mashing)
- 1 Grain Mill or Milling Service (if crushing grains)
- 1 Brewing Burner or Stovetop (for boiling)
- 1 pH Test Strips or pH Meter (optional)
- 1 Brewing software or calculator (optional)
Ingredients
For the Mash – Liquor 11 Litres (19½ Pints) – Mash Time 1 hr – Temperature 65°c/149 °F
- 9.11 lb Pale malt Quantity 4.4kg
For the Boil – 27 Litres (47½ Pints) – Boil Time 1 hr – 10 mins
- ¾ oz (Hops) Hallertauer Hersbrucker 4.1% When to add – At start of boil (IBU 10.6)
- ¼ oz (Hops) Hallertauer Hersbrucker 4.1% When to add – For last 5 mins of boil (IBU 0.9)
- ¼ oz (Hops) Hallertauer Hersbrucker 4.1% When to add – For last 1 mins of boil (IBU 0.1)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other – When to add – For last 15 mins of boil
- 1¼ oz Coriander seeds, crushed Other – When to add – For last 10 mins of boil
- ½ oz Curaçao bitter orange peel Other – When to add – For last 10 mins of boil
- 1.2 oz Honey Other – When to add – For last 10 mins of boil
To Ferment – 24°C (75°F) – Conditioning 3 weeks at 12°C (54°F)
- 1 Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen
Instructions
Mash Preparation:
- Heat 11 liters (19½ pints) of water to a temperature of 65°C (149°F).
- Add 9.11 lb (4.4kg) of pale malt to the water.
- Stir the mixture well and let it rest for 1 hour.
Boiling
- In a separate pot, bring 27 liters (47½ pints) of water to a boil.
- Once boiling, add ¾ oz of Hallertauer Hersbrucker hops and let them boil for the entire duration (IBU 10.6).
- After 55 minutes, add ¼ oz of Hallertauer Hersbrucker hops and boil for the last 5 minutes (IBU 0.9).
- In the final minute, add another ¼ oz of Hallertauer Hersbrucker hops (IBU 0.1).
- Add 1 Protofloc tablet to the pot during the last 15 minutes of the boil.
- Crush 1¼ oz of coriander seeds and add them to the pot for the last 10 minutes of the boil.
- Also, add ½ oz of Curaçao bitter orange peel and 1.2 oz of honey to the pot for the last 10 minutes of the boil.
Cooling and Fermentation:
- Once the boil is complete, cool the mixture as quickly as possible to a temperature of 24°C (75°F).
- Transfer the cooled mixture to a fermenter and add the Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen yeast.
- Seal the fermenter with an airlock and let the beer ferment at a temperature of 24°C (75°F) for approximately 4 weeks.
Conditioning:
- After fermentation, transfer the beer to another container or bottles for conditioning.
- Condition the beer at a temperature of 12°C (54°F) for 3 weeks.
- This will allow the flavors to develop and the beer to carbonate.
Enjoy:
- After the conditioning period, your Spiced Honey Beer is ready to drink!
- Pour it into a glass, sit back, and savor the unique and refreshing flavors of this homemade brew.
Get the fermentation temperature right on Spiced Honey Beer and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Spiced Honey Beer the Style It Is
Like most classic beer styles, Spiced Honey Beer has a long, slightly tangled history behind it, shaped as much by regional brewing traditions as by any single inventor.
The character of this beer comes down to a beer that leans on pale malt and hallertauer hersbrucker 4.1%, and Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen is doing more of that work than the grain bill gets credit for.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 4.5-6.0%
- Bitterness: 10-25 IBU
- Color: 4-12 (varies with the fruit/spice)
- Serving temp: 45-50F (7-10C)
- Glassware: a tulip or pint
- Food pairings: light desserts, soft cheese, fruit salads
Common Questions
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes, the grain bill and hop schedule scale linearly with batch size. Just make sure your equipment, mash tun and boil kettle both, can actually handle the volume you are scaling to.
What is the biggest mistake homebrewers make with this style?
Rushing the schedule. Pulling a beer off yeast too early or skipping conditioning time is the most common way to shortchange a recipe like this one.
Can I substitute a different yeast strain?
You can, but expect the flavor profile to shift. Stick close to the same yeast family (English ale, American ale, Belgian, lager, etc.) if you want a result close to what this recipe is aiming for.
Keep Exploring
Once you have this one down, here are a few more homebrew recipes worth trying next:
Browse the full homebrew recipe collection for more styles, or if you are just getting into the hobby, start with one of our homebrewing starter kits for new brewers.
This recipe is for adults of legal drinking age. Please brew and drink responsibly, and always sanitize your equipment thoroughly to avoid infection.
