26C Belgian Tripel
Belgian Tripel 26C
In fermenter IBU40Against the style · 26C Belgian Tripel
- EBC 12, style 9 to 14
- IBU 40, style 20 to 40
Grain bill
| Gladfield Pilsner Malt | 6.4 kg | 79.6% |
| Gladfield Wheat Malt | 0.4 kg | 5% |
| Dextrose | 0.84 kg | 10.4% |
| White Sugar | 0.25 kg | 3.1% |
| D45 Candi Syrup | 0.15 kg | 1.9% |
Adjuncts
| Whirlfloc | 1 tablet @ 10 min |
| Yeast Nutrient | 4 g |
| Zinc (crushed supplement tablet) | 1 tablet |
Hop schedule
| Hop | 60 min | 15 min | WP 80°C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simcoe 25 g | 25g | · | · |
| Celeia 70 g | · | 50g | 20g |
| Styrian Goldings 20 g | · | · | 20g |
Yeast
| LalBrew Abbaye | The whole cake from the Orval-style Brett Pale |
Water additions
| Calcium Sulfate (CaSO₄·2H₂O) | 6.5 g |
| Calcium Chloride (CaCl₂·2H₂O) | 2 g |
| Magnesium Sulfate (MgSO₄·7H₂O) | 1 g |
| Lactic Acid (88%) | — |
About This Beer
A lean tripel on the Westmalle pattern: Pilsner malt and plain sugar, a little wheat for the head, and Celeia and Styrian Goldings for a soft continental hop note. 150 g of D45 candi gives it a touch of honey. It is brewed for the 26C category at a competition in April or May 2027.
Brew Day
Thursday 12 November 2026, the same day the Orval-style Brett Pale was racked. Step mash with a 15-minute ferulic acid rest at 44°C, for the clove and pepper that Abbaye can make from it. Then 75 minutes at 64°C for a dry finish, 10 at 72°C and mash out at 76°C. Seventy-five minute boil, with the sugars and Whirlfloc in at ten minutes.
Yeast nutrient and zinc dissolved in a cup of boiling wort pulled at the end of the boil, cooled through the whirlpool and into the fermenter with the wort.
Fermentation
23 litres of wort in at 22°C, straight onto the whole Abbaye cake left by the Orval in the All Rounder, then down to 18°C in the fermentation fridge. The two or three litres of yeast and beer at the bottom make about 25.5 to 26 litres in the fermenter, and they bring the starting gravity down a few points. The original gravity gets settled at the end.
The plan is two days at 18°C, then a degree a day up to 24°C, where the spice comes up. Then a diacetyl rest, four weeks at 12°C, and cold.