Pumpkin Ale

Cook the pumpkin - Using fresh pumpkin, cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the insides. Slice the pumpkin into 1 ½ to 2 inch slices. Carve off the skins with a paring knife and arrange on two baking sheets sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 350F (325 convection) for one hour or until fork tender.

Empty contents of pumpkin and grain each into two grain bags (4 total). Steep the grains and pumpkin together in 1.5 gallons of water at 155° for 55 minutes.

Remove grains and pumpkin. Place in a strainer, and sparge with 5 quarts of water at approximately 170°, gathering a total of 2 gallons sweet wort.

Add malt extract and brown sugar. Bring to boil.

Add 1oz Mt. Hood hops. Boil for 55 minutes.

Add Irish Moss 15 mins before the end of the boil.

Add spices loose and boil just long enough to mix them in the wort (about 2-3 minutes)

Turn off heat and cool rapidly to below 80F.

Combine wort with water to make five gallons. There is no need to strain.

Pitch yeast when wort temperature is between 70-80°.

If using one step fermentation, allow it to sit in the fermenter at 68-72°. After about 3 to 4 days, taste a sample and add remaining spices to taste. At about seven days, use a sanitized hydrometer to ensure that the beer has reached its final gravity. If using two step fermentation, rack to a secondary fermenter (carboy) after 5 days and allow it to sit for another 10-14 days before bottling.

Prime and bottle. When priming, dissolve corn sugar or dry malt extract in two pints of boiling water for 5 minutes. Pour this mixture into the empty bottling bucket and siphon the beer from the fermenter over it. This method ensures that the priming sugar will disperse evenly through your beer.

For proper carbonation, store your beer at 75° for at least the first week after bottling. This will allow the yeast to feed on the priming sugar and produce the necessary carbon dioxide needed for carbonation. It’s ready to drink, but it will improve if you age your beer another two to three weeks.