Funkwerks, Inc., is a small, saison-focused brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado. It was named Small Brewery of the Year at the 2012 Great American Beer Festival. Its signature Saison took gold at the same event after having won silver the year before. If you’re lucky enough to live in one of the few states in which Funkwerks’ beers are distributed, you already know just how good Tropic King imperial saison is. Cofounder and Co-owner Gordon Schuck was kind enough to provide us a homebrew-sized recipe.
ALL-GRAIN
OG: 1.064
FG: 1.005
IBUs: 30
ABV: 8%
MALT/GRAIN BILL
10.125 lb (4.59 kg) Pale Malt 2L
2.125 lb (964 g) Munich 10L
10 oz (284 g) Wheat malt
6 oz (170 g) Carapils
HOPS SCHEDULE
0.5 oz (14 g) Rakau at 60 minutes
0.5 oz (14 g) Rakau at 10 minutes
0.67 oz (19 g) Opal at 0 minutes
0.67 oz (19 g) Rakau at dry-hop
DIRECTIONS
Single infusion mash at 150°F (66°C) for 75 minutes. Boil for 60 minutes following the hops schedule.
YEAST
Wyeast 3711 French Saison
BREWER’S NOTES
Pitch the yeast at 65°F (18°C) and ramp up the temperature to 75°F (24°C) over 48 hours. The brewery says, “Bursting with aromas of passion fruit, mango, and peach, our imperial saison is brewed using New Zealand Rakau hops. Combined with notes of pepper and ginger produced by our house yeast strain, Tropic King has a unique flavor that has gained it a loyal following. Serve at 50°F (10°C) in a tulip glass.” Gordon adds, “We account for whirlpool isomerization at the brewery, so homebrewers may want to increase the 60-minute bittering addition.”
Recipe is built to yield a batch size of 5 gallons and assumes 72% brewhouse efficiency.