Honeysuckle

[28paws]

I've gotten the urge to brew a honeysuckle beer and was wondering if anyone here has tried it? I'm thinking that I will just pick two or three gallons of the flowers and add them in the last 15 minutes of the boil, but I also could make an extract using vodka. http://www.ehow.com/how_5721137_make-honeysuckle-extract.html
I really don't want to add vodka to my brew though so I am leaning toward adding them to the boil.
Do you guys think this would work or am I going to get more grassy taste? The amount of sweet nectar in the flowers is very little compared to the flowers themselves.
Thanks for your support.

cheers

[dmtaylor]

I think this is a very interesting idea! I would dry the flowers first. Just let them sit on a tray for a week or two to give them time to wilt down and dry out. Then soak them in vodka for a day or two or longer, and finally, add the "flavored" vodka to taste on bottling/kegging day. I'm no expert but my guess is that 2 or 3 gallons of flowers would be WAY too much. I mean, you wouldn't want to add that much vodka to your beer anyway. I'd go with a few handfuls in a couple ounces of vodka, and see how that turns out. Not saying my way is the right way, but just opining out loud.

[Rictanica]

Great idea!

Just a thought... I have a large honeysuckle vine outside my bedroom window and that thing really smells good, early in the morning. I would wait to harvest until it is releasing its essential oils. The humming birds really dig that vine in the morning.

[28paws]

Cool! I wouldn't have thought to dry them first. I guess I am going to have to try a couple of ideas and see which one has the most flavor. I wonder if the vodka idea would be a strong enough flavor to carry over after being diluted in five gallons of wort? Perhaps, so I'll try it as well as making a tea for a taste test.
I went out to pick some today and realized what a chore it is to pick a gallon so hopefully less is more.

[28paws]

So I made honeysucke tea. It's really good as tea but I'm not sure if it's the right thing for beer.
I'm going to try it anyway so I will report back when it's done.

Cheers!