First Sour Beer

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Message pellegjr beers 396 º places 16 º 17:13 Mon 7/21/2014 I’m planning on trying my first sour beer sometime in the next few weeks. Any suggestions on style/recipe? I have done a few sour ciders that have turned out reasonably well, but those have pretty much simply been tossing mixed dregs into a standard cider.
Message bitbucket beers 2166 º places 63 º 18:59 Mon 7/21/2014 The first sour I brewed was a Flanders Red. Came out pretty good. I did a ton of research before I started. Lots of good info/recipes here.
Message konstifik beers 573 º places 37 º 01:08 Tue 7/22/2014 Sour mashing could be an idea, then you won’t have to deal with bugs post-boil. I would start in that end if I was to brew a sour.
Message joeneugs beers 6372 º places 240 º 08:07 Tue 7/22/2014 Originally posted by bitbucket The first sour I brewed was a Flanders Red. Came out pretty good. I did a ton of research before I started. Lots of good info/recipes here. I’ll second checking out the mad fermentationist blog. Lots of great experiments with sours on there. The author just released a book on American sours called American sour beers. You may want to check that one out too, although I haven’t read it yet myself.

Message pellegjr beers 396 º places 16 º 12:12 Tue 7/22/2014 Good stuff thanks guys! I’ve followed OldSock’s blog for awhile now and am psyched to check out his book. Right now I’m leaning towards a Flanders Red or a Brett Pale Ale. Any recipe suggestions?
Message CLevar places 23 º 12:18 Tue 7/22/2014 Originally posted by pellegjr Good stuff thanks guys! I’ve followed OldSock’s blog for awhile now and am psyched to check out his book. Right now I’m leaning towards a Flanders Red or a Brett Pale Ale. Any recipe suggestions? A Brett pale ale is a great place to start playing with other organisms, but don’t expect it to be sour! Unless well oxygenated throughout, you won’t get much/any acid production. In addition, the acid that is produced is acetic acid...which isn’t so nice IMO. With that said, a grain bill of mostly pale (MO or domestic 2-row) with some dextrin malt and a touch of caramel malt to 1.045 or so makes a really nice beer. Hop to ~40 IBU with something like nugget @60, add a few oz of motueka at 5, a few oz at 0, and pitch 1400ml of a starter (limited aeration) at 65 deg F or so. Ferment a week, dry hop in the primary, and keg after another week. I like to add hops to the keg as well, but it isn’t necessary.
Message HornyDevil 04:07 Wed 7/23/2014 Originally posted by pellegjr Good stuff thanks guys! I’ve followed OldSock’s blog for awhile now and am psyched to check out his book. Right now I’m leaning towards a Flanders Red or a Brett Pale Ale. Any recipe suggestions? If you’re going to do a Brett Pale Ale, feel free to use the dregs of the one that I’m sending you. It has three species in it, so if you like its character, make it happen. Mostly agree with what CLevar says, but I like my grainbill to be simple. Just Pils and oats or wheat. Hops are up to you, but I find that low cohumulone varietals tend to complement the Brett much better than abrasive high cohumulone ones. Maybe Magnum to bitter with some tropical fruity varietals to knock out? If you end up with the Flanders Red, I really can’t help you there, as I don’t prefer acetic acid in the sour beers that I brew. If you’re looking for a reddish beer with a cleaner lactic profile and some Brett influence, however, then we can talk.
Message bitbucket beers 2166 º places 63 º 18:33 Wed 7/23/2014 Originally posted by konstifik Sour mashing could be an idea, then you won’t have to deal with bugs post-boil. I would start in that end if I was to brew a sour. The first time I brewed a Flanders Red I fermented with 1056, then added Roeselare Blend. Took for-friggin-ever to sour up. The second time I brewed a Flanders Red I used a sour mash to help me brew a "Quick Flanders." The problem (as I understand it) is that the alcohol from the ferment inhibits the lacto growth (and related acid production). So, the second time around I took a couple of pounds of Pilsner malt, sour mashed it for four days, then tossed it into the end of the ’regular’ mash because I didn’t want to mess up the pH. Giving the lactobacillus a head start makes a big difference.

Message HornyDevil 03:24 Thu 7/24/2014 Originally posted by bitbucket The second time I brewed a Flanders Red I used a sour mash to help me brew a "Quick Flanders." The problem (as I understand it) is that the alcohol from the ferment inhibits the lacto growth (and related acid production). So, the second time around I took a couple of pounds of Pilsner malt, sour mashed it for four days, then tossed it into the end of the ’regular’ mash because I didn’t want to mess up the pH. Yes and no. It depends on the species of lactobacillus, as some are more IBU and alcohol tolerant than others. However, generally speaking, you’re right. Originally posted by bitbucket Giving the lactobacillus a head start makes a big difference. Agreed.

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