berliner weiss recipe
I don't know if i'd want to try the grain method right away, not enough control, and I wouldn't know when it was done getting sour, as I heard it smells like a mash tun left with spent grains in it for 3 days.
I'll try the lab quality bacteria first, then if it turns out good i'll start expirmenting with the grains.
brewchez wrote:
[ I was also thinking about trying a sour mash process too.
Acidulated malt?
thirsty wrote:
brewchez wrote:
[ I was also thinking about trying a sour mash process too.
Acidulated malt?
Nope.
Sour mashing:
Perform a minimash for about 20% of your total mash. After conversion, you'll hold the mash at 100F for about 2-4days. Grain is notoriously covered in Lactobacillius, a lactic acid producer. SO over the few days the mash will sour. Then you go and perform your normal mash procedure the day of the brew. Add in the sour mash before the sparge.
Lactobacillus prefers and oxygen deficient environment, so you'll need to be able to seal up the mash a bit. Pediococcus is also present on grain and it will make a foul smell if there is too much air present. (If you have ever let your spent mash sit overnight for cleaning, that's pedio that you smell).
I have a 2 gallon beverage cooler that I planed to use for the souring step. I was going to wrap it in a towel with my brew belt on it to keep it warm. The longer it sits the more sour!
The advantage to sourmashing is that you kill the bugs during the boil so you sort of lock in the sourness. The disadvantage is competing with pediococcus and holding the minimash temp at 100F for a few days.
I was going to try cultured lacto for my first try, but once the weather is warmer, I'll try the sour mash technique.
I'm thinking that I'd like to give this one a go, but I don't really use wheat too often in my grain bills. What kind of a mash schedule would you reccommend? And I'm going to guess that I'd want to ferment it on the cooler side of things? Like low to mid 60s?
Mortician607 wrote:
I'm thinking that I'd like to give this one a go, but I don't really use wheat too often in my grain bills. What kind of a mash schedule would you reccommend? And I'm going to guess that I'd want to ferment it on the cooler side of things? Like low to mid 60s?
Single infusion around 150F.
I'd ferment it at the normal 65F-68F.
Thanks, I wasn't sure if a protein rest would be a good idea or not.
Well, I brewed this one up on Saturday, and it's fermenting away now. There are definately some interesting odors comming from the primary. In fact, my wife is threatening to make me dump the batch if she picks up on the smells at all. I'm amazed that she hasn't already.
I'm looking foward to getting a taste of it once it's done.
Mortician607 wrote:
Well, I brewed this one up on Saturday, and it's fermenting away now. There are definately some interesting odors comming from the primary. In fact, my wife is threatening to make me dump the batch if she picks up on the smells at all. I'm amazed that she hasn't already.
I'm looking foward to getting a taste of it once it's done.
Fascinating.
Keep up posted as I plan to do this one myself in another month or so.
No problem, I'll keep you posted. Just to let you know, I added the lacto bacillius at the same time I pitched the yeast. I just thought that I'd try to maximize the sourness, and at the very least, I know what this type of infection smells like now.
And I came in a little high on the OG. I cut the pilsner malt down to 4 lbs to match up with my expected efficiency and the 1.032 that you said the recipie was calling for. I figgured it for a 5.5 gal batch, and screwed up when figguring out how much water I would need. So I ended up with 5 gal after the boil, and ended up with an OG of 1.034.
I racked this one into the secondary last night. I took a taste after I grabbed a gravity reading. It definately tastes better than it smelled while fermenting, but I didn't pick up on a lot of sourness/acidity. I'm wondering if giving it slightly longer stay in the sencondary will help with that? I did notice some, but it wasn't quite what I expected, but then it's not carbed yet either so that may help to bring it out. It should be a very nice, light refreshing beer once it's all said and done. I've got a couple of pics of it in the carboy after I finished racking it. I'm in the background, and yes that is a BKB T-shirt that I'm wearing.
