First try at wild/sour beer

**HorseHair** · 01-16-2012, 12:38 AM

Ok so im going to try my first wild/sour beer this is my plan and i was wondering what you guys think because i keep reading different things.

Belgian Pilsen 9Lbs.
Flaked wheat 2Lbs.
Carahell 1 Lbs.

sterling .75 Oz 60
styrian goldings .5 Oz 30

yeast Roeselare

Secondary on chard soaked french oak cubes

ill be pitching roeslare but i also have a mason jar with dregs from JP: La roja, Marcaibo especial, oro de calabaza. RR: Supplication and consecration. and 3F oude geuze.

I was thinking about racking to secondary at 1.015 to 1.010 onto the oak for long term.

Ive read that adding more bugs at the beginning makes a much more complex/sour beer so do you think i should add my tasty fridge culture with the roeselare or should I wait and add to secondary since i dont plan on leaving it in primary for too long anyway.

I also plan on adding dregs to secondary as i go as well.

Im open to any suggestions since i dont necessarily know what im doing here.

Thanks

Homebrewtastic · 01-16-2012, 02:01 AM

Most of those dregs will have the same bugs that are in roeselare. Which has some sacc, two bretts a pedio and lacto. That being said the roeselare is a pretty specific blend that's designed to be pitched right fromthe pack and get you a good level of funk/sour. So pitching those dregs could add some other Brett and sacc strains and maybe some acetone. But I think that it being your first go round with the roeselare I'd suggest pitching it strait so you can get a handle on the flavors it adds.

I think a fun experiment would be to do two batches, one with all those dregs and another just with roeselare. Then compare.

Homebrewtastic · 01-16-2012, 05:17 AM

Typing on a kindle fire sucks. That up there should say acetobacter not "acetone".

ryane · 01-16-2012, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Homebrewtastic

. But I think that it being your first go round with the roeselare I'd suggest pitching it strait so you can get a handle on the flavors it adds..

I see no reason not to go with the dregs right away, roeselare on the first pitch tends to be fairly bland, it does become more sour and funky each subsequent batch though. One thing it doesnt have is a ton of complexity, Ive only picked that up by using dregs or Al's blends

and if he limits oxygen exposure to the beer he's unlikely to get acetic acid (aka vinegar)

Homebrewtastic · 01-16-2012, 02:47 PM

I disagree, but to each their own. I found that a long time (18 months) with the roeselare with Raj's wood stave method made pretty interesting and complex flavors.

Like I said,even if he found the roeselare bland he would be able to get a handle on the profile.