I brewed a 1.038 dark mild a month and a half ago, had mash issues (too hot) and ended up with a 1.018 FG. It doesn't work as session mild and rather than dumping it was thinking of pitching some Wyeast Roeselare in and see what it does. It has a low IBU so it should be decent. Has anyone tried to sour bad batches? Does it ever turn out good? Can I just leave it in the keg? The keg would be forever dedicated to bugs but will it work in a keg? I like the idea of being able to easily pull a sample off to see how it is progressing. Is that a bad idea (like disturbing the pellicle)?
Your first sour should not be a bad beer. It is a journey and do you want to start the journey with a broken wheel?
But give it a try if you have tons of spare kegs. You can pull a sample at any time, just be kind to the pedicle. This will intro o2, which is not a super horrible thing in small amounts. I sour in kegs by closing all ports except the gas in. Over the screw I throw on a small stopper, think a number 2, and insert a single piece airlock.
The beer is fine except thick and sub 3% alcohol. You put an airlock on the keg? Will it not work under pressure. I was thinking of just venting the CO2 from the keg, dumping in the smack pack and sealing it back up. If i wanted to sample it, I would just reattach the C02 and faucet and poor a sample - no O2 would be introduced at all. Am I missing something?
go for it, its much better than dumping. using roesalare would be fine, but you could also just use sour dregs. at least then you get something to drink
Nobody ever follows up on their old threads so here goes...I ended up running a gallon of the failed mild into a cider jug and adding the roeselare last christmas. It formed a nasty pellicle for about 7 or 8 months that dropped out about a month ago and I started drinking this weekend. Its EXACTLY what I had hoped for. Its still very light and drinkable with a lot of cherry pie. I could drink this every day. I just wish I had more than a gallon of it. I immediately refilled the cider jug with another mild I had on tap but now I'm thinking I might just try to sour the whole keg.
souring in a keg?
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