Wyeast 3278 and 5526, oh, and malted wheat
 

Ok - so I have a couple of questions prior to my Lambic brew day.

I am looking to do a pretty simple recipe, 60%pils / 40% wheat.

Here is what I need more info on:

• I have a sack of malted white wheat and a 5 gallon bucket of hard red wheat that my wife uses to make whole wheat breaad. Is unmalted wheat necessary?
• Everyone keeps saying to throw all the bugs you have into a lambic. Is this because there is just not a knowledge of what each do and when they should be added? Along these lines, I have Wyeast 3278 and 5526. Should i pitch both or just stick with the 3278 only? I am also thinking of doing 5 gallons of each. Thoughts?
• As I am doing 10 gallons and do not have a starter, should I throw some Saach in as well? I have S-04 or nottty that I could add first.
• I am planning to do a turbid mash. Is this really necessary?

Thanks for your input.

I recently brewed lambic with Dave and Becky Pyle who won the NHC Brewer of the Year title with their lambic a few years back. They do a single infusion with malted wheat and have good results. Here is a post with more details: http://www.themadfermentationist.com/2012/04/brewing-lambic-mythbusters-style.html

Real lambics do not have staggered pitching schedules, so I think it is easier (and I have better results) to just pitch everything at the start. I think a healthy starter/culture of brewer's yeast is a good idea for any starter. SOme dregs from a couple bottles of your favorite gueuze wouldn't be a bad idea either.

Good luck!