Need lots of help

I have been brewing beer seriously for the last year and I am now wanting to venture into the unknown, that being sours. I brew all-grain beer so I have a set-up to mash in. I am looking to do 10 gallons of lambic, hell I spent $37 or so on Yeast. I guess I could be convinced to use some of the yeasts in different batches, as I am open to experimenting with the sours. I recently purchased Brett Brux Wyeast 5112, Brett Lambicus Wyeast 5526, Lactobacillus Wyeast 5335, & Pediococcus Wyeast 5733.

I have read the Wild Brews book and while I learned a lot of history of Wild Brewing I didn't learn the way to do it. My LHBS has little or no experience that they can offer in the venture.

I believe that I have the patience to let the beer develop and age over time. I think that in the end I will want to fruit some of the beer. I have some carboys and better bottles, but no wine barrel at this time (economy sucks).

What I am looking for is for someone to help put a recipe together and to either point me to a webpage or to spell out exactly what to do on brew day. I am looking to get this project underway in the next 2 weeks. Please help me make some good sour beer!

Are you wanting to do a turbid mash, decoction mash, or step-infusion? I personally prefer to do a step-infusion since it's easier and I haven't noticed a huge difference in the final beer, but that's up to you. I do a step mash of 122-140-158 and then sparge about 5 degrees above 170F.

Here's a good website on mash techniques. http://bergsman.org/jeremy/lambic/making.html

As for a recipe, I use 70/30 Belgian Pils/Wheat. Some people add crystal, but I prefer not to. I add enough saaz or hallertau (which ever is handy) hops at the start of boil to not go over 10 IBUs. You'll want to use aged hops or let some fresh hops sit out for a few weeks.

I then boil for 2-2.5 hours and allow the beer to cool overnight before adding yeast. I usually use the Wyeast Lambic Blend since it's an "all-in-one" pack and I don't have to worry about multiple yeast additions.

The brewing of the beer isn't much different than normal beers other than the longer boil and the increased sparge temps. It's really all about what you do AFTER brewday that makes a lambic unique.

I was planning to do a turbid mash, but I could be convinced by others that it might not be necessary. I was hoping some other folks would chime in and help me out. I didn't buy the Lambic Blend, I bought the 4 individual packs. I don't want to see them go to waste.

Anybody else want to step-up with some helpful advice?

Can somebody provide me with a good recipe for 10 gallons of Lambic. Should I use all 4 packs of yeast? If I don't need to use all 4, which ones should I not use and what can I use that one for?

I'll whip up a recipe when I'm at my home computer, but I can help with the yeast issue now.

You'll need a good primary yeast to do a bulk of the fermentation. This should be something neutral, so I usually use US05 or 1056. Either will work. After about two weeks, you can add your wyeast lacto. I prefer to wait a few months to add the brett, but it's totally up to you. I'd say after two months, add the brett. I prefer the 5526 over the 5112. There's no need for both. As for the pedio... I prefer not to use it. So, you'll need 2 of the 4 yeasts you picked out, and additional neutral strain.

Spend some time and read some good blogs about sour beers. Just search "lambic" on each for specific info. Here are a couple:
http://www.themadfermentationist.com
http://ryanbrews.blogspot.com
They are both HBT members if you have more questions.

Almighty said:

Spend some time and read some good blogs about sour beers. Just search "lambic" on each for specific info. Here are a couple:
http://www.themadfermentationist.com
http://ryanbrews.blogspot.com
They are both HBT members if you have more questions.

Click to expand...

oldsock and ryan have some great tips on sour beers.
They are who i go too for my info.

I agree that mad fermentationist's blog has a ton of useful info. It can be a little tricky to find it amongst the tasting notes and whatnot, but those can also be really helpful in letting you see what results he got from what methods.

Ryan's I haven't really read that much.