cimirie
Well-Known Member
So, I'm prepping to do a sour mash fruit beer in about a month (I've got the hops drying as we speak) and I'm a bit conflicted about sour mash technique. This will be my first attempt and I'm trying to maximize my efficiency. Here are the two techniques I'm kicking around for my sour mash...
#1 - Mash recipe as per normal. Sparge as per normal. Collect in boil pot, cool to 120* and add 2 lbs pale malt. Cover pot and insulate with sleeping bag for 15-18 hours. Boil as per normal.
#2 - Mini mash 1 lbs pale malt. Sparge and collect - allow to cool to 120. Add 1 pound pale malt. Insulate well and let sit 15-18 hours. Add to boil pot with wort from rest of grain bill.
What I know about sour mashing can fit into the palm of my hand, but it seems to me as if the first technique would allow the whole wort to sour. The advantage to the second technique is that I don't have a full batch of wort sitting around for a day and I can sour ahead of time - in essence, it saves me time (as I brew off site and could sour the mash at home so I wouldn't have to make two trips).
Does anybody know if there would be an appreciable difference in taste between the two techiques? If I decide to go with the second technique, I could put the entire sour mash in with the rest of the mash and that might in turn sour the entire thing. But would that run the risk of infecting my MLT with bugs?
As you can see, I've got alot of questions. Anybody who can tackle them, I'd appreciate it!
#1 - Mash recipe as per normal. Sparge as per normal. Collect in boil pot, cool to 120* and add 2 lbs pale malt. Cover pot and insulate with sleeping bag for 15-18 hours. Boil as per normal.
#2 - Mini mash 1 lbs pale malt. Sparge and collect - allow to cool to 120. Add 1 pound pale malt. Insulate well and let sit 15-18 hours. Add to boil pot with wort from rest of grain bill.
What I know about sour mashing can fit into the palm of my hand, but it seems to me as if the first technique would allow the whole wort to sour. The advantage to the second technique is that I don't have a full batch of wort sitting around for a day and I can sour ahead of time - in essence, it saves me time (as I brew off site and could sour the mash at home so I wouldn't have to make two trips).
Does anybody know if there would be an appreciable difference in taste between the two techiques? If I decide to go with the second technique, I could put the entire sour mash in with the rest of the mash and that might in turn sour the entire thing. But would that run the risk of infecting my MLT with bugs?
As you can see, I've got alot of questions. Anybody who can tackle them, I'd appreciate it!