ChiefHophead
Member
As a new homeowner, I'm excited about the prospect of long term aging of sour beer. I have no experience in producing sour beer, so I though I'd consult the HBT brain-trust for advice before proceeding with my plan.
I am not good at waiting for anything. I want to be able to produce good sour beers more quickly than 18 months. Blending appeals to me, because once I have some sour beer I can turn it into more sour beer by mixing with clean bear.
My plan is to get a sanke keg and one of these American Sanke Keg Fermenter Kit with Thermowell
I would fill the sanke with wort and pitch lots of bugs (still working out the best plan to get lots of souring/funk activity, thinking of using Wyeast 3763 - Roeselare Ale Blend). Then I would hide this thing from myself and forget about a year (if that sounds right). From that point on, I would be pulling 1-3 gallons out at a time, replacing them with freshly fermented beer. I would use that 1-3gallons to blend with other freshly fermented beer, oak, fruit, and perhaps acid blends to make all sorts of awesomeness. I have been reading a lot on these forums about these topics, but i'd like to hear what others thing about:
Whats the fastest way to bring the first full sanke to the land of sour and funk? How long are we talking?
How much sour would be required to blend to bring 5 gal to say Rodenbach's flagship sour level or maybe Monk's Cafe level?
I plan to mix reds and browns to and keep good records of what I mix to have a good idea of the current mix in the sanke, is that doable or should I focus on a single style?
Would oak spirals or cubes help? Maybe give the bugs a spot to hang out, like a barrel wall?
How often could I remove say 2.5 of the total 15 gallons and maintain a high level of sourness and funk?
Once I have blended the beers, do they need to age together? Will they develop more character quickly, or will that process be month and months?
Thanks for reading my enormous post to the end, all help and discussion is appreciated.
I am not good at waiting for anything. I want to be able to produce good sour beers more quickly than 18 months. Blending appeals to me, because once I have some sour beer I can turn it into more sour beer by mixing with clean bear.
My plan is to get a sanke keg and one of these American Sanke Keg Fermenter Kit with Thermowell
I would fill the sanke with wort and pitch lots of bugs (still working out the best plan to get lots of souring/funk activity, thinking of using Wyeast 3763 - Roeselare Ale Blend). Then I would hide this thing from myself and forget about a year (if that sounds right). From that point on, I would be pulling 1-3 gallons out at a time, replacing them with freshly fermented beer. I would use that 1-3gallons to blend with other freshly fermented beer, oak, fruit, and perhaps acid blends to make all sorts of awesomeness. I have been reading a lot on these forums about these topics, but i'd like to hear what others thing about:
Whats the fastest way to bring the first full sanke to the land of sour and funk? How long are we talking?
How much sour would be required to blend to bring 5 gal to say Rodenbach's flagship sour level or maybe Monk's Cafe level?
I plan to mix reds and browns to and keep good records of what I mix to have a good idea of the current mix in the sanke, is that doable or should I focus on a single style?
Would oak spirals or cubes help? Maybe give the bugs a spot to hang out, like a barrel wall?
How often could I remove say 2.5 of the total 15 gallons and maintain a high level of sourness and funk?
Once I have blended the beers, do they need to age together? Will they develop more character quickly, or will that process be month and months?
Thanks for reading my enormous post to the end, all help and discussion is appreciated.
