Second runnings sour mash

Last weekend I brewed a Belgian Quad with a 36lb grain bill, I had my 70qt cool max filled to the top.Sunday after brewing I decided to try to make a sour mash out of the second runnings of the Quad.


I added 7gallons of 150º water to the spent grains raising the temp up to 125 then tosses in a hand full of un-milled grain, and let it sit till yesterday, yes 6 day's. I drained off 5.5 gallons and boiled it with 30g of Saaz at 60 min. I'm not sure what the SG is for the beer, because I'm wondering how the lactic acid would effect my refractometer but, it read 17! I doubt highly that its 1.068. probable more like 1.035.But it has a good clean sour note.

I grew up a starter from the dregs from a bottle of Sierra Nevada killerwisen, and pitched that in to the 4.5 gallons of beer I got out of the kettle.

Fun little experiment, I think Its going to turn out well.

Nice experiment you have goin, I;d love to taste?? Why bother cleaning out the tun when you can just make more.

That's a fantastic idea. My only partigyle was a 13 hour ordeal. I am totally in love with the idea of splitting it between two weekends!

I've been wanting to try a sour mash for a while, that Kentucky common has been on my to do list for a long time. It was really easy.

The thing I want to do next is mash in one evening after work, then do the boil a few day later after work.

how do you think that sour mash would work for a berliner weisse (the one you do for the ky common)?

android said:

how do you think that sour mash would work for a berliner weisse (the one you do for the ky common)?

Click to expand...

I basically followed the method Jamil described in his Berliner weisse, but let it sour a bit longer. I think ideally letting it go overnight to two days would be good for a Berliner. and may be a little longer for the common.

righto, thanks.

that must have smelled absolutely foul when you opened the cooler.

Synovia said:

that must have smelled absolutely foul when you opened the cooler.

Click to expand...

Nah, it was not so bad. I think the lacto mainly took over. It had a definite funk but I've smelled worse.

After three days, of good fermentation. It blew off today...I guess it was a little bigger than I thought. Guess I should have taken a Hydrometer reading.

Is there a flavor difference from sour mashing with verses w/o spent grains? Does sour mashing with spent grains introduce off flavors? I can see how using the spent grains increases the thermal mass, keeping the temperature high longer, making the lactobacillus happier to create lactic acid. Maybe the spent grain provides moe food for the lactobacillus. If you omit the spent grains you can bring the temperature back up to make sure the enzymes are completely deactivated.

Bsquared said:

I basically followed the method Jamil described in his Berliner weisse, but let it sour a bit longer. I think ideally letting it go overnight to two days would be good for a Berliner. and may be a little longer for the common.

Click to expand...

Where might I find the recipe for this Berlinner Weisse of Jamil's?

wetherel said:

Is there a flavor difference from sour mashing with verses w/o spent grains? Does sour mashing with spent grains introduce off flavors? I can see how using the spent grains increases the thermal mass, keeping the temperature high longer, making the lactobacillus happier to create lactic acid. Maybe the spent grain provides moe food for the lactobacillus. If you omit the spent grains you can bring the temperature back up to make sure the enzymes are completely deactivated.

Click to expand...

I just did a Sour mash with fresh grains last Wednesday to Thursday, and it is currently fermenting, so I have not tried it. But my two previous second runnings Sour mashes are close to being done. I tasted the week long and the two day sour mashes and I did not get any off flavors other than the yeast in suspension. But I have not got a completed beer yet to compare the two.

Last week I bottled up the first batch that I soured for a week and fermented with the yeast I cultured from a Sierra Nevada Killerwise. I will be interested to hear what others think of it, but I think is turned out fairly well. The yeast have a vary low ester profile, and attenuated the beer fully.

This beer have a strong sour flavor, with a light caramel finish. The carbonation is at 2.5% helping to accentuate the sour. The head is vary week, and falls off in under a min.

I will be bottling and kegging the other two batches this week, so I'll have to see how they turn out, but so far they don't taste half bad.

Bsquared said:

Last week I bottled up the first batch that I soured for a week and fermented with the yeast I cultured from a Sierra Nevada Killerwise. I will be interested to hear what others think of it, but I think is turned out fairly well. The yeast have a vary low ester profile, and attenuated the beer fully.

This beer have a strong sour flavor, with a light caramel finish. The carbonation is at 2.5% helping to accentuate the sour. The head is vary week, and falls off in under a min.

I will be bottling and kegging the other two batches this week, so I'll have to see how they turn out, but so far they don't taste half bad.

Click to expand...

I look forward to trying it! sounds like it'd be good on a hot day.

So I just put this away in February 2010, Carnevoodoo tasted it back then, and there was a TON of diacetyl in these beers. I had four cases at the time and was a bit too lazy to toss them, but also wanted to see how they aged.

well I have been cracking these beers for a few weeks now, and have to admit I am a bit surprised. They have a good tartness about them, and the diacetyl is for the most part gone, but the high carbonation also helps. But I'm finding them quite drinkable, and refreshing.

I think I'll bring a couple bottles to his B-day bash and see what every one thinks.

Bumping this thread because I too have found this a great and easy way to get a sour beer pipeline going. I did a doble doble for my son's birth using 28 some odd pounds of Belgian Pils and a touch of biscuit malt. After running the main 1.112 (some sugar added) and a second smaller beer, boiling, cooling and pitching; I was spent. I didn't get around to cleaning the mash cooler for a couple of days and when I did I drained off about 1.5 gallons of some pretty cloudy, sour smelling wort. Boiled it up with a touch of hops and pitched with some back up S-05 from the freezer. Came out pretty good, tart, and spritzy. Saving the other 2 that were bottled in 750ml to go a least a year before cracking open.

Now, I am starting to do it on purpose with most of my larger grain bills. I have an American Amber malt bill primaried with WLP530 and now chilling on some Grand Cru and Lost Abbey Gift of the Maji dregs in secondary.

Doing another one today using the combined spend grain from a double batch day of Magic Hat #9 and a Cali Common.