Stages of Lambic

So I have two batches of lambic going, both were brewed using the same recipe (see picture below). The batch on the left is about 7 months old, the batch on the right is about a month old. I plan to blend them when the oldest reaches 12 months then add fruit. It's curious to me that the color is completely different between the two lambics, even though I used the same recipe for both. The 7 month batch sat in the primary for 6 months until the pellicle fell. I will say that it already tastes delicious. The one month batch is still in the primary. Is this change in color typical with age? I don't really remember how dark the older batch was when I pitched.

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Are you sure they're the exact same recipe? It definitely doesn't look like it, even taking yeast into account.

The only differences were water and mash temp. I used spring water and mashed in at a lower temp with the second batch, the result was better efficiency. Could this effect color?

I pitched Wylabs Lambic Blend into both batches.

My initial thought was oxidation, but it doesn't taste particularly oxidized.

Huh, that's a pretty significant color difference. Is it possible that maybe you used white/flaked/torrified wheat for one and a darker red wheat for the other? That, or maybe you got some kettle carmelization early in the boil on one batch...

I suppose a difference in wheat is possible, but only if my LHBS had it mislabeled.

Caramelization seems like it could be possible, but nothing about the beer tastes burnt.

mikeosoft said:

I suppose a difference in wheat is possible, but only if my LHBS had it mislabeled.

Caramelization seems like it could be possible, but nothing about the beer tastes burnt.

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Well, it could darken without burning, but did you do a turbid mash and a 3-4 hr boil? Was the wort for both batches a similar color before fermentation?

They are not the same. You used darker malts in the later one.

Calder said:

They are not the same. You used darker malts in the later one.

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It does look really, really dark for a grain bill of pils & wheat

Just a batch sparge and a 1hr boil.

I'm certain that it was just pils and wheat.

Come to think of it, I did "age" the hops in the oven for the first batch at a low temp (150F). Could this have added color?

The color of the second batch is right on. The first batch looks more like a Flanders red.

There no way those two beers have exactly the same grain bill. Did you mix the grains or did someone at the LHBS? Ive had a couple times where they completely messed up getting me grains, luckily I was watching and told them

Of course this is going to turn out to be the finest beer you've ever brewed, and you will not know what the grain bill was exactly, and therefore never be able to replicate it.

I am also on the bandwagon that there is different malts between those two. I also think it could be attributable to the older using red wheat and the younger white wheat. It's not the end of the world, the flavor is not that different. It will probably add some nice subtle malt complexity to the blend.

I do know that my lambic darkens just a little over time. I went and compared some 15 month old to 3 month old. The older lambic is a little darker even though I know the same grains (pilsner malt and red wheat malt) in the same proportions from the same maltster was used. I think beer will naturally get a little darker over time although I forget why I read it happens. Maybe micro-oxygenation plays a role.

One other thing to consider is that the older beer is probably fairly clear so when taking the picture the light passed through the beer but the younger beer is more cloudy so it reflects light and appears lighter. That probably has a lot to do with the color difference as well.

mlg5039 said:

Of course this is going to turn out to be the finest beer you've ever brewed, and you will not know what the grain bill was exactly, and therefore never be able to replicate it.

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Haha, you're probably right!

I weighed and milled the grains myself, so the only way the grain bill got mixed is if the boxes were mislabeled (it's certainly possible).

Apache is correct about the old beer being much more clear than the young beer. I could see that playing a role also, but they seem to have two distinctly different colors.

Thanks for all the comments. It seems that the general consensus is that the grain bills must not be the same. I tend to agree. I wasn't sure if it was something specific to sours since this is my first one.

I would pull a small amount of each one and put them in a smaller glass. The color difference in bulk like that will be drastic as has already been discussed. I bet they're closer in color than you think. Plenty of my saisons look very pale and light in the beginning then appear to darken as they drop clear. I think you have nothing to worry about.

What color was the older beer when it first started fermenting? Another thought that I havent heard on here is yeast autolysis. I've seen beers darken as autolysis kicks in. In a lambic the brett should use it as food, so I wouldn't worry too much about off flavors. Obviously you said it tasted good, so I wouldn't worry.